The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-12-06 00:00:00

MEETING OF THE CONSERVATIVE

PARTY.

On Tuesday, about noon, about 210 Conservative
members of the two Houses of Parliament met at
the Carlton Club to hear from Lord Salisbury a state-
ment respecting redistribution.
The Marquis Salisbury presided, and was received
with cheers, referred in his opening remarks to the
negotiations which bad resulted in the introduction of
of the Redistribution Bill. He stated that that
measure was thought to be the best that was practic-
able under all the circumstances and one that least
disturbed the existing arrangements in view of the
fact that so large an addition as 2,000,000 of voters
were about to be admitted to the franchise. His
lordship then proceeded to give a brief analysis of the
bill. It appeared that a larger number of Liberal
than of Conservative seats would be disfranchised by
its operation, and he thought that on the whole the
measure, if accepted, might eventually prove advan-
tageous to the interests of Conservatism. He thanked
the party for the confidence it had reposed in Sir
Stafford Northcote and himself. Before concluding,
the noble marquis urged that the members should
regard the proceedings as confidential.
Sir Stafford Northcote, who was also received with
cheers, said he was suffering from a severe cold that
he was unable physically to add many remarks to
those which they had already heard from the noble
marquis. But he desired briefly to express his con-
currence in the views of Lord Salisbury, and their
acknowledgment of the care, tact, and great ability
which his lordship had displayed throughout the whole
of the conferences between themselves and the repre-
sentatives of the Government.

Mr. Chaplin inquired what were the precise con-
ditions upon which the Franchise Bill was to be
passed, and what were the points in the Redistribution
Bill which were to be considered as vital to the ex-
istence of the Government. He would say nothing
upon the general situation, which he regretted, nor
the. mean& by which it had been brought about.
Neither would he discuss the bill, which be had not
yet bad time to read. He much regretted that the
second reading was to be taken on Thursday before.
the House of Commons could possibly have had time
to consider it. In many counties he thought the sys-
tem of single-membered constituencies proposed by
the Government would not work satisfactorily. Al-
together he regarded the prospect of the Conservative
party, if the Franchise and Seats Bills were passed
in the form in which they were introduced, as being
/WI/lard .
Mr. Grantham said that in the county to wnte-li liu
belonged he did not anticipate any such unfavourable
effects from the single-membered constituency plan
as Mr. Chaplin had foreboded, and, on the whole, he
took a more hopeful view of the situation than that
gentleman.
Lord Claud Hamilton expressed some doubts as to
whether the system of single-membered constituencies
would operate satisfactorily in such a constituency as
Liverpool.
Among the subsequent speakers were Sir W. Hart
Dyke, Mr. Raikes, Sir Walter Barttelot, Earl Stan-
hope, Mr. Ritchie, Lord Redesdale, Sir J. Hay, and
Sir H. D. Wolff. In the course of this discussion,
which was of a somewhat desultory character, the
preponderance of opinion seemed to be in favour of
allowing the debate on the second reading of the Seats
Bill to conclude before the end of the present week,
and to reserve any prolonged discussion upon the
principles or details of the measure until the motion
"that the Speaker leave the Chair," when the House
resumed after the Christmas -vacation.

A number of questions were asked upon various.
points regarding which members were doubtful,
especially as to the features to be considered as vital.
From the replies to interrogations on this head it ap-
peared that the proposed addition of la to the total
membership of the House was not to be regarded as-
vital, nor the retaining for Ireland of 103 representa-
tives in the event of the House deciding that the num-
ber should be reduced to 100.
No resolution was proposed with regard to the
Redistribution Bill, which, on the whole, was looked
upon with favour. It was not proposed, as had been
anticipated, that the debate on Egypt should be origi-
nated before the adjournment of the House for the
holidays.
The proceedings lasted about an hour and three-
quarters.