Lobbying is a significant component of the modern politics industry in Britain, but we know relatively little about its historical origins and evolution. This article draws on parliamentary debates and three databases which together account for 51 newspaper titles, in order to explore how lobbying was discussed in parliament and the media between 1800 and 1950, and to gauge the growing professionalisation of lobbying. Perceptions of lobbying became somewhat less negative over the period; there are relatively few reports or allegations of corruption associated with lobbying; and lobbying by the railway industry seems to have been less substantial, while public sector lobbying was more significant, than is commonly supposed. Direct advocacy with policymakers is overwhelmingly the dominant tactic used by lobbyists of the period, with few reports of coalitions or grass‐roots campaigns. Particular concerns were expressed about the influence of lobbying around private bills. While lobbying back‐bench MPs and parliamentary committees (rather than ministers and civil servants) accounted for over 80% of the activity revealed across the whole period, there are signs by the middle of the 20th century that the focus of lobbyists is beginning to turn away from Westminster and towards Whitehall. The article paints a detailed view of the scale, scope, and significance of lobbying as it was developing into a national and systematic industry.

中文翻译：

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1800-1950 年英国在报纸和议会话语中的游说

游说是英国现代政治产业的重要组成部分，但我们对其历史起源和演变知之甚少。本文利用议会辩论和三个数据库（共占 51 个报纸标题），以探讨 1800 年至 1950 年间议会和媒体如何讨论游说，并衡量游说日益专业化。在此期间，对游说的看法变得不那么消极了；与游说有关的腐败报告或指控相对较少；铁路行业的游说似乎不那么重要，而公共部门的游说比通常想象的要重要。与政策制定者的直接倡导绝大多数是当时说客使用的主要策略，很少有关于联盟或草根运动的报道。人们对围绕私人法案进行游说的影响表示特别关注。虽然游说后座议员和议会委员会（而不是部长和公务员）占整个时期所揭示活动的 80% 以上，但有迹象表明，到 20 世纪中叶，游说者的焦点开始转向远离威斯敏斯特，走向白厅。文章详细描述了游说在发展成为全国性和系统性行业时的规模、范围和意义。虽然游说后座议员和议会委员会（而不是部长和公务员）占整个时期所揭示活动的 80% 以上，但有迹象表明，到 20 世纪中叶，游说者的焦点开始转向远离威斯敏斯特，走向白厅。文章详细描述了游说在发展成为全国性和系统性行业时的规模、范围和意义。虽然游说后座议员和议会委员会（而不是部长和公务员）占整个时期所揭示活动的 80% 以上，但有迹象表明，到 20 世纪中叶，游说者的焦点开始转向远离威斯敏斯特，走向白厅。文章详细描述了游说在发展成为全国性和系统性行业时的规模、范围和意义。