The Sun.
London, England, 1842-07-28 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY MORNING, JULY 28, 1842.

ELECTION COMMITTEE.
IPSWICH.
The Committee met again yesterday morning at the
usual hour, P. M. STE wART, Esq., in the Chair.
Mr. KINGLAKt resumed his address. The first case
he would call the attention of the Committee to was that
bf William lytht, who was brought, from Harwich to
Vote; hut received 30s. for his expenses. He thought
that no ingenuity of his Learned Friend would satisfy
the Committee that payments' of this kind did not vacate
the seats of the sitting Members. With regard to War-
ren, who came from Woodbridge to vote, and knowing
the consequences, had adroitly availed himself of the
hackneyed terms, "travelling expenses and loss of time,"
to justify the payment of money to him—if this trans-
action were an honest one, why did he use the term
travelling expenses, when he had not paid one shilling
towards such expenses ? If Blythe and Warren were
entitled to 30s. each, so was every other voter in the bo-
rough ; and there being a constituency of 1,700, an elec-
tion would cost 1,100/. or 1,200/. Then Emanuel Bax-
ter had been promised his " legal expenses" by Mr.
Bond, and Robert Jobson Taylor had received 65., while
his daily wages were only 2s. Bd. Upon what plea did
this man receive 65.? His wages had not been stopped
by the directors of the Orion, and on the day of election
he had his usual work. Where then was the slightest
pretext for paying this man ? Did not these facts show
the system adopted by the agents of the sitting Mem-
bers ? There was in addition, a systematic course of
treating carried on amongst the voters. This was proved
by what took place at the Salutation and the King's
Arms. On this point" the evidence of Bowman was
most important, for he was not content with what he had
received at the King's Arms, but he went to the Smack,
where he found, in addition to beer, there was something
more substantial, in the shape of beef steaks. Bowman
there found the place crowded with voters, and with
their wives and children, all of whom were drinking.
There could not be more important evidence. That the
agents of the sitting Members were cognisant of these
transactions, was proved by the fact of Bristce's being
present at the King's Arms, when the breakfast was given
there on the morning of the election ; and Mr. Arthur
Bott Cooke being also present at the Waggon and Horses,
with a number of voters. It was shown by the declara-
tion of Mr. Frewin, that his wife had agreed with Mr.
Arthur Bott Cooke for the breakfasts at the Waggon
and Horses, for 20/. ; and that Mr. A. B. Cooke paid the
money, after the election. If this could be disproved,
why did not Mr. Cooke come forward and deny the fact?
Under all these circumstances, he (Mr. Kinglake) would
ask whether the bulk of the evidence was not fully suf
ficient to show that treating had gone on, at this elec-
tion, at the Salution, the King's Arms, the Waggon and
Horses, and at the Smack, and incidentally at the Globe,
the Cock and Pie, and the White' Lion ? Refreshment
tickets were illegal, as the Judges, and every eminent
writer on election law, had laid it down that under no
condition, with no object, pure or unpure, just or unjust,
should any expense be incurred, after the teste of the
writ. The Learned Gentleman then quoted a number of
cases, in support of his argument. It might be contended
on behalf of the sitting Member, that if any expense bad
been incurred, such expense had been incurred without
their knowledge. But Mr. Josselyn, in his evidence,
deposed that Mr. Gladstone said to Mr. George Ridley,
that he and his Noble Colleague had come down with
" the express understanding that they were not in any
way to sanction the illegal expenditure of money." Now
he (Mr. Kinglake) would.like to have heard a declara-
tion from Mr. Gladstone, that " he did not come down
to expend any money at all." How could Mr.
Gladstone expect that things would be conducted pro-
perly when he entrusted the management of a part of his
election to Mr. Arthur Bott Cooke, who had before been
convicted of bribery ? At any rate this was an act of in-
discretion, and 'showed that he was not very well ac-
quainted with the manner in which elections were con-
ducted in Ipswich. He would then turn to the question
of agency. The Learned Counsel then read at great
length quotations from Rogers and other writers on elec-
tion law. He would therefore submit, on this authority,
that the authority to pay non-resident voters
was proof of ' general agency. This the other party
would have to answer. They found, from the evidence,
that Bristoe, Cooke, and Steward, had met together, day
by day, to sum up the canvass ; that they too voters to
the poll, and gave them refreshment at the differentinns ;
and that, after the election, they assembled together at a
Committee-room, used at previous elections, they being
the only persons known or acting together, with the au-
thority and on behalf of the sitting Members, and the
latter, having taken advantage of acts done, must answer
for the consequence. If it had not been for Arthur
Butt Cooke, Bristoe, and Steward, would Mr. Gladstone
and Lord Desert have been the sitting Members ? The
election had not been fair and honourable, but had been
brought about by improper practices. With regard to
the smallness of the bribes, he thought that made the
case worse, as there was not half the demoralising effect
in a large bribe as a small one, for the small bribe was
generally given to the poor indigent voter. He had con-
cluded his address, and he should sit down in perfect
confidence of his having fully made out his case on the
part of the petitioners. The onus of disproving the
case would be upon his Learned Friend, but he thought
the facts adduced M ould sit heavy upon him. lie
might, he thought, use the old and well-known quotation,
Post equitenn redet atra aura. He apologised for having
so long detained the Committee, but the evidence being
so voluminous, he had felt it his duty to go as fully into
it as he had done, and he would again express his con-
fidence in having made out the case for the petitioners.
Mr. AUSTIN then rose to address the Committee on
behalf of the sitting Members. He said that his Learned
Friend had spoken for six or seven hours, and had left
him to follow before a jaded audience, upon points dull,
or dullness itself. If he (Mr. Austin) occupied their
attention a day, so much the more would be the merit
of the Committee, but he trusted they would not listen
in vain. He would first of all ask upon what ground of
law did his Learned Friend support the petition? He did
not for a moment quarrel with the course taken by his
Learned Friend ; what he complained of was that his
Learned Friend had not given the Committee a principle
on which to adjudicate. They would find it to be im-
portant to the sitting Members. It would also be found
important to the constituency of Ipswich with reference
to the charge preferred by the petitioners as well as with
reference to the fact that the vacancy occuring at the
last general election in that town had been filled up.
It was important also, particularly to the Chairman,
with reference to the circumstance of his having presided
in 1835 upon a former Ipswich Election Committee, as
well as to his not having sat as Chairman on the
last Ipswich Election Committee. The former fact
rendered him of course unavoidably acquainted with
the names introduced upon • this occasion, and which
would render him liable to have his mind
biassed by the mere repetition of those names. What
the Committee had to do—and every member would act
accordingly—was this, not to consider the fact that the
election of Mr. Wason and Mr. Rennie was the other
day set aside on he ground of bribery and corruption,
nor would they have to consider the fact that Mr.
Arthur B. Cooke had, according to the memory of
the Hon. Chairman, been formerly sent to Newgate for
disobedience of the Speaker's warrant, but they would
alone consider the terms of the petition lying on the
table—the charges it contained—the evidence ad-
duced—and confine themselves altogether to the
merits of the case. The only question was as to the va-
lidity of the election in June last. He (Mr. Austin)
believed that there never was an election in the town of
Ipswich which was less subject to the imputation of cor-
ruption. He believed that their opponents knew this
perfectly well. He said the election was not obtained
by bribery and treating. Whether they were to look at
the conduct of Mr. Bristoe with reference to two or
three votes, or whether they were to go into the count-
ing-house NV here the directors of the Orion at once car-
ried on the business of plying by steam between London
and Ipswich and soliciting the votes of their dependents,
failing as they did, and as they deserved to do, inasmuch
as the offence of intimidation was a ten thousand times
worse offence than that of bribery and treating, he
said the election was not obtained either by bribery,
or by treating, or by intimidation, and there-
fore could not be set aside upon those grounds.
Bribery was of two kinds. Authorities on the subject
said that an election might be made void by a general
system of corruption, though the parties returned were
not cognizant of the system that was going on; and if no
general bribery was committed, yet if particular acts of
bribery were committed the sitting Members might lose
their seats. The Learned Counsel then went at consi-
derable length into the law on the subject of bribery,
and cited several cases to show that travelling expenses
were legal at elections. and had been allowed by former
Committees. Why, he would venture to say that if the
payment of travelling expenses were considered as bri-
bery there would not be found in the House of Commons
seven Members to try petitions against the other Mem-
bers. Why, on their own Committees on election peti-
tions had not the Members to pay the expenses of a
witness ? Suppose lie were a physician, who came to
give evidence respecting a man who had hung himself,
and thus rid the world of ,a nuisance.—(Laughter)—
they would have to pay that physician a guinea a day
for his services, even though that man might never have
earned a guinea in a day in his life.—(Laughter.) How
then could they. say that the travelling expenses at this
election were given as bribere. He said that to consti-
tute bribery there must have been a contract either
direct or implied. There .had been no such thing
proved, because no such thing ever existed.
It being now four o'clock the Committee adjourned till
eleven o'clock to-day.

