I.  Europa.  608  35.  Großbritannien  und  Irland.

According  to  the  Septennial  Act  (1  Geo.  I.  st.  2,  c.  38)  the  parliament  must  ‘expire  or  die  a  natural
death  at  the  end  of  every  seventh  year,  if  not  previously  dissolved  by  royal  prerogative’.  ‘The
necessity  for  such  a  limitation  had  become  apparent  in  the  reign  of  Charles  II.  who  retained  for
17  years  the  Parliament  called  at  his  accession’'!.

The  following  persons  are  exempt  from  sitting  as  members  in  the  House  of  Commons:
Peers  of  the  Realm,  clergy  of  either  the  Church  of  England  or  of  Rome,  bankrupte,  convicts
undergoing  sentence  for  treason  or  felony,  women,  aliens  and  infants  and  persons  holding  offices
of  profit  under  the  Crown.  Thus  on  a  member  becoming  a  minister,  he  must  resign  his  seat,  but
he  can  and  usually  is  re-elected,  and  allowed  to  hold  both  seat  and  office  of  profit.  Resignation
not  being  legal,  members  must  accept  the  Stewardship  of  the  Chiltern  Hundreds  or  the  Stewardship
  of  the  Manor  of  Northstead?,  thus  accepting  offices  of  profit  under  the  Crown  they  lose
their  seat.

&amp;.  England.  Voters’  qualification  are  shortly:?

1.  Freehold  Estate  of  40/—  annual  value.

2.  Lands  of  £  5  annual  value  (held  for  life);

3.  Leasehold,  £  5  annual  value  (with  original  torın  not  less  than  60  years),  or  £  50
e.  v.  orig.  term.  not  less  than  20  years.

b.  Scotland,  I  40/—;  II  £  5;  III  £  10,  57  yre,  £  50  a.  v.,  19  yre.

c.  Ireland  I  £5;  1I  £10;  III  £10,  60  yre,  £  20  14  yre.

Occupation  entitles  to  vote  —  “occupation”  need  not  necessarily  mean  “residence”  however.
  Every  male  householder  in  borough  or  county  areas  has  a  right  to  vote,  and  every  lodger
who  pays  £  10  yearly  for  his  lodgings.  Graduates  on  electoral  roll  of  Oxford,  Cambridge,
Dublin,  and  London,  the  Chancellor,  the  Professors,  the  Members  of  the  University  Court,  and
General  Council  of  Edinburgh,  Glasgow,  St.  Andrews  and  Aberdeen,  are  qualified  to  vote  for
their  respective  Universities.  Plural  voting  is  still  legal.  According  to  the  Ballot  Act  of  1872
(35  and  36  Vict.  c.  33)  voting  is  by  ballot,  i.  e.  secret.

No  one  shall  sit  or  vote  in  either  House  of  Parliament  till  he  be  twenty-one  years  of  age
(vide  7  and  8  W.  III  c.  25).  By  the  statute  7  Jac.  I.  c.  6  no  member  is  permitted  to  enter  the
House  till  he  has  taken  the  oath  of  allegiance®.

The  president  of  the  House  of  Commons  is  known  as  the  Speaker.  He  takes  precedence
of  all  Commoners,  by  a  legislative  enactment  (1869,  IW.andM.c.  21,  $  2).  He  is  the  spokesman
and  representative  of  tlie  House,  but  is  not  allowed  to  vote  unless  the  votes  are  otherwise  equal.
The  Speaker  presides  at  all  meetings  of  the  House,  and  the  Chairman  of  Ways  and  Means,  as
Deputy  Speaker,  acts  in  his  absence,  or  when  tlıe  House  has  gone  into  Committee.  The  House

!  Anson,  V.I,p.  65.

®  Stephen’sCommentaries  vol.  IIp.  381  (n):  “It  is  said  by  Mr.  Hatzell  that  this  practice
is  believed  to  have  begun  not  earlier  than  about  the  year  1750,  and  that  it  would  be  difficult,
from  the  form  of  appointinent  to  the  Chiltern  Hundreds,  to  show  that  it  is  is  an  office.  The  stewardship
  of  the  manors  of  East  Hundred,  Northstead,  or  Hempholne,  are  usually  granted  for
this  purpose,  when  the  Chiltern  Hundreds  are  occupied.  (See  May,  Parl.  Pract.  3rd  ed.  p.  158).
An  Irish  member  accepts  the  office  of  “escheator  of  Munster‘,  see  21  and  22  Vict.  c.  118.  g  4.

3  Vide  Reform  Bill  of  1885,  which  regulated  the  franchise.  The  three  great  Reform  Bills
are  those  of  1832,  1867  and  1885.

‘  Vide  Whitacker’s  Almanack:  Voter’s  Qualifications,  and  Stephen,  vol.  II
364  et  seq.

5  Fitablished  in  its  present  wording  by  31  and  32  Vict.  c.  72,  $  2  which  reads  „I....
do  swear*  that  I  will  be  faithful,  and  bear  true  allegiance  to  His  Majesty  King  Edward  VII.  his
heirs  and  successors,  according  to  law.  So  help  me  God‘,  [*  ‘swear‘  may  be  replaced  by  ‘affirnı‘
if  the  Meınber  has  conscientious  objections.  By  the  Catholic  Emancipation  Act  (1829)  10  Geo.
IV  o.  7,  Catholics  were  allowed  to  become  menbers  of  Parliament  [but  Catholics  are  still  under
certain  disabilities  of  office  e.  g.  a  Catholic  cannot  become  Lord  Chancellor,  Keeper  of  the  Great
Seal,  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland;  Stephen  vol.  Il  p.  709).  Jews  were  allowed  to  become  members
  of  parliament  by  23  and  24  Vict.  c.  49.  Before  the  Catholic  Emancipation  Act  members  had
to  subscribe  and  repeat  the  declaration  against  transubstantiation,  and  invocations  of  saints,
and  the  sacrifice  of  the  mass.  See  Blackstone  Il  162.