The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1857-09-24
From the Commercial Advertiser, OF September l
ELEcTI0EEERING IN ENGLAND.


the London" Quarterly Rerieo-for July has
very interesting paper on electioneering prac-
| tees in England. The reviewer himself seems
to have been a candidate for seat in the pres
ent British Parliament at the election last spring,
but whether a successful one or not, does not
appear. But he evidently writes con 0mOre,
probably with the exciting events of the contest
fresh in his memory AS with us, so in Eng.
land, electioneering is not only a political and
social activity, " it Is an art, and it is even
game The1e it has produced class of men,
| an exact counterpart of whom is unknown to
u.s.. They make electioneering a profession,
and seem positively to have a genius for it.
They are most at home In an election contest.
1t IS true that they know the wires," ard yet
| they are not the " wire pullers" whose secret
maneuvres and Vaccinations have so much to
do with our elections. They operate openly,
vlslbly, and directly. 1t is their business to
manage the election" and they are well
known as electioneering agents. Formerly, no
| candidate thought of entering upon solid
election contest without such an agent, who was
generally legal gentleman, and the practice,
we believe, prevails generally to this day. This
agent Is first sent down to the constituency to
prepare the way for the candidates personal
canvassing of the voters, and he is at the can.
didate's side during that canvass, on the day of
with his counsel and his aid. BE will do many
things that the candidate himself would not feel
at liberty to do.
This custom of personally visiting the voters
and asking them individually for their votes
seems to have been introduced into England
about a century and half ago. Formerly, it was
the custom for one of the aristocracy, desiring
for himself or for a prOtege seat in Parliament,
to address letter to each voter, directing or
com msnding him to vote according to the
writer's wishes. A step in advance of this ap-
pears to have been frat taken by Lord Warton,
famed for his success as electioneering can
vssser. 1t is said that he generally managed
to return from twenty to thirty of his own nom-
nees to Parliament, "by brilliant activity, the
expenditure of thousands of pounds, and occA-
sional duels."
In the Parliamentary election of 1905, be
spent upwards of sixty thousand dollars, but yet
owed his success mainly to his faculty of person
ally canvassing. The two candidates then nomi
mated by him for the borough of Wicomb, were
opposed by two set up by the High Church
party. He promptly appeared in person at the
scene of the contest, 6 to make his interest with
the voters entered the lowliest dwellings, with
an irresistible 6onhOmmie, shook the hand of
the voter and the voters wife, caressed the
children, inquired after absent members ex-
10,
this, and asked, as not Jimmy breeched yet?"
concluding with inviting himself to &" drink
glass with the delighted pafer .familiQs, and
thus effectually drove his opponents from the
contest, and carried the borough for his own
nominees without further contest. Il will be
remembered that the poet Cowper describes
very similar proceedings on the part of Mr..
Granville in 1884.
Hogsrth's sstirical pictures of English cleo.
tioR proceedings have made us familiar with
the extraordinary scenes enacted in his day.
Bribery seems to have always been an accom-
paniment of these elections. In the reipn of
George II, this, and the generally riotous char
scter of election proceedings, were become 80
notorious, that an act was passed to correct
both evils, which, however, like similar legisla.
ton before and since, utterly failed to accom-.
pllsh Its design. 1t is a noticeable fact that
some sixty petitions against the returns of
members on account of bribery have been be-
fore the present British Parliament, and seve-
raj of them have already been prosecuted to
success. Undoubtedly, bribery is more disrep-
utable now than formerly, and what was once
done openly is now done secretly; but the
practice continues, and many amusing devices
are employed to detect it. Some years ago, at
an election in North Britain, one of the parties
strongly suspected voter of having taken a
keen opponent resolved to attempt his de.
lection, and, as he approached the poll, whis-
pered sharply IN his ear, They're making a
fool of you, Jack; they're all bad" The man.
taken of his guard, exclaimed, "The scoun.
drels," and dashed handful of bank bills on
the table. They we're at once impounded bv
the authorities, and the voter forfeited his fran
chise. In other cases, fabulous prices have
been given for canary birds, sc; but the com.
monest form of evading the law and its penalty
was, to address q voter thus: I'll bet you FIVE
guineas, and stake the money in your hands,
that you do not vote for Mr. =" Ozone"
says the voter, who receives the money, votes
tor the person named, and so secures his bet
and his bride.
The expenses of an English election have
always been enormous, and defeated candidates
have often Immediately afterward appeared
IN the gazette" having become bankrupt. A
large portion of the expense consisted in bring
ing up "freemen" ~ 10 vote from all parts of
Inc country where they happened to be settled,
the right to vote in the borough of which thew
are FREQ not being destroyed by non residence.
On this account, the borough or city of Lincoln
could not be carried at less expenditure than
sixty thousand dollars for each candidate. The
famed Mr.. Wllberforce's first election, at Hull.
cost forty hVe thousand dollars At the present
1oJ1 IL oOHo VI 1no CounUes, and In nearly all
he large towns and cities, the practice, we be.
lleve, is, for the political friends of the candi
date to bear hls expenses, which are met BY
SUBSCRIPTION. 1t ID In what are called the coun-
ty elections that the most astonishing expendi.
ures are Incurred by the candidates. or their
friends. Into these conflicts, rival aristocratic
families frequently enter with entire abandon
ment, utterly regardless of expense. Family
PRIDE and honor are at stake, and in later DAYS
wealthy commoners have entered the field
against members of feudal families that from
time immemorial have claimed and enioyed all
the honors the county could bestow. Thus in
1907, Mr.. Wilberforce fought and won perhaps
The costilest election contest ever fought in
England or elsewhere, carrying Yorkshire
against the FitzWillam and Hardwood inter
ests, two aristocratic houses of great antiquity
and almost incredible wealth and influence.
The polling continued for fifteen DAYS. long be.
fore which time not vehicle was to be hired
In the county. So highly was the popular en-
thusiasm excited, that hundreds trudged for
miles on foot to cast their votes The other
candidates were the sons of Earl Fitwilliam
and Lord Hardwood, and the expenses of each,
Tor transporting voters alone, were five hundred
thousand dollars 1t is estimated that the
| total expenses were two million and half of
dollars, of which Mr.. Wiloerforce's share was
raised by subscription. His was the lightest.
rs many of his friends bore their own ex.
penses.
The rau;auar