better and more public-spirited organization of our banking system. The danger in inaugurating such a movement is now, as always, that it may be taken possession of by selfish politicians and business men who in the pretence of representing public welfare desire only to possess themselves of the "loaves and fishes" and to advance the interests of sections of the community.

Enough proposed legislation amendatory of the Federal Reserve Act is now pending in Congress to destroy its purpose wholly, and among this vast array of bills few or none embody the amendments which are now so much to be desired and so essential if the System is to maintain a progressive attitude. The Federal Reserve System has done well and has deserved well of the community; it has been an emergency system actively and effectively functioning in a time of almost unique emergency. What it will do, how it will act, and what will be the attitude of the public toward it from this time forward remains to be learned. One thing is certain: It is in unstable equilibrium and cannot be expected now to maintain its present position. It must go forward or consent to lose ground, perhaps ultimately to suffer the fate of other central banks which in the past were destroyed by demagogues.

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

H. PARKER WILLIS

AN EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY ELECTION IN

H

ENGLAND

ISTORIANS have been prone to speak of the political corruption in the eighteenth-century representative system, but in reality little has yet been done to study in a minute way how the system operated after the victory of Parliament over the Crown in 1688. A careful examination must be made of each individual election before we are able to generalize with any safety as to the functioning of the English electorate prior to the Reform Bill of 1832. Basil Williams in a suggestive article on the election of 1734 has indicated what excellent work may be done in this field.'

No election in the first half of the century is more interesting or more significant than that of 1710, and it is, without doubt, the most important one held under the provisions of the Triennial Act of 1694. A typical election it certainly is not, for the public interest was too intense and the interests at stake too momentous for it to take the usual course of the average election. It illustrates, however, all phases of activity in English elections, and the contemporary records give us far more detail of even the ordinary happenings of a canvass than would have been the case had it aroused less interest among the people of the time.

This paper is an attempt to describe the final success of Robert Harley's schemes against the Whigs; to note the activity of the queen, the clergy and the moneyed men in political affairs; and at the same time describe how one important election of the early eighteenth century was carried on.

English political parties did not become truly significant until after the Glorious Revolution, and not until it had been well established that ministers should depend upon the House of

1 "The Duke of Newcastle and the Election of 1734", E. H. R., XII, p. 448. The article was based almost entirely on the Newcastle Papers found in the British Museum.

Commons for their support did elections become a vital part of the machinery for governing England. William II had tried to rule England by means of bi-partisan ministries, but soon yielded to the political necessity of a Whig ministry, which, on account of its arrogance, he was compelled to dismiss in favor of the Tories; who in turn had to give way before a Whig House of Commons elected just before his death. Queen Anne, also, attempted to stand above and between parties, but in spite of her Tory sympathies, she had to accept a Whig ministry even at the price of dismissing Harley, her favorite secretary of state. The significance of these facts in determining the importance of political parties has usually been overlooked, whereas if they are taken in conjunction with the election of 1710, their meaning is unmistakable.

Before discussing the election itself, it is advisable to ascertain the exact political situation which brought it about a full year before it would naturally take place in conformity with the Triennial Act. The election of 1708 was a decided victory for the Whigs, and more particularly for the junto, the group of five who controlled that party. The queen disliked the Whigs in general, and the junto in particular, as was manifested by her opposition to admitting two of their number, Lord Somers. and the Earl of Sunderland, to her cabinet council. As a result, after Harley's dismissal, Anne soon began intriguing against her ministers and secretly supported her former secretary of state in his efforts to drive the Whigs from power. The ministry was by no means invulnerable; the Sacheverell trial had focused all the wrath of the Highfliers against them; the nominal head of the ministry was Godolphin, a moderate Tory, and its strongest supporter the great Duke of Marlborough, whose party affiliations were, to say the least, ambiguous. Moreover, the duke's popularity with the queen had measurably declined on account of his ambitious desire to be made captain-general for life and to control all important military appointments. Furthermore, his termagant spouse, the beautiful Duchess of Marlborough, in the early months of the reign

