he receives no pay from the Company, and is not under their control. For the object of the enactment was to prevent all corrupt bargains for the sale of patronage in matters of public concernment; and with that view it is immaterial whether that to which the nomination is sold can be described with most critical correctness by any of the terms, office, commission, place, or employment.' And a cadetship may be described in an indictment under the Act as an 'office, commission, place, and employment.' (m)

A., an attorney, who held the offices of clerk of the peace for a liberty, clerk to the commissioners of land and assessed taxes, clerk to the commissioners of sewers, clerk to the magistrates, clerk to the deputy-lieutenants, steward of divers manors, and coroner to the said liberty, entered into articles of partnership with B., by which, after reciting that he held many offices, &c., and that it had been agreed that they should enter into partnership in the said business and in the emoluments of the said offices, &c., upon the terms thereinafter expressed,' it was agreed that they should enter into partnership for twenty years, and that all the profits and emoluments arising from the said offices,' &c., during the said partnership should be considered as partnership property, and distributed accordingly; it was also agreed that if A. died within the term, then, during such period as no son of A. should be a partner in the said business, B. should be interested in one moiety of the said business, and the executors of A. should be entitled to the profits of the other moiety of the said business, to be applied as part of his personal estate; and it was held that the agreement was not a contract for the sale of an office within the 5 & 6 Ed. 6, c. 16, or 49 Geo. 3, c. 126. (n)

Where a count of an indictment for a misdemeanor in the sale of the office of a chaplain in the East Indies, alleged that the defendants unlawfully and corruptly did contract and agree with D. N. to procure the appointment to a certain office and employment under the appointment and control of the East India Company, to wit, the office and employment of a chaplain in India, of a person duly qualified for the said office to be named by the said D. N. in that behalf; it was held that the count was bad; for the contract or agreement must be to receive money or profit, and the word 'corruptly,' is not sufficient to bring it within the Act. (0)

By the Public Bodies (Corrupt Practices) Act, 1889, 52 & 53 Vict. c. 69, s. 1,

(1) Every person who shall, by himself, or by or in conjunction with any other person, corruptly solicit or receive, or agree to receive for himself or for any other person, any gift, loan, fee, reward, or advantage (p) whatever, as an inducement to, or reward for, or other

(m) R. v. Charretie, 13 Q. B. 447. See now, as to appointments to cadetships in India, 21 & 22 Vict. c. 106, the Act for transferring the government of India to her Majesty; and 24 & 25 Vict. c. 104.

(n) Sterry v. Clifton, 9 C. B. 110. It was also held that the latter clause was not a violation of the 22 Geo. 2, c. 46, s. 11, repealed by the 7 & 8 Vict. c. 73.

(0) Samo v. R., 2 Cox, C. C. 178.

includes any office or dignity and any forbearance to demand any money or money's worth or valuable thing, and includes any aid, vote, consent, or influence, or pretended aid, vote, consent, or influence, and also includes any promise or procurement of or agreement or endeavour to procure, or the holding out of any expectation of any gift, loan, fee, reward, or advantage as before defined.'

wise on account of any member, officer, or servant of a public body, as in this Act defined, () doing, or forbearing to do anything in respect of any matter or transaction whatsoever, actual or proposed, in which the said public body is concerned shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.'

(2) Every person who shall by himself or by or in conjunction with any other person, corruptly give, promise, or offer any gift, loan, fee, award, or advantage whatsoever, to any person whether for the benefit of that person, or of another person, as an inducement to, or reward for, or otherwise, on account of any member, officer, or servant of any public body, as in this act defined, (r) doing, or forbearing to do, anything in respect of any matter or transaction whatsoever, actual or proposed, in which such public body as aforesaid is concerned, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.'

