Is it, Sir, in this latter sense, of Shakspeare, that you have used the ambiguous word notorious? Is it really your meaning that the goodness of our Quorum Family is most notorious? If so, I will not ask you to name the persons of whom the Quorum is composed, as my delicacy ought to forbid the question, and by asking it, I should probably become too notorious. Yours, obediently, April 29th, 1818. WILTS ELECTION. ANTI-QUORUM. THE freeholders of the county of Wilts, who are interested in supporting the independence thereof, will dine together at Marlborough, on Friday, the 22nd instant. A large body of Electors having expressed an intention of being present, gentlemen wishing to join the party are requested to give notice to Mr. Shrimpton, of the Marlbro' Arms, that he may provide accordingly. The chair will be taken by Fulwar Craven, Esq.; and Dinner on the table punctually at 4 o'clock. To the Editor of the Salisbury Gazette. Ou, Mr. Editor! when will this long-wished for dissolution take place?-What between Old Moon-Rakers and New MoonRakers, Natives, Lunatics, Old Hearts, Grateful Tenants, Dissatisfied Tenants, Quorum, and Anti-Quorum, your columns are filled; and if a stop is not put to this itch for writing, (by which nobody gains, except yourself and your brethren of the press), there will be no room left to advertise the last new invented blacking, or to tempt your readers by some new Lottery device. After all, how little to the purpose do all these scribblers occupy your pages! The freeholders of this great county merely wish to be told, in few words, the merits of the respective Candidates, and their comparative claims to our suffrages; and I think this may so easily be done, that although living in retirement and not in the secrets of clubs or quorum, I shall venture to state my reasons for giving a plumper to Mr. Long Wellesley. I will first, however, shortly notice the other Candidates ;As to Mr. Methuen, we have heard nothing of him since the 26th of March. I presume, therefore, that he considers himself secure. But let him not be too confident; unless he can boast of pretensions equal to those of my favourite, he at least cannot expect to be at the head of the poll. Then we have Mr. Benett. This gentleman has no recommendations, but the being a resident, country gentleman, of an old family; an active magistrate; an officer in the Yeomanry; president of the County Agricultural Society: as he has officiously attended to the local business of Wiltshire, and has no connection with, or interest in, any other county; as he has the misfortune to have the avowed opposition of that distinguished character, Mr. Henry Hunt, the chairman of the Spafields meetings; and as he is even suspected of having, at the last election, instigated Mr. Methuen to the daring step of canvassing the freeholders at large, without having the sanction of any clubs or committées; let us not become dupes to his shallow pretensions; no, Sir, Mr. Long Wellesley is the man; he only is fit to be our member. Though his family is Irish, and he was born (I for got where) yet Wiltshire is the home of his adoption. Since he married the opulent heiress of the House of Draycot, how unceasingly have his talents been exerted; how liberally has his fortune been expended, for the honour, the interest, and the happiness of his chosen county. He has been called a new man, and has been treated as if his present canvass were the first attention he had paid us; but we may appeal to Mr. R. Long, our present representative, who well knows that it is no new thought, for, so long ago as at the last general election, this gentleman had some idea of standing forward. The six years which have since elapsed, have shewn us his indefatigable attention to the business of the county, and his social and hospitable intercourse with its inhabitants, with all of whom this interval, so judiciously employed, has fortunately enabled him to become familiar. Then we have certificates of character, signed by Wiltshire tenants, Dorsetshire tenants, Hamp shire tenants, Yorkshire tenants, and Essex (no, I am wrong, not Essex; I suppose that he farms the Essex estates himself, or that the letters of recommendation from his nearest neighbours have miscarried)—doubtless, all the spontaneous acts of their respective tenants. And, Sir, what a compliment is paid us, and can we reject the man who offers it? As Mr Wellesley (in a most eloquent speech, to a company assembled after the last Devizes fair), has correctly stated :-He is "King of Essex," and could have represented that county, but he res jected it;-" Hampshire is under his feet;" and he could have been their member, but he despised it; he could have been Lord Devizes, or Lord Devizes Market-cross, or Lord Anything; but, no: to be knight of the shire for Wilts, the great, the independent county of Wilts, where no Government influence is threatened, no union of family interest, for the purpose of keeping up a Long succession of members, has been attempted; where the Treasury, Sir Francis Burdett, and Mr. Hunt, all coalesce in his favour; this is the summit of his noble daring. Then who are his opponents? The majority, forsooth, of the resident country gentlemen and yeomanrya set of foolish magistrates, who have gone about canvassing with the clerk of the peace, constables with white wands, and all the staff of the sessions, at their head, to shew their "magisterial pomp," and have deprived wrong-sided publicans of their licenses, and committed qualified freeholders, as poachers, &c. to shew how well they exercise their "magisterial authority," and who (as is most notorious) give up less time, and take less trouble, for the service of the public, while they are better paid for it, than any other class of men. How much more respectably is Mr. Wellesley attended in his canvass ; he does not call in the aid of country gentlemen, magistrates, and yeomanry, but is constantly accompanied by grave and reverend divines; who, whether in the fairs and markets, or becomingly assisting at "double encores" to festive songs, never appeared to be more in their proper place. There is, to be sure, one thing which my neighbours at Bradford urge against Mr. Wellesley;-that he voted for the Corn-Bill; but did not Mr. Benett speak in favour of some foolish measure of the same sort? and we all know how much more harm must have been done by a speech in Warminster market, than by a vote in the House of Commons. I flatter myself that the force of my reasoning will secure Mr. Wellesley's election by a triumphant majority; and that this letter will supersede the necessity of again inserting in your paper fourteen advertisements on the same side of the question. I am, Sir, yours, &c. Trowbridge, May 11. AN OBSERVER. To the Editor of the Salisbury Gazette. AFTER the determination I had made in my last letter, I feel it necessary to apologize for my again occupying so large a space in your paper; but in justification of my character, I am again called forth before the public to give a true copy of the account between myself and Mr. Bennett, which is as follows: |