The Russellville Democrat., 1880-03-25
"FAGOTiNG.'
A Peculiar Election Process Only to be Foud in the Heart of Mid Lothian
 Gladstone's Supporters II...- s..
FV ~ Boston Journal

DUotoH JOufnhl.t
 i'Fagoting"is a process peculiar to En- glish electioneering contests and un- known in politics on this side of the wa ter, because of the differences which ex- ist between English and American cen. ditions of suffrage. "Fagots" are bundles of voters who, sympathizing with the political views of some landowner, ac- quire from him enough land to qualify for them for the. local franchise. The transaction is open and the land actually changes hands, but 1t is no secret that after the contest is over the ownership is to revert to the former possessor. The process is not unlike that, of "coloniza- tion," sometimes attempted by politicians in tbis country, by which voters are dis tributed where they will do the most good, under a tecnical compliance with the conditions of citizenship. In the Scotch borough of Mid Lothian, which MT, Gladstone is to contest with the Duke of Buccleuch, the utmost activity prevails among both political parties, and the conservatives are making every effort to increase their strength by the manu- fracture of ''fagot" voters.
 The Duke of Buccleuch is no orator, and the eloquent campaign of Mir. Glad stone alarmed him by it's energy and vehemences But he has an abundance of land, which he is ready to cut up and temporarily convey so as to advance his interest. The liberal managers have been put to their wits end by the "fagot- ing" device of their opponents. Having denounced the device bitterly, 1t was, of course, not open to them to adopt it themselves, but they have hit upon a very ingenious plan, which has a lean- ing in the same direction. s
 The Edinburgh correspondent of the London Times reports that an extraord- mary building enterprise is, in progress in the suburbs of that city, which is of singular character for midwinter. Any one who strolls through Dairy-road. little to the west of the city, finds blocks of dwelling houses which are being run up with lightning speed. From night fall to dawn there is just the same hustle and activity as from dawn to night, the work being pushed on by the aid of arti- ficiel lights. The uninformed spectator would be further surprised by the pres ence of groups of lookers-on, who oc-. casionally encourage the workmen by rounds of cheers for Gladstone. The secret of the whole matter is that the liberal menagers have undertaken the erection of these blocks of dwellings in order to secure for their future residents the privileges. of the sufferage. English courts have lately decided that houses owned by members of building societies fully qualify their owners as voters. These houses will be thus owned, and there are ten blocks of them, each four stories high and containing accomoda- tions for sixteen families The houses are not to be occupied before May, but in order to have their owners admitted to the new registry of voters, it was neces- sary that they should be so far advanced as to have the requisite ratable value be- fore January 31. ,3 .5s, 4.-f-. ..5,t. To secure this result 300 workmen were employed, under charge of four contract ers, and the force was divided into day shifts and night shifts so as to lose no time. The liberals deny that their un- dertaking is analogous to "fagotin," and it is fact that for the 160 houses there are alread 370 applicants, the cheapness of the houses and their proximity to the city making them very desirable invest ments for working men.
 The cost of material and labor is so low that the houses will be built with comparatively small outlay, and there will bea further saving in the rate of taxation. ff 4e sf .s-
 The scheme certainly differs from 'fagoting" in the very important par ticular that it is bona tide creation and sale of property by actual buyers, in stead of trick of temporary transfer. There seems to be some ground for the claim which the promoters of the scheme make that theirs is contrivance for restoring to their constituency the natu- ral balance which "fagotinS" has dis turbed. At all events it is tolerably certain that these new houses, which are being erected with such startling rapidi- ty, will not be occupied by conservatives; and in contest so close as that in Mid Lothian is likely to be, l60 votes may count for good deal. .,.,..,- t... ...