the corporations.

In some cases the charters used words which appeared to point to an
opportunity for popular elections in boroughs where a usage of election
by the town council had been established. In 1598 the judges gave an
opinion that the town councils could by by-law determine laws for the
government of the town regardless of the terms of the charter. In the
18th century the judges decided to the contrary. But even where a usage
of popular election was established, there were means of controlling the
result of a parliamentary election. The close corporations, though their
right to choose a member of parliament might be doubtful, had the sole
right to admit new burgesses, and in order to determine parliamentary
elections they enfranchised non-residents. Where conflicts arose over
the choice of a member, and two selections were made, the matter came
before the House of Commons. On various occasions the House decided in
favour of the popularly elected candidate against the nominee of the
town council, on the general principle that neither the royal charter
nor a by-law could curtail this particular franchise. But as each case
was separately determined by a body swayed by the dominant political
party, no one principle was steadily adhered to in the trial of election
petitions. The royal right to create boroughs was freely used by
Elizabeth and James I. as a means of securing a submissive parliament.
The later Stuarts abandoned this method, and the few new boroughs made
by the Georges were not made for political reasons. The object of the
later Stuarts was to control the corporations already in existence, not
to make new ones. Charles II. from the time of his restoration decided
to exercise a strict control of the close corporations in order to
secure not only submissive parliaments, but also a pliant executive
among the borough justices, and pliant juries, which were impanelled at
the selection of the borough officers. In 1660 it was made a rule that
all future charters should reserve expressly to the crown the first
nomination of the aldermen, recorder and town-clerk, and a proviso
should be entered placing with the common council the return of the
member of parliament. The Corporation Act of 1661 gave power to royal
commissioners to settle the composition of the town councils, and to
remove all who refused the sacraments of the Church of England or were
suspected of disaffection, even though they offered to take th