The Political Primer; Or, Road to Public Honours - Softcover

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1826. Excerpt: ... THE POLITICAL PRIMER. CHAP. I. THE ADVERTISEMENT. A Candidate's advertisement should be merely the notification of his intention; when it becomes a political argument, a laboured piece of phraseology, or a beseeching demand upon the electors, it is in bad taste. Every man is supposed to be well known to those whose suffrages he solicits; it is therefore superfluous to explain his sentiments in the public papers: the most elegant composition cannot change the opinion of a freeholder; and prayers on such occasions are more likely to be laughed at, than listened to. Some members who speak with habitual elegance, have published sentences of bad English from excessive care and labour in wording their advertisement; others, from a consciousness of notorious superiority, have been so careless as to write complete nonsense. The simplest declaration of the intention, is the best advertisement. There are a few cases, however, in which it is necessary to explain the political opinions and proposed conduct in parliament of the candidate, in his advertisement, because there may be no other channel of communication open between him and those whom he solicits. It often happens, that a young member of a distinguished family is in a foreign country at the dissolution of parliament, and that he may never have had an opportunity of addressing the friends of his house on political subjects. He therefore finds it necessary to explain concisely in his advertisement the course he intends to pursue, and the manner of his explanation ought to be very carefully studied. If he rests his hopes upon one party only, and much heat and political rancour exist in his county, he can lose nothing by strong expressions «f preference, or even by violence of language; but he may estrange...