Oct. 14. 1854.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



297 



LONDON, SATURDAY, OCTOBER U. 1854. 



EARLIEST MENTION OF " THE BALLOT." 



On lookino; over some family papers, a few 

 days ago, P. C. S. S. found an Interesting letter 

 from Mr. Egerton (apparently an Essex gentle- 

 man) to his friend Mr. R. Browne, of Great Chart, 

 near Ashford in Kent. The letter does not bear 

 the date of the year in which it was written ; but 

 from the mention made therein of the Dutch Com- 

 missioners to confer with the East India Company, 

 it must have been in one of the latter years of 

 King James I., as it appears from Sir Dudley 

 Carleton's letters that the Commissioners re- 

 turned to Holland in 1619. The letter is curious, 

 a.s containing perhaps the earliest mention of the 

 ballot, of which we have heard so much, and may 

 probably hear more. Notwithstanding the im- 

 partiality in matters of election which it is sup- 

 posed to insure, it would seem that, on this 

 occasion, the royal influence over the East India 

 Company was dextrously and successfully exerted 

 on behalf of Sir Thomas Smythe, who enjoyed a 

 large share of his Majesty's favour. He was uncle 

 to the first Viscount Strangford, and (as well 

 before as after his return from his embassy to 

 B,ussia in 1604), filled many important public 

 employments, connected more especially with 

 the trade and navigation of these realms. His 

 monument, at Sutton-at-Hone, in Kent, where he 

 died in 1621, records his long and meritorious 

 services in a singularly quaint and amusing (if not 

 very poetical) inscription. This branch of the 

 Smythe family became extinct on the death, in 

 1778, of Sir Sydney Stafford Smythe, Chief Baron 

 of the Exchequer. 



While on the subject of the ballot, P. C. S. S. 

 may perhaps be allowed to mention, that Mr. 

 Egerton's letter, now cited, is in direct contradic- 

 tion to the statement made by Toland, in his 

 edition of the Woriis of Harrington, the author of 

 2'he Oceana (folio, London, 1700), who attributes 

 to Harrington the merit (?) of having invented or 

 introduced that contrivance for securing the safety 

 and freedom of election ; whereas it is clear, from 

 Egerton's letter, that it had been practised at least 

 forty years before. The words of Toland are 

 remarkable : 



" To aid the propagation of his theory, he established, 

 in 1659, a political debating society called thQ Rota, which 

 met nightly at Miles's Coffee House in New Palace Yard, 

 Westminster. Their debates were spirited, and the sense 

 of the meeting was taken by ballot ; which mode being 

 first invented or introduced by them, drew crowds to the 

 room every evening. This society was dissolved at the 

 Restoration ; and Harrington, having rendered himself 



obnoxious by his anti-monarchical principles, was ar- 

 rested," &c. 



See also Birch, and Wood's Athence. P. C. S. S. 



" IMMANUEL. 



" Being now shortly to goe into the country, 

 where I shalbe more remote fro you, and have 

 lesse occasion to write unto you, I thought good 

 by theis few lynes to salute you. The best newes 

 I ca write you is, y* it pleaseth God to continue in 

 a gracious measure, health to o' cittie, prsh, and 

 family. I humbly beseech hi to give us grace 

 wel to impve and imploy o' health, and so teach 

 us to numb'' o"" dayes, y' wee may apply o' heartes 

 unto wisdome. I was on Fryday last in the 

 afterhoo", at Marcliant Taylo"'* Hall, where was 

 a grail meetinge of the East Indian Company about 

 the choyce of new Officers, according to their 

 annuall custome. It should seeme that some 

 thought to have made a band or canvas (as they 

 call it in Camb^^) to have turned out S"' Thomas 

 Smyth. For the halloting-hox was brought, and 

 the matter like to bee put to y*^ kind of tryall w'^'' 

 is a kind of Lottery. But there were present 

 some of the'privie Counsel, as tlie Earle of South- 

 ampto, my Lo. Derby, and S"" Tho. Edmonds, 

 besides the Lord Cavendish, S"^ Duddley Digges, 

 &c. Sir Tho. signifyed the KInge's desire that 

 there might bee as little change of officers at the 

 tyme as could bee. Especially the Lord Digby 

 as by commandmet fro the Kinge signifyed that 

 his Ma"* delighted not in change of his antient 

 officers : that he was now a, old King, and loved 

 not to have new faces repaire unto hi (insinuating 

 after a sorte his M""' alfectio to S"' Tho. Smyth), 

 and besides, y' there were now new deputies or 

 commission" come or cominge ov"^ fro the States 

 to make a tinall conclusio about their traffick into 

 those partes, w"* w'^^ Commission" and busines 

 theis old officers are best acquainted and most 

 expert ; and therefore his Ma"® w^'out p'^judice to 

 their free electio thought y^' should do wel to 

 continue the for this one yeare. This speech was 

 seconded by] S"^ Tho. Edmonds and S"^ Duddley 

 Digges, a very ^p and wel spoke gentlema. This 

 request (as it were) of his Ma''° seemed very 

 reasonable (as I thought) in the eares of the most 

 reasonable and greatest niib'^ of the Assembly, w"^** 

 was greate ; so that whe it came to hands, it was 

 caryed clearly w"* S"" Tho. Smyth for this yeare : 

 and for the next yeare, Alderma Hallyday is 

 chosen. It was my happ to sitt by M"^ Eldred, 

 whoe gave me cold comfort, for he sayd he thought 

 that the trade was decayed, and would come to 

 nothing, by reason of the excessive charge y*' 

 were at, w*^** would eate out all the gaine : yet I 

 do not heare others say soe, who in reason should 

 see as much as hee into the busines. I saw M"^ 

 Carr there, whome I had thought to have asked 

 his opinio; but I thinke I shall not speake w^'' hi 



