Yesterday week, the elections took a turn for the better.
Mr. Gladstone was returned for Midlothian by the magnificent majority of 4,631 over Mr. Dalrymple; Lord Hartington was returned for the Rossendale division of Lancashire by a majority of 1,832 over Mr. Ecroyd ; Glasgow returned seven Liberals and Nottingham returned three; Clapham and Battersea both returned Liberals; Swansea showed that Wales was not hesi- tating in its Liberalism by giving Mr. Dillwyn a majority of 1,080 over Mr. Meredyth, a candidate pressed on the con- stituency by two dukes, many priests, and very unscru- pulous Primrose league ladies. The examples thus happily given were soon followed. On Monday it appeared that Brad- ford had elected three Liberals, and by very large majorities in two out of the three districts,—Mr. Forster, Mr. Illingworth, and Mr. Holden. Bedfordshire, two divisions of Derbyshire, and three divisions of Durham, South Huntingdonshire, and two more divisions of Leicester, South Norfolk, North Northumber- land, and East Somerset, two divisions of Staffordshire, a Suffolk division, and the Doncaster division of Yorkshire, returned Liberals by large majorities. Mr. Lowther was thrown out in Lincolnshire; and though a good many Tory county Members were returned, it became obvious enough that the power of the landlords had been undermined in the counties, and from that time forth the prospects of the Liberal Party have steadily strengthened. Yesterday afternoon the total result was that the Liberals had a majority of fifty-three over the Tories alone, and were in a minority of three as compared with the united parties of the Tories and the Parnellites.