By sec. 2, any person, on conviction, for offending as aforesaid, shall, at the discretion of the court before which he is convicted, a. be liable to be imprisoned for any period not exceeding two years, with or without hard labour, or to pay a fine not exceeding 500l., or to both such imprisonment and such fine; and b. in addition, be liable to be ordered to pay to such body, and in such manner as the court directs, the amount or value of any gift, loan, fee, or reward received by him, or any part thereof; and

c. be liable to be judged incapable of being elected or appointed to any public office for seven years from the date of his conviction, and to forfeit any such office held by him at the time of his conviction; and

d. in the event of a second conviction for a like offence, he shall, in addition to the foregoing penalties, be liable to be adjudged forever incapable of holding any public office, and to be incapable for seven years of being registered as an elector, or voting at an election, either of members to serve in Parliament or of members of any public body, and the enactments for preventing the voting and registration of persons declared, by reason of corrupt practices, to be incapable of voting, shall apply to a person adjudged in pursuance of this section to be incapable of voting; and e. if such person is an officer or servant in the employ of any public. body, upon such conviction, he shall, at the discretion of the court, be liable to forfeit his right and claim to any compensation or pension to which he would otherwise have been entitled.' By sec. 3 (1.) 'Where an offence under this Act is also punishable under any other enactment or at common law, such offence may be prosecuted and punished either under this Act, or under the other enactment, or at common law, but so that no person shall be punished twice for the same offence.'

(2.) A person shall not be exempt from punishment under this

(q) By s. 7 'The expression "public body" means any council of a county or county of a city or town, any council of a municipal borough, also any board, commis sioners, select vestry, or other body which has power to act under and for the purposes of any Act relating to local government or the

public health or to poor law, or otherwise to administer money raised by rates in pursu ance of any public general Act, but does not include any public body as above defined existing elsewhere than in the United Kingdom.'

(r) Sec. 7, ante.

Act by reason of the invalidity of the appointment or election of a person to a public office.'

Sec. 4 provides that no prosecution under the Act shall be instituted except by or with the consent of the Attorney-General.

By sec. 5 the expenses of the prosecution of an offence against this Act shall be defrayed in like manner as in the case of a felony.

By sec. 6 offences under the Act are made triable at Quarter Sessions.

CHAPTER THE SEVENTEENTH.

OF BRIBERY AND OFFENCES AT PARLIAMENTARY AND

MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS. (a)

Bribery.1-Bribery is the receiving or offering any undue reward by or to any person whatsoever, whose ordinary profession or business relates to the administration of public justice, in order to influence his behaviour in office, and incline him to act contrary to the known rules of honesty and integrity. (b) And it seems that this offence will be committed by any person in an official situation, who shall corruptly use the power or interest of his place for rewards or promises as in the case of one who was clerk to the agent for French prisoners of war, and indicted for taking bribes in order to procure the exchange of some of them out of their turn. (c) And bribery sometimes signifies the taking or giving of a reward for offices of a public nature. (d) Corrupt and illegal practices in giving rewards or making promises, in order to procure votes in the elections of members to serve in Parliament, are also denominated bribery, and punishable. (e) So giving refreshments to voters before they vote, in order to induce them to vote for a particular candidate, is bribery at common law. (f) And the attempt to influence persons serving as jurymen corruptly to one side, by gifts or promises (which, with other practices tending to influence a jury, will be considered in treating of the crime called embracery), (g) may be mentioned as a species of bribery.

The law abhors the least tendency to corruption; and upon the principle which has been already mentioned, of an attempt to commit a misdemeanor, being itself a misdemeanor; (h) attempts to bribe,2 though unsuccessful, have in several cases been held to be criminal. Thus, it is laid down generally, that if a party offers a bribe to a

(a) Illegal practices and illegal payments at elections are punishable on summary conviction, and are therefore not within the scope of this work.

(b) 3 Inst. 149. 1 Hawk. P. C. c. 67, s. 2. 4 Blac. Com. 139.

(c) R. v. Beale, E. T. 38 Geo. 3, cited in R. v. Gibbs, 1 East, R. 183; and see R. v. Vaughan, 4 Burr. 2494, ante, p. 435.