1 D. Defoe, An Account of the Conduct of Robert, Earl of Oxford, p. 16.

the bosom companion of Queen Anne, had passed definitely into political oblivion after a tearful, but ineffective last interview with the queen. But incomparably worse than all this, Anne's confidence was now in the keeping of Mrs. Masham, who was in closest touch with Harley. Worst of all, Sunderland, the most influential son-in-law of the Marlboroughs, was summarily dismissed as principal secretary of state a short time after Lady Marlborough's stormy scene with Anne.

Sunderland's dismissal was a straight challenge to the Whigs and more especially to the junto, to which he belonged. For a moment the Whigs seemed paralyzed, but they soon assumed the offensive and brought to their aid several wealthy and influential nobles, representatives of the Bank and the moneyed men of the City, as well as the envoys of Holland and the Empire, all of whom waited on the queen to protest against Sunderland's dismissal as unwise and unsafe at that particular juncture in the war with France. Their joint protest had no effect beyond exasperating Anne at their presumption, although it is indicative of the fundamental interest of the financial men in prosecuting the war under Whig direction, and their desire to ward off a new election at a time when the English masses were already weary of war. The skill with which the queen met the representations of these men points unmistakably to the fact that she was far from being the figurehead in politics which she was formerly represented to be. Her success in forestalling any overt and organized effort on the part of the Whig leaders also shows that the junto was slowly dissolving under the attacks of Harley and his supporters.

The credit of the government continued to sink slowly after Sunderland withdrew from the cabinet. Harley, however, gained not only the assistance of Godolphin, but the support of the three powerful dukes of Somerset, Newcastle and Shrewsbury, which probably checked a panic. Although a run on the bank was thus averted, the queen found it desirable to gain the aid of some of the leading Whigs, notably Halifax, Somers and Wharton, to arrest the continued decline of stocks. Her conference with members of the junto did not gain the cooperation of the Whigs but it did assist in adding to their

general demoralization. Moreover, it materially increased the chronic timidity of Godolphin, who began to fear for his office. Harley gained confidence, at any rate, from the attitude of the moneyed men and waited for the first suitable opportunity to compass the downfall of the head of the ministry. Sir Thomas Hanmer's refusal to accept a place on the treasury board delayed Harley's plans somewhat, although the lord treasurer really invited his own disgrace by his sulkiness toward the queen, whose ire was so aroused that she sent for his staff of office, and placed the treasury in charge of a board of commissioners, of which Harley was a member. The latter was also made chancellor of the exchequer.

Thus did the queen challenge even more directly the power of the Marlboroughs and the Whigs by dismissing the man felt to be indispensable in the prosecution of the war. The stand of the Whigs was half-hearted and they disarmed Marlborough by asking him to remain at the head of the army. As the stocks began once more to fall, they hoped the queen would be compelled to recall Godolphin, but they failed to carry the fight to Anne and Harley. The danger of a financial crisis was sufficiently great to lead to a session of the cabinet council, and at the same time the treasury board assured the Bank that they would in no way change the plans for financing the war. Had it not been for repeated reports that Marlborough would be superseded in command of the army by the Elector of Hanover, the moneyed men and the foreign diplomats might have been satisfied with these precautions. As it was, however, both groups feared lest England might cease to interest herself actively in the war and make overtures of peace to Louis XIV.1

After Godolphin was forced out, it was only a question of time until others would follow him, while the possibility of an election seemed more imminent with each passing day. The essence of Harley's schemes lay in their secrecy, and he contrived at the same time to keep his opponents in the dark as to his exact plans and win over a few of the more influential of them. Meanwhile, do what he might, Harley could not hope

For more detailed information on these points, see the author's article in POLITICAL SCIENCE QUARTERLY, June, 1921.