6o ECHOES OF OLD COUNTY LIFE. 



Hon. T. Fremantlc, eldest son of the late Lord Cottesloe, 

 on the Conservative side, and the Hon. Rupert Carring- 

 ton, brother of the popular Lord Carrlngton ; and both 

 parties felt confident of .success. It need not be said 

 that Lord Beaconsfield looked with the keenest interest 

 on the result of the contest. The polling was fixed for 

 the day after the public dinner of the Agricultural 

 Society, and great anxiety was expressed lest Lord 

 Beaconsfield should be absent from the dinner. A few 

 days before the meeting I had the honour to receive 

 the following letter from Lord Beaconsfield, which I 

 insert from, I hope, a pardonable pride, that my opinion 

 should have been deemed of service to him. 



" lo, Downing Street, Whitehall, 



^^ September 9, 1876. 



" Dear Mr. Fowler, 



'-'' You are one of those men in whose judgment 

 and trustworthiness I have great confidence. I should 

 therefore feel obliged to you if you would give me your 

 opinion as to the prospect of our County contest. 



" Yours sincerely, 



'' Beaconsfield." 



I replied that I felt sure of a successful result, although 

 we were confronted by a very strong opponent, and the 

 representative of one of the most popular families in the 

 county ; '"' but," I concluded my letter, " I feel convinced 

 that your lordship's presence at the dinner will make at 

 least three hundred votes difference to our party." 



I heard afterwards that my view was supported by 

 that prince of good fellows, " Squire Drake," of Shar- 



