364


Bribery  and  VnAw  loflntnoe. ELECTIONS,  Bff«ot  of  Bribery  upon

justice  in  the  courts,  and  did  not  disqualify  a  person  for  holding
an  office.*

In  the  Congressional  cases  the  charge  of  bribery  has  been  made
in  but  few  instances  :  and  in  but  three  cases  has  it  been  sustained
by  the  report  of  the  committee,  and  in  but  two  has  the  member
been  unseated  by  reason  of  alleged  bribery,  and  those  were  cases
where  the  alleged  bribery  consisted  in  the  employment  of  voters
by  the  government  in  the  navy-yards;  while  in  England  and
Canada  a  large  number  of  the  contests  are  based  upon  allegations
of  bribery,  and  the  charges  have  been  sustained,  and  members  of
Parliament  unseated  for  this  offence  in  a  great  number  of  cases.*

2. Effect  of  Bribery  upon  the  Election,  —  By  the  common  law  of
Parliament,  which  is  considered  a  part  of  the  common  law  of  Eng-
land, no  person  who  was  shown  to  be  guilty  of  bribery  was  entitled
to  a  seat  in  the  House  of  Commons,  even  if  he  had  a  majority
of  the  legal  votes  cast ;  and  in  1677  a  resolution  was  passed
declaratory  of  this  principle,  providing  that  in  case  any  person
returned  should,  after  the  test  of  writ  for  summoning  a  Parliament
or  after  the  date  a  vacancy  therein,  make  any  present,  gift,  or
reward,  or  any  financial  obligation,  or  engagement  to  do  the  same
either  to  any  person  or  persons  or  to  any  county,  city,  town,  port,
or  borough  in  general,  or  to  and  for  the  use  of  them  or  any  of
them,  he  should  be  guilty  of  bribery,  and  such  acts  would  render
the  election  void. And  the  committee  on  elections  was  required
to  take  especial  notice  and  care  in  regard  to  these  matters  in
cases  coming  before  them.^

And  by  the  statute  of  49  Geo. III. chap. n8,  every  person
guilty  of  bribery  was  incapacitated  from  serving  in  that  Parlia-
ment. 