1S17.] Mr. Kirke's Plan of Parliamentary Reform. 



493 



ease of beingr rejected clsewliere, and 

 their expeiices would be defrayed hy 

 government ; and, on the whole, the in- 

 dependent part w onld be worst olf. 



It is, I. believe, a ru2;ulaUon, tiiat no 

 such one as a Cnstom-hoiise oflieer, or 

 officer in the Excise, and the like, can 

 vote at an election. Tiiis rniu, 1 sup- 

 pose, of conrse relates cqnady to all 

 tliose who hold any ofTicial situation 

 under fjovcnuneiit. Such a regulation 

 is neces.sarj , for ot' course tliey would 

 vote for llie partiz.ms of govenyncnt, 

 be their incliiiation what it will; and it 

 would not tiius far be :i just and equal 

 representation : but I hold tliat all 

 .Others, who are direcily taxed, should 

 have a vote; for, as they pay taxes, they 

 surely oight to have a vote. 



I perfectly agree with IMr. LofFt, in 

 your last miniber, respecting tlie ijoll 

 beings taken in several places, and begun 

 and ended in one day, as the most ef- 

 fectual preventative of drunkenness, 

 riot, Stc. which will ever accompany an 

 election. 



I think that all menibers, as at pre- 

 sent, on any appointnient, should vacate 

 their scats ; but that, unless the nuui- 

 ber thus vacating his scat be a minister 

 of state, and not a mere sinecure-hoitier, 

 he should not be re-eligible : for the 

 mere sinecure-lioldens, who have no pre- 

 tensions to any such things as rewards, 

 not having been in the service of their 

 fcountry, are a set of idle diones, who 

 grow fat on the wealth of the nation, 

 merely for voting with the minister; 

 and therefore, w hen they have any such 

 appointment, they sliould not have it in 

 their power to lend any further aid to 

 the minister, for that is not a fair repre- 

 sentation ; for, as they are corrupted, 

 they have no |)rincip!e, and would vote 

 only as their interest led them. Or (if it 

 ever be the casc),wlien one who has been 

 fighting for his king and country, is 

 appointed to a sinecure, sliould his po- 

 litical sentiments be on the popular 

 side, those to his gratitude will be at 

 variance, and he will be Ibrccd to sacri- 

 fice the one to the other. 



•Such things as menibrrs being sent 

 by such a |)iace as Old Sarum, where 

 there is but one house,— a-.id Newtown 

 and Jyjtlie Yarmouth, the inhai>itants 

 of which are mostly Ia!)ourers and 

 fishermen, are quite ridicnlou.s; and all 

 patronage should of course be remoAcd 

 from more extensive boroughs ; and, on 

 such towns as do not send members, the 

 right should be conferred: for, without 

 all this, there never will be, and iicvejr 



can be, a just and equitable represen- 

 tation of the nation iu Farlianiont. 



livery one, of course, supposes his 

 own plan is best : that is iiert'ectlj 

 natural. Cartwright, Pitt, Burdctt,Low, 

 Grey, aiui ail others, donl)tle.ss, thought 

 their oun "the most simple and most 

 practicable, with respect to sulirage; 

 the most just iu pr U(;iple, and perfect- 

 ly safe and beneficial in practice.'' 



1 am most decidedly against annual 

 cleciioiis, or one-third part vacating" 

 their seats every year. 1 think that no 

 good could ue derived from any such 

 plan. It would only cause a great deal 

 of contusion, and it would be all the 

 same iu the end as a general election 

 every three years. I think that a dele- 

 gated representation, for any time less 

 than three years, (except on occasional 

 vacancies,) to be altogether useless ; as 

 th:tt is not a delegation longer than ap- 

 pears necessary, expedient, and alto- 

 gether safe, lor constitutional freedom. 



I would make a very wide distinction 

 between ministers of state and mere 

 sinecure-holders. 'J'he presence of the 

 former I hold to be absolutely necessary; 

 that of the latter altogether useless and 

 dangerous, as it respects constitutional 

 Ireedom. 



AV'hether eacli county be divided into 

 two districts, and one member chosen 

 by each, or whether they are chosen 

 as at present, I think of no importance; 

 but to the former, if to either, 1 would 

 give the preference, as that would pre- 

 vent compromise. Mr. Loilt thinks 

 compromise not to be feared, if reforai 

 were radical ; but, while the present 

 ministry arc in ofliec, iVIr. L. need be 

 under no appicheiision for a radical 

 reform : the most that could be expect- 

 ed would be but partial. 



1 do not very clearly understand Mr* 

 Wy veil's and Mr. Batl'ey's plans as 

 niiuuteiy as those spoken of before; but, 

 from what I have heard, I have no 

 doubt but tliat ihey go quite as far as 

 Mr. Loflt's, " as sujiioicnlly atid per- 

 manently tu irientify the House of Com- 

 MKins with iis constituents, the com- 

 mons of the realm." 



Thomas Kirke. 

 London; September 6, 1816. 



To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine, 

 SIR, : . ' 



'OUR valuable Magazine contains, 

 iu the recent numbers, many en- 

 quiries afti.r cheap places of living: 

 though I wish not to encourage emi- 

 gration, yet, as a statistical question, f 



