We have already described the far-reaching effects of the Reform Bill
(S582) of 1832, which, on the one hand, put an end to many "rotten
boroughs," and on the other, granted representation in Parliament to a
number of large towns hitherto without a voice in that body. Three
years later (1835) came the Municipal Reform Act. It placed the
government of towns, with the exception of London,[1] in the hands of
the taxpayers who lived in them.
[2] See Summary of Constitutional History in the Appendix, p.xxvi,
S31.
[1] The ancient city of London, or London proper, is a district
covering about a square mile, and was once enclosed in walls; it is
still governed by a lord mayor, court of aldermen, and a common
council elected mainly by members of the "city" companies,
representing the medieval trade guilds (S274). The metropolis outside
the "city" is governed by the London County Council and a number of
associate bodies, among which are the councils of twenty-eight
metropolitan boroughs.
This radical measure put a stop to the arbitrary and corrupt
management which had existed when the town officers elected themselves
and held their positions for life (S599). Futhermore, it prevented
parliamentary candidates from buying up the entire municipal vote,--a
thing which frequently happened so long as the towns were under the
absolute control of a few individuals.
A generation passed before the next important step was taken. Then,
as we have seen, the enactment of the Second Reform Bill (1867) (S600)
doubled the number of voters in England. The next year an act reduced
the property qualification for the right to vote in Scotland and
Ireland; thus the ballot was largely increased throughout the United
Kingdom.
The Third Reform Act (1884) (S600) granted the right to vote for
members of Parliament to more than two million persons, chiefly to the
farm laborers and other workingmen. Since that date, whether the
Liberals or the Conservatives[2] have been in power, "the country," as
Professor Gardiner says, "has been under democratic influence."
[2] The Whigs (S479) included two elements, one aristocratic and the
other radical. After the passage of the Reform Bill of 1832 they took
the name of Liberals; and the Tories (S479), who found their old name
unpopular, adopted that of Conservatives.
But though these acts wrought an immense change by transferring
political power from the hands of the few to the greater part of the
nation, further progress in this direction was destined to come soon.
Originally the government of the shires, or counties, was in the hands
of the people; they gradually lost it, and the wealthy landed
proprietors obtained control. The Local Government, or County
Councils, Act (1888) restored the power in great measure to those who
had parted with it, by putting the management of county affairs under
the direction of the County Councils elected by the householders of
the counties or shires. These Councils look after the highways, the
sanitary condition of the towns, the education of children, and the
care of the poor.
Six years later (1894) the principle of self-government was carried
almost to the farthest point by the passage of the Parish Councils
Bill.[1] This measure did for country villages and other small places
what the Local Government Act did for the counties. It gave back to
the inhabitants of the parishes certain rights which they had once
possessed, but which had gradually come under the control of the
squire, the parson[2], and a few privileged families.
[1] Parish: This name was given originally to a district assigned to a
bishop or priest; at present it generally refers simply to the area
which was formerly contained in such a district.
[2] The squire was the chief landholder in a village or parish; the
parson, the minister of the parish church.
Now every man and woman who has resided in the parish for a
twelvemonth has the right not only to vote for the members of the
Parish Council but to run as candidate for election to that body. The
village parliament discusses all questions which are of public
interest to the parish. It is in some respects more democratic even
than a New England town meeting, since it gives women a voice, a vote,
and opportunity to hold office. Its work supplements that of the
County Councils and of Parliament.
609. Overthrow of the "Spoils System"; the Army; the "Secret Ballot,"
1870-1872.
Meanwhile reforms not less important had been effected in the
management of the civil service. The ancient power of the Crown to
give fat pensions to its favorites had been pared down to very modest
proportions, but another great abuse still flourished like an evil
weed in rich soil.
For generations, public offices had been regarded as public plunder,
and the watchword of the politicians was, "Every man for himself, and
the National Treasury for us all." Under this system of pillage the
successful party in an election came down like a flock of vultures
after a battle. They secured all the "spoils," form petty clerkships
worth 100 pounds a year up to places worth thousands.
About the middle of the last century (1855) an effort was made to
break up this corrupt and corrupting system, but the real work was not
accomplished until 1870. In that year England threw open the majority
of the positions in the civil service to competitive examination.
Henceforth the poorest day laborer, whether man or woman, might, if
competent, ask for any one of many places which formerly some
influential man or political "boss" reserved as gifts for those who
obeyed his commands.
The next year (1871) the purchase of commissions in the army was
abolished.[1] This established the merit system in the ranks, and now
military honors and military offices are open to all who can earn
them.
[1] Up to 1871 an officer retiring from the army could sell his
commission to any officer next below him in rank who had the money to
buy the position; whereas under the present system the vacancy would
necessarily fall to senior officers in the line of promotion. In the
year following this salutary change the entire British army was
reorganized.
The Registration Act of 1843 required every voter to have his name and
residence recorded on a public list. This did away with election
frauds to a large extent. It was supplemented in 1872 by the
introduction of the "secret ballot" (S591). This put an end to the
intimidation of voters and to the free fights and riots which had so
frequently made the polls a political pandemonium. The Bribery Act of
1883 was another important measure which did much toward stopping the
wholesale purchase of votes by wealthy candidates or by powerful
corporations.