Hills, Edwin | Day 14

Brother-in-law of John Thomas Outwin. Owned the principal brewery in Deal employing 14 men and 30 – 40 public-houses. Used his own money in bribery and treating totalling £48. Paid John Simpson £20 to distribute and influence voters. Wratten was paid £5 on account the other party had promised him that amount. The remaining five voters received £4 each. He testified to spending £6 or £7 in treating.


Witness Type: Briber, Treater

Party: Liberal


Witness Testimony:

  • 16388.

    (Mr. Jeune.) Where do you live ? — Woodbine Cottage, Victoria Road. 

  • 16389.

    I believe you are a brewer ? — Yes. 

  • 16390.

    Where is your brewery ? — In the High Street. 

  • 16391.

    Yours is, I think, the principal brewery in Deal, is it not ? — Yes. 

  • 16392.

    Can you tell me roughly how many men you employ at your brewery ? — 13 I think it is, or 14. 

  • 16393.

    Do you own any public-houses ? — Yes. 

  • 16394.

    How many ? — In Deal do you mean? 

  • 16395.

    First of all altogether, and then I will ask you where they are ? — I do not know exactly, but I should think between 30 and 40 houses. 

  • 16396.

    Where are they ? — Most of them are situated in Deal. 

  • 16397.

    How many do you own in Deal ? — I could not not say. 

  • 16398.

    It is a very nice thing to own so many houses. Do you own so many that you cannot tell me? I daresay you can if you think ? — It may be perhaps 20. 

  • 16399.

    Do you own any in Walmer ? — Yes. 

  • 16400.

    How many ? — One in Walmer. 

  • 16401.

    And any in Sandwich ? — Yes. 

  • 16402.

    How many ? — Four in Sandwich. 

  • 16403.

    Is there not some system by which the houses are called tied-houses ? — Yes. 

  • 16404.

    What is that ? — They call a house that belongs to a brewer a tied-house. 

  • 16405.

    Does he pay the license ? — No, the tenant pays the license. 

  • 16406.

    A tied-house means a house that belongs to the brewer ? — Yes, that is so. 

  • 16407.

    Then all your houses would be called tied houses ? — Yes. 

  • 16408.

    When did you begin to interest yourself in the election ? — The day that Sir Julian Goldsmid came down was the first time I had anything to do with it. 

  • 16409.

    Was there a Liberal committee formed ? — I suppose there was. 

  • 16410.

    Were you on it ? — No, I did not belong to the committee. 

  • 16411.

    You say that you began to interest yourself when Sir Julian came down; what did you do yourself ? — I asked one or two for their votes. 

  • 16412.

    That is to say, in other words, you began to canvass ? — Yes. 

  • 16413.

    That, I suppose, was upon the Tuesday before polling day ? — Yes, it would be about a week before the polling day. 

  • 16414.

    You canvassed several people ? — Yes, I did. 

  • 16415.

    How soon did you hear anything of any idea of influencing voters by means of money ? — The first that I met asked me about money; the first thing thing they asked was what they would get. 

  • 16416.

    You mean the people that you canvassed ? — Yes. 

  • 16417.

    Did you find that prevail pretty extensively in the course of your canvassing ? — Yes, very extensively.