The Birkenhead News and Wirral General Advertiser. — 1886-01-30 (Birkenhead, Merseyside, England)

THE EDITOR OF THE BIRKENHEAD NEWS. Sic—The sometime moribund mimic parliament of Birkenhead is at last no more. It is dead by an act which I am at a loss whether to describe as fel° de se or murder. I think it is the latter, for out of a roll of seventy-six members, a house of sixteen, on Wednesday last, settled the fate of the society. By fourteen against two it was resolved that the society adjourn sine die, an appeal to be made to the members for binds to clear off the debt, and a levy of one shilling each be made on the members present for the same purpose. These resolutions had been promulgated and passed at a hastily summoned council meeting of the night before, the members of the council who I were not present know nothing about them. The summons card only intimated " businessof I great importance," a meaningless phrase as ineffective in ensuring attendance as the fabled cry of "wolf." They were sprung upon the house without the slightest warning and without any intimation to the influential members of the society—not even the Speaker —end no one will be more surprised to hear of the action of the 14 arbiters of the fate of the society than the late leader of the house himself, the Rev. Mr. Worthington. The whole thing was done in about half-an-hour; the resolutions passed, the hat sent round, and a fervent and, under the circumstances, laudable desire expressed "not to let the public know." But I think the public should 'mow. It is always best that hole and corner actions should come into the full glare of publicity. Hence I ask your kind publication of this. The immediate cause of this suicidal or homicidal act was a debt of £2, and a probable debt if the society continued of £5 or £6 more. But an unfortunate concatenation of circumstances has brought the society touts present pass. 1. The room in which it has been compelled to hold its meetings is a most unsuitable place. 2. The general election keeping sway many of the old members daring the first half of the session and who never turned up afterwards. 3. The simultaneous loss by both Liberals and Conservatives at the beginning of the session of those invaluable adjuncts, their whips (curiously enough both from the same canse—marriage.) 4. On the one side a leader left in the lurch by his party, on the other a party left in the lurdh by its leader, and neither leaders taking suffi. went cognisance of the details of management of the society. 5. A. speaker—unrivalled in his way—who unfortunately has only been able to attend on rare occasions. 6. The , utter incapacity of the official members of the society to cope with difficulties—to prove themselves equal to the occasion when put upon their mettle. If this reason had been written first, the others need scarcely have been mentioned. To the extravagance of the officials in past sessions, and their displayed incompetence in the present, the society owes its parlous state. So long as all was plain sailing—good. Let us eat, drink, and be merry But when difficulties arise, what do we see? The boat stranded at the first squall—wrecked and abandoned with an alacrity as disgraceful to all concerned as has been the mismanagement which has been chiefly responsible for the disaster. I repeat that the way and the manner in which the society has been deserted at the first sign of debt, instead of the whole of the members being informed of its position and a vigorous effort being made to carry it out, is disgracefu and discreditable, and I wish, with your permission, to express publicly, as I did at the meeting, a strong protest against this pusillanimous proceeding. The Speaker of the society expressed an opinion that there had been an undercurrent outside which had sought to swamp the society. But I say what has swamped the society, and, to their everlasting shame be it said, has been the inefficiency of its officials, and the inanition of those who should have been its leading spirits.—l am, sir, yours. ctc.,