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MERIONETHSHIRE ELECTION. THE…

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MERIONETHSHIRE ELECTION. THE POLLING. ^he polling took place on Saturday, and its result ■•^eded the fondest anticipations which had been formed either liberals or conservatives, as to victory or defeat, e former never dreaming of such a glorious victory, nor latter of such an ignominious and overwhelming defeat. the very commencement Mr Holland took the lead, 4 kept it throughout to the close of the poll, and then ad the magnificent majority of 645. Colonel nham had a majority in but three of the polling tiicts, ToWyn, Corwen, and IJinaSj but in none did his 'ty exceed 20. Corwen sadly disappointed the con- stives, who counted upon a majority of little less than hundred, but, despite the wish" of the landlord with t to the Rhtlg tenantry-the Hon. Charles Wynne "iself faithfully remaining in the county till the •"tian was over"—only twenty turned the scale in favour Colonel Tottenham, and this too, in the district where is best known. Towyn, which was in 1865 eighty- to the bad for Mr Williams, reduced that majority > bare nineteen. Colonel Tottenham polled a total of against 1,622 polled for Mr Holland, this shewing a ority of 645 for €he liberal candidate. In Festiniog e Mr Holland's majority reached 347, and in Harlech In Bala, a town which has always shewn itself a great toaghold of toryism, the majority for Mr Holland hed 129, and at Dolgelley, where the conservatives f,\ always hitherto had the majority, Mr Holland ed th« poll by 54. Abercorris helped to swell the ty with 30, acd out of a constituency of about 3,000, S&9 voted. The proceedings were characterised with t order, and the only incident approaching a row or a Way of personal feeling occurred at Bala. Sir Watkin, e agents have worked hard to turn the tide in favour Colonel Tottenham, was greeted with loud cries of 'crew," and also, we are given to understand, with a Wer of rotten eggs and mud. This incident has caused feat regret and annoyance to the liberal committee, and f the respectable portion of the party is entirely dis- ced. No one interfered with the Rhiwlas tenantry, they polled some for, others against, Mr Holland. Miaps not desirous that they should be led by the force example, Mr Price did not make his appearance in until a late hour, and then, when all his tenantry had ed, he recorded his vote for Colonel Tottenham. Public lniOll of his conduct best expressed itself in the hearty peers which greeted him as he passed through the town. £ Corwen, the Hon. Charles Wynn, brought up the g tenantry in baitches, and his wishes were, we believe, flowed to the letter, by the unanimous voice of his gantry, in polling for Colonel Tottenham. At Dolgelley We was no great excitement. A very large crowd of pIe thronged the square in front of the Ship Hotel, the (ad quarters of the Central Liberal'Committee, and teeriy scanned the hourly bulletins of the state of the which were issued by the Central Committee, and ery hourly majority for Mr Holland was hailed with Most of the tenants voted with their landlords, o of the Caerynwch tenantry plumping for their taster," and one or two little mistakes of this nature ed in others of the polling districts. Owing to some ect in the telegraph wires between Dolgelley and Har- it was late before the Harlech and Festiniog returns e to hand. A great crowd had been for a long time Gently abiding the final majority, and the open space site the Ship was rendered well nigh impassable. ten the last and final return came in from the outlying cts, and Mr Holland's triumphant return was infinitely announced, there were ;loud cries raised for Mr paries Edwards, the active chairman of Mr Holland s j^ntral Committee. In compliance with the call Mr Awards, who was heartily cheered, came to the portico, briefly congratulated the electors upon the great ctory which the party had won. He thanked them for •Je quiet and orderly manner in which they had got *htough the business of the day, and asked them to go Slietly home and finish the day as they had commenced ij There were next loud calls raised for a speech from David Pugh, who, however, persistently^declined the ,°Qour, and the crowd had to rest content with an address l*otn Gohebvdd. After this, and after a few fireworks i^d been sent up, the crowd dispersed. No, or very few, states of the poll" were put forth by the conservatives, *&d most of their great men, after a hard day's work, that matters were going so adversely, turned 'heir faces homewards at an early hour. Col. Tottenham t^ited Dolgelley, and, we believe, Bala and Corwen, ng the day, but nothing was seen of Mr Holland. The final return issued by the Central Liberal Corn- et tee is as follows: — Hoi7 and. Tottenllam. I Bala 303 174 Corwen 169 189 Dolgelley 171 117 Dinas Mawddwy 51 66 Harlech 309 no Festiniog 418 71 Abercorris 54 24 Towyn 147 166 Total 1622 