Nomination of Messrs. Planta and Hollond for Parliamentary Honours
The £300 given to the Fishermen's Society in 1837 by Mr. Hollond had not altogether alienated his rival from the good-will of the fishermen, and it was through him that they made known their grievances to the Government officials. The following reply to Mr. Planta’s application will show the nature of the grievance as well as the remedy to be applied.
"March 25, 1841. Sir,
—I am directed by the Board of Customs to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 18th inst., transmitting a memorial from the owners of fishing-boats, requesting that their boats might be marked on their sterns as of Hastings, without any reference to that of Rye; and I am to acquaint you that the Board purpose issuing instructions to the Collector and Comptroller of Rye by tomorrow's post, acquainting them that, adverting to the 12th section of the Act 3 and 4 William IV.,cap. 53, the Board are of opinion that boats belonging to Hastings not having been registered should be described by painting on their sterns as belonging to Hastings, and that there is not any obligation for the.alteration of licenses to that effect; but that if such boats be already registered it is necessary with reference to the 10th and 24th sections of the Act, cap. 55, that the words "Of Hastings, Port of Rye," be painted on their sterns.— I have the honour to be your most obedient servant,
C. Scowell
Mr. Planta further interested himself on behalf of the Hastings and St. Leonards fishermen — for there were at that time two boats which made the beach at the west end of the new town their landing place — and exerted himself to obtain for them substantial protection against the attempts of the French fishermen to pass the recognised limits of their own fishing ground. The encroachments of the latter were so frequent and so persistent that, on Mr. Planta’s representation, a Government vessel named the Pantaloon was ordered to cruise off the coast for protection. In the month of April this vessel was withdrawn, probably for other duty, and the Frenchmen, always on the alert, seized the opportunity for renewing their aggressions. The bad feeling was, therefore, kept up by this determination of the Frenchmen not to comply with the fair provisions of a convention which had been previously entered into for the prevention of aggressive acts. The Gallic fishermen not only infringed the international agreement by fishing out of their bounds, but they also occasionally cut and carried off the Englishmen’s nets. One night, about the 2nd or 3rd of May, a French lugger attempted to run down one of the Hastings boats, but being unsuccessful, its crew pelted the English fishermen so fiercely, with the beach-stones used for ballast, that the latter - inferior in number — were obliged to take shelter below. To the discomfiture of the Frenchmen, however, the Pantaloon had been replaced by the gun-brig Rapid, whose commander found it necessary to fire into the Frenchmen before they would sheer off. The shot struck the bulwarks of one of the boats, and this boat, with two or three others, was detained for several days; thus teaching their crews a lesson which they did not very soon forget.
On the 14th of June, Mr. Hollond met his Liberal constituents at the Royal Oak, and on the same evening, Mr. Planta arrived at the Marine Hotel. On the following morning both gentlemen commenced an active canvass, ere the writs for a general election were issued, with a view to secure their re-election. The work was of a short duration and resulted in the return of those gentlemen unopposed to the second Victorian Parliament, which assembled on the 19th of August, 1841 and continued till July 23rd, 1847. The nomination took place on the 30th of June, when the Mayor, in a carriage drawn by four horses and decorated with dark-blue colours, proceeded to the hustings in the Priory meadow, where one division of the building was already occupied by Mr. Hollond and his friends, who had been escorted thither with band and banners, and where, in the other compartment, Mr. Planta and his friends appeared in similar form and number. After a few words delivered by the Mayor, R. Ranking, Esq., said it was a proud satisfaction to him to be allowed to propose the Rt. Hon. Joseph Planta as a proper person to represent them in Parliament. He was a man of strict political integrity, and by voting for him, they would evince a strong desire to support the Church and State [Interruptions] to support that Constitution which had been the pride and ambition of Englishmen - that Constitution which was both the envy and admiration of the world. He was a gentleman who had the interest of the town at heart, and, as they all knew, had hitherto benefitted the borough both in his public and private capacity.
Mr. N. Williams seconded the nomination in an appropriate speech, after which, Mr. Duke stepped forward, and said he wished the duty for which he had been selected to perform had fallen into abler hands. The Queen had appealed to the country, and he expected that every man would do his duty [cheers]. Differences of opinion there always were, and always would be, but he did not disrespect a man because he honestly differed from himself. Right was right, and wrong was wrong, and therefore it was not possible to vote for both Planta and Hollond and be an honest man. Water and oil would not unite, and such abortive unions were debarred by Nature. He hoped the electors would act conscientiously. It was for them to consider that by their votes, they would promote to offices such whom the Queen disliked - men who had insulted her [No, no and cheers]. The gentleman who he was about to propose was now well known to them and needed no encomoniums from him. His conduct and his votes were before the constituency. He (Mr. Duke) would therefore propose Robert Hollond, Esq. of Allegria, St. Leonards.
Nomination of Planta and Hollond
Mr Putland said he appeared before them with less embarrasment than on the last occasion to second the nomination of his friend, Mr. Hollond, because the gentleman they were called on to support was no longer a stranger, but was well known to them in his private character and in his private character and in his public capacity. He was not one of those who would leave the town he professed to serve and stick -
