A Comprehensive History of Norwich

by A. D. Bayne

Mr. E. Taylor attended many meetings elsewhere in favor of Reform in Parliament. He took a very active part in local politics and was the life and soul of his party at contested elections, whether for the city or the council. He never connived at bribery or any improper practices. On one occasion, during the excitement of a parliamentary election, a man named Bradfield, a working brazier, was offered £30 to vote “orange and purple.” Though sadly in want of money, he steadily refused the tempting offer, which was repeatedly pressed upon him, and he voted “blue-and-white!” The result was that he lost his employment, and fell into great distress. Mr. Taylor having heard of the circumstance, interested himself on behalf of the honest voter, and promoted a subscription, by means of which he was furnished with tools, and enabled to begin successfully on his own account. Many years afterwards, Mr. Taylor, meeting him in the street, offered him the usual greeting of a friend; but Bradfield, fresh from his work, excused himself on the ground that his hands were “dirty.” His generous benefactor, however, would not allow the force of the apology, declaring that the man’s hands could not be very “dirty,” his conduct had shown that his heart and conscience were so pure. Mr. Taylor, in short, was so much respected for his rectitude, both political and religious, that it was no matter of surprise when he was seen walking arm in arm with a political opponent. Mr. Taylor’s electioneering labors were chiefly confined to serving on committees, visiting clubs, canvassing voters, and haranguing the people. He was a good speaker and always popular. On the platform, his strong good sense and nervous eloquence rendered his speeches effective, and they derived great weight from the known integrity of his character. If elections could have been gained by arguments alone, his addresses would have been more formidable to his opponents than they were. But there was often a majority, which could be won to either side by “golden” arguments.

So matters went on till 1822, when many political meetings were held, at which Mr. Edward Taylor took an active part. On January 12th, he moved and carried a resolution for Parliamentary Reform at a county meeting, convened for the avowed object of considering “agricultural distress.” On March 5th, he attended a Reform meeting at Bungay. On April 24th, he attended another “agricultural distress” meeting, and carried a resolution in favor of Parliamentary Reform. On May 11th, a county meeting was held with the express object of petitioning for reform, and resolutions were carried in favor of it. On Nov. 5th, Mr. Taylor presided at the annual dinner of the Norwich Reform Club.

The agitation for the repeal of the corn laws was continued in 1825, and on April 18th a public meeting was held in St. Andrew’s Hall, where a petition was adopted for a revision of the corn laws, which afterwards received 14,385 signatures, and was forwarded on the 26th to be presented to the House of Commons. Meetings were also held in the same year to promote the abolition of slavery, a question which excited a good deal of interest in this city; while the years from 1826 to 1829 were devoted chiefly to agitations for the abolition of slavery and Roman Catholic emancipation, counter petitions being sent to parliament in regard to the latter by the Whig and Tory sections of the clergy.

On June 29th, 1830, King William IV. was proclaimed, on the Castle Hill, by the High Sheriff, the bells ringing in honour of the event. Next day the king was proclaimed in the city, amid the cheers of the citizens; and the mayor presided at a dinner, in celebration of His Majesty’s accession, at the Norfolk Hotel. This king was believed to be in favour of Reform and Retrenchment, and the liberal party always made him appear to be so. But the correspondence of the late Earl Grey with his Majesty, recently published, proves that the king entertained the question of Reform with great reluctance, which was shared even by some of the Whig ministers. Lord Grey himself wrote, January 16th, 1831,—

“It has often been my wish to find the means of postponing it, but the result of all my consideration has been that an attempt to do so would be fatal to the character of the government, and would lead to its dissolution under circumstances still more disastrous than those which would follow such a result, if his Majesty were unfortunately compelled, by a sense of duty, to withhold his assent from the measure which may be submitted to him by his ministers. And other members of the government itself interposed difficulties. Even Lord Brougham objected, after the measure was drawn up, to the abolition of the close boroughs, urging the argument that there would be no means for getting seats for persons in the government,” &c.

And Lord Grey seriously feared that on this point his lord chancellor might “throw us over with the king!” The king would not hear of the ballot, and he strongly objected to shortening the duration of parliament to five years as proposed. At last all obstacles were removed, and on March 4th, 1831, the bill was introduced by Lord John Russell into the House of Commons. After a prolonged debate it was read a second time by only a majority of one. It was defeated in committee on an amendment against diminishing the number of English representatives. Then the cabinet, by a minute, called on the king for a distinct answer to the request for a dissolution. He yielded, avowing that the perils to follow at home and abroad from a change of ministry were greater than could arise from a dissolution. But he took occasion to recur to some of his old objections, and to urge that the bill should be remodelled before being re-introduced; and he pressed the condition, above all, of resistance to extreme change.

In consequence of the dissolution on the defeat of ministers on the Reform Bill, an election took place in this city on April 29th, 1831. The polling commenced next morning, Saturday, and was continued on the following Monday and Tuesday. The numbers were for R. H. Gurney, Esq., (L.) 2158; the Right Hon. Robert Grant, (L.) 2163; Sir Charles Wetherell, (C.) 977; and Mr. M. T. Sadler, (C.) 964. The two former gentlemen were declared duly elected. On the Monday evening the Tory polling booths were pulled down and afterwards burned.

On February 29th, 1832, Lord Viscount Sidmouth presented an address to the king, signed by 2300 of the gentry, clergy, freemen, freeholders, and other inhabitants of the city, praying his Majesty to “withhold his royal sanction from any measure which might compromise the independence of either branch of the legislature, and expressing their fullest confidence in his paternal regard for his faithful people to preserve the fundamental principles of the British constitution.” This petition was in reference to a threatened creation of new peers in the House of Lords. On May 14th, ministers having been again defeated on the Reform Bill, (by a majority of thirty-five in the House of Lords,) a requisition was presented to the mayor, Sir J. H. Yallop, to call a public meeting in support of the bill. The mayor complied, and the meeting was called. A procession was formed on the Castle Meadow, and being joined by a very large body from Wymondham, carrying many banners and accompanied by bands of music, proceeded to St. Andrew’s Hall, which was quite filled. The mayor presided, and a petition was adopted praying the House of Commons to stop all supplies till the bill was passed. The cry was for “the bill—the whole bill, and nothing but the bill.” On June 5th, the “Telegraph” coach arrived in the city with the news of the passing of the Reform Bill, by a majority of eighty-four. A large number of people were in waiting, and the moment the coach entered the top of St. Stephen’s Street, the people on hearing the news loudly cheered, and the cheering was continued along the whole line of the street into the Market Place. A large party perambulated the city with a band playing lively airs, all the evening, and on the following night a bonfire was kindled on the Castle Ditches. During the month several public dinners were held to celebrate the passing of the Reform Bill; and the 5th of the following month was devoted to a special demonstration. The morning was ushered in by the firing of cannon and the ringing of bells, and a procession having been previously arranged, about 11 a.m. a large body of horsemen took up their position on the Castle Ditches whence, headed by three mounted trumpeters, and followed by the Norwich Political Union and electors of the different wards, and accompanied by an immense concourse of spectators, they passed through the principal streets of the city. The electors afterwards proceeded to the Old Cricket Ground, where they were regaled with roast beef, plum-pudding, and ale, and spent the rest of the day in rural sports.

The Reformed Parliament.

The first election for the city, after the passing of the Reform Bill, took place on December 10th, 11th, and 12th, 1832, with the following result.