Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIII.djvu/126

 116 PARLIAMENT bill. Fifty-six boroughs that had returned 111 members were extinguished ; 30 others lost one member each ; and 2 united boroughs that had sent 4 members were reduced to 2. As no re- duction of the numbers of the lower house was made, this left 143 members to be disposed of, 65 of whom were given to counties, 22 to the metropolitan districts and other boroughs with populations of 25,000 and upward, and 21 to boroughs having 12,000 inhabitants and upward. New and great constituencies were created in England and Wales. Numerous im- provements in elections were provided. In- habitancy was made the basis of the borough franchise. Under certain regulations occu- pants of houses of the yearly value of 10 became electors. The county franchise was extended to copyholders and leaseholders, and under some circumstances to occupiers of the value of 40s., thus destroying the monopoly of the freeholders, who were not allowed to vote for both county and borough. It was also ex- tended to tenants at will of the annual value of 50. In 1867-'8 a new reform bill was car- ried through by the conservative ministry of Disraeli. Under this, voters may be classed as follows: In counties: 1, 40s. freeholders, or those owning property in fee of that value per annum ; 2, those possessing an estate for life or lives of the annual value of 40s., which, if not occupied by them, must have been pos- sessed before June 7, 1832, or must have been acquired by marriage, marriage settlement, or devise, or by virtue of some benefice or office ; 3, those possessing an estate for life or lives of the annual value of 5 ; 4, lessees for terms not less than 60 years of the annual value of 5, or not less than 20 years of the annual value of 50; 5, occupiers of lands rated at 12 per annum. In boroughs: 1, the rated occupiers of dwelling houses within the borough who have duly paid their poor rates ; 2, rated occu- piers of premises other than dwelling houses of the annual value of 10; 3, occupiers of lodgings of the annual value of 10 if let un- furnished and in one and the same dwelling house. Following this reform bill others were passed for Scotland and Ireland, enlarging the franchise, but not in entire conformity to that in England. Voting for members of parlia- ment had always been by show of hands or viva voce until, after long agitation, the secret ballot was adopted under the Gladstone admin- istration in 1872. The presiding officer of the commons is called the speaker, who is chosen by the house from among its own members, subject to the approval of the crown, holding his office till the dissolution of the parliament in which he was elected. His salary is 6,000 a year, exclusive of a furnished residence. At the end of his official labors he is generally re- warded with a peerage and a pension. Until 1853 business could not be transacted in his absence; but in August of that year it was resolved that, during his unavoidable absence, the chairman of committees of the whole house should preside in his stead. Forty mem- bers must be present to constitute a house, excepting when the commons are summoned by the sovereign or the royal commissioners to attend at the bar of the lords, which per se constitutes a house, whether 40 members be present or not. According to ancient practice, the house always adjourns to 10 o'clock in the morning, and should the speaker take the chair (40 members being present) at any time be- tween that hour and 4 P. M., the appointed proceedings may immediately commence ; oth- erwise no business can be transacted on that day, and the house will consequently adjourn to 10 o'clock A. M. on the following day. The present general practice is to commence busi- ness at 4 P. M., with the exception of Wednes- days, when the house sits from 12 to 6. The house does not usually sit on Saturday. It was an ancient privilege of the house of commons' to judge of the qualification and return of its own members, and this has never seriously been questioned since the quarrel with James I. regarding it in 1603. The royal proclama- tion for the election of members to the first par- liament of that monarch expressly commanded that " care be had that there be not chosen any persons bankrupts or outlawed;" and when Sir Francis Goodwin, who had been outlawed in civil proceedings, was chosen by the electors of Bucks, the returning officer refused to re- turn him, and Sir John Fortescue was sent up in his stead. Nevertheless the house seated Sir Francis Goodwin, and refused to confer with the lords on the subject, or to defer to the opinion of the judges that his election was void, insisting upon its right to judge solely and finally in the premises. A prolonged con- troversy took place, ending in a compromise under which a new election was had. Under recent legislation, however, in the belief that the house is an unsuitable body to try contest- ed questions of fact, election cases are tried before judges assigned for the purpose. II. SCOTTISH AND IRISH PARLIAMENTS. Scotland while an independent kingdom had a parlia- ment, dating, it is supposed, from the 13th century, and very similar at first to that of England, but never like the English divided into two houses. It comprised the high eccle- siastics, the great nobles, and the representa- tives of the freeholders of the counties and of the citizens of the royal burghs, who all sat in one hall. The functions of a house of lords or higher house were performed in some de- gree by a committee called " the lords of the articles," consisting latterly of 32 members, who did all the work of parliament, the house doing scarcely more than to pass the acts pro- posed by the committee. The Scottish parlia- ment was abolished by the legislative union of Scotland with England in 1707. In Ireland a parliament was formed by the English settlers toward the end of the 13th century, but it was not till the reign of James I. that the whole island was represented. The Irish parliament,