Frederick Alexander MacquistenKC (23 July 1870 in Inverkip, Scotland – 29 February 1940 in Walton-on-Thames, England) was a British lawyer and politician. He was the son of Reverend Dr. Alexander Macquisten, the minister of Inverkip Parish Church.
Educated by his father, from whom he acquired an intimate knowledge of the Bible, he attended University of Glasgow and went on to practise as a solicitor. At the same time, he was elected a member of Glasgow Corporation. In 1909, he qualified as a member of the Faculty of Advocates in Scotland and ten years later was called to the Bar by Gray's Inn. He was made a King's Counsel (KC) in Scotland in 1919,[1] and took silk at the English Bar in 1932.
Macquisten held onto the Glasgow Springburn constituency until he was defeated in the general election of 1922. He then fought and won Argyllshire in 1924, holding it for the Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party until his death in 1940.
In the House of Commons he was known for his wit. The humour which he often brought to his speeches often belied their serious content. He was though serious in his effort to abolish the compulsory Political Levy which Trade Union members paid before the passing of the Trade Disputes and Trade Union Act 1927.
In 1925, he introduced a Private Member's Bill which was intended, in his own words, to "restore the individual freedom of the working man." The second reading of the Bill elicited a speech on "Peace in Industry" from the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin, a speech which made a great impression at the time. The Baldwin Government accepted the principle of the Bill, but moved an amendment on the basis that legislation on such an important question ought not to emanate from a private member, but from the Government itself. The Bill was eventually introduced following the general strike in 1926.
He was the champion of private buses and a one-man shopkeeper. He also sang the praises of herring and porridge, and his unerring praise of the properties of Scotch whisky gave rise to a series of much celebrated verbal duals with the teetotal Lady Astor. When rationing was introduced, he was the first to suggest mass-production of macon, the mutton substitute for bacon, which originated from an old Scottish recipe. "If the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Food will consult with any farmer's wife in Perthshire, she will show him how to cure it," he informed the House of Commons.
^Doan, Laura (2001). Fashioning Sapphism: The Origins of a Modern English Lesbian Culture. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 56–60. ISBN0-231-11007-3.
^House of Lords Debates, 15 August 1921, column 574.
macquisten, this, section, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, this, section, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, . This section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources F A Macquisten news newspapers books scholar JSTOR January 2023 Learn how and when to remove this template message Frederick Alexander Macquisten KC 23 July 1870 in Inverkip Scotland 29 February 1940 in Walton on Thames England was a British lawyer and politician He was the son of Reverend Dr Alexander Macquisten the minister of Inverkip Parish Church Contents 1 Background 2 Politics 3 Death 4 References 5 Further reading 6 External linksBackground EditEducated by his father from whom he acquired an intimate knowledge of the Bible he attended University of Glasgow and went on to practise as a solicitor At the same time he was elected a member of Glasgow Corporation In 1909 he qualified as a member of the Faculty of Advocates in Scotland and ten years later was called to the Bar by Gray s Inn He was made a King s Counsel KC in Scotland in 1919 1 and took silk at the English Bar in 1932 Politics EditMacquisten unsuccessfully contested the Leith Burghs parliamentary constituency in 1910 and then Glasgow St Rollox in 1912 as a Unionist In 1918 he was elected as the Conservative party Member of Parliament MP for Glasgow Springburn In 1921 he put forward a proposal to criminalize lesbianism which was rejected by the House of Lords during the debate Lord Birkenhead the then Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain argued that 999 women out of a thousand had never even heard a whisper of these practices 2 3 Macquisten held onto the Glasgow Springburn constituency until he was defeated in the general election of 1922 He then fought and won Argyllshire in 1924 holding it for the Scottish Conservative amp Unionist Party until his death in 1940 In the House of Commons he was known for his wit The humour which he often brought to his speeches often belied their serious content He was though serious in his effort to abolish the compulsory Political Levy which Trade Union members paid before the passing of the Trade Disputes and Trade Union Act 1927 In 1925 he introduced a Private Member s Bill which was intended in his own words to restore the individual freedom of the working man The second reading of the Bill elicited a speech on Peace in Industry from the Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin a speech which made a great impression at the time The Baldwin Government accepted the principle of the Bill but moved an amendment on the basis that legislation on such an important question ought not to emanate from a private member but from the Government itself The Bill was eventually introduced following the general strike in 1926 He was the champion of private buses and a one man shopkeeper He also sang the praises of herring and porridge and his unerring praise of the properties of Scotch whisky gave rise to a series of much celebrated verbal duals with the teetotal Lady Astor When rationing was introduced he was the first to suggest mass production of macon the mutton substitute for bacon which originated from an old Scottish recipe If the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Food will consult with any farmer s wife in Perthshire she will show him how to cure it he informed the House of Commons Death EditMacquisten died at his home at Walton on Thames Surrey England on 29 February 1940 aged 69 citation needed References Edit No 13539 The Edinburgh Gazette 16 December 1919 p 4077 Doan Laura 2001 Fashioning Sapphism The Origins of a Modern English Lesbian Culture New York Columbia University Press pp 56 60 ISBN 0 231 11007 3 House of Lords Debates 15 August 1921 column 574 Further reading EditDuff Cooper Old Men Forget Carroll amp Graf 1988 pp 142 and 144 R H Bruce Lockhart The Diaries of Sir Robert Bruce Lockhart 1915 1938 pp 127 128 A H Charteris When the Scot Smiles A Maclehose amp Co 1932 pp 175 176 Daily Express Frederick Alexander Macquisten Obituary 1 March 1940External links EditHansard 1803 2005 contributions in Parliament by Frederick Alexander MacquistenParliament of the United KingdomNew constituency Member of Parliament for Glasgow Springburn1918 1922 Succeeded byGeorge HardiePreceded bySir William Sutherland Member of Parliament for Argyllshire1924 1940 Succeeded byDuncan McCallum Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title F A Macquisten amp oldid 1132102036, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
