The death of Mr. Bliley, the Conservative Member for Man-
-.cheater, vacates the minority seat for that city, and should lead in a most interesting contest. The Liberals, however, are not Toady. Not only have they not decided on a candidate, but they .4tre divided as to the expediency of .a contest, many maintaining that; t is useless to seat a good candidate for a few months, when, at the general election, he must either retire or oust one of his colleagues. It is said, moreover, that the action of a Dr. Pank- burst will imperil-the Liberal chances. Dr. Pankhurst declares himself an Independent, and puts out an ultra-Radical pro- gramme, with universal suffrage for both sexes, the nationalisation -of the land, the abolition of the House of Lords, Home-rule for Ireland, and all the rest of it. The Liberals cannot support him, -and he will draw away the entire Home-rule vote. No decision will be arrived at until next week, and, as we have argued elsewhere, 'We trust it will be in favour of a contest. Victory secures two additional votes in the House of Commons, and as the Liberals -outnumber their opponents by at least 4,000, it can be secured -in spite of Dr. Pankhurst. The Liberals must learn to organise -defeat for eccentric candidates of that kind, or when the Corrupt Practices Bill comes into operation they will be nowhere. Their discipline is not as perfect as that of their opponents, and the moment contests are made cheap, they will be harassed by. "independent " candidates fighting for some crotchet like " anti- vaccination " or some cause like teetotalism, and for their own hands. They must learn how to crush these men, or their
political representatives will lose half their seats. •
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