BRITISH ELECTIONS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 736, 8 February 1910, Page 6

BRITISH ELECTIONS.

ANOMALIES OF THE FRANCHISE. • [Contributed.] " The : -disparity 'between, the totals of votes' cast . for the Conservatives, Liberal, and Labour parties, and the amount of representation' obtained .by ''them; respecv. tively is still very considerable, though not so. great as The Dominion: recently pointed'; out was the case in 1906. :• .These are the figures of the 577 contested -electorates, excluding the Orkney'and Shetland Isles, and- the Scotch. Universities," which - are hot" decided yet, and' contests confined to the: rival Nationalist factions: '

■ '. ■ • • Votes.. Scats. • Scats. [ ; w':"' ' entitled to. Obtained.- • Conservatives 2,932,567/. ; 278J 250 Liberals ; •.> 2,673,473 . 254.- :■ ■, 2?3 ,■ ! ■labour. ... 465,842 ; . 44§ .. 42 . The! Conservative programme has received ..the support of-over.' a quarter, ofa million more voters' than the Liberal and the. .former should be ■ ; 47 votes stronger in the House, than they actually, are, or 45,- if . we. .debit , them with; most, of Labours ,small, deficiency.' But even this comparative, equality. ..of representation, as "against, the .1906 figures/ has..'a mostserious!" drawback ' Appar- , ently.v it': can .never" be '"attained'. :except at' the: cost/of. mating! the Nationalists, and ' perhaps the" Labour ' virtual masters .of "the' situation! Such k. po'si- . tion "is obviously, impossible •' of continii- : ance. A3 we are liidy to' see/proved at' an early *• date, iit.' puts, ''all' reasonable legislation out :, of the question. For . : this- reason, and also . because the. new' . Parliament 'must be short-lived, .we : cannot .doubt. but. that, a sweeping; measure of- electoral reform, will" introduced towards ' the - close ofthe"' session. ' The . only thing at all- likely to prevent it would-.be-the .sudden.-.defeat: of the Government on; a ; national , question, : as'.in,lß9s. : v. !■!"'-'.'-!■ . Although ,* in, practice "the. franchise atHome -is almost as'hearly universal sUf-. frage as ours is, for occupation 1 of an un-. furnished .tenement or room' of the value of 3s. 6d. per week confers .a voto, .there are at least "half, a dozen other qualifications with the"same power.; For instance, tHere are ''"potwallopers,"; and "scot- and lot" .voters, and freemen (of. a city, or borough). • "All - these "are .of '.very • ancient origin, and - the " first • two;are probably bitinct-in fact, r "thougfi not in' law. The other franchises,' -.save . -the'; '.University franchise,-all . centre/around Jsnd. of. the three tenure, ' freehold, "/"copyhold, y and leasehold, including;-houses oripart ,of, a house, 1 and -may be grouped' under these' ' heads,; i;e.";i ownership,'. obciipatioir, as t'dn-ant,."occupation-as 'lodger] 'and"6ccupatioh: in right, of certain. services,";sucli as; caretaker, gamekeeper, etc. ■ Of these" the first is a' very, old qualification. 1 . Time, in computing; the possession; Of 'these' franchises, runs ' from', one' of- '.two' 1 'fixfed ; dates; tho" 15th July, for boroughs, and "the 20th July . for" counties,' and the" length of. qualifying occupation before those.dates,differ in ; al-' most every class of property,, and in most cases is twelve'.moriths. The. registers (or electoral rolls)'are prepared,, printed, and exhibited :by :the"parish overseers,\whose. duty.: it is''.to 'place - on- it/thoname ofeveix, person" !entitled./tb/"a' .vote,,-except lodgers, "who,:'.must " send "in. • their' own .claims'/every year.. "Once ':a'-' yot£T. is on the register, ' he • remains "on /until ' (lie other: side have proved his, want of. qualification; : which is usually. at "the next revision; of' vcites. • The ."register, ■; thus • pre? pared;' is', revised and' ; corrected ".by;: a.' revising barrister ,ih':open' Gourt.',! He"hears" "determines all pbj&fiohs I to/registerejd' voters,'and all claims;by, persons omitted', by .