NORTH HANTS ELECTION.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE DAILY NEWS.
Sir,—You are right. There are about 3,300 voters for North Hants on the registry; and you might have added, it is believed, that there will be a 1,000 more put upon the register at the next registration court. There has never been a contest for this division since the Reform Bill. Numbers of the most respectable tenant farmers, when they went to vote for Shaw, found that their names were not on the registry, so utterly had it been neglected. Mr. Garnier, the high sheriff, was warned that there would be a contest; but he disbelieved it so strongly, that he committed an error in fixing the day of nomination, and was obliged to declare the state of the poll on Good Friday, or the election would have been void. Out of the 3,000 electors, 2,067 voted, and 868 of them polled for Mr. Shaw. Mr. Shaw's strength lay in Andover, Bishop's Waltham, Petersfield, and Winchester; Mr. Portal's in Alton, Basingstoke, Kingsclere, and Odiham. At Kingsclere the tenant farmers had to contend against the influence of Lord Carnarvon, Sir John Pollen, Sir William Heathcote, Hon. and Rev. Mr. Best, Rev. Mr. Dodgson; at Basingstoke against the influence of Lord Bolton, the Duke of Wellington, Lord Ashburton, Rev. Mr. St. John, and Mr. Beach; at Petersfield against Colonel Lyon and Sir W. Jolliffe; at Southwick against Mr. Thistlewayte; at Alton against Mr. Knight of Chawton; and at Rotherfield against Mr. Scott.
All these noblemen and gentlemen are large landowners and have great influence, and they all entertain sentiments in unison with Mr. Portal. It was hinted to every one of the tenants of Lord Ashburton, that his lordship's sentiments did not accord with those of Mr. Shaw; that, if the tenants voted for that gentleman, they would not be turned out of their farms, but that they must expect no favours. The whole of his lordship's tenants, with two exceptions, voted for Mr. Shaw, and those two would not vote at all. Lord Yarborough, one of the best landlords and one of the most enlightened land- owners in the kingdom, passed through Southampton during the election. He was surprised, of course, like a great many others, at the fierce struggle that was going on in North Hants, but his lordship expressed sympathy with the attempt of the tenant farmers to get represented in parliament.
Winchester. X.