The North Wales Express

GREAT LIBERAL DEMONSTRA- TION AT LLANDUDNO. SPEECHES BY MR A. ARNOLD, M.P.' AND MR LOVE JONES-PARRY, M.P. On Saturday night last, at the St. George's llau, a great demonstration under the auspices of tbe Liberal Association was held under th: Residency of Mr T. Barker, president of tae Llandudno Liberal Association. The attendance, which was large and enthusiastic, included Mr Arthur Arnold, M. P., and Mrs Arnold, Mr .lonei- I' M.P., Dr Bold Williams, Mr H. L. Quires, the Rev J. Spinther James, the Rev O. T. Astley, the Rev J. Raymond, Messrs G. H. ^ugh, Eliae Jones, S. Bartlett, T. Parry, J. ^idge, E. H. Williams, R. A. Armitage (Man- chester), M. Williams, 3. O. Hughes, T. iialliday, Thorpe, &c. The hall was tastefully decorated, and this Portion of the arrangements reflected much credit %Pon Misses Elias Jones, Thorpe, Ralliday, by "hom it was carried out. A bust of Mr Gladstone Occupied a prominent position on the platform behind the president's seat was a device bidding st Welcome to Arthur Arnold, M.P., the repre- sentative of Liberalism;" and Welsh mottoes associated with the cause, and the namea of "Gladstone and other prominent leaders of the iflberal party, were displayed about the room. The following letters of apology were read He Rathbone M.P., whose name was loudly Peered, wrote as follows—" I am sorry I cannot attend the meeting at Llandudno, as I must leave Ga Tuesday to bring my wife and family home from the north of Italy, where they hare b- en "pending the winteT, and I do net expect to gut back before the 23rd of April. Pray convey to oar Llandudno friends my meet hearty and warm •ppreci&tion of their political energy and earne^t- '11ess. It in, indeed, most opportune. The state of things in the House of Commons is dangerous alike to the dignity of that once model political Assembly and to the national welfare. Party Seem; to have t-iken the place of patriotism to a degree which I do not remember to have been 'equalled in the rtforsced Parliament. Not only is the House of Commons reduced to impotence und discredited in the eyes of the country by hardly Veiled obstruction, but, what is, I believe, new in English political life in our day, there are those in the Houee of Commons who do not hesitate, by insinuations in the form of questions, to assail the «fcaracter, weaken the hands, and endanger the position of men like General Gordon, Bit Evelyn Wood, and other noble f llows whose I)revicui services cught to hava protected them, "ad who are now engaged in a gailant and critical •traggle to maintain th« honour of England and benefit the unfortunate Egyptians (hear, hear). Captain Yernev, R N., the Liberal candidate for wrote—" Owing to my father a very ssr.ous tUcees, I am afraid I ehall not be able to attend the meeting at Llandudno on Saturday. L. how- ever, there is any improvement iu his eoncution, J Trill come down at the last moment. At present it is impossible for me to leave him. —A Jotter of .Pology for non-attendance was alyc read from Mr W". A. Darbiahire, president of the Carnarvonshire County and Borough Liberal Association. The Chairman, who was received with cheers, ftid: An assembly such as this, and an oceasior. like the present, carries special importance to me, -hen I am compelled to measure my capacity with the usual qualifications of a chairman at such a Meeting. Whilst I too well know my short- comings, I am comforted by the thought that liberalism will not suffer ia eoasequenca of my feeble advocacy. For some time past we have 1>eel1 almost destitute of oattide help, and we hmre not had a single member of Parliament to address us for two years; yet I am gratified to be eble to announce that the strength and vitality of liberal support in Llandudno was never more active or promising than it is to-day (cheers). I think this must go to establish the fact that our -adelity is of an indestructible type, and our ad- Hesion to the principles of justice, progress, and j liberty—the watchwords of Liberal movements (cheers). We have not lately seen much of our truly excellent and worthy representative, Mr kethbone- (cheers) but it is our pleasure to know that the place he fills proclaims the energy and power of its occupant (hear, hear) To us he is specially dear; his services in our interest, and the philanthropy evinced by him generally, give to his j laalne the hall mark of nobility" (heai, hear). Mr Jones-Parry, the member for the bon ughn v-hom you know how to honour, and whose unbending fidelity is ever shown by the intsgrity cf his vote, oJ: am happy to say, is here to-night. We cannot lorget hia personal history in connection with that ttsiuorable contest in 18GS, when, with great courage and at a large sacrifice, he wrested a Tory stronghold—tbe treasured property, ot 70 years- the representation of thia county (cheers). Ail this refers to a bygone time, when the value of the ballot was unknown and despotism of property tonpant (hear, hear). We have with us this evening a gentleman of distineoished name, illus- trated thee luntry which demand, as I have no doubt they will receive, the ilkueøt tokens ef your recognition. Mr Arnold— icheers) —does not merely represent Salford; he tap striven beyond the radius of his confctituency to make the truth and greatness of the cause to Which he has proved his unswerving allegiance an intellectual ladder by which the people might be ftiaed socially and morally (heai, hear). 