The Life of a Great Sportsman 



you will have a safe seat as long as it hangs together, and a 

 bridle you will know how to use." 



I know personally of one incident in which an enthusiastic, 

 even rabid, Gladstonian Liberal, a splendid speaker, and one 

 whose presence on the platform would have carried weight and 

 influenced many votes, refused to come down and address a 

 meeting in the Liberal interest in my brother's division. " I 

 cannot speak for him, and I will not speak against him," was 

 the reply returned. 



From 1886 to the next General Election for Parliament, 

 1892, my brother had "nursed" his constituency and had 

 during that time certainly lost no hold on the electors, for he 

 polled 300 more votes than in 1886; but the same difficulty 

 that he had to contend with then, both in the strength of his 

 opponent and the ultra-liberalism of the Borough, met him, 

 and he was again defeated. For although 300 more voters 

 polled for Richardson, Waddy brought out 561 more, and the 

 whole Poll was increased by 866. 



Then, to make the return of a Tory the more difficult, as 

 in 1886 a wave of Conservatism had swept over the country, 

 now, just six years later, the tide had set in the opposite 

 direction, and the Liberals were returned with a majority 

 for Parliament under the Leadership of the greatest Parlia- 

 mentarian of the Victorian era, William Ewart Gladstone, for 

 the last time. 



It is always a pleasant thing to turn from a political defeat, 

 especially if the principal is intimately connected with yourself, 

 and chronicle a victory. And this happened at the bye-election 

 in the Brigg Division of Lincolnshire, when, in 1894, my 

 brother was returned in triumph for the constituency he had 

 twice before contested unsuccessfully. That wonderful bye- 

 election still lingers in the minds of my brother's constituency 



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