The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1879-07-05 00:00:00

CRADLEY HEATH.
MR. H. B. SHERIDAN, M.P., AND HIS
CONSTITUENTS.

The local committee of the Dudley Liberal As-
sociation made arrangements for Mr. Sheridan to
address the electors of Cradley Heath—a part of
the Parliamentary borough—in the Primitive
Methodist Schools, at Five Ways, on Monday. At
Netherton, Old Hill, and Five Ways large crowds
of people lined the streets, and frequent cheers
were given for the member, who bowed his ac-
knowledgments. At Five Ways more than 10,000
people had assembled. The school room was
densely packed, and a move was made to hold the
meeting therein, but the immense crowd insisted
on an open-air meeting, and this was agreed upon.
Mr. Charles Cochrane (the president of the Liberal
Association) took the chair in a large field near
I Cradley station. He was supported by Mr. Green,
Mi. Homer, and many leading Liberals of the dis-
trict, together with a few from Dudley. There
were at least 5,000 persons present to hear the
member. After a few words from the Chairman,
Mr. Sheridan, who was received with loud
applause, complimented the electors upon the fact
that the Liberal Association had been so successful
in the time it had existed. Such an association
was absolutely necessary, because the borough was
so large that it was most expensive to contest.
The Tories knowing that put up a so-called candi-
date at every election with the idea of tiring out
the Liberals. (Oh, oh.) But, with a good working
Libeial Association, nearly all the expense could
be saved by the voters declaring their intention
beforehand, and so giving no chance for a Tory to
be returned. (Applause.) Then the Liberal work-
ing men could return such men as Mr. Burt and
Mr. Macdonald to the House of Commons. (Ap-
plause.) Mr. Sheridan then characterised the Tory
politics as retrograde, and cautioned Liberals to be
united and watchful of a sudden dissolution. The
Tories could never win in England, if the Liberals
did cot split themselves into sections. In the
presence of the foe it was suicide to talk about
altering regimental facings. (Laughter.) If the
Tories should win a majority after the general
election— (" They never will ")—it would be but a
small one, and then, with the bye-elections and the
Tory native political blindness and foreign war
proclivities, the majority would melt, and they
would be out of power for the long term of years
to which their narrow-minded views essentially
fitted them. (Loud laughter.) One question
particularly affected that district, and that was
the truck question. (" Hear, hear." and applause.)
He had asked questions in the House of Commons
about it, as they all knew, and he learned that the
poor people who had to work very hard at the
Workhouse had half in money and half in kind.
(Shame.) That was unsatisfactory, for he had
heard that some of the food was very indifferent.
As to the local chainmakers, rivetmakers, and
nailers, he felt their difficulty. (‘‘ We hate truck")
Mr. Sheridan then quoted his question to Mr.
Sclater Booth and Mr. Cross's ansiver, and said
that if those who suffered from truck in that dis-
trict would write to him, saying they were op-
pressed, he would pursue the enquiry to the end.
(`• Down with truck.") Well, let them remember
that the Home Secretary had said that he had
instructed the factory inspectors to look closely
after the matter, and perhaps that would guide his
hearers as to how they should proceed. (Hear,
hear," and laughter.) Mr. Sheridan then ex-
pressed his unbounded confidence in the honour,
temperance, and integrity of English working men,
and held that they should have the right to record
their votes after working hours. One Conservative
member had said that the working men should
give up something for their vote, but he (Mr.
Sheridan), as a Liberal, did not believe that, for
they were free-born Englishmen, and their vote
was their birthright by the Constitution. That
being so, they should have every right to exercise
it without cost to themselves. (Loud and continued
applause.) The same Tory said working men were
Politically idle, venal, and vacillating, and that
was a taste of Tory views towards working men,
however they might pat them on the back. (Hear,
hear," and that's right.") Therefore he wished
them at the next general election to say to the
Tories: "We have had enough of you, with your
distrust of us and your foreign policy. You are
responsible for a great amount of the distress in
the country by your meddlesome wars, which have
inspired Europe with distrust and increased our
taxation. You have in a time like this made war
for rectification of frontier; and now we will have
Gladstone—(applause)—and Hartington to govern
the country on truly Liberal principles." (Loud
cheering, several times renewed.

Mr. George Green then proposed a resolution
thanking Mr. H. B. Sheridan for his address, and
pledging the meeting to use all lekitimate means to
secure his triumphant re-election. This was
seconded, and carried with loud and continued
applause.