8uch Ymen are invaluabl3 AB popular educators, and I feel certain that the fut ire before him is ripe with promise and rich with the assurance of increased usefulness. We have long desired to see him in Wales; and now that he has found time, amidst his numerous engagements, to visit UII, I am satisfied that you will manifest your eppreeiation in a gennine Welsh way. No doubt we shail be told much that is interesting and profitable. The programme—or rather the remaining part, includ- ing household franchise for the counties, for which t'aa Government scored such a splendid majority -on Monday night-will no doubt be dwelt upon, *&d the various improvements of the land laws-a question on which Mr Arnold is regard d as an authority, and which he has materially assisted in bringing to the fore. Welshmen are in earnest for the passing of that act of justice, the Disestablish- ment of the Church in Wales, which cannot long fee delayed (thoors). Before resuming my seat I "Would ask you to farther by work, earnest and constant, the grand cause which has for its guid- ing influence the starlike qualities of the noble veteran, the commanding genius of his time, William Bwart Gladstone (cheers). Mr Arthur A ".I!. M.P., addr^sing the meet- ing, 8akl d what argument could he so strong in Savour of M, (Milestone's measure for establishing a uniform franchise in counties and boroughs as that of the individual interest in public affairs which now extended throughout al! parts of the country. W; en he hen d anyono mourn ov<r the degeneracy of the fimes and the progress of Democracy he was sorry for them, and r ot for "the times, which were partly better, because when tnembers of Parliament journeyed to London their constituents did rot lose sight Of them or ot thdr doings (hear, bear) The country t-mded to b,, -come one jrreat constituency, and the public oervicevastbereforein&nitely purer (bear, hear). He did not suppose that they were better men than their preat-gritndfatlierti, but they were mu :h better looked after. The pa3ple were their ■masters, and Th< were vigilaut. Their great- grandfathers held their sedots by tho will and pleasure of one or two powerful individuals whose interests they had to serve. Now they dare not serve leaser interests than those of the people, if they desired to retain the confidence of their con. stituents. Before Parliamentary reform every department ot State was corruptly administered. It t jok about fifteen years to build a in m of war, but, during those years well-born infants were re- ceiving their pay as the future officers of the ship daughter). In the army commissions were given .wa, for every reason except a g od one, and 'iMehops and chapters used to cell the lands of the .cburch upon leases for live* or fines upon renewals. Fifty years ago the burden of poor relief, with talf the popaiation, was afl heavy as it now is. The progress of Demo ruev had purified our Government, and in the future would reoder it Anore serviceable (hear, haarj. Tie people lived longer, they fared better, were better educated and leas criminal; whilst the security of pro- perty was testified by the enormous rise in value during this reforming period. At the beginning I of that period there lived a handsome young nobleman, full of poetic manners and chivalrous fancies, whose name was John Manners, and who had survived to lead a futile opposition against a Reform Bill of 1884. In his youth he maintained that old nobility, which no one used to ignore, was worth more than arts and science, than letters and learning (laughter), and in this age he main- tained that it was a very dangerous thintr that every householder should share the privileges which belonged to a householder in Salford. The Liberals thought otherwise. The enfranchisement of their fellow-countrymen was no leap in the dark (cheers). They looked back for encourage- ment and forward with confidence. They marked the blessing which had flowed from the extension of political power, and claimed with hope and satisfaction its more full and complete possession for the people (cheers). There were many evils against which our best reformers had found them. selves powerless to contead while a large body of the people ere unenfranchised. If one could be lifted high into the air and possess for a moment the eye of o jjnipresence, what a spectacle would be revealed. They would see a country formed by nature and circumstances to be ooe of the most bountiful gardens of mankind, yet in which by far the greater part of the land was silent and depopulated, with diminishing production, with declining agriculture. There were many people whose heaviest and most grievous burden was that land system which caused such unwholesome congregation and suah comparative sterility. In ten years there had been a conversion of nearly 2,000,000 acres into grass land which used to pro- duce corn and green crops. That meant, in the first place, a reduction of about 180,000 agricul. tural labourers, and also the loss of food for more than 500,000 people. Agriculture, as it was in this country, could not support such large flocks as we had ten years ago. In the best maiket, m the richest country in the world, there had b.en a decline in the means of producing food. They might not believe it, but be could assure them that it was true that in this country there wag quite a large class of the people who believed that ttie soil of England and Wales was created in order