97,7 Majority for Holland 645 POLLING AT BALA. A correspondent writes—At a very early hour omni- buses, cars, breaks, &c., from the hotels of the town were sUrted by arrangement to meet the voters at certain Meeting places and the first arrivals reached the "booths tloon after eight o'clock, when the polling commenced in good earnest, and was kept up with great vigour for the first three hours. Aa the voters in the district number 530 it was arranged to have two polling booths-Nt), '1 for the parishes of Llanyeil and Llanuwchllyn, at the Connty Kail, where Mr Louis, of Ruthin, was the returning, offi- cer No. 2 for the parishes of Llanfor, Llandderfel, And Llangower, at the National School, where Mr Bury, of Wrexham, was the returning officer. The liberals were presented by Mr W. Kughes, solicitor, Conway, and Mr W. Williams and Mr J.R. Jones, solicitors, Bala; and the conservatives by Mr A. A. Passingham, solicitor, Bala, and Mr T. Ellis, Bala. In addition to the conveyances engaged in the town the liberals had a number of,cars,.& I from Chester and DolgMley. The arrival of Mr Holland's voters in vehicles which were covered with placards of "Holland for ever" was greeted with much cheering, while those of his opponent were met with Scroxv. screw and hisses, especially those containing Sir Wat- kin's tenantry. Commencing with this numerous class of voters the conservatives kept ahead for a while at booth No. 1. During the same :period No. 2 booth was said to be like Bridgnorth election—all on one side,—polling 'for Holland. About this time two incidents, which enlivened the proceedings at No. 1 booth, occurred in one case the voter, one of Sir Watkin's tenants, whose card W&B tendered by the conservative agent, upon being asked by the returning officer whom be voted for, said Holland," evidently giving expression to the name which was upper- most in his mind. However he re-considered and said U Tottenham;" bIlt as the vote had been recorded the returning officer did not permit any alteration. In the other case, the old gentleman-who voted being rather dull of hearing, upon being questioned by the returning officer said he voted for Mr Passingham. The returning officer left his seat and went to the veter, and explained that Mr Passingham was not one of the candidates, who were Mr Holland and Colonel Tottenham, of whom he selected the rcoloneL At No. 1 booth up'io 10.45 Colonel Tottenham Was ahead, when both candidates polled 99 while at No. 2 booth Mr Holland was ahead from the first, and at 10.45 there was a majority for Holland of 80, which was kept up at this booth until it was 94 at-,the close of the poll. Fiom the-same time Mr Holland kept»ciiead at No. 1 until he had a majority of 35, making in the two booths at the close of the poll—For Holland, 303; Tottenham, 174 majority for Holland at Bala, 129. The state of the poll Was issued hourly, and was received with much cheering. By the train due at 11.15 at Bala several of Mr Holland's voters.arrived from Bristol, Liverpool, &c., and his con- veyances at the railway station were in great demand And their occupiers greeted with hearty cheers, while those of the other side appeared forsaken and neglected. At this time Sir Watkin and others arrived and were greeted withhiases., groans, Screw J" "Screw Wynnstay &c.; and we regret to state that the baronet not only received a most nnwelcome reception, but in an unbecoming man- ner was pelted by some persons in the -erowd with eggs, and it is aaid that the first egg was thrown by a woman. In returning from the booth the haponet, naturally affronted by the treatment he received, and being loath to face the crowd again, was quietly escorted by J. Jones, Esq., Vron, unmolested by the.people. On his departure from the town be received another expression of feeling towards himself and his agent from the populace. The reception given-to Mr Price, of Rhiwlas, was quite the reverse. Having.recorded his vote for Colonel Tottenham, he walked up the town with some friends, and was re- ceived by the people with an ovation. He was the gen- tleman whom they delighted to honour, because he granted to his tenants the free and independent exercise of the franchise.. It was very amusing to hear the way in which the electors prouounced the names of the candidates. Col. Tottenham was called Tottham," "Totnam," "Tatting- ham," and Totam." In many instances Mir Holland went by the Welsh name "Rowland," or "Rolant," "Olland," and "Roland." The police did not have to Apprehend any for misconduct, and with the exception ,ot an occasional shout of Holland for ever the streets assumed their usual quietness at an early hour, while the people, knowing the majority was over 600, anxiously waited to hear the final number, which did not reach Bala till midnight. About four p.m. a telegram was received, announcing a majority in the whole county at two p.m. of 529 for Mr Holland, and a public meeting was held in front of Plascoch