Description:The local elections of the late 1740s and 1753 cost the Gower-Anson party a great deal of money, particularly in rallying support by treating voters to free food and drink at local public houses. Examining Mr. Cobb’s election accounts, Thomas Gilbert produced a report for Earl Gower showing where money had been spent and what had gone wrong in the financial management of previous election campaigns. A few extracts from this detailed report appear here:
Treating Expenses
Frank O’Gorman’s influential work on eighteenth century elections refers to the importance of ‘treating’ in an election campaign. Providing voters with free food and drink rewarded loyal voters and rallied support for a political party. The importance of free alcohol in canvassing is evident where O’Gorman notes that ‘personal familiarity with the inn-keepers’ was an ‘essential’ quality in an election agent. Agents arranged the opening of local alehouses for parties of voters, taking responsibility for the expense of alcohol consumed.
However, treating could be extremely expensive as Earl Gower found in the Lichfield elections of the early 1750s when local publicans exploited the Gower-Anson party by charging extortionate bills. Gilbert reports specifically on public house bills, noting that they appear from his examination ‘very Extravagant’. He writes ‘the number of Ale Houses that have been opened, on these occasions is very great’, serving many people who ‘have no votes and cannot make any’. Although orders had been given ‘for small quantitys of Liquor only’, Gilbert found that the orders had ‘been abused’ with publicans getting ‘all the people they could into their Houses’ to cover up ‘their Exorbitant Bills’.
Gilbert had tried to reduce the bills where possible, however, many of the Publicans had complained that they would ‘make a noise about it’ which would affect the Gower-Anson interest in Lichfield. Gilbert wrote that ‘as many of them have Votes and Interest at Lichfield’ he would recommend putting up with the ‘Imposition’ of the bills to avoid ‘a great deal of Clamour’.
Property Purchase Scheme
Gilbert supported Earl Gower's property purchasing scheme, which involved the Gower-Anson party purchasing property in Lichfield, such as Burgage property, in order to secure the voting rights which came with the properties. In his observations Gilberts writes with ‘great pleasure’ that the scheme had worked to the advantage of the Gower-Anson interest. He reports that the scheme had brought in a considerable amount of rent money amounting to about £250 adding that ‘no less than 36 Burgages, part of this property…poll’d at the last Election’. Gilbert optimistically estimates in his report that the Burgages ‘will always make so many Votes at any future Election at a Trifle Expence’. The property purchase scheme had both financial and political advantages, bringing in money and ‘good Freehold Votes’ for the Gower Anson party.
Gilbert writes that it would be of great advantage to ‘the Interest to Increase the property by laying hold of every thing that offers’, buying up property and granting it to supporters of the Gower-Anson interest ‘in order to poll’. Gilbert remarks to Lord Gower in his report that ‘certainly those that vote against you, ought not to occupy your Land or Houses’.