ELECTORAL

A nice piece of Edinburgh historical ephemera. See the entry on George Berry (1795-c.1874), the first man to register to vote there following the passing the Great Reform Act, in the Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, 1874-1875, where he is described as 'an enthusiastic "Free Trader"'. 40 x 10 cm slip of laid paper, with printed form on one side, headed 'COPY of ENTRY in the REGISTER of QUALIFIED VOTERS for the CITY of EDINBURGH.' In fair condition, lightly aged and creased, with clean vertical cut unobtrusively repaired with archival tape.

4pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. He declares his belief that he will 'act well in accordance with what I stated on the nomination day in 1857, by pursuing the course followed by me since I have been in parliament, & abstaining from voting either way on the ballot'. The subject is one concerning which he feels 'great difficulty': 'I fully appreciate the evils of intimidation & bribery which the ballot is intended to cure, although I hope that they are gradually diminishing & will be still further diminished when we have fewer small constituencies'.

2pp., foolscap 8vo. On two leaves, with the second attached at the head of the blank reverse to a piece of grey card. In fair condition, on aged paper. He writes that he will be 'very glad to sign the memorandum enclosed with your letter of the 14th instant in support of Professor Gilbert Murray'. He proceeds to remark at length on a 'statement in the last paragraph of the memorandum as to the working of Proportional Representation'.

4to: [iii] + 15 + [ii] pp. Ten-leaf stapled pamphlet. Good, on lightly-aged paper. Slight rusting to staples. In small hand in red ink at head of title: 'M.S. 834 - 21/1/37'. Giving the texts of two proposed constitution alterations, 'Aviation' and 'Marketing', with the cases for and against, the referendums on which are both to be taken on 6 March 1937. 1 cm stamp in red ink of the Webster Collection at foot of final page, numbered 4190.

8vo. 94 pages. 2 pages facsimile of an electoral handbill. One fold-out plate. In poor condition. Damp stained, and in remains of repaired grey printed wraps. Paper browning. 'Printed by J. Rochford O'Driscoll, Printer, Dagmar House, Lowestoft.' The case for the plaintiff, Harry Seymour Foster, was led by the celebrated F. E. Smith (Later Earl of Birkenhead). The defendant was Edward (later Sir Edward) Beauchamp. The main cause of what the judge in summing-up described as 'a political action' was a letter by 'FISHERMAN' (i.e.