Hotel, the head-quarters of the liberals, under the presidency of Dr Hughes, Bala. Several gentlemen addressed the people The Rev. R. THOMAS, Bangor, said it was a shame, but he hoped it was the last time they would see so many forced to do that which in their hearts they did not desire. It was clear that they had won the battle, and the remainder could not alter the result. The Rev. L. EDWARDS said he heartily congratulated them upon their grand victory, and he hoped they would all behave themselves worthily thereof, and return home at an early hour. Mr T. JONES, Brynmelyn, said he rejoiced at the result of to-day's polling, and especially the important lesson taught to the opulent and wealthy by this election, that neither hundreds nor thousands of pounds were effective enough to turn the consciences or alter the convictions of the Merionethshire electors. (Cheers.) This majority far exceeded his expectations-(cheers)-and should suffice to discourage either a Welshman, an Englishman, or an Irishman from an attempt to represent this county as a con- servative any more. (Cheers.) Merioneth henceforth should be an inheritance for the liberals for ever. (Cheers.) Some things had been done to-day which were not pleasant, but could be cleared off with soap and water; but there were other acts done this day which soap and water could not efface. (Cries of "Shame.") One act called for an- other. (Cheers.) The BàV. M. D. JONES said he was rejoiced to see that happy day, and the people so joyful; they had sown with tears, and they reaped with joy. (Hear.) They could not fctfget the past in all their joy and victory, but he hoped they would all behave worthily, and not conduct them- selves improperly, or throw either eggs or stones. (Cheers.) Let individuals (said Mr Jones) of whose deeds you don't approve, return home uninolested, and for my part I would take my old friend Sir Watkin in my arm through the street. (Great cheers.) We have something much harder to throw at him than eggs, namely, principles. (Cheers.) The meeting was further addressed by Mr Simon Jones, Bala, Rev. T. C. Edwards, Liverpool, Mr J. Ll. Jones, secretary of the Liverpool Welsh Reform Association, and the Gohebydd," who said there was no nation which had respected their gentry more than the Welsh, and what had occurred to-day would not have taken place but for something else. No gentleman ever received greater re- speet and honour than did Mr Price, of Rhiwlas, at Bala this day. (Cheers.) "Gohebydd" then called for three cheers for Mrs and Mr Price, which were enthusiastically given by the people.—" Gohebydd" continued One gen- tleman was respected because he regarded his tenants as men, while the other acted towards them as slaves. ("Shame.") Addresses were delivered by the Rev. J. Peter, Bala, Mr G. Jones, Bangor, Mr J. Jones, Llanuwchllyn, &c. A posse of the Denbighshire constabulary arrived at Bala on Friday night, under the direction of Chief- Constable Denman. Their services on Saturday were not required, and their presence was more likely to irritate than calm the quiet and inoffensive inhabitants of Penllyn. A vote of thanks was cordially returned to the returning officers at each booth for the able and satisfactory manner in which they had conducted the polling. The telegrams of the returns for the whole county from Mr Holland's central committee, were received during the night with the greatest satisfaction and -joy, and, with the exception mentioned above, the day, which was fine, passed off very satisfactorily. POLLING AT HARLECH. Considerable excitement was manifested here all day long, though it was soon evident that Mr Holland would have a triumphant majority. When Sir Richard Bulke- ley and Mr Love Jones-Parry, M.P.,the Rev. J. Williams- Ellis, the Rev. J. Jones, rector of Barmouth, and others, came up, they were received with loud cheers, while an opposite reception was accorded to Mr J. E. Parry, of Glyn, agent to Mr Ormsby Gore, Captain Thomas, of Caerffynon, and other promineit Conservatives. There was no attempt, however, on the part of the crowd to obstruct any voter, and order prevailed amongst them. Sir Watkin Wynn does not possess an acre of land in the district, but his agent, Mr W. Jones, was at the polling booth throughout the day. Mr Holland arrived about two o'clock from Festiniog, and was received with ringing cheers. POLLING AT TOWYN. A correspondent writes-The polling was commenced about eight o'clock, when the liberal party were brought to the poll in strong batches. At ten o'clock their ma- jority was about sixty, which was about their highest number. About twelve o'clock a large number of con- servatives voted, and turned the majority in their favour about two o'clock, and at the close of the poll they had a majority of nineteen. Cars and omnibuses for both parties were started early to meet the voters. The con- veyances were distinguished by placards pasted upon them, some For Mr Holland's