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.
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.