The Surprising Adventures of Bampfylde Moore Carew, King of the Beggars: Containing his Life, a Dictionary of the Cant Language, and many Entertaining Particulars of that Extraordinary ManUnknown
General
The Surprising Adventures of Bampfylde Moore Carew, King of the Beggars: Containing his Life, a Dictionary of the Cant Language, and many Entertaining Particulars of that Extraordinary Man
When the day of election is come, as many boxes are placed as there are
candidates, with the name of the particular candidate written on the box
which is appropriated to him; these boxes are quite closed, except a
little opening at the top, which is every night, during the election,
locked up under the keys and seals of each candidate, and of six of the
most venerable old men in the community; it is in the little opening at
the top of these boxes, that the elector puts in the little ball we have
just now mentioned; at the same time he puts his white ball into the box
of the candidate whom he chooses to be his king, he puts a black ball
into the boxes of all the other candidates; and when they have all done
so, the boxes are broken open, and the balls counted in presence of all
the candidates, and of as many electors as choose it, by the old men
above mentioned; and he who has the greatest number of white balls is
always duly chosen. By this means no presiding officer has it in his
power to make one more than two, which sometimes happens in the elections
amongst other communities, who do not use this form. There are other
innumerable advantages attending this manner of election, and it is
likely to preserve public liberty the longest; for, first, as the
candidates are obliged to fix up publicly an account of those actions
upon the merit of which they become candidates, it deters any but those
who are truly worthy from offering themselves; and, as the sentiments
which each of them gives upon public liberty, and the duty and office of
a king, is immediately entered in their public register, it stands as a
public witness against, and a check upon that candidate who is chosen, to
deter him from a change of sentiments and principles; for, though in some
countries this is known to have little effect, and men have on a sudden,
without any alteration in the nature of things, shamelessly espoused
those principles and sentiments, which they had vehemently all their life
before opposed, yet in this community, where there is so high a sense of
honour and shame kept up, it must necessarily be none of the least
binding obligations. Secondly, by this method of balloting, or giving
their votes by balls, the elector’s choice is more free and unbiassed;
for, as none but himself can know the candidate he gives his white ball
to, there can be no influence of fear, interest, ties of blood, or any
other cause, to oblige him to give his vote contrary to his judgment;
even bribes, if they were known amongst these people, would lose their
effect under this method of voting; because few candidates would choose
to bribe, when they could have no security or knowledge whether the
bribed elector might have put a black ball instead of a white one into
his box.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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