The Postmaster-General made an interesting speech at Salisbury on Wednesday,
in returning thanks for an address of congratulation presented to his father on his 91st birthday. Mr. Fawcett told his audience that his father, who settled in Salisbury in 1815, was the man who read from the coach to the assembled people the news of the battle of Waterloo. He congratulated the people on the great majority of Monday night, and pleaded for the grouping of small represented boroughs, rather than their disfranchisement and merging in the counties ; and also for the principle of proportional representation. We, too, are en- tirely favourable to the latter principle, if only any simple and effective mode of carrying it out could be found; but so far as we see, none has yet been suggested that is not open to two grave objections,—(1), that a minority seat will always be filled up by a majority Member except at a General Election, and that, therefore, a minority Member will always be a sort of political pariah, holding his position on a kind of sufferance; (2), that, however easy it may be to get the polling arrangements understood, the people will never really be satisfied that a Member elected by the cast-off votes given in the first instance to other persons, really represents the popular feeling of the locality for which he is to be returned.
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