Mr. Leatham made an able speech to his constituents at
Hud- dersfield on Tuesday, moulded, however, a little too carefully after the style of his leader and brother-in-law Mr. Bright. When he prayed at the end, on behalf of the North, that the Lord of Hosts would " still the enemy and the avenger, and restore to that distracted land the inestimable blessing of a righteous and perpetual peace," the copy became somewhat too close, and Huddersfield must have felt a little chagrined at possess- ing only a miniature Bright. In speaking of Reform Mr. Leatham was of course very severe on all plans for representing minorities, and urged on the present constituencies—the middle classes- " a policy of trust." When the Conservatives urge that same policy upon the working class Mr. Leatham cannot express his in- dignation. How little, however, Mr. Leatham is inclined to let the working classes express their characteristic ideas may be gathered from the very manly protest against " the Permissive Bill " in the first part of his speech. If he could believe, he said, the wish for the "Permissive Bill" to be really expressive of the people at large " he should that day cease to be a reformer ;" he " should not dare to trust so much to hands so feeble,"—a good reason for not giving all the representation into their hands, but a very bad one, we submit, for not giving them a real voice and power in Parliament. Enthrone or exclude,—that appear? to be Mr. Leatham's alternative.