voters others Vote for CoL Tottenham." Two or three incidents occurred during the day that caused much mirth and cheering, The first was at one o'clock when the glorious news" from the different polling districts arrived, showing the conservatives in the minority of 465, which was hailed with prolonged cheering from the liberal party that caused the poll to be stopped for a few minutes. One of the conservative voters, who seemed to have forgotten his favourite candidate's name, when asked whom he voted for exclaimed Holl- but corrected himself and said Totnam," which was hailed with great cheering from his party. Another landowner whose political principles were nnknown, and who till a late hour refused to vote for either party, a few minutes before the close of the proceedings was brought to the polling booth between two liberals, which caused deafen- ing cheering among the liberals, and prevented him from recording his vote for some time. However silence was at last obtained by the voter's saying-" That if they would not be quiet he would net vote at all." The returning officer then asked him whom he voted for, when to the surprise and discomfiture of the liberals he exclaimed Cyrnol Totnam," which elicited loud cheering from the conservative party. The day passed in the most quiet and orderly manner, the utmost good humour prevailing among both parties. The Abergynolwyn brass band played several lively tunes at the close of the poll, and paraded the town till about eight o'clock, when they were conveyed home by the Talyllyn railway. The returning officer was F. Roberts, Esq., Aberystwyth the interest of the liberals was watched by Mr Jones, of Newtown, and that of the conservatives by Mr G. Jones Williams, of Dolgelley. THE OFFICIAL DECLARATION OF THE POLL was made on Monday at Harlech. The town presented quite a gay and animated appearance, its streets were thronged with crowds of people, and on all sides were dis- played banners aad devices having some bearing upon the occasion. The old castle, of which Mr Holland holds the not very responsible or onerous post of deputy constable, was gaily decorated with ifiags, and from the building of the quasi Town Hall, which also does duty as a joiner's shop, floated the Union Jack. The hustings, too, were gay with flags, and across the entrance to the principal, and almost single street of which the county town is able to boast, was displayed a large banner bearing the words Samuel Holland, Esq., M.P., for ever The speakers on the hustings had a noisy, and at times, deafening accompani- ment in the cannon firing with which the rocks re-echoed, and the din which pervaded the proceedings was further heightened by the performance of a brass band hailing from Penrhyndeudraeth. The proceedings, announced for twelve, did not commence until nearly one o'clock, the delay being occasioned partly by the late arrival of the train which brought the High Sheriff and other officials, and by the time which was occupied in casting up"th numbers in the polling books. Shortly after one o'clock Mr S. Holland appeared on the hustings, and was greeted with loud cheering by the vasfeetowd which had gathered. His supporters crowded the hustings to inconvenience, and-in- cluded Mr Chas. Edwards, chairman of the Liberal Central Committee, Mr Lavs-Jones Parry, M.P., Mr John Jones, Vron, Mr Wm. Casson, Plas-yn-Penrhyn, Mr Edward Breese, Mr Hugh Pugh, Pwllheli, Dr Pughe, Aberdovev, Rev. E. Morgan, Dyffrvn, Dr Roberts, Mr Thos. Roberts, C.E., Porto&oc, Mr Ed. Jones, Ship Hotel, Dolgelley, Mr Wm. Williams, Bala, Mr David Pugh, Dolgelley, Mr J. Hughes Jones, Aberdorey, Mr D. L. Lloyd, Towyn, Dr Phillips, Guy's Hospital, Mr John Meynck Jones, Dolgelley, Mr C. R. Jones, Llan- I fyllin, cum mullis aliis. The conservative party was con- spicuous by its absence, its sele representatives being Capt. L. H. Thomas, Caerffynon, and Major Johnson, agent for Mr Oakley. The high sheriff, Mr H. Robertson, presided, and in opening the proceedings said:—Gentle- men, electors of Merionethshire, and non-electors-it is my province now to declare to you the result of the poll. llt is as follows-For Mr Holland, ICO-(Ioiid cheers)—for Colonel Tottenham,< fi3; maj ority for Mr Holland 647 -(loud cheers)—and I now,ideclare Mr Sam at 1 Holland to be duly elected as a Knight of the Shire for the county of Merioneth. (Cheers.) The proclamation having been called three times by Mr Wm. Griffiths, the clerk to the Under Sheriff, the High Sheriff continued —I have received a better from the de- feated candidate, Col, Tottenham, explaining his absence. Its contents are as fouows:- Plas Berwyn, January 16th, 1870. Sly 4ear Sir,—I do net purpose attending the declaration of the f ell to-morrow, as my presence might tend to keep np electiooeering excitement, y- Inch it is desirafcle should cease as soon as possible. I write a line therefore to ftyplain the reason for my absence, and to assart you that it