Brighouse & Rastrick Gazette. — 1883-07-14 (Brighouse, West Yorkshire, England)

THE IRISH PARTY AND THE NEXT  ELECTION.  A correspondent writes to the Times: Immediately after the adjournment of Parliament for the recess a series of local conferences of the Irish National League will be held in all the counties and boroughs in Ireland. Their object will be to consider the state of the local electorate and select candidates for the next general election. It is the intention of the Parnellite party to contest all the constituencies at present represented by members opposed to the programme of the National League, and special i preparations are already n progress for contesting some of the Ulster constituencies. Donegal, Down, Armagh, 'Tyrone, and Antrim will be provided with followers of Mr. Parnell as candidates, and three out of these five counties, Donegal, Tyrone, and Armagh, are considered as certain to follow the example of Monaghan. Of the Ulster boroughs, Dun. gannon, Newry, and Londonderry are looked upon as likely to return members of the National League party; while Belfast is expected to give one representative to Mr. Parnell. In the capital of the north the National League has been for some months poet engaged in 'preparing lists of additions to the existing register, chiefly of lodgers hitherto unregistered. 'Throughout England and Scotland the Irish party, acting under instructions from the executive, is engagedin strengthening the Irish t lectorate. Special Irish ward committees have been formed in most of the large towns, and in some places, where Conservii= tive, Liberal, and Radical candidates may be in the field attempts will be made to run local candidates. In Glasgow and Liverpool this will notably be the case. In the latter city the Conservatives intend to contest all the seats, and there will be both a Liberal and a Labour candidate in the field. Under such circumstances the Irish party have the hope of winning one of the seats, and one of the local leaders, already occupying a seat in the City council, is spoken of as the Irish candidate. In Glasgow, where the electorate is likely to be increased by somel,soo Irish votes, Mr. John Ferguson will be asked to come forward, and will, if he conBente, receive the supportof a strong section of the Glasgow Radicals, with whom his agrarian theories are popular. In the metropolitan boroughs, with the exception of the City of London, the National League party are exceedingly active, and agents of the league will attend the revision courts. In Marylebone alone it is calculated that some thousands of Irish lodger claims will be made, and in Southwark it is intended to run a candidate pledged to both the labour and the National League platforms. A candidate of similar principles will be started for the Tower Hamlets and for Chelsea and Greenwich, should the Liberals contest these constituencies. At the last general election—that of 1880—it was computed that the Irish electors held the balancing power over 45 seats. At the next general election the amputation now officially made rallies the number to 75. It will be remembered that in 1880 a manifesto was issued, signed by the Irish leaders, advising their followers in Great Britain to vote solidly for the Liberal candidates. It is not the intention of the Irish leaders to issue any such general instruction at the next appeal to the country. The management of the Irish electorate will be intrusted to a small committee, who will issue instructions as the elections proceed, and whose policy will be guided by the state of parties revealed in the results. It will be aimed chiefly at preserving as far as possible the balance of parties, so as to divide the representation of England a and Scotland equally between the two great English parties, thus allowing the representatives n from d to hold the voting balance in party divisions. No doubt exists in the minds of the leaders of the Irish electors throughout Great Britain that this can be effectually accomplished. Exceptions to the rule of action will be made in cases such as those of Mr. Joseph Cowen, M.P.,. Mr. John Morley, M.P., and some other advanced Liberals who have become conspicuous in the House of Commons as supporters of Irish claims. Provided that even one-third of the seats to be attacked in Ulster by the National Leafrue party are won, it is calculated that Mr. Parnell s following in the next Parliament will be 84 members from Ireland.  The betrothal is rumoured of the Princess Caroline Mathilde of Schleswig-Holstein-Augustenburma sister of the Princess William of Prussia, to Prince William of Wurtemberg, heir presumptive to the throne of that country. His first wife, who WA a sister of the Duchess of Albany, died about 15 months ago. The Benchers of Gray's-inn have disbarred Mr. Foster Reed, a member of that society, after inquiry into the money-lending case which was referred to them by Mr. Justice Stephen. Since the disbarring of Dr. Kenealy the Benchers have not taken the extreme decision. It is a remarkable fact (the London correspondent of the Manchester Guardian says) that Mr. Foster Reed. was originally a policeman, and had by his own energies worked himself into the highest profession of the law. A distressing suicide has occurred at Chatluun barracks. A bandeman Mimed Gilringham was drinking in the canteen when the tovic of conversation turned on the Egyptian campaign, in which his brother was killed. Gillingham seemed to be affected, lett the canteen, and, taking a razor from his kit, cut Nis i throat n such a frightful manner that his head was nearly severed from his body.  _ In I letter written to Dr. Livingstone, of Stanhope, acknowledging the receipt of a resolution passed by the North 'Yorkshire and Cleveland Miners' Association, Mr. Gladstone expresses a confident hope that the question of the county franchise will be dealt with at an early period.