to maintain a landed aristocracy. Conscious of the dead weight of this opinion upon the fortunes of the Conservative party, the younger Tories, such as Lord R indolph Churchill, laboured fortunes of the Conservative party, the younger Tories, such as Lord R indolph Churchill, laboured to prove that this was not the foundation of the Conservative policy. Lord Randolph Churchill was the proprietor of a patent medicine (laughter). His ointment was warranted to produce a Tory Democracy even in the most unpromising subject (laughter). But the difficulty—-be would not say the quackery-was that the medicine was labelled for towns only" (laughter). He warranted it for Birmingham and Manchester, but in the shires it was poisonous (laughter). Perhaps that was the reason why Mr Warton had lately shown such a distrust for patent medicine (laughtei). Agri. culture had fallen from the first to the second place in the great industries of this country. The Franchise Bill would, he believed, prove the en- franchisement of agriculture, and it would not be very dangerous to predict that the first census in the next century would show agriculture to have regained its place, and to have become, as it should be, the first of British industries (hear, hear). The manner in which Parliament had treated questions of land reform was very unsatisfactory. The labourers, because they were not enfranchised, had never had justice from Parliament. Mr Chamberlain had given offence by speaking of the robbery of the poor with reference to land. Well, robbery was an ugly word- Convey, the wise it call (laughter). But in this centurv alone by private and public Acts about 3,000,000 acres of waste land had been enclosed (shame). In local taxa- tion, again, reforms were much needed to make it more just, but the subject was one of difficulty. Re- ferring to enfranchisement of leaseholds, he was attracted to it because it tended to simplify the tenure of land so that when there was a register of title they would have to register not two but one title. When the suffrage had been extended and when there had been a redistribution of poli- tical power, the best energy of the Liberal party would, he hoped, be given to the liberation of the land. There was not an emperor or a king in Europa who would dare to impose upon his people the land system which now existed in England (hear, hear). Many who were now without votes would be enfranchised by the wise, just, and very Conservative bill which Mr Gladstone was passing through Parliament. It would give to England and Wales a responsible body of 4,000,000 electors. No privilege and no power can stand against the decision of that body. What they desired the Government and this island should be such it will and must become (hear, hear). It was silly to scold at tho House of Lord*, at the landowners, or at any class. Make straight and plain the way of the people, and then lay the evils which called for remedy at their door. He never abused;the Houso of Lords or the Conservative party. He was thankful he was not a member of that party, be. cause it was a party of humilitition-(hear, hear)- and as a rule shed a principle as a serpent does its ekin every year (laughter). The style of Oonser. vatism which was now popular was of itself a vast sign that the people have no leaning to a Conser- vative Government (hear, hear). The swash- bucklers of the party were far mo;o in demand than the statemen (hear, hear). Their genius and power consisted in delaying the victory of the people So had they seen children at work upon Llaududno sands, building up dams against the rising of the tides upon which they themselves may stand in fancied security. The House of Lords were said to be preparing their wooden shovel- (If,ughter)-and in the summer months their Lord- ships deigned to erect aeainst this Franchise Bill a momentary barrier. Those who had given the rignt of citizenship to the humblest householder in the counties could not by the law of justice to which they hold allegiance withhold it from the dwellers outside the towns (cheers). They who accepted representative government as the only sa'e and secure principle could not deny their claim to the Irish people (hear, hear). He believed that the ill-timed efforts of adversaries would be as futile as those of children playing upon the sunds. He would he could say that they did no more injury. When children wrote their names on the sands and raised barriers, the tide rose and there was no loss of power. All was level as before. But obstruction of the Tory party to the not less resistless advance of reform involved a cruel sacri- fice (hear, hear). The present Government was sustaining difficulties the most arduous, under a vexatious and inconsiderate Opposition (hear, hear). But it often happened When fortune means to men most good, She looks upon them with a threatening eye. The contest was that of the people, for the people. The time would come when, living under happier and wiser laws, we shall look back with deep in- terest upon those who had a share fin this, which will be one of the greatest political victories re. corded in English history (cheers). And when that day dawned in which political power shall be fairly distributed amongst the constituencies of 4,000,000 of Englishmen and Welshmen, the fault will be ours and none other, if this country which has so high and illustrious a place among the Powers of the world, does not pursue its useful