Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1882-08-25
REPRESENTATION IN PARllA-
MENT.


HOW Ihey Manage Ihlhss III FhKihhu.
capt. Mayne Reid in the New York Tribune
The members who more especially rep
resent it are termed county members, y
TO distinguish them from those who sit
for the corporate towns or borronghs,
called "borrough members" OF the for
mer there are 2S3, and the latter 3GO,
which with nine representing universities,
make up the house Of commons, in all
$50. Thus in point of numbers, the
English people are better represented in
their national Legislature than those of
the United States, but i'll other respects
worse-indeed, not represented at ali, as
| shall presently show.
Within the walls of parliament there is
no difference between II county and II bor
ough member, either in power or priv
ileges; the yea or nay Of the one being
Just as good as that of the other. But
whether inside or out, the county member
considers himself above the borough
one, and 80 generally regarded. In some
of the shires toryism controls the voting
strength, in others the whig element has
the upper hand while in some it is about
equally balanced between them. But
whichever be in the ascendant, the par
liamentary representation of county is
practically vested in three or four of its
leading families, who look upon it as a
sort of heirloom and patrimonial right
When divided, the sharing is done in n
friendly give-and- way, as "you have
one of the seats, I the other" For it is
to be observed that most counties send
two members to parliament, some even
three, while few of the less populated
ones have only single representative.
1t may be asked how the county con-
stituences are thus exclusively controlled
by few aristocratic families. The an
swer is that the bulk of country people
having the franchise are tenant farmers,
whose interest it is to vote rs their land
lords direct them. verhanging over their
heads, as the sword OF Damocles, are pos
sibilities OF increased rent, and probabili-
ties of back term unpaid, with visions
of sales under the statnte of distress, OF
other like disagreeables And az their
landlords are, almost to man, territorial
magnates, the central figures and strength
of aristocracy itself, it will be easily I'M
derstood how it is with shire representa-.
tion. Just now the landed power is less
than 1t over had been, having received n
rude shock and check from the depressed
state of agriculture, which, while impov-
erishing the farmer, has to some extent
released him from his political thraldom.
A curious fact of enfranchisement and
and apparently paradox of this, never.
theless a substantial truth, comprehensi.
BILE as the defiance born of penury and
despair. With thousands of farms I'M.
tenanted and begging occupation, the
farmer has the whip hand of his landlord
and may vote as it pleases him. Bnt
how long will this last? Not likely foi
any length of time, unless the depression
itself continue. 1t is almost certain that
return Of prosperity would re-excite land
hunger and bring things back into their old
grooves and channels. So far, the politi
! cal disturbance has been slight. and the
, change as regards parliamentary repre-
sentation scarcely appreciable.
. True, not all county members are bret
: and born patricians for not all of til,
counties are controlled by the farmers
, vote. Some are in populous mining dis
| tricts, while into others extend the sub
} nrbs of cities, over which tower tai
: smoking chimneys-the homes of manu-
! facturers and well-to-do mechanics, als'
7 endowed with the franchise. In these tn
balance of voting power, wrested from
patrician grasp, is in the hands of TIN
: real people. Such constituencies, how
! ever, are not numerous and, strange t.
: say, neither do they always favor candi
a dates Of their own social order instea,
Y rather those of class above them
r Ceteris paribus the man Of title barone
h or lord-stands better chance with them
!, aye, far better than he who has no handl
| to his name. Richard Cobden, who rep
: resented one of these piebald count
o constituencies--the West Riding of York
d shire-said, and said justly, that, in thi
8 regard, society had nothing to fear fror
the encroachments of democracy, as "fr'
+, side iealousies" his phrase, il remen
t Der aright-would always restrain an III
h due intrusion of the proletarian elemel
into parliament, or other posts of homo
| had the honor of acquaintance with til
it great apostle of free trade, and ha,
e heard this from his own lips wore
r made public ut the time. But thong
), that was quarter OF a century ago, the
Y still hold good indeed, judging by Il