‘Yes, he had an easy life of it. I was looking over Oldmixon, and he thus describes the borough as it was in the good old times. You recollect the town sent two members till the Reform Bill of 1831 robbed us of one?’ ‘I have heard my father say so; but read what Oldmixon says.’ ‘“SLOVILLE.—This is a large town, containing more than a thousand houses, where the right of election is confined to a corporation of twenty-four individuals, who elect each other. The inhabitants have no share in choosing the members or magistrates, and as all these corporations—possessing exclusive rights of electing Members of Parliament—have some powerful nobleman or opulent commoner who finds it his interest to take the lead and management of their political influence, the election of the members is directed by this patron. The Earl of Fee-Fum, who has a seat at Marbourne, within seven miles of the town, and Watkin Strahan, Esq., of Elm Hall, whose residence and estate are also in the neighbourhood, have first command of this corporation.” At that time the number of votes, according to Oldmixon, was twenty-four.’ ‘And now there are a thousand electors on the register. It is a pity we ever had Parliamentary reform.’ ‘Sir Watkin, you are a Whig, are you not?’ said the agent. ‘Oh yes, of course I am. That was only my fun.’ ‘It would not be fun if the people heard it.’ ‘No, perhaps not. But we are talking privately and confidentially.’ ‘Of course we are.’ ‘But to business. How do matters stand?’ ‘It is impossible to be better, or, rather, it would have been impossible. I’ve been nursing the borough a long while, but now the appearance of another Liberal candidate will give the Conservative a chance such as he otherwise would not have had.’ ‘Yes, that is pretty clear. But how can we get rid of this Wentworth?’ ‘Leave that to me. We can make it pretty hot for him. Just at this time the town is unusually full of roughs, and I know where to lay my hand on them. Brown, the Conservative agent, told me yesterday that he could always get a bigger lot of roughs than the Liberals. “I ain’t quite sure of that,” said I to myself, “as I think this Mr. Wentworth will find out before we are done with him.” Of course, he has got no money?’ ‘Well, I don’t suppose he has,’ said Sir Watkin; ‘he is only a newspaper writer. Just like the impudence of his class. They talk about the fourth estate, and think themselves equals to Kings, Lords and Commons. However, we are right as far as the press is concerned. We have only one paper here, and that is ours. The proprietor is hard up. He owes me a lot of money, and he knows on which side his bread is buttered.’ The next day Wentworth came down to hold the first public meeting, and that same day every voter had a bill—and a good many who were not besides—as follows: TO THE RADICAL AND LIBERAL ELECTORS OF THE