career with I greater ease, security, and prosperity, guided and governed by a people who have shown through centuries of labour, and of sometimes painfnl pro- gress, that in an advancing state the weight of historic tradition need not be rudely thrown off, and that, for themselves, their children, and their country, have always preferred reform to revolu- tion (loud cheers). Mr Jones-Parry, M.P., who was cordially re- ceived, said: I have much pleasure in proposing the following resolution, which I know will be carried with unanimity and onthusiasm :Tbat the best thanks of the meeting be accorded to her Majesty's Government for its able and just con- duct of home and foreign affairs since its accession to power. That this meetiag is of opinion that the bill in'roamed by Mr Gladstone with regard to the franchise is a large and honest effort to re- move the injustice and inequalities of the present system, and, aa such, deserves the heartv and united support in the Liberal party." I should like to qay a few words in the first place about Egyptian affairs and the policy of the Government. The Egyptian entanglement is not easily untied. Egypt extends over the high road to India. Our responsibilities in and towards India are great and increasing (bear, hear). Our Queen is the Empress of an immense empire, which Englishmen .regard as an integral portion of the United Kingdom. It supplies an illimitable field for commercial enter- prise; it affords employment to thousands of intelligent young men and our people and nation could not exist and thrive within our home donaiuions. In the United Kingdom we are circumscribed by a short radius, and our popula- tion increases by large annual addition, and would, without our colonies and dependencies, within a measurable interval of time, eat up one another. It is the wealth obtained by dealings and enter- prises with those outside our home limits, and spent within those limits, that sustains our commerce, works our mines, maintains the values of land and of houses, and enables thousands of visitors to resort to the lifegiving air and surround- ings such as here for health and recreation (hear, hear). It ia with a nation as,"with the corporate body." I* one member suffers, all become enervated and suffer; and, if we are to sustain our national life, we must maintain in vigour and in prosperous health dependencies and colonies, which are the arms and legs which enable us to walk and work for our sustenance. And in no portion of our vast dominions is our domination other than a blessing (hear, hear). We have established orderly rule where was only chaos or confusion. The internecine wars and strifes of tribes and of petty states have been stayed. The condition of the taxpayer, though here and there oppressive, is placed on a footing which admits of no jobbery or grinding extortions as contrasted with what must follow oar withdrawal. The imposts levied are light and equitable, and the people everywhere, are contented and loyal, and only last week did they testify in every clime, and whatever their race or oolour, that they sympathized with our and their beloved Queen in her affliction (hear, hear). It such be their feelings towards us, if our rule over them is to them a blessing, and our withdrawal means strife and wars, physical and moral degradation and ruin, and if the extension over such regions of our protective suzerainty is of material advantage to ourselves, if it supplies a field of employment and of enterprise for our surplus population, we are compelled by the highest considerations to main. tain our rule. and to do the work which Almighty God has in His providence called us to discharge remembering that if we fail in its perform area upon us as a nation there will be pronounced that judgment which has been declared against "the unprofitable servant" (heur, hear). To revert to Egypt. Egypt is a connecting link to the main- tenance of our empire in India. Russia is every year advancing her outpostil towards India. She has recently seized upon Marv, and, pretences and denials notwithstanding, she is, as a fact, advanc- ing with intentions hostile to our rale in India. In the intervening country, Afghanistan, we possess a certain moral authority and all that which obtains from subsidising the chief ruler of Khan. We have spent millions in seeking to establish relations with that country which might serve to make it a -baffet against the advances of Russia, and I presume to sav that we have not derivedlany adequate return for that outlay (hear, hear). I go further; I doubt whether we should meet Russia outside the limits of our Indian empire. It will, no doubt, be an advantage to us to have an intervening space well defined, which shall be no man's land." Having that what is essential to us, and if we possess it not, it becomes the more essential, is to have possession of the shortest route to India, so as to enable us to reinforce our troops there within the shortest possible limits of time (hear, hear). It was with that object that the late Prime Minister, Lord Beacensfteld-(cheers and counter cheers)- acquired an interest in the canal. To the French belongs the chief credit of constructing that high- way. A Frenchman was the engineer, and the money for constructing the work in greater part came from France, though such contributions did not represent the cost of the undertaking, which was effected by the forced labour of the fellaheens. Still, the