AMERICAN

1 Many statutes have been passed in America as well as in England upon the subject of bribery, but it is impossible even to refer to them in this work.

2 An agreement to use a supposed influence with a street commissioner to induce

(d) 1 Hawk. P. C. c. 67, s. 3. As to this species of bribery, see the preceding Chapter. (e) R. v. Pitt, 3 Burr. 1338. 2 Geo. 2, c. 24. 49 Geo. 3, c. 118.

(f) Hughes v. Marshall, 2 Tyrw. 134; S. C., 2 C. & J. 118. 5 C. & P. 151. (g) Post, Chap. XXII. (h) Ante, p. 196.

NOTES.

him to allow certain claims is illegal. Devlin v. Brady, 32 Barb. 518. And an offer of money to a member of a common council to vote for laying a railroad track. S. v. Ellis, 4 Vroom, 102; 97 Am. D. 707. Bishop, ii. s. 86.

An

judge, meaning to corrupt him in a case depending before him, and the judge takes it not; yet this is an offence punishable by law in the party that offers it. (i) And it has been held to be a misdemeanor to attempt to bribe a cabinet minister, and a member of the Privy Council, to give the defendant an office in the colonies. () And an information was granted against a man for promising money to a member of a corporation, to induce him to vote for the election of a mayor. (k) Paying or promising to pay for votes at the election of an assistant overseer is bribery and indictable at common law. (1), information also appears to have been exhibited against a person for attempting by bribery to influence a juryman in giving his verdict. (m) By the 46 & 47 Vict. c. 41, s. 7, Every person who receives any money or valuable consideration from the person to whom a boy is bound apprentice to the sea-fishing service, or to whom a boy under sixteen years of age is bound by any agreement with respect to the sea-fishing service, or from any one on his behalf, or from the boy or any one on his behalf in consideration of the boy being so bound, and every person who makes or causes to be made any such payment, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor whether such boy was or was not validly bound apprentice, or was or was not validly bound by such agreement."'

Bribery at elections for members of Parliament was always a crime at common law, and consequently punishable by indictment or information; (n) but in order to enforce the common law, and because it had not been found sufficient to prevent the evil, considerable penalties have been imposed upon this offence by different statutes. It would not be within the scope of the present work to deal fully with the subject of bribery and corruption. Only those portions of the various Acts of Parliament which deal with bribery as a crime or misdemeanor are here alluded to, and the reader is referred to other works for more general information upon the subject.

The 17 & 18 Vict. c. 102 (0) consolidated and amended the laws relating to bribery, treating, and undue influence at elections of members of Parliament.

Sec. 2. The following persons shall be deemed guilty of bribery, and shall be punishable accordingly:

1. Every person who shall, directly or indirectly, by himself, or by any other person on his behalf, (p) give, lend, or agree to give or lend, or shall offer, promise, (7) or promise to procure, or to endeavour to procure, any money, or valuable consideration, to or for any voter, or to or for any person on behalf of any voter, or to or for any other person in order to induce any voter to vote, or refrain from voting, or

(i) 3 Inst. 147. R. v. Vaughan, 4 Burr. 2500. Ante, p. 435.

(j) Vaughan's case, 4 Burr. 2494; and see R. v. Pollman, 2 Campb. 229.

(k) Plympton's case, 2 Ld. Raym. 1377. (7) R. v. Lancaster, 16 Cox, C. C. 737. (m) Young's case, cited in R. v. Higgins, 2 East, R. 14 and 16.

(n) R. v. Pitt, 3 Burr. 1335, by Lord Mansfield, C. J.

(0) See the interpretation clause, s. 38, post, p. 447.

(p) See Cooper v. Slade, 6 H. L. C. 746. (q) A letter was written to an outvoter, requesting him to come to a borough, and record his vote for S. A postscript added, 'Your railway expenses will be paid.' The voter did come and vote as requested: his travelling expenses were paid. Held, that the promise and payment constituted only act of bribery within this section. Cooper v. Slade, 6 H. L. C. 746. This was an action for penalties.

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