The Patrician Part 1, Chapter 22

In which the town of Bucklandbury is alive with the vibrant, if somewhat bruising, rituals of an election day, where colours and convictions clash beneath the ever-watchful philosophic eye, which remains as detached as it is unwelcome. Amongst the tumult and the songs of the crowd, the poll's close brings a solemn, almost sacred gravity that momentarily lifts the spirit beyond party allegiances and into something profoundly communal.