We have already shown how, without entirely disfranchising any borough, twenty-three seats may be obtained; and if nine others are required, it would be no hardship to take from each of the following boroughs one out of the two members which they presently return:— County. Borough. Constituency. Hampshire, Lymington, 328 Cumberland, Cockermouth, 330 Buckinghamshire, Marlow (Great), 335 Wiltshire, Chippenham, 345 Buckinghamshire, Buckingham, 349 Devonshire, Tavistock, 352 Cornwall, Bodmin, 360 Wiltshire, Devizes, 363 Buckinghamshire, Wycombe (Chipping), 365 This would take out of Schedule B no less than twenty-one seats which are now included in it; and it would be obviously unwise to exhaust, all at once, the only source from which new rising constituencies can be endowed. Lord John Russell seems to think—and we agree with him—that the present number of the House of Commons (654) is quite large enough; and although there is no principle to fix numbers, it may be as well to maintain them as they are. It is but natural to expect that, in future years, some places will decrease, and others increase, and that partial changes will be required. For that very reason we deprecate too hasty a reduction of the boroughs, and an apportionment of their seats to places and constituencies which do not require them. Suppose that in ten years after this, new seats of commerce and manufacture, like Birkenhead, Burnley, and Staleybridge, start into existence—that places like Salford increase immensely—and that new Chelseas require to be conjoined with new Kensingtons—where are we to find members for them, without unduly swelling the bulk of the House of Commons, if all the smaller borough seats are to be disposed of at the present time? The Legislature may say just now, with perfect propriety, to the men of Lymington—“Your borough is the smallest in the country which returns two members to Parliament. Birkenhead is a place of such importance that it requires a member; and therefore, as it is not expedient to increase the aggregate number of the national representatives, we shall take a member from you, and give one to Birkenhead.” That is quite intelligible; but why disfranchise boroughs when you do not know what to do with the vacancies? It is true that Lord John Russell tells us what he means to do with them; but we entirely demur to every proposal of his beyond those which we have already noticed. He proposes, we observe, to give three members instead of two to the following cities and boroughs whose constituencies we have noted:—