The Sun.
London, England, 1859-05-06 00:00:00

ELECTION INTELLIGENCE.

YORKSHIRE (WEST RIDING).
Sir J. W. Ramsden and Mr. F. Crossley, the
Liberal candidates for the representation of this
riding, having completed their tour through the
polling districts of the riding, met the general
committee for conducting their election at Leeds on
Wednesday last.
Mr. J. W. CHILDERS, of Cantley, near Doncaster,
the chairman of the committee, presided, and in
opening the proceedings he said, in reference to the
canvass for the Liberal candidates, he felt that they
would gain a victory in this contest, not by hun-
dreds but by thousands. The scales, however,
might be turned, and the Tories might be placed
in the ascendant, but to prevent this they must
work hard, and poll all the out-voters early. This
must be done, and if they only did their duty he
was sanguine as to the result.
Sir J. W. RAMSDEN briefly addressed the meet-
Tig. He said that he and his hon. colleague, Mr.
C rossley, had, during their electioneering tour,
a ttended 31 regular public meetings, besides various
incidental meetings ; and, with one exception, they
had never failed to take a show of hands, both for
and against. In the great majority of cases the vote
was unanimous in their favour, and altogether the
number of hands held up against them did not ex-
ec ed the number of meetings they attended.
( Cheers.) So far that part of their duty had been
performed satisfactorily. (Hear.)
Mr. CROSSLEY next addressed the meeting. He
said that this was a very important election,—per.
haps the most important they had had for many
years. He could assure them that he only consulted
their wishes when he became a candidate. He had
been perfectly astonished on visiting the agricultu-
ral districts, where they expected to meet with
lukewarmness, to find so much zeal in the cause.
He had been very much struck with their recep-
tion at Peteley-bridge, where every man, woman,
and child appeared to have turned out to do them
honour. (Cheers.) They appeared to feel, in com-
mon with the electors and non-electors in other
polling districts, that this was not merely an ordi-
nary contested election of the West Riding, but
one scarcely less impOrtant than the struggle of 1832,
and one by which they were called upon to give
their opinion on the question of further change in
the constitution of the country by the amendment
of the representation of the people. After advert-
ing to the necessity of an extension of the franchise
to the intelligent of the working classes, Mr. Cross-
ley said that before the passing of the Reform Bill
of 1832 the legislation of the country had come to
a stand still, but since they had made rapid pro-
gress, and the result had been essentially beneficial
to the country. But for that Reform Bill, and free
trade, which had flowed from it, he should never
have been in a position to contest this great riding.
He was sure he was only speaking the sentiments
of others when he said that the benefits which had
resulted from free trade had been felt in the agri-
cultural districts not less than in the manufacturing
districts. An old farmer had said to him--" I don't
know how you like free trade, but it suits us, and
we are satisfied with it if you are." It was gratify-
ing to know that the manufacturing interest was
prospering, without any sacrifice of another inte-
rest equally important. Adverting again to the
contest in which he was engaged, he said that he
felt it was a most important contest. Their op-
ponent had at times shown a little bit of orange,
but he was now dyed doubly blue to make up for
it. He had joined. Lord Palmerston's Government"
but as soon as he came to Wakefield he apologised
for it, explained it away, and declared himself as
good a Conservative as ever. Mr. Wortley told
them that no man was honest who did not change
his opinions, but that depended altogether upon the
fact whether the opinions were right to begin with.
No doubt, if a man, believing himself to have been
wrong, changed his views, he only pursued that
course which all could appreciate; but if he only
changed his opinions when it was to his personal
advantage to do so, and returned to his old opinions
when advantage on that side again presented itself,
to say the least, there were grounds for strong sus-
picion that the change was not from conviction. He
knew personally that the Tories were working the
districts as they had never done before. He knew that
their canvassers went to some electors two or three
times a day, even where they had not been solicited
by the other side. They must not, therefore, lay too
much stress upon their public meetings and the
show of hands—it must be worked. It was a sort
of last kick for Tories in the riding, and they would
strike hard. They must meet them fairly, not as
some of the Conservative landlords were doing, by
forcing their tenantry to vote for Mr. Wortley, but
by acting in the noble manner Lord Fitzwilliam,
Lord Londesborough, and other noblemen in the
riding had done. These gentlemen had said, "If I
had a vote, I should vote for Ramsden and Crossley
—but you must vote as you like." This, however,
was just the difference between Toryism and Libe-
ralism—the one thought he ought to think for
everybody, the other that he had no right to inter-
fere with the convictions of others.
Sir C. WOOD said that he quite concurred in
what had fallen from both the hon. candidates, and
a more important election than this could not be
fought in the United Kingdom. They knew pretty
well the result of the elections in the boroughs of
England and Scotland. Large funds were subscribed
by the members of the Government and their sup-
porters, for the purpose of buying as many of the
small boroughs as they could. They knew what
large sums had been spent in many of those boroughs,
yet, as a gentleman well acquainted with these mat-
ters said to him the previous day, it was astonishing
in how few instances they had prevailed. Of course
no such considerations could weigh with a consti-
tuency like that of the West Riding, but it was
of the last importance that constituencies like this,
whose independence was above question, should
show, by decisive majorities, what was their opinion
at this crisis. He need not remind them that this
was the largest constituency in England by one-third
and it was their duty to secure the emphatic verdict
of such a constituency on the appeal of the Govern-
ment. He agreed with Sir J. Ramsden that they
were fighting a common cause in behalf of principles
which they held in common, and which they be-
lieved would be for the benefit of the commonwealth,
and that they were only doing their duty by fighting
together. They had selected two gentlemen—one
from the landedinterest, the other from the manufac-
turing interest, and he believed that the riding
would be far better represented in this way than
in any other. He was glad to see such gentlemen
soliciting their suffrages, and he trusted that after
the assurances they had heard that day there could
be no earthly doubt as to their success. But there
was much to be done before this could be achieved.
Their candidates had done their part, and it be-
hoved the committee and the electors to do theirs.
Public meetings were valuable as showing the
course of public opinion, but it must not be for-
gotten that they were composed largely of non-
electors, who, though their influence was of the
greatest value, could not register any votes at the
poll. They must look after the electors, and from
the returns which had been received he could have
no doubt as to the success of their candidates, if
only proper exertions were used, and those exer-
tions must be used. He had never been returned
excepting this time without a contest, and he knew
how necessary it was to work up to the last moment.
They must go on working from that time until
they had placed their candidates at the head of the
poll, and, by a majority of thousands, declared the
voice of the West Ridin 0. Ire called upon them
to attend at the nomination if they could do so
without neglecting their canvass, and concluded by
movin g,—
" That this Ineetitlg having heard the favourable report
of the canvass, as given by the candidates, begs to request
the electors to attend the nomination, on Saturday next,
and to be early at the poll on Tuesday next."
(Cheers.)
The Hon. J. C. DUNDAS said he had great plea-
sure in seconding the resolution. He agreed most
cordially i n the con viction that every exertion ought
to be made and that they ought not to be too con-
fident. The eyes of England were upon this elec-
tion, and he called upon the electors of the West
. Riding to show what sort of reform they were de.
termined to have. (Cheers.) They must not rest
upon their oars, but use every exertion to counter-
act the manoeuvres, he might say the dirty manceu-
vres, of the other side. (Cheers.)
The resolution, after the meeting had been
briefly addressed by two or three other members
of the committee, was carried unanimously.
The proceedings closed with the passing of a vote
of thanks to the chairman.