-.the -overseers,-'ahd.-it then' takes., effect from .the Ist 'January, /following for. 'the; period of one year. -It may fairly be saidofthis register / in.its'; completed, form that, thajiks'. to the .'overseiers,, and" to the claims and objections.lo'dged bythe;agents of the two parties, no "one-is omitted, who is entitled and'willing'to/register, and.no: one Remains "on it whose qualification h'as ceased.. No person "can" have more than one vote in one electorate; "but he may, have a vote in as many electorates as he can qualify' in.. ;There : is ; iiot• at present any,-provision for sailors', or absentees' .votes,; and -the doctrine of ."successive occupation". of ..'qualifying,premises' in the. same electorate does not apply to lodgers, .witli'.-the that'-lodger" 1 voters are,; comparatively!;few- in number.' . V. The main'alterations ;in T the system "required or "mooted, are., the "simplification, of "the. franchise, - • establishment.;, of ; the principle of one vote , one value, with automatic redistribution of seats, which .'will give, England her - proper "number ' of seats, the abolition of the: pliiral .voter;.'a short> ; tening of the qualifying period, ,extension of\the doctrine;of successive: occupation": to ■' lbdiers.v all' polls - to "be-"held", "on ; the: • same flay," and disfranchisement' of'the English,, Scotch, and -Irish Universities'. Of these various leads; the Conservatives may-be expected to concur in tho aboli-' tion of obsolete, franchises,"'-but; they are', likely:to oppose. any. further lowering (if,-, that is . possible) or. alteration of the .property franchise.- One vote one value and redistribution 'will. 1 have. their support.; Apparently-tbey " stand to gain much', by it on the figures, "though. much ' would rest on new .electorates. .They.'may seek totain .the plural,'.vo,ter,' : svhose, importance: has been sadly exaggerated! In the old, days" of, a - restricted franchise - and small ■ electorates/ this class "of " vote/ may" pos--'sibly ha.ve affected' the result' of any election how "and again,; but with: the much larger: electorates: of . to-day it is "a'harmless anomaly, beloved ..of, the .Radical stump ' orator. The gravest jpluralist is, or, until recently."was. Sir : ,H.-. Kearley, lately.-.a'm'euiber'of ,Mr. 'Asguith's. Gov-, ernment, for he' had a' vote 'in • respect of each of hia ■ 200 tea shops;' But only a fotv pluralists hold more than,,two -votes.. Probably the residential qualification will. be 1 -shortened to "tho period now, required , for freehold-ownership,' viz., six months, :and'this''is'. a desirable reform, .though ! it. will entail' a second-or . interim revi-.* sion." The-'disfranchisement of 'the' Universities' will be strongly, resisted in ' both Houses, and is . unlikely to be carried.'lf , not contained in the' Bill,."the" Conservatives may be ! expected' to; propose clauses. in ; favour'of "seamen's 'rights,' as they; get all the seafaring and'fishing vote and absentee voters' permits. 'As regards the latterr.it is .to; be -hoped that they will avoid the obvious defect"of tie New Zcaland' enactment.. Women's sffffrage,. proportional representation; and; payment of members' will no' doubt-be', tested' in the division lobbies, but* probably . withoutsuccess. The' two flatter do not seem ,to make" 'much public; favour, and the'former has probablv'lost much ground owing "to. the* scandalous conduct of the ' Suffragettes; ". -.On ' the ' whole," we seems- no-,'. reason why the. -present' 'Home , Government "should not be able with the assistance , of tho Conservatives, to pass a moderate and much-needed measure-of reform. If, however, Mr. Afequith's hand is forced by the ' extreme "section, of his . party,, the reform may be deferred 'until ■ the Conservatives resume-office;, ,