is net from any want of respect for the High Sheriff, or the electors of Merioneth- shire. J purpose returning thanks to those gentlemen who honoured me with their kiwi support, in per&on or by letter, before long. I am glad to have this opi$oi-tuni4> of acknowled- f'ng through you my deep gratitude for the kind reception which have met with from all parties during my short-canvass. (Signed) CHAS. '-TOTTENHAM. I have new to thank you far the very quiet and orderly manner in which you have oonducted yoursekes through- out the contest; your conduct has been most, creditable, and this, in.a county with a pcpulation of such numbers, is, I think, most remarkable and commendable- (Cheers.) I trust that things will now go on as usual; tkfct all un- pleasantness or personal feelings which may have arisen or displayed itself on either side, either by the victors or by the defeated, will speedily pass away and be forgotten. (Cheers.) Amidst great dkeering Mr Holland was then girt with the sword, and the indenture was signed by the Jligh Sheriff, by Mr Jones (Vron), Mr W. Casson, Mr Charles Edwards, Mr Edward Breese, Dr Roberts, Mr Love Jones-Parry, M.P., Mr Hugh Pugh, and by an elector from each polling district in the county. These formalities having been observed— Mr HOLLAND addressed the electors as follows—Mr High Sheriff, gentlemen, electors, and non-electors of the County of Merioneth It is, I can assure you, very diffi- cult for me to find words in which to express my thanks and my acknowledgment of the kindness which you have shewn me, of the reception which you have given me, and of the honour which you have done me in returning me as your member. (Cheers.) You have come forward so nobly, so largely, upon this occasion, that I de not know what I can say—how I can thank you for the honour which you have conferred upon me. We have fought a great battle, all of us. I have been the party whose name you have made use of in iChe struggle, and you have nobly and gloriously won the day. (Cheers.) l%e ma- jority, 647, by which you have returned me at the head of the poll, is such a majority as has, I think, been wtver before attained in any of the Welsh counties, and it sh«ws unmistakably that the sentiments and spirit of liberalism still prevail in this county, and to a greater extent than was supposed. (Loud cheers.) Although this is a large majority, the number would have been still greater had coercion not been practised, for there is no doubt that coercion was extensively used. (" Shame.") I know of many who would have come forward to record their votes for me, but they were told that by so doing they would lose their employment. Thus there were only about 2,600 voters who would come to the poll, (Hear, hear.) I felt very proud when I was selected as the candidate to fight your battle, but I feel still greater pride in being the suc- cessor to our lamented friend, Mr David Williams. He was a man of great talent, of great ability, and, if spared, would have made this county heard in Parliament, and the county would have been far better and more ably represented than it has been hitherto. I am afraid that you will be disappointed in me, for I can hardly expect to come up to his mark. However, as your representative, I will endeavour to do my duty as the member for the county, not for the liberals only, but for all parties, and I shall be happy to attend to the wishes of the whole of the constituency, whether the request or suggestion come from a liberal or a conservative. (Cheers.) It was to be ex- pected that the fcories would make a last struggle for the county; and this, I think, is the last they will ever make, or at least for a very long time. It was said that they were anxious to go to the poll to shew their strength. They have done so, and in shewing their weakness—(laughter and cheers)—they must be well satisfied that this is their last time, that they have lost political possession of Merion- ethshire for many long years.to come. (Cheers.) Before another occasion of this kind, I hope that the ballot will have passed into law, and this will protect the waverers, and those who are weak, and as coercion and intimida- tion cannot then prevail, this and other counties will for ever be insured to the liberal interest. (Cheers.) There are many measures which I named the other day, and to which reference is made in my address, but to which it is unnecessary that I should again allude. The measures which Mr Gladstone brings forward shall have my support, and at the same time local affairs shall have my close attention, and I shall at all times be glad to hear from either conservatives or liberals any suggestions, the carrying out of which will conduce to the benefit of the county. (Cheers.) I have really been taken so much aback in the whole affair, and have been received in such a hearty manner in all parts of the county, that I scarcely know what more I can say. I can only thank you most sincerely