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foreigner in England would be our system of local government. Cromwell called the laws of England 'an ungodly jungle;' this system is not to be so easily epitomised. A coat of many colours, of patchwork, of darning, botching and mending-good heavens, 'tis the very motley of Bumbledom!

There are vestries and boards of guardians in some places; mayors and corporations in others; in others local government boards; in others boards of health; county, magistrates do some things-parish beadles do others, and the spirit of the parish beadle is the spirit of local government.

XX.

THE PARISH BEADLE.

parish

Great is the parish beadle. His dignity is The a paltry one-it is the mere dignity of a beadle. livery-yet he loveth to display it with the air of one in a prince's clothing. He (administering only a parish) nevertheless deemeth himself capable of any office. To him

the beadle's gown is the chief qualification, the outward and visible sign of the inward and spiritual grace of government.

'I should become an earldom rarely,' said Sancho, for I was once beadle to a brotherhood, and the beadle's gown did so become me that everyone said I had the presence of a warden. Then how do you think I shall look with a duke's robes on my back, all bedaubed with gold or pearl like any foreign count? I believe we shall have folks come a hundred leagues to see me!'

So the beadle worshippeth officewrappeth himself round with office and its badges-accounteth that his office was made for him and he for his office. To him his parish is the world. The beadle loveth to show his power; before him little boys tremble, and old women bow down themselves. The weak look in vain to him for help or mercy; to the strong he showeth respect. He fawneth upon the great, and by humility he winneth many favours-and many kicks. He is willing to sacrifice anything for his office and himself; even his

wife, his family, his wife's relations, his honour, his honesty-all these things are to him as nought weighed in the balances against the ennobling garb of office. Office makes him. Without office he is John Smith or Ezekiel Jones, of anywhere—in office he is the Beadle of Bellyfillin. He will take any oath of allegiance you please, an it will procure him an office; he will break any oath you like, if it will preserve him the dignity and the emoluments. Moreover he confineth himself not to one place. He goeth about, seeking where and what he may devour. He getteth into Parliaments, or Senates, or Statelegislatures, he riseth to be cabinet minister, he may even become Prime Minister or First President, or Governor, but everywhere and always he carrieth with him the spirit of the beadle. Like Sancho, you may swear of him that his gown may improve with every change, but yet the two-legged beast within, and the spirit within the two-legged beast, will be still and always that of the parish beadle.

Illustration of

XXI.

ILLUSTRATION OF CONFUSION OF LOCAL

confusion government.

of local government.

GOVERNMENT.

If you

To return to the confusion of our local will pardon the Hibernicism, the same places have different boundaries. The municipal boundary, the parliamentary boundary, the parish boundaries, the sanitary boundary, of the same town are often not identical. What illustration could do justice to such disorder?

Let me give a prescription.

Take half-a-dozen dissected maps, each sawn in a different pattern; distribute the pieces and mix them well together. Form a square of the size of one of them, and within that square casually arrange such pieces as come to hand first. If any spaces remain, fill them up as near as may be with smaller sections. Proceed to cover up its crevices with larger pieces, and if you don't like the result go on piling one piece on another all over the map, in such a manner as to give

the greatest possible varieties of disorder arranged in the least convenient way: fix the whole by pouring hot glue-which you may call prescription—over it, and you have a type of the manner in which England is laid out for purposes of local government.

An astute and learned lawyer would be puzzled to discriminate between the multitude of Acts concerning local management of towns, of sanitary matters, of water supply, of roads, streets, and bridges, of building and draining, and to advise specifically what authority might or ought to do any particular thing. The judges sometimes give it up as hopeless.

XXII.

SYSTEM SUPPORTED BY THE STRENGTH

OF VESTED INTEREST.

supported

strength of

But how comes it that a system so intoler- System able can hold its own in a community not abso- by the lutely idiotic? I reply it is because of the vested power of vested interests. The multitude of these bodies, with their ancient rights and

interest.

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