The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-12-08
TIE ENGLISH ELECTIONS.


The Tories amuse their minds by calling
Mr.. Bright the minority member for Birming
ham. 1t is true he came in at the foot OF the
poll. Under the Liberal arrangements for 80
distributing the Liberal ajority as to secure
all three members with only two votes, it was
necessary that all personal preferences should
be sacrificed. Otherwise, the anxiety to vote
for Mr.. Bright would have endangered the re-
turn Of one of his colleagues. In fact, each
| elector received from the Liberal Com mmittee
an election card with the names Of the two
candidates for whom he was desired TO poll.
1t was meant that the three Liberals should
receive as nearly as possible an equal vote.
To secure exact equality in constituency OF
40 0OO was obviously impossible. 1t is evident
that some of the friends of the other two can-
dldates voted without regard to the committee
programme, fearing, no doubt, that some of
MIR. Bright's friends would be doing the
came thing. For this or some other reason
Messrs. Dixon and Muntz were found early in
the day to be running ahead of Nc. Bright.
BY noon their vote was considerably larger
than his, and at the same time it had become
evident that there was not the slightest dagger
of the defeat OF either OF the three. The
lowest Libt raj vote was nearly twice the high
est Tory. In this state OF things the joint
Liberal Committee, who had always meant
that Mr.. Bright should head the POLL arranged
to redistribute portion Of the votes not
already cast, SO as 10 carry MT. DrlSOL luLO
his proper position. Mr.. Bright himself mega
tived this plan, desiring that no change should
be made for any personal reason, but that the
original scheme should be left to its natural
working, and bs adhered to till the end. The
poll stood at the close, Dixon, 10 OBS; Muutz,
IA, Ga; Bright, II, COL. The leading Tory had
500. Mr.. Bright may well be content with a
nominal majority of about three times that
number. Nope the less is his willingness TO
Stand illu of hiS nsual spl an
ness in politics.
Confronted by such majority, the Tories
have fallen back on their old tactics, and are
busy in fomenting dissension in the ranks of
their opponents. Despairug of another Cave,
or any political issue, they would provoke
personal contest for the leadership of the
Liberal party. Lord Granville is to be set up
against Mr.. Gladstone. A report has got so
far this morning as the newspapers that upon
MIR. Disraelps resignation he will advise the
Queen to send for Lord Granville to form
Cabinet. No doubt the Queen has right to
exercise a choice. No doubt Mr.. Disraeli is
capable of launching such Parthian SHAFT as
be retires. No doubt, even, there is a section
of the Liberal party, the fossil Wing. aud
especially the Wings of high rank, who
view MIR. Gladstones leadership with
ill-disguised dislike, and who would re-
joice to supplant the cOmmoner by one
of the blue-bloOd nobility like Lord Granville,
who unites hslfa-Gozen great names in his
single person. But though Mr.. Disraeh ad-
wise, and the Queen invite, and even though
which do not believe-LOrd Granville should
be so carried away by ambition as to attempt
to form a Cabinet, the scheme would miscarry
instantly and utterly. This House is chosen
on pledge Of loyalty to Mr.. Gladstone, and it
dare not defy its constituents by tolerating
the accession of Granville ministry to Office.
With the House itself rests the final decision,
but neither do believe any Liberal statesman
of high position would at this moment take
office from Lord Granville. Be the merits of
that nobleraan what they may--and they are
maDy-he is Lot the man whom the people Of
England have resolved to have for their Prime
Minister. Statesmen and politicians of all
grades have lately learned a lesson in respect
TO the supremacy of the popular will, and they
are not going to commit suicide to please the
Cavendishes and Levison- Covers, or all the
Whig families that for the last thirty years
bave played with fire and burnt their fingers.
Mr.. Gladstone and no other Is to be Premier.
The number of leading men defeated on both
sides is extraordinary-the Liberals suffering
thus far much more heavily than the Tories.
Not less than dozen very able aud prominent
men who were in the last House will not be in
the next, or at any rate not when it opens.
The numerical majority of the Liberals goes
on increasing day by day, but they have to
mourn the overthrow of at least six OF their
very foremost leaders, including four who ex-
pected seats in the next Cabinet as natter of
course. 1t looks as if the new constituencies
like d able men nolbetter than they liked radi-
GALS At any rate the new House will be
much weaker body of men than the old.
To begin with the Tories, both the law Off
GERS of the Government have been beaten.
The Attorney General Sir John Karslake,
contested Exeter with Mr.. Coleridge, who will
probably hold the same Office in the coming
Liberal administration. 1t was a close fight,
and Sir John is defeated by only 80 in total
of 4543 votes, or indeed by only % votes less
than his other Liberal opponent, Mr.. Bow
ring. The Solictor-General, Mr.. Baggaliay,
was beaten at Hereford by 30 votes, which he
carried at the last election by IL. But the
Government will have no particular need for
law officers during the brief period Of its ex-
istence. The other Tory lawyers fare no
better than their official chiefs. Mr.. 4. X.
Karslake, in Colchester, shares the fate OF his
brother. Mr.. Garth, Mr.. Huddlestone, and
Mr.. Giffard are all beaten. Outside OF the
legal profession the Tories lose the Earl of
Dalkeith in Edinburghshire-a Tory seat for
generatiOns-who may not be a. man
Of great ability, but is son to the
Duke of Buccleuch. With him they lose
Lord Claud Hamilton for Londonderry, who is
also a Dukes son, the Marquis of Abercorn
having lately been promoted to the higher
grade. These two defeats to two ddcal sons
the Liberals regard with satisfaction as an
| equivalent for the disaster to the Marquis of
Harrington, but suspect they would be- glad
to surrender even a third seat could they but
win back North Lancashire and the lost pres
| tige of the Cavendishes. Perhaps Sir George
Bowyer, just beaten for Dundalk, ought to bs