SCOTLAND.
The Lord Advocate's bill for the reform of the Scotch Burghs does not seem to have given universal satisfaction to his fellow-countrymen. A meeting has been held at Dumfries, at which resolutions were passed declaring that the burgh franchise ought to be vested in burgesses and freemen of trades resident within the royalty, who shall have been ad- mitted to the freedom previous to the passing of the act, and house- holders within the royalty occupying houses of not less than 3/. rent. By Mr. Jeffrey's bill, residence in a 101.- house, the same qualification which is required to entitle amen to vote for members of Parliament, is necessary to give the right of voting for Mirth 'offieets. • 'It teas con- tended at the Dumfries meeting, that the right of suffrage should be enjoyed by those who paid -taxes—that this-was the principle on which some English towns were excluded from the privilege of returning Members under the Reform Bill, and on which soniesacquired that pri- vilege. A respectable constituency, it was said, would Ise obtained by admitting the residents in 31. houses and upwards to the burgh franchise. 'The subject of POor-laWs for Ireland wee also discussed at the same meeting. This, we believe, is the- first:public meetingafleaet it is the first whose proceedings have been forwarded tb us—which has been called for that purpose. The Scotch suffer very much from the in- roads of Irish paupers, and we are glad to see that they are bestirring theMselves to obtain relief alike for themselves'and for their neigh- bours. The people of England would do well to follow the example thus set them by .the spirited inhabitants of Dumftieti. -They may depend' upon it, that a vigorous and united effort will be required to slake off the burden, now. imposed upon them, of Supporting -the Irish peor as well as their. own. . It. is-no argument against -theiiitroductiOn of Poor-laws into Ireland, that they are badly administered in some parts of England: in other parts they are well administered, and no one dreams of introducing our system without amendment into the sister isle. The resolutions on both these subjects appear in our advertising- columns. Mr. Douglas; the able editor of an excellent new paper called the Dumfries Times, took the lead in the proceedings, which appear to have been very creditably conducted..
Previous page
