We have given so careful a consideration elsewhere to the
very striking and weighty speech of the Vice-President of the Council at Bradford yesterday week, that we need only add here that the meeting, which was a very large one, in spite of the singular violence of the weather,—only a score of seats or so on the plat- form being vacant in St. George's Hall, which is capable of holding over 4,000 people,—showed no sign of disaffec- tion to its senior member. Mr. Miall's party in the borough made no sign ; indeed the enthusiasm of the meeting would probably have convinced them, if they had wished to make any move, that sheer failure would be the result. The gentleman who seconded the vote of thanks to Mr. Forster (Alderman Scott) did indeed intimate