enterprise of France gave her a claim to consideration as to all questions relating to the government of Egypt. To this consideration must be attributed the dual "control into which Lord Salisbury entered. By that compact, ex- pressed or implied, England and France became qnasi-partners in the administration of Egyptian affairs, and in particulars relating to monetary charges upon her revenues. It was not an association which we should have accepted i? an alternative bad offered itself (hear, hear). Two nations each seeking to be preferred by another are much in the position of two men seeking the affections of the same maiden there are jare, and not infrequently they come to blows (hear, hear, and laughter). But we acted loyally by our com- pact, and when the rebellion of Arabi made inter- vention in Egypt indispensable, we asked France to co-operate with us, and we refrained from any separate action in Egypt until she had declined her co-operation. Some may say that her refusal cleared the board. But the hesitations of our Government, and the omissions on their part, which have been so severely condemned, I believe are attributable to the fact that France and Russia, and possibly even Germany, still maintain that they have special interests in Egypt; and one of them relates to the payment of the bonds of that country held by their subjects. They do not de. sire, though they may not oppos?, our taking over the administration of that country, but they do in- sist if v. e take over the administration it should carry with it the obligation of securing the pay- ment of the Egyptian bonds, and our Government naturally and properly hesitates to incur that obli- gation. It is impossible to say what may not be involved in the acceptance of the government of Egypt. We are now proceeding in a tentative way. What we cannot avoid doing, being in the country, that we undertake but the larger ques- tions we are postponing for a natural solution. We have already incurred vast obligations there, attended with an immense outlay of money and no inconsiderable loss of life;, and prudent mec, as are the men upon whom is imposed the govern- ment of this country, are calculating the certain benefits obtainable as against the probable cost that may be incurred. Any precipitate action on our part may involve international complications (hear, hear). But personally I regret that Hicks and Baker Pashas were permitted to advance against the rebels, and that our men were not sooner landed at Sonakim. I think an earlier manifestation of our intentions that the Egyptian garrisons should be withdrawn would have saved thousands of lives. It would be sillp to deny that we have committed mistakes. We cannot repel the charge of having been somewhat too late in our movements. But what I do claim is that the diffi- culties surrounding our position should not be overlooked (hear, hear). The Opposition do not suggest that we should formally tRka over the government of Egypt and the obligations such action would impose upon us And short of taking over such obligations, could we have done more than we have done (hear, hear). But I do trust that no consideration of money, or even of party: combinationt-, will make us hesitate for one moment from doing what in us lies to extricate from peril of life the brave man, who, upon our invitation and at the command of his sovereign alone and defenceless rushed into the wilds of the Soudan to seek by his individual heroism and moral worth to sab dr. e and calm the animosities and strifes of contendisg tribes, and to extricate from slaughter those who. though they have been the hands of the oppressors, have a claim to our intervention (b.-ar, hear). Before I sit down, a few words on the new franchise. I aay the new franchise, because by a majority of 130 the House of Commons has accepted the prin- ciples -upon which the Franchise Bill is based (cheers). That which underlies the bill is the benefit obtainable by the State from every eapable man having conferred upon him the right of con- tributing his individual vote and opinions towards the good government of this country. It is not merely the right of every householder to direct the administration of the country to whose laws he is subject, but that the throne and the orovern- ment of the country should not be deprived of the strength and authority which such an extension of the foundations of our political and social fabric will obtain. We desire tbBt every capable man should feel that for the errors and omissions of should feel that for the errors and omissions of the Administration, whether Liberal or Conserva- tive, he is personally responsible, that it is an ad- ministration of his own election, which he can sustain or remove as his judgment directs him, and I am confident that such an assurance will rivet the throne and the sovereign yet mor3 securely and deeper in the hearts and affections of tho people, whilst the consciousness of his personal responsibility will impel the householder to qualify himself to perform his duty, and generate a self- educating impulse that must tend to elevate his moral responsibilities and self-respect (hear, hear). As to redistribution, I am in hearty accord with Lord Hartington. I do not conceive that popula- tion should the only test applied. The repre- sentation should rather be one of interests. The landlords, tenants, and the agricultural labourers should have a representation possibly