第9章

TheseletterscompensateforthesilenceofHansard，sorealandinstructive

apicturedotheypresentofthemethodsandmotivesofenclosure。’Bully

hasaschemeofenclosurewhich，ifitsucceeds，Iamtoldwillfreehim

fromallhisdifficulties。’Thejournalsmaytalkoftheundrainedfertility

ofSedgmoor，butwehaveinthissentencetheaspectoftheenclosurethat

interestsSelwyn，theChairmanoftheCommittee，andfrombeginningtoend

oftheproceedingsnootheraspecteverentershishead。Anditinterests

agreatmanyotherpeoplebesidesSelwyn，forBullyowesmoney；sotoodoes

Stavordale，anotherprospectivebeneficiary：heowesmoneytoFox，andFox

owesmoneytoCarlisle。NowBullyandStavordalearenottheonlyeighteenth-century

aristocratswhoareindifficulties；thewaitersatBrooks’sandatWhite’s

knowthatwellenough，asSelwynfeltwhen，onhearingthatoneofthemhad

beenattestedforfelony，heexclaimed，’Whatanideaofushewillgive

inNewgate。’NorisBullytheonlyaristocratindifficultieswhosethoughts

turntoenclosure；Selwyn’slettersalone，withtheirreferencetoprevious

successes，wouldmakethatclear。Itisherethatwebegintoappreciate

theeffectofoursystemoffamilysettlementsinkeepingthearistocracy

together。Theseyoungmen，whosefortunescomeandgointhehurricanesof

thefarotable，wouldsoonhavedissipatedtheirestatesiftheyhadbeen

freetodoit；astheywererestrainedbysettlements，theycouldonlymortgage

them。Butthereisalimittothisprocess，andafteratimetheirdebts

begintooverwhelmthem；perhapsalsotoomanyoftheirfellowgamblersare

theircreditorstomakeBrooks’sorWhite’squiteascomfortableaplace

asitusedtobe，forwemaydoubtwhetherallofthesecreditorsweretroubled

withLordCarlisle’smorbiddelicacyoffeeling。Happilythereisanescape

fromthispainfulsituation：aschemeofenclosurewhichwillputhim’once

moreonhislegs。’Theotherpartiesconcernedaregenerallypoormen，and

thereisnotmuchdangeroffailure。Thusifwetracetheadventuresofthe

gamingtabletotheirbitterend，webegintounderstandthatthesewild

revellersaregamblingnotwiththeirownestatesbutwiththeestatesof

theirneighbours。Thisistheonlypropertytheycanrealise。Quidquiddelirant

regesplectunturAchivi。

Theparticularobstacleonwhichtheschemesplitwasafraudulentirregularity

theBillsubmittedforsignaturetotheinhabitantsdifferingseriously(in

twentyparticulars)fromtheBillpresentedtoParliament。Selwynclearly

attachednoimportanceatalltothePetitionsthatwerereceivedagainst

theBill，ortotheevidenceofitslocalunpopularity。Itiscleartoo，

thatitwasveryrareforaschemelikethistomiscarry，for，speakingof

hisbecomingChairmanoftheCommittee，headds，’Ithoughtitwasamatter

offormonly。’Furtherwithalittlecarethisprojectwouldhaveweathered

thediscoveryofthefraudofwhichtheauthorwereguilty。’Ibeggedlast

nightasforalmsthattheywouldmeetustosettletheVotes。Ihave，since

IhavebeeninParliament，beenoftwentyatleastofthesemeetings，and

alwaysbroughtnumberdownbythesemeans。Butmyadvicewasslighted，and

twentypeoplewerewalkingaboutthestreetswhocouldhavecarriedthis

point。’Inotherwords，theBillwouldhavebeencarried，allitsiniquities

notwithstanding，ifonlyBully’sfriendshadtakenSelwyn’sadviceandput

themselvesouttogodowntoWestminster。Solittleimpressiondidthispiece

oftrickerymakeonthemindoftheChairmanoftheCommittee，thatheintended

tothelast，bycollectinghisfriends，tocarrytheBill，forthefairness

andgoodorderofwhichhewasresponsible，throughtheHouseofCommons。

ThisglimpseintotheoperationsoftheCommitteeenablesustopicturethe

groupsofcomradeswhosauntereddownfromAlmack’sofanafternoontocarve

upamanorinCommitteeoftheHouseofCommons。WecanseeBully’sfriends

meetingroundthetableintheirsolemncharacterofjudgesandlegislator，

togiveascoreofvillagestoBully，andadozentoStavordale，muchas

ArtaxerxesgaveMagnesiatoThemistoclesforhisbread，Myusforhismeat

andLampsacusforhiswine。AndifthosefriendshappenedtobeBully’screditor

aswell，itwouldperhapsnotbeunjusttosupposethattheiractionwas

notaltogetherfreefromthekindofgratitudethatinspiredthebountyof

1。E。g。，LaxtonenclosedonpetitiononLordCarberyin1772。Totalarea

1200acres。EnclosureproceedingscompletedintheCommonsinnineteendays。

AlsoAshbury，Berks，enclosedonpetitionofLordCravenin1770。Therewere

contrarypetitions。AlsoNylands，enclosedin1790onpetitionofthelady

ofthemanor。AlsoTilsworth，Beds，enclosedonpetitionofCharlesChester，

Esq。，1767，andWestcote，Bucks，onpetitionofthemostnobleGeorge，Duke

ofMarlborough，January24，1765。Sometimesthelordofthemanorassociated

thevicarwithhispetition；thusWaltham，CroxtonandBraunston，covering

5600acres，inLeicestershire，wereallenclosedin1766bytheDukeofRutland

andthelocalrectororvicar。TherelationsofChurchandStatearevery

happilyillustratedbythelanguageofthepetitions，’Apetitionofthe

mostnobleJohn，DukeofRutland，andthehumblepetition’oftheRev——

BrownorRastallorMartin。

ThisStandingOrderdoesnotseemtohavebeenapplieduniversally，

forMrBraggsonDecember1，1800，madeamotionthatitshouldbeextended

tothecountrieswhereithadnothithertoobtained。SeeSenator，

vol。xxvii，December1，1800。

SeeparticularsinAppendix。

ASixMonths’TourthroughtheNorthofEngland，1771，vol。

SeeHouseofCommonsJournal。

Eden，TheStateofthePoor，vol。ii，p。157。

Eden，writingafewyearslater，remarksthatsincetheenclosure

’thepropertyinHolyIslandhasgottenintofewerhands，’vol。ii，p。149。

ReportofSelectCommitteeonMostEffectualMeansofFacilitating

Enclosure，1800。

13。Cf。alsoWraisburyinBucks，HouseofCommonsJournal，June

17，1799，wherethepetitionersagainsttheBillclaimedthattheyspoke

onbehalfof’bymuchthegreatestPartoftheProprietorsofthesaidLands

ofGrounds。’yetintheenumerationofconsentsthecommitteestatethat

theownersofpropertyassessedat£；6，18s。arehostileoutofatotal

valueof£；295，14s。

APoliticalEnquiryintotheConsequencesofenclosingWasteLands，

Sinclair’slanguageshowsthatthiswasthegeneralarrangement。Of

coursethereareexceptions。Seee。g。，HauteHuntreandothercasesinAppendix。

Cf。Billingsley’sReportonSomerset，p。59，wherethearrangements

aredescribedas’alittlesystemofpatronage。Thelordofthesoil，the

rector，andafewoftheprincipalcommoners，monopolizeanddistributethe

appointments。’

ParliamentaryRegister，June14，1781。

GeneralReportonEnclosures，1808。

SixMonths’TourthroughtheNorthofEngland，vol。i，p。122。

SeeAppendixA(6)。

ReportonSomerset，p。192。

ParliamentaryRegister，January21，1772。

CarlisleMSS。；HistoricalMSS。Commission，pp。301ff。

CharlesJamesFox。

TheearliernameofBrooks’sClub。

ForthesubsequenthistoryofKing’sSedgmoor，seeAppendixA(14)。

Intheyear1774，LordNorth’sGovernment，whichhadalreadyreceived

abadbruiseortwointhecourseofitsquarrelswithprinterandauthor，

gotverymuchtheworstofitinanencounterthatalittleprudencewould

havesufficedtoavertaltogether。Theaffairhasbecomefamousonaccount

oftheactor，andbecauseitwastheturingpointinaveryimportantcareer。

Thecauseofthequarrelhaspassedintothebackground，butstudentsof

theenclosuremovementwillfindmoretointeresttheminitsbeginningthan

initscircumstancesanddevelopment。

Mr。DeGrey，MemberforNorfolk，andLordoftheManorofTollingtonin

thatcounty，hadadisputeoflongstandingwithMr。WilliamTookeofPurley，

alandownerinTollington，whohadresistedMr。DeGrey’sencroachmentson

thecommon。Anactiononthissubjectwasimpending，butMr。DeGrey，who

held，asSirGeorgeTrevelyanputsit，’thatthelaw’sdelaywasnotintended

forMemberofParliament’gotanotherMemberofParliamenttointroducea

petitionforaBillfortheenclosureofTollington。Asithappened，Mr。

TookewasafriendofoneoftheclerksintheHouseofCommons，andthis

friendtoldhimon6thJanuarythatapetitionfromDeGreywasaboutto

bepresented。AfortnightlaterMr。Tookereceivedfromthisclerkacopy

ofMr。DeGrey’spetition，inwhichtheLordChiefJustice，brotherofMr。

DeGreywasincluded。Mr。TookehurriedtoLondonandpreparedacounter

petition，andSirEdwardAstley，thememberfortheconstituency，undertook

topresentthatpetitiontogetherwiththepetitionfromMr。DeGrey。There

weresomefurthernegotiations，withtheresultthatbothsidesrevisedtheir

respectivepetitions，anditwasarrangedthattheyshouldbepresentedon

4thFebruary。OnthatdaytheSpeakersaidtheHousewasnotfullenough，

andthepetitionsmustbepresentedonthe7th。AccordinglySirEdwardAstley

broughtupbothpetitionsonthe7th，buttheSpeakersaiditwasveryextraordinary

topresenttwocontrarypetitionsatthesametime。’Bringthefirstpetition

first。’Whenmembersbegantosay’Hear，hear，’theSpeakerremarked，’It

isonlyacommonpetitionforacommonenclosure，’andtheMembersfellinto

generalconversation，payingnoheedtotheproceedingsattheTable。In

themidstofthisthepetitionwasread，andtheSpeakeraskedfor’Ayes

andNoes，’anddeclaredthattheAyeshadit。Thepetitionaskingforthe

BillhadthusbeensurreptitiouslycarriedwithouttheHousebeingmadeaware

thattherewasacontrarypetitiontobepresented，thecontrarypetition

askingfordelay。Thesecondpetitionwasthenreadandorderedtolieon

theTable。

Inordinarycircumstancesnothingmorewouldhavebeenheardoftheopposition

toMr。DeGrey’sBill。Hundredsofpetitionsmayhavebeensostifledwithout

theworldbeinganythewiser。ButMr。Tooke，whowouldneverhaveknown

ofMr。DeGrey’sintentionifhehadnothadafriendamongtheclerkof

theHouseofCommons，happenedtohaveanotherfriendwhowasabletohelp

himinaverydifferentwayinhispredicament。ThiswasHorne，whowasnow

livinginacottageatPurley，readinglaw，onthedesperatechancethat

aman，whowasaclergymanagainsthiswill，wouldbeadmittedtothebar。

RushedratherthanspentbyhispublicquarrelwithWilkes，whichwasjust

dyingdown，HornesawinMr。Tooke’swrongsanadmirableopportunityfor

achampionoffreedom，whoseearlierexploitshadbeenalittletarnished

byhissubsequentfeudswithhiscomrades。Accordinglyherespondedvery

promptly，andpublishedinthePublicAdvertiserof11thFebruary，ananonymous

indictmentoftheSpeaker，SirRetcherNorton，basedonhisunjusttreatment

ofthesepetitions。ThisletterscandalisedtheHouseofCommonsanddrew

theunwaryGovernmentintoaquarrelfromwhichHorneemergedtriumphant；

fortheGovernment，havingbeenledontoproceedagainstHorne，wasunable

toprovehisauthorshipoftheletter。Theincidenthadconsequencesofgreat

importanceformanypersons。ItwasthemakingofHorne，forhebecameHorne

Tooke，with£；8000fromhisfriendandareputationasanintrepidand

vigilantchampionofpopularlibertythatheretainedtothedayofhisdeath。

ItwasalsothemakingofFox，foritwasthisyouthoftwenty-fivewhohad

ledtheGovernmentintoitsscrape，andthekingcouldnotforgivehim。His

temerityonthisoccasionprovokedthefamousletterfromNorth。’Sir，His

MajestyhasthoughtpropertoorderanewCommissionoftheTreasurytobe

madeout，inwhichIdonotseeyourname。’Foxleftthecourtpartytolend

hisimpetuouscouragehenceforthtoverydifferentcauses。Butforsocial

studentstheincidentischieflyinterestingbecauseitwasthecauseof

theintroductionofStandingOrdersonEnclosureBills。Ithadshownwhat

mighthappentorichmenundertheexistingsystem。AccordinglytheHouse

ofCommonssettoworktoconstructaseriesofStandingOrderstoregulate

theproceedingsonEnclosureBills。

MostoftheseStandingOrdershavereadybeenmentionedintheprevious

chapter，butweproposetorecapitulatetheirmainprovisionsinorderto

showthatthegrossfairnessoftheprocedure，describedinthelastchapter，

asbetweentherichandthepoor，madenoimpressionatalluponParliament。

ThefirstStandingOrdersdealingwithEnclosureBillswerepassedin1774，

andtheywererevisedin1775，1781，1799，1800and1801。TheseStanding

OrderspreventedasecretapplicationtoParliamentbyobligingpromoters

topublishanoticeonthechurchdoor；theyintroducedsomecontrolover

theextortionsofcommissioners，andlaiddownthattheBillpresentedto

Parliamentshouldcontainthenamesofthecommissionersandadescription

ofthecompensationtobegiventothelordofthemanorandtheimpropriator

oftithes。Buttheycontainednosafeguardatallagainstrobberyofthe

smallproprietorsorthecommoners。Until1801therewasnorestrictionon

thechoiceofacommissioner，anditwasonlyinthatyearthatParliament

adoptedtheStandingOrderprovidingthatnolordofthemanor，orsteward，

orbailiffofanylordorladyorproprietorshouldbeallowedtoactas

commissionerinanenclosureinwhichhewasaninterestedparty。(1*)In

onerespectParliamentdeliberatelywithdrewaruleintroducedtogivegreater

regUlarityandpublicitytotheproceedingsofcommittees。UndertheStanding

Ordersof1774，theChairmanofaCommitteehadtoreportnotonlywhether

theStandingOrdershadbeencompliedwith，butalsowhatevidencehadbeen

submittedtoshowthatall，thenecessaryformalitieshadbeenobserved；

butinthefollowingyeartheHouseofCommonsstruckoutthissecondprovision。

ACommitteeoftheHouseofCommonssuggestedin1799thatnopetitionshould

beadmittedforaParliamentaryBillunlessafourthpartoftheproprietors

innumberandvaluesignedtheapplication，butthissuggestionwasrejected。

ThepoorthenfoundnokindofshelterintheStandingOrders。Thelegislation

ofthisperiod，fromfirsttolast，showsjustasgreatanindifferenceto

theinjusticetowhichtheywereexposed。ThefirstpublicActofthetime

dealsnotwithenclosuresforgrowingcorn，butwithenclosuresforgrowing

wood。TheActof1756statesinitspreamblethattheActsofHenryVIII，

CharlesIIandWilliamIIIforencouragingthegrowthoftimberhadbeen