Ballot

by Sydney Smith

Excerpt from Ballot

Landed proprietors imagine they have a right to the votes of their tenants; and instances, in every election, are numerous where tenants have been dis missed for voting contrary to the wishes of their landlords. In the same manner strong combinations are made against tradesmen who have chosen to think, and act for themselves in political matters, rather than yield their opinions to the solicitations of their customers. There is a great deal of tyranny and injustice in all this. I should no more think of asking what the political opinions of a shopkeeper were, than of asking whether he was tall or short, or large or small: for a difference of 2-15 per cent. I would desert the most aristocratic butcher that ever.

About the Publisher

Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com

This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

55 pages, Hardcover

First published July 13, 2015

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Sydney Smith was an English Anglican clergyman, essayist, and public intellectual celebrated for his brilliant wit, humane outlook, and lively prose. Born in Essex to a mercurial merchant father and a mother of Huguenot descent, he was educated at Winchester College and New College, Oxford, where he distinguished himself for both scholarship and personality. Ordained in 1796, he combined energetic parish work with wide intellectual interests, soon gaining attention as a preacher of unusual humor and clarity. After moving to Edinburgh in 1798 as a tutor, he helped found the influential Edinburgh Review in 1802 and remained one of its most admired contributors for decades, shaping liberal opinion with essays that blended moral seriousness and comic flair. Settling later in London, he lectured at the Royal Institution, advocated progressive causes such as Catholic emancipation, parliamentary reform, the abolition of slavery, and the education of women, and became a central figure in Whig society. Though his outspoken views limited ecclesiastical advancement, he served faithfully in rural parishes, winning deep affection from parishioners while continuing to write and speak on public issues. Smith’s reputation as one of the great conversationalists of his age endured through his sermons, essays, pamphlets, and countless anecdotes attributed to him. Remembered as much for his humane common sense as for his humor, he left a lasting mark on nineteenth-century British intellectual life and remains one of the most quoted clerical writers in English literature.