in excess of their numerical numbers, and for this reason, that agriculture and its produce govern all the markets and cxchangee, A bad yeai, indifferent crops, low prices for cattle and sheep, and every interest throughout the country suffers- the wage of the artisan, the profits of the merchant and retail dealers, and the sums available for pleasurable recreation at this and other summer resorts. The true principle should be that no separate interest should be able to dominate over any other (hear, hear). I shall certainly not support any attempt t" diminish the number of the representatives trom Wales (hear, hear). We are bouud to England byr ties which no one desires to sunder; but wa have some questions, in particular the question of Disestablishment, a? to which our good neighbours are not prepared to give the same judgment as ourselves (hear, hear). Again, Welsh farming is of a different descriptiou from what you find in most parts of England. Our farmers till their own land and are their own shepherds. One suggestion that has been made is to disfranchise suggestion that has been made is to disfranchise the boroughs of this county, and to divide the county into two or three divisions. It may be that as a resident of South Carnarvonshire I might more fitly represent the south division than an aggre- gate of six boroughs, two, if not three, of which are in the northern division. But there are old associations which I should regret to see needlessly disturbed, and all the boroughs have many interests in common (hear, hear). They are all Ecafaring towns, and I hope my good friends at Conway Co pot fiud that the distance of my residence from Conway diminishes my interest in their town or in anything which promises to benefit the inhabitants (hear, hear). My ability to render to them any further assistance would not, I fear, be much in- creased by a residence within the borough limits. Mi Jones-Parry concluded by expressing the regret which was felt in the district at the death of his old friend Lord Mo stye. Although his successor in the title had thought it wise to revert from what were the old political traditions of the Moetyn family, he (Mr Jones-Parry) was pure that the c-hango in the politics of the great landowner of the district would not extend to Llanduduo, which, he felt convinced, would continue true to those great principles which were the safety of this country (cheers). Dr Bold Williams, who seconded the motion, said that there was little doubt but that the Franchise Bill would soon become law. Seeing the large majority in the House of Commons and the strong feeling in favour of the measure which existed throughout the country, there was little danger that the House of Lords would venture to ihrow it out (cheers). The resolution having been carried unanimously, The Rev J. Spinther James proposed That as the Church of England in Wales has failed to fulfil its mission as a means of promoting the religious interests of the Welsh people, and ministers to only a small minority of the population, its con- tinuance as an Established Church in the Princi- pality is an anomally aud injustice which ought no longer to exist. This meeting, therefore, believing that the time has come when the Disestablishment of the Cirnrch of England in Wales should be in- sisted on, warmly approves of the notice of motion given by Mr Dillwyn in the House of Commons to that effect, and earnestly hopes that it will receive the hearty support of all frieods cf religious equal- ity." The Welsh people had long ago made up their minds upon this question of Disestablishment, for they were a nation of Nonconformists (hear, hear). The Church of England in Wales had con- tinued only npon sufferance (" Hear, hear," and "No, no.") The Nonformist bodies had existed on sufferance, on toleftition, and shielded by acts of Parliament. Under these disabilities they had worked for a long time, but the change had now come. If every uhurch in Wales was closed on the morrow there was plenty of room in the chapels in the Principality to accommodate every man, woman, and child to worship God according to their own conscience (cheers). The Rev C. r. Astley seconded the motion, which was carried. The remaining resolution was one in favour of the Leasehold Enfranchisement Bill, proposed by Mr G. H. Pugh, and seconded by Mr J. Ridge. On the motion of the chairman, seconded by the Rev J. Raymond, a vote of thanks was passed to Mr Arthur Arnold and Mr Jones-Parry for their addresses; and the proceedings terminated with the usual vote of thanks to the chairman for presiding. Prior to the meeting a deputation met Mr Arnold and Mr J once-Parry at the rooms of the Liberal Association, to point out the anomalies with res- pect to the existing system of voting for members of the board of commissioners and the board of guardians. Mr G. H. Pagh, the Rev J. Spinther James, and Mr E. H. Williams urged the desira- bility of a change in the present system, so as to shut out voting by proxy and owner's votes. It was pointed out that people living in England and having propetty in Llandudno could give six votes as owner and the sam" number as occupicr, and a number of examples were cited.—Mr Arnold expressed an opinion that a change wan necessary, and believed that some provision to remedy the anomally would be made by the Government in the measure thev were about to bring befor Par- liament.—Mr Jones-Parry expressed a similar opinion.