Features Of The English Franchise Bill

The aim of the proposed English elective franchise law is to make such refonus that, flrst, every householdershall have a vote, and, second, that the distribution of political power shall be equalized. The growth of the belief in a wider franchise has been marked. While it took from 1832 to 1867 for Kngland to make up her mind to reduce tfie property qualilication, we now have Mr. Bright and Gladstone - who fourteen years ago foüght against a six pound rent qualitïcation as too low a figure, as it would admit the workingmen in the boroughs - supported by the dominant party, giving the ballot to the workingmen not only of the town but of the county. Kven the Tory bill of 1867 lowered the figure to five pounds in the counties for copy-holders and lease-holders and twelve pounds for tenants-at-will. The borough franchise is a very mach mixed up affair, since so many of the towns enjoy special rights and privileges under ancient grants and according to sundry local usages. The rule is a, twelve pound qualiflcation for tenants and lodgers. The pending lugislation, which will cali out the best and perhaps last efforts of the venerable Prime Minister, will probably add to the polling-lists nearly one-half of the 6,000,000 men now disfranchised because they aro poor. Mr. Gladstone, like the great majority of the public men of England, opposes "manhood suftrage," but, if the sentiment on this subject grows during the next decade a.s it ha-s m the last. the English Nation will finally come to that. The question of equal distribution is even more complicated and interests us mainl}' in the admission that the time has come when the present unjust system must be rcformed. Mr. Chamberlain in a recent speech selected two groups of forty members of Parliament, I one representing 22ó,000 people and th j other re]resenting over 6,000,000. In i Staffordshire four boroughs, with one ninth of the population and one-seventh ! of the assessnaent to the income tax, send a maiority of members to the