Rose, Edward Thomas | Day 3
Listed in 1881 Census as Tailor Master (1 man). Initially received a payment of £306 before the election and the balance a fortnight afterwards. Money was paid in gold at a rate of £50 a day.
Party: Liberal
Witness Testimony:
- 3012.
For Walmer ? — Yes.
- 3013.
You had volunteer canvassers, had you not ? — Yes, they volunteered their services.
- 3014.
hen I called them volunteer, I mean men who were not paid ? — No, not one.
- 3015.
You had no volunteer canvassers ? — No.
- 3016.
Were there no tradespeople or leading gentry to act as volunteer canvassers ? — No, no one took the slightest interest in it at Walmer.
- 3017.
You had 11 paid canvassers ? — Yes, 11 were paid ; they at these several amounts of money.
- 3018.
Did the 11 do anything ; did the whole 11 do anything ? — The whole 11 took districts, and each man took his own district.
- 3019.
It is a constituency of 300 odd ? — Yes.
- 3020.
How could you require 11 canvassers to canvas a place a mile long, with 300 electors ? — Those men could only undertake to do certain portions of the parish.
- 3021.
They were all voters, I presume ? — Yes.
- 3022.
All the canvassers were voters ? — Yes.
- 3023.
Was not this really a way of paying them for their votes ; was it not an employment to secure their votes ? — No, not a bit.
- 3024.
How could you want 11 canvassers to canvass a place one mile long, and principally consisting of one street ? — It is a much larger place than that ; it is nearly two miles from one end of the parish to the other. The canvassers can tell you better what they did with the money, because I do not know what they did with it.
- 3025.
They put it into their pockets, of course, but what I want to know is how could you have paid 11 canvassers to canvass a place of the size of Walmer, with only 300 electors ; it is a canvasser to every 25 electors. If you divide a mile and a half by 11, there would be a very small place for each of them to walk over and canvass ? — It is not only one straight street you see.
- 3026.
The main part of it lies pretty well together ; there is Upper Walmer, no doubt, but it is only a small district ? — Those men volunteered to take certain districts. I did not appoint them to any district.
- 3027.
They volunteered their services for the sake of being paid ? — I do not know whether they had any portion of this money for expenses.
- 3028.
What did you pay to each ? — Those are the amounts of money I gave to each of them.
- 3029.
Minter, 129L. ? — Yes.
- 3030.
In your account which you delivered of 306L. there is a sum of 71L. for assistants, messengers, canvassers, and boys ? — Yes, that is quite right
- 3031.
How much did you pay the canvassers for canvassing; was any price agreed ? — No, there was no price agreed at all.
- 3032.
Is there any charge for canvassers in this account of 306L. ? — No.
- 3033.
That does not include the canvassers ? — No.
- 3034.
What were the assistants ? — They assisted in painting the FLAGS, and various things.
- 3035.
How many of those people had you ? — I cannot tell you the number. The amount of money for assistants I paid to Henry Pearson.
- 3036.
Were the people who acted as assistants voters ? — Not all of them. I think they were mostly the sons of voters.
- 3037.
That was an employment of sons of voters ? — Yes.
- 3038.
How many messengers had you ? — Four regular messengers for eight days, and then we had messengers for odd days.
- 3039.
Did you have them for eight days ? — Yes.
- 3040.
How much did you pay them a day ? — 5s.
- 3041.
Were they voters ? — No, none of them.