REFORM ACTS, a term applied to certain acts of the British Parliament by which the regulations as to the parlia mentary representation of the people were altered, and especially to those of 1832, 1867, and 1884-1885. The first two acts provided both for an extension of the franchise and for a redistribution of seats. The Reform Act of 1832 dis franchised 56 rotten boroughs with less than 2,000 inhabitants each, and return ing 111 members; 30 boroughs with less than 4,000 inhabitants, and two above that number, lost each a member, and thus 143 seats were obtained for distri bution. Forty-three new boroughs were created, 22 of which received two mem bers each, and 21 one member each. The county members for England and Wales were increased from 95 to 159, 26 of the large counties being divided, and a third member given to seven important county constituencies. Scotch and Irish Acts followed; the Scotch representation, fixed by the Act of Union at 45 was raised to 53 (30 of them given to coun ties and 23 to cities and boroughs), and the Irish members fixed by the Act of Union at 100, were increased to 105. The Reform Act of 1867 disfranchised 11 small English boroughs, took a member from 35 more, and two from Scotch counties, which with four seats obtained from boroughs disfranchised for corrup tion, gave 52 seats for redistribution. Five of these were given to as many large English and Scotch boroughs on the three-cornered system, and three to universities, the others to old or new county or borough divisions. Seven members were added to Scotland. There was no redistribution in Ireland. In
the third successful effort for parlia mentary reform, that of 1884-1885, the franchise and redistribution of seats constituted two distinct acts. The franchise bill received the royal assent on Dec. 6, 1884, and came into operation on Jan. 1, 1885. It established household and lodger franchise in the counties, in troduced a service franchise, diminished, though it did not destroy, fagot voting, and made a uniform occupation franchise of $50 rent both in counties and in boroughs in place of the three formerly existing. It left untouched the 40-shil ling freeholders of inheritance, and con ferred votes on copyholders possessing land of greater value than $25 annually. By the Redistribution Act of 1885, 81 English, 2 Scotch, and 22 Irish boroughs were totally disfranchised; 36 English and 3 Irish boroughs, each lost a mem ber, as did two English counties; the city of London was reduced from four to two; six seats were obtained from places disfranchised for corruption, and the members of the House of Commons were increased by 12. The seats thus obtained for redistribution were 180. The great feature of the scheme which followed was the separation of populous boroughs and counties into divisions, each returning a single member. Only a few places hitherto with two member: were left with the old arrangement. England has now 465 members, Wales 30, Scotland 72, and Ireland 103, the reduction from 105 occurring through the disfranchisement of Sligo and Cashel some years ago for corruption.