CHAP. IV.
STATE OF THE REPRESENTATION.
THE British Parliament is generally supposed to date its origin from the year 1116, but at that time it consisted only of the ancient barons, who appeared at Westminter clad in armour, with swords by their sides. In 1265 however, a parliament assembled on the 20th of January, the members of which consisted of two knights from each shire, and of deputies from the larger order of Boroughs.
In process of time, from various causes, those of the inferior Boroughs became privileged like the larger ones; and other towns, from interest, and an increase in population, rank, wealth, &c. were incorporated and endued with power to return persons of talent and information, to point out the wants, and seek the redress of those grievances under which their constitutents laboured, as well as to assist in legislating for the nation at large; thus the House of Commons became the connecting link in ‘the chain which unites the cornmonalty with the nobles of the land, by defending the rights and privileges of all classes of his majesty’s subjects, and adding strength and security to the throne, by its counsel, and munificent votes of supply.
From the most authentic documents, it appears that Retford first sent representatives to the National Senate, in the year 1315, being the ninth of Edward the second, but in the year 1330, they petitioned parliament at Westminster, after the feast of St. Katharine, concerning pardon of their burgesses there, by reason of their poverty,* which was granted, and its right lay dormant until 1571, (the thirteenth of Queen Elizabeth,) when it again exercised its privilege, although on the meeting of the house, the right was questioned, and the Treasurer was appointed to confer with the Attorney and Solicitor General concerning the legality of the return; no minutes of such conference are now in existence, and from that time, until the year 1827, it continued to enjoy its elective franchise in a free and uninterrupted manner.
This small Borough, like a number of others of asimilar description, was for a series of years, a scene of dissension from parliamentary and other causes, which need not now be enumerated, and during the eighteenth century, the interference of the House of Commons, to determine the extent of the rights of the burgesses, and the manner in which its representatives should be chosen, was not unfrequently called for. The court of King’s Bench too, has been occupied nearly as often as the House of Commons, on mandamuss motions, and informations in the nature of quo warranto, by which the corporation have been compelled to admit several to their freedom, who have been arbitrarily kept out of their right, and ousted others who had been illegally admitted.
Mr. Oldfield, in his history of the English Boroughs, observes as follows, "It appears by the Journals of the House of Commons, that the Committees of that House have been occupied no less than seven times for several weeks together, within the last century, in determining what constitutes a freeman in this little Borough, and have left it as much open to contention and litigation as they found it. It is not yet decided whether the son of a freeman born out of the Borough, has an equal right to be admitted with the son of a freeman born in the Borough, upon a claim of birthright, or whether the apprentice to a journeyman shoemaker, (which description of persons constitutes a majority of the electors,) has the same right to his freedom as the apprentice to a shoemaker, upon a claim of servitude."
* At that period it was usual for Boroughs to choose representatives from out their own body, and not of strangers or country gentlemen; and many of these Boroughs were frequently so poor as to be unable to pay the members their wages or expenses; even though the allowance was only made for a few days.
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