JB_128_390.xml

Title: [1818 Dece r 23 Parl. Reform Bill]

Description: 1818 Dece r 23

Parl. Reform Bill

Dialogue

Preliminary View

II Election Evils

1 Evils

28

9

Anti-Reformist. So much for your uncharacteristic Election evils: Now for your

characteristic ones.

Reformist. A little patience, and you shall have names as familiar to you as {any

of} those others. But first you must allow me a division or two, or if you please a

distinction or two.

Anti-Reformist. To be sure I must /Oh yes, any thing you please/. But then you on

your part you must allow me to yawn if I cant help it, or to take my hat up and walk

off.

Reformist. {Both are always in your power.} /I see you have a mind /an inclin/ to be

in the fashion. You have been lately I suspect/ There is a great red house, in which

if you attempt to distinguish any one thing from any other, or to make any use of the

numeration table, every body leaves /runs out of/ the room that instant But to

proceed. You admitt /There is nothing very alarming to you/ the distinction between

the public and individuals.

Anti-Reformist. Not much: although individuals, if I am not mistaken are the matter

/stuff/ of which the public was made.

Reformist. Well then, if it should turn out that by such and such individual, would

be made to suffer, be it more or less, such sufferance you will admitt would be

sufficient to constitute an evil – an Election evil – although it should not appear

that by the cause in question evil in any other shape would attach upon the public at

large

Anti-Reformist. To be sure I will /No objection do I see/.

{Reformist. Evils hurtful to the public only, evils hurtful to individuals only,

evils hurtful to the public and to individuals together – /in/ this division you see

is /I have/ an exhaustive one.}

{Anti-Reformist. Oh yes: much good may it do you with it:}

JB_128_391.xml

Title: [1818 Dec. 23 Parl Dialogue]

Description: 1818 Dec. 23

Parl

Dialogue

Prel

Evils & Remedies

I Evils

29

10

Reformist. Evils in fact – evils in tendency only, and therefore not yet, if at all,

in fact. Another division, by your leave, and that too an exhaustive one.

Anti-Reformist. If you keep on exhausting much longer, I will tell you of one thing

that you will exhaust without intending it more than you could wish to do /exhaust/ -

and that is my patience. Well, there is a distinction between facts and tendencies

/facts and tendencies are not exactly the same thing/, every body knows that: But

where is the use of it.

Reformist. {A little} patience and you will see what a quantity of useless

complication it will serve to exclude. You are not fond complication are you?

Anti-Reformist. No, I hate it mortally. The more complication on one point, the more

attention requisite /necessary/ on the other. Attention I leave to those who are paid

for it: unless it be to a song, a poem, or a good novel: for that makes a difference.

Reformist. What will /would/ you say, if I leave the door of the hustings open to

madmen and to peers of the realm /peers and bishops/, all upon the strength of this

distinction?

Anti-Reformist. I should /shall/ say that you yourself are mad.

Reformist. We shall see.

Anti-Reformist. We are still in the clouds. One of these days /Some time or other/ I

hope, we shall land on terra firma.

JB_128_397.xml

Title: [1818 Dece r 24 Parl. Reform Bill.]

Description: 1818 Dece r 24

Parl. Reform Bill.

Dialogue

Preliminary View

Evils & Remedies

1 Evils

1

35

16

Inserendum

{Anti-Reformist. Proceed.

Reformist. I obey. Among Election evils such as are characteristic or say

appropriate I divide in the first place /at once/ into 1. Mis-Election. 2.

Non-Election. 3. Null Election.}

Anti-Reformist. Good: now I find myself at home {already}. Not that I remember to

have ever heard of any such Miss /Mis/ as Mis-Election. But I have heard and but too

much of other misses of the bad sort, such as Misconduct, and so forth /the rest of

them/: so that I believe I must allow you this one. But this division of yours how do

you prove that it is an exhaustive one? I thought that for proving a division to be

such, you had found it necessary never to divide the whole into more than two parts

at the same time? +

Reformist. Your /This/ recollection of yours does me honour /honours me/. My wish

was to have saved you trouble. When and where an Election takes place, either you

have an Election or you have none. If you have one either it is the right one or it

is a wrong one. To be /If it is/ the right one, that individual is the person elected

/put /placed/ into the seat/ who of all individuals that could have been placed in it

is the fittest. If so /yes/, there is no evil in the case: if not, here there is an

evil, comparative /comparatively/ at least if not absolutely such. comparatively at

least: absolutely if when in the House he either does nothing or does more mischief

than he does good: comparatively, if there be any other obtainable person that could

have done better.

+ Chrestomathia Part II