for the way in which you have received me throughout the contest, and for the manner in which you have fought this glorious battle. The election, I am glad to say, has been conducted peace- ably and quietly, and, as I hoped would be the case, there was no disturbance of any kind. (Cheers.) The Chief Constable, as he will tell you, reduced the police force on Saturday, when he found how admirably matters were being conducted. Mr Price, of Rhiwlas—(loud cheers, succeeded by a still heartier ex- pression for Mrs Price)—I hear, voted as he always did, for the conservative, and in going to and returning from voting he received such hearty cheers as showed him what the feeling of the people was; how they respected him for the honourable, straightforward line of conduct which he has pursued consistently throughout this election. (Loud cheers.) I wish that I could say the same of other gen- tlemen who supported Colonel Tottenham. (Hear, hear, and hearty gfoans for Sir Watkin and the Hon. Charles Wynn.) Mr Holland concluded his remarks in Welsh, and proposed a vote of thanks to the High Sheriff for pre- siding. Mr BREESE seconded the vote of thanks, and after com- plimenting the High Sheriff for the impartiality he had shewn, for the courtesy he had displayed, and for the ability with which he had discharged his duties, said- Before I conclude, I will say just one or two words upon the subject of this election. I have fought with my friends the good fight for the last eleven years. I began it when my relative, your late member, first came forward in 1859, and I did then, as a comparative boy, what I could towards securing his return. We were then unsuccessful. When the result of the poll was officially declared, he was lying on a bed of sickness, and it was then my lot, as it is now, to come forward and second the vote of thanks to the High Sheriff. Upon that occasion I was the sole-tbe only re- presentative of the liberal party who stood upon this platform. In seconding a vote of thanks to the High Sheriff, I remember well saying at that time, that though the liberals were beaten they were not conquered, and that the time would certainly come when we should have our innings. I do not claim any gift of prophesy, or any great amount of conjuring, but I thought I could see to the end of a straight lane. (Cheers and laughter.) Well, that day was rather long coming, but it came at last, with such a rush that our opponents dared not face it. (Cheers.) They have, apparently, been since very misguided. The gallant gentleman, who has been put forward as the tory candidate, and for whom I have much personal respect, has told us that a great conservative re- action had taken place—(hear, hear, and laughter)—that you had lost all confidence in Mr Gladstone—(renewed laughter) —and who do you think was his authority for all this? Why, Mr Whalley. (Laughter.) I leave Mr Whalley to settle his own account with Col. Tottenham for having thus misled him, and I do not envy Mr Whalley the reckoning. (Hear, hear.) He will sooner or later have to render his account to the electors of Peterborough, and I think it is well and proper they should know why a gentle- man representing a liberal constituency should have written the letter that Mr Whalley has written to Col. Tottenham, and of which public use has been made, in which he wants to persuade our opponents that there was a conservative reaction (Laughter.) It has been said also that the conservatives wanteu to know their real position in this county. Now, I appeal to you, have they not now ascertained their real position ? I would ask, where are they? (Hear, hear, and cheers.) What does this ma- jority of 647 mean ? (Cheers.) In vulgar parlance it means that they are just nowhere. (Laughter and cheers.) If they thought that there were conservative sympathies in this county, then I am very glad that you have con- vinced them so decisively that they were utterly and wholly mistaken. (Cheers.) I am glad that there was none of that apathy which was apprehended, that you came manfully to the poll to swell that great and trium- phant majority which returned Mr Holland, and that you have shewn the tories that they can never again hope to gain the county, but that you will have a man who repre- sents not only the sympathies of the people, but their true political sentiments in the House of Commons. (Loud cheers.) I do not think that the great party of obstruc- tion will be so badly advised as ever to try again; they will know that in this old county there are strong wills and vigorous minds and hearts, who will tell them, You shall not represent us unless your sympathies and feelings are identical with our own." (Cheers.) I have, in a small way, taken part in elections in other counties in Wales. I did my little in helping to fight the Carnarvonshire battle—(cheers)—and in the contest in Den- bighshire but in fighting in Merionethshire I especially feel that I am working with