Talk:George Augustus Selwyn (MP)

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"because he could not afford to be a patriot" - what did that cost, and why did it have to be paid for? The Real Walrus 00:51, 5 March 2006 (UTC)

• In eighteenth century Britain MPs were not paid, as such. Someone like Selwyn, who kept up an electoral interest in two boroughs, had to pay a lot of money to the electors; both between elections and especially at election times (corruption being widespread in most Boroughs in that era). Selwyn needed to support the government so he could accumulate sinecure offices and pensions, which provided the funds to bribe the electors. The point being made in the quote is that only a seriously rich person could afford to meet electoral expenses entirely from their own resources for a prolonged period, and thus be a patriot who voted for what he thought was right and not so as to please the ministers in power. --Gary J 22:53, 20 September 2006 (UTC)

The text is confusing as to what is meant by being a patriot and in respect of money/influence. I will attempt to make it clearer. Also, in the disambiguation page it refers to Selwyn being a wit; but there are no examples or references to it in the article.LessHeard vanU 22:00, 9 December 2006 (UTC)