PARLIAMENTARY DIVISIONS.
(From the Votes and Proceedings nf the Houser,' Commons.)
BIRMIAGHAM SCHOOL BILL.
DIVISION' ON MR. WYSE'S CLAUSE.

LAMENTABLE CATASTROMIE-SEVEN LIVES LOST.
—Sheerness was on Monday thrown into a slate of excitement
in consequence of the following melancholy and distressing ac-
cident. The steam-packet Sheerwater, which arrived at
Sheerness (Monday) for the purpose of getting a supply of
provisions and stores, had occasion to send the Captain's gig,
with Mr. Thomas Corral, the surgeon, Lieut. Cudlip, and srx
men to Chatham dockyard for stores, and when they arrived
at the point in Folly or Pincup Reach, a sudden squall ran the
mainsheet of the lugsail through the man's hand who was at-
tending to the sheet ; the after-leech of the sail flew forward
end fouled round the halyards and mast, by which the sail was
thrown a-back, the boat capsized, and the six m.-on and Mr.
Corral, the surgeon, were unfortunately drowned. When the
Captain's pig capsized, Lieut. Cudlip caught hold of the back-
board, by which he kept himself afloat for nearly three-quarters
of an hour, when he was rescued from death by the Captain
and crew of the steam-packet Queen Victoria, she then being
on her passage from Rochester to Sheerness. Lieut. Cudlip,
when picked up, was in a very exhausted state, but shortly
re6overed himself. Ele was put to bed in the master's berth,
and on the Queen Victoria's arrival at Sheerness, he was taken
on board the Shearwater.

BRUSSELS JULY 23.—The Moniteur publishes a
general view Of the principal results of the foreign commerce of
Belgium, in the year 1841. Importations—Total value im-
ported, 227,220,650 francs ; of which 169,246,726 by sea, viz.
52,550,479 in Belgian ships, and 116,696,247 in foreign ships.
Of the goods imported there were from England, including
Gibraltar, Malta, and the lonian Islands, to the value of
166,263,721 francs.
Thci. Mmiteur Parisien of Monday evening says •
•, It appears to be-Certain that the King will open the session
in person on the 26th inst."