The Sun.
London, England, 1820-06-21 00:00:00

LICHFIELD PETITION.

A Petition of the Bailiffs and Citizens, Magistrates, Free-
holders, Burgage-holders, and Freemen, of the City of Lich-
field, was presented, and read; setting forth, that the Peti-
tioners, sensible of the blessings to be enjoyed under a free
Government, are firmly attached to the principles of the Bri-
tish Constitution, and although they would discountenance
and resist any attempts to accomplish a visionary Reform in
the House, they are convinced that the security of persons
and property, and of their invaluable Constitution, depend
upon the dignity and respectability of the flouse• and its

fietng justly tiOnst•S-a"-...:!tiff repreitntielg the people ; that by
an Act passed in the 7th and Btit years of King William the
Third, for further regulating the Elettions of Members tb
serve in Parliament, and other purposes, all conveyances of
any messuages, lands,- tenements, eir hereditaments, in any
County, City, Borough, Totten Corporate, Port, or Place, in
order to multiply voices, or to split arid divide the interest In
any houses or lands among several persons, to enable them
to vote at Elections of Members to serve in Parliament are
declared to be void and of none effect ; and it was enacted
that no more than one single voice should be admitted for
one and the same house or tenement c that, by an Act passed
in the 10th year of her late Majesty Queen Anne, for the
more effectual preventing fraudulent Conveyantes, in order
to multiply votes for electing Knights of Shires to serve in
Parliament, after reciting the last-mentioned Act, and that,
notwithstanding the provision therein to the contrary, many
fraudulent and scandalous practices had been used of late to
create and multiply votes at the election of Knights of the
Shire to rervc in Parliament, to the great abuse of the -an-
cient Law and custom of that part of Great Britain called
England, to the great injury of those persons who had just
right to elect, and in prejudice of the freedom of such Elec-
tions; therefore, fur the preventing of such undue practices,
it was enacted that all estates and conveyances whatsoever,
made to any per Son or trersoos In any fraudulent or collinlve
manner, on /I,lrp.Se to qualify him or them to give his or
their vote or votes at such Elections of Knights of the Shire
(subject-Ile, erthelesS to conditions Of agreements), to defeat
or determine such estate, or to re-convey the same, should be
deemed and taken against those persons who executed the
sapieas free and absolute ; Anil, by an Act passed in the 13th
year of the reign of King George the Second, the provisions
contained in the said Act of the 10th-year of Queen Anne are
extended to such lands or tenements, fur or in respect of
which any persons should vote for the Elia:thin of any Mem-
ber to serve in Parliament for any City or Town being a
County of itself, in that part Of Great Britain called Eng-
land.; that by au Act passed in the thiro year of the reign of
his late Majesty King George the Third, to prevent fraudu-
lent and ocea-sional votes in the Election of Knights of the
Shire, and of :Members for Cities and Towos sshich are
Counties of themselves, so far as relates to-the right of voting
by virtue of an annuity or rent-charge, it is enacted that,
from and after the tat day of Augdst, 1734, no person should
vote at any Election of a Knight or Knights of the Shire, or
of any Citizen or Citizeus, Burgess or Bur geesta, of any such
City or Town, for or in respect of alit annuity or rent charge
to be granted after the Ist day of Jame, 1;63, unless a memo-
riaFthereof should he registered in a public office as therein
mentioned twelve yakod or months at least before the first day
of such Election; that the right of voting in Elections of
Members of Parliament to: the City of Lichfield, is in the
Bailiffs, Magistrates, Freeholders of forty shillings a year, all
that hold by lirtigage tenure, and in such Freemen only of
the said City as are enrolled, paying scot and lotahere; that in
the year 1799 the total number of freeholders in the said City,:
exclusive of horgage holders, was estimated at about three
hundred, of whom forty only, or thereabouts, were free-
holders, in respect of rent charges of from forty shillings to.
three pounds a year, granted out of lands; that the Act of the
7th and Bth of King.Williatu the Third, nut extending to rent,
charges, and the Act of the 3d year of hi; late Majesty requir-
ing there only to he- tegistered, still left an opening fur the
multiplication of votes in a way hitherto not guarded against;
that contrary to the spirit of the Constitutiou and the roani-
fest intention of the Legislature in passing the said Acts of
the 7th and Bth of King William the Third, and 'the 10th of
Queen Anne, and in order to create a preponderating influ-
ence in two noble families in the Election of:Members of Par-
liament for the said City, above six, hundred annuities or
rent charges, not exceeding two pounds two shillings per an-
nunfeach, issuing out of lanas• in the City and County of
Lichfield, were, between the years 1799 and 1813, grant-
ed by Peers of the Realm, and many small pieces of laud
have also, since the year 1799, been conveyed by them,
for the term of life only, to their friends, tenants; and
dependents, almost all of whom were strangers to the
City, and many of them living in distant parts of the King-
dorn,to the injury of the constitutional freedom of Election,
in the City of Lichfield, in abuse of the Laws relating to
the rdectioo of Mertilwers of Parliament, andlrendering nugato-
ry the said ',cited Acts the Petitioners therefore humbly
pray the House, that the said Act of the 7th and Bth years of
King William way be further autended, and the provisiohs
thereof extended soils to render void all:grants of annuities, or
rent-charges and estates for life, and •all other grants and
conveyances made for the purpose of creating or obtanting
an undue and unconstitutional influence io the Elation of
Members- of Parliament, or that such ot-her measures
may be adopted as in the wisdom'of the House shall ap-
pear necessary to remove the evil • complained of, and
restore to the Constitutional Electors of the City of Lichfield
the full mod free exercise of their Elective Fraochise, for
which the Laws hitherto caacted for securing the freedom of
Elections have not adequately provided.

From the LONDON GAZETTE of June 20.

Crown-Of/ice, .I,nr 19, 1820.
Members returned to serve in tins presentPArliament.

Borough of Saltash.—John Fleentini, of Gloucester- pilec
the County of Nlidtlieseit; Esq., in the room of Michael
George Pendergast, Esq.
Borough of Oak lianipton.---The Hon. John Campbell,.cum-
monly called Lout Clenorchy, of Taymouth. Castle, in the
County of Perth, iii North. Britain, in the room of Albany
Esq.