i822.] Death of George III. to the Death of Castlereagh. 155 real vitality to the representation of the people, and it was of course rejected. It did not even attract a large attendance, and the division in which forty-three voted for, and fifty-five against, the motion was taken early, and in the absence of Lambton and some of his friends, who had expected a longer debate. On the Qth of May Russell brought forward his proposal, which was formulated in four resolutions. The first set forth the existence of bribery and corruption, which might be " destructive to the constitution of Parliaments ; " the second declared the necessity of giving to such places as were greatly increased in wealth and population, the right of returning members ; the third proposed the appointment of a com- mittee to consider how these members might be returned without making " an inconvenient addition to the members of this House ; " and the fourth referred it to the same com- mittee, to consider the mode of proceeding with respect of any boroughs thereafter charged with briber)' and corruption. This was the extent to which one of the best of the old section of the Whigs was prepared to go. There was no extension of the franchise, either in existing boroughs or in counties ; nothing, indeed, but a small addition to the number of members, which, although it represented populous consti- tuencies, would have been lost, like a drop of water in a bucket, in a House filled with the members of a single class and their nominees. It will be seen that the Radicals had something to do before they could prepare the Whigs to submit proposals that would receive, or deserve, any popular support. In the course of this session Lord John Russell had a sort of half-victory in the way of reform. On the ist of February he introduced a bill to disfranchise Grampound and give the two members to Leeds, conferring the right of voting on all inhabitants renting houses at 10 a year. The bill was read a second time, but in committee the qualification was raised from ;io to 20, on which Lord John threw up the charge of the measure, which nevertheless passed and went up to the
