\"British Whig\" David Morris Hand Signed Free Frank Dated 1837 For Sale

Up for sale "British Whig" David Morris Hand Signed Free Frank Dated 1837.  

September 1864) was and

banker. The eldest son of banker William Morris, he spent his early life

working in the family firm, Morris and Sons of Carmarthen. He retired from the

firm at a young age having amassed a substantial personal fortune. Morris was

elected Whig MP for Carmarthen

Boroughs at the 1837 general

election. Morris defeated the former member, W.H. Yelverton of

Whitland Abbey, who had held the seat from 1832 until 1835.

Although Morris held broadly Liberal views his political opinions were

subordinated by his belief that his first duty was to represent his constituents,

and in this regard he was a diligent member of the Commons who was rarely

absent from divisions.

Having been elected in 1837 he never again faced a contested election. He

was re-elected unopposed in 1841. On this occasion he declared in his speech

accepting the nomination for a further term that he had sought to represent the

sentiments of the electors by voting for reductions in the civil list payments

to the royal family, in favour of abolishing flogging in the army, the total

abolition of slavery and the mitigation of the most drastic impacts of the Poor

Law legislation.

In 1847, Morris returned to Carmarthen at the start of the election

campaign and was welcomed with festivities and celebrations. He was again

returned unopposed. At the next election in 1852, Morris was again

returned by acclamation.

As reported in 1857, opposition was regarded as being "perfectly

useless" due to his popularity in the boroughs. Morris attracted support from a wide range of

groups within the constituency including nonconformists. However, when a toast

to dissenting ministers was offered at a dinner celebrating his return in 1857

no dissenting minister was present to acknowledge it. During his later

years, Morris moved closer to supporting the radical wing of the Liberal Party,

including the extension of the franchise, introducing the secret ballot and the

abolition of church rates. In 1859 a portrait of Morris was

presented to the Carmarthen Corporation. By the end of his career he was

considered a Liberal from 1859, and held the seat until his death in 1864. In

1860, following the death of the first Earl Cawdor,

Morris it was immediately speculated that he was as a potential candidate

for Lord Lieutenant of

Carmarthenshire. However, Lord Emlyn, who

succeeded his father as Earl of Cawdor also inherited the lord lieutenancy. Outside

of Parliament, Morris was also a Justice of the Peace for Carmarthenshire. On 20 September 1864, Morris attended a

ceremony at Llanelli to lay the foundation stone for a new Market Hall and the

following day attended a meeting of the Carmarthenshire Agricultural Society.

He retired as usual that evening but by morning was found to be seriously ill. Within

a few days, he was dead. Upon his death, supporters and opponents alike praised

his diligence as a member. His funeral at Carmarthen was reported to be the

largest since the death of John Jones of Ystrad, a former MP for

Carmarthenshire, in the 1840s. A procession consisting of around eight hundred

people accompanied the hearse from Morris's residence in King Street to the

public cemetery. David Morris bequeathed substantial sums to charities,

including £2000 to the poor of Carmarthen, £1000 to the poor of Llanelli and

£500 to Carmarthen Infirmary. A David Morris Charity operated until the

1990s. The rest of his substantial fortune, said to amount to £250,000, was

divided between his cousins, Thomas Charles Morris of Bryn Myrddyn and William

Morris of Cwm. William Morris succeeded him as MP for Carmarthen Boroughs.