my brethren, that the sympathies of the people are with us, and that their hearts are strong in our cause. (Cheers.) The other side, like ourselves, having done battle for their principles, so let us respect them. (Hear, hear;) They have lost the day, and don't let us kick them when they are down. Let us treat them magnanimously:; let them have the opportu- nity of joining our ranks—in a few years there will be no ranks but ours (eheers) let us receive them with open arms; and, convincing tfcem of "the error of their ways," shew them that, in the present member, we have a gentleman who will represent all classes, all politics, and let us hope, all creeds. (Cheers.) Mr Breese con- cluded by formally seconding the vote of thanks, coupling with it the under-sheriff, Mr Wm. Griffith, of Glyn, whom he personally thanked for the excellent arrangements which he had made for the polling. The HIGH SHERIFF, after briefly acknowledging the compliment, called for three cheers for Mrs Holland, who, with a number of other ladies, was present during the pro- ceedings. Mr HOLLAND, M.P., having returned thanks for Mrs Holland, a cry was made for Mr CHARLES EDWARDS, who made a short but telling speech, which was loudly ,cheered. Capt. L. H. THOMAS, next presented himself, and after some difficulty a hearing was obtained for him. His re- • taarks, as far as could be caught by the reporters, were as follows :—Mr High Sheriff, brother electors, and gentle- tien—Personally I congratulate Mr Holland, and I beg to congratulate the liberal party in having made their selec- 'tion of a gentleman in every respect worthy of the honour he has now received. (Cheers.) Mr Holland and myself, as he has understood from the beginning, differ upon cer- taki points; Mr Holland is a liberal, while I claim for myself to be a liberal-conservative—(cheers and laughter)—and I will not concede to any liberal my desire and wish to see eqiialVights for all and for every class. (Cheers.) I regretted very. much that at the beginaing of this contest, I had to stand up against Mr Holland. I have known Mr Holland for many years. I respect and esteem him greatly, and I trust that I have done nothing of which I need feel ashamed. (Hear, hear.) I have always fought fair and above-board, and my conduct will, I trust and feel, not be attacked in any way. (Hear, hear.) I regard it as one of the glories of our great Constitution that we Isave'two parties, be they conservative or be they liberal. It is necessary that there should be a counterpoise, [A demand being made for Welsh, Captain Thomas con- tinued] Two heads are better than one, and I think it will be a bad day, when we have lost one party in the Constitution. Now the election isover, I hope that there will be as good feeling between us as there was before. We, like you, kave worked very haa*d for our own side, in defence of the principles and opinions which we thought were the best. (Cheers.) Major JoHNsoN next essayed to address the electors. For a few minutes he was assailed with an incessant cry of screw," and with great trouble a hearing was obtained. When quiet was restored, Major Johnson said :—I must ask Mr Holland to name those conservative landowners, whom he has accused of coercing their tenants! (Loud cries of "Sir Watkin, Rhtîg, Oakeley.") A regular Babel followed the query, and Major Johnson continued addressing the crowd in dumb show, the clamour being so great that mot a word could be heard by those persons who itood close to the speaker. When peace was restored, the High Sheriff said that such a question waa perfectly out of order, and should not have been put. Major Johnson again tried to force a hearing upon the crowd, but being unsuccessful, retired in favour of the Rev. Edward Morgan, who addressed the electors at great length. lIe was followed by Mr Love Jones-Parry, M.P., who exhausted the list of speakers. The crowd numbered perhaps 1,500, the number being greatly thinned towards the close by the rain. At the close of the proceedings, Mr Holland was chaired through the town, and then dragged home to Glanwillian, a distance of about seven miles. On the chairing" part of the proceedings the foltowing couplet was recited by Meurig Idris, a bard 'who enjoys a well known reputa- tion in the county- Gyda rhwysg yn y Gadair lion, Mawrwych yw marchawg Meirion The official return gave the liberal majority at 647, Col. Tottenham's majority at Corwen (where the numbers were 156 and 174, instead of those given above), being reduced to 18. At Dolgelley the numbers were 172 and 118. By the courtesy of Mr Elias, and Mr Poole, the district manager of the Cambrian Railways special facilities were afforded for teaching Harlech by train, at low fares, and were largely used.

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i.i! ABEKAS! vv i iL ri.

BARMOUTH.

DOLGELLEY.

CORWEN.

LLANDINAM.

LLANWRIN.

LLANDRILLO.

WELSHPOOL.

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