SECOND READING. (Hansard, 26 April 1893)

§ THE SECRETARY FOR SCOTLAND (Sir G. TREVELYAN,) Glasgow, Bridgeton
I trust the House will allow this Bill to be read a second time. All the novel and essential points have already been discussed fully this afternoon on the English Bill. The only difference between the Scotch and the English Bill is that the very large and contentious provisions made for improving the English administration are altogether absent from the Scotch Bill, the system of Scotch registration and machinery being so perfect that we do not propose to amend it at all. Under the circumstances I think I am justified in asking the House to give the Bill a Second Reading now, as in Committee hon. Members will be able to amend any provision with which they may disagree.

§ *MR. HOZIER (Lanarkshire, S.)
said, he intended to vote for the Second Reading of this Bill; but he reserved to himself entire liberty of action with regard to the details of the measure. He could not agree that this was purely a Registration Bill. A real Registration Bill was an impartial Bill dealing with the registration machinery, and tending to make registration cheaper and simpler. Could anyone pretend that this was an impartial Bill? It would create and encourage in Scotland, if it passed as it stood, a vast system of what was known in America as gerrymandering, but it would not be called "gerrymandering." The ill fame of Mr. Gerry, the Governor of Massachusetts, would shrink into complete insignificance if this Bill were to pass. The shade of Mr. Gerry looked down with envious eyes upon the Secretary for Scotland. If this Bill passed in its present shape, they would in future always talk, not of "gerrymandering," but of "Trevelyandering" the constituencies. The Secretary for Scotland came to his task of gerrymandering the constituencies very well equipped, because during the last seven years he had belonged to most of 1278 the political Parties in that House. [Cries of "Question!"] Moreover, they must remember that the fanatical zeal of a pervert was always enthusiastically in favour of the political Party to which, for the moment, he might happen to belong. After the Bill was printed, the right hon. Gentleman had gone from bad to worse. He apparently considered that the Bill was not sufficiently in favour of the political Party to which he belonged, and therefore he summoned a meeting of Scottish Gladstonian Members to meet him at Dover House, carefully excluding from that hole-and-corner meeting every single Member who did not agree with him in politics. [Cries of "Order! "] The Gladstonian Members came to the meeting, each with his axe to grind, his pig to roast, and the hon. Member for Ross-shire (Mr. Weir) came with a question or two. The Secretary for Scotland said—"This is all very well, but remember Home Rule blocks the way. We must try to keep our seats somehow. We cannot possibly win a verdict on the merits of the case, and the next best thing to do is to doctor the jury." So the Secretary for Scotland brought this Bill before the meeting, and went through it clause by clause. In these circumstances, could anyone pretend this was not a Bill to which they had every right to attach the gravest suspicion? He could quite understand some hon. Members opposite looking with joy upon the Bill, believing that it would afford splendid opportunities for what they called colonisation and what he called "Trevelyandering." But Trevelyandering was a game at which two could play; in fact, in the words of the poet they might fairly say— What is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. And possibly two can Trevelyander. He admitted that there were certain improvements in the Bill. In the first place, there was a shorter period of qualification. The present period was too long, but he was strongly of opinion that the proposed period was too short. The extension of the time within which claims and objections could be lodged from five days to a fortnight was a very decided improvement from the voters' 1279 point of view. There was one Amendment he would have to bring forward on this clause, in connection with the "words "or proposed to be entered." He would like to know how objections could be made against claims by the 26th September when the list of those claims was not to be published until the 30th September?

§ Mr. Paul
rose in his place, and claimed to move, "That the Question be now put."

§ *MR. SPEAKER
I have no means of judging, after 15 minutes' discussion, whether the Debate ought to be closed, and I am not, therefore, inclined to assent to this Motion.

§ *MR. HOZIER
, continuing, said the hon. Member, who was a very new Member, possibly did not know that this matter excited great interest in Scotland. The hon. Member was one of those who attended the hole-and-corner meeting to which he had referred, and apparently did not wish that the circumstances of that miserable fiasco should be made public. The question of the claims and objections to which he was referring when interrupted was one of considerable importance to voters.

§ *MR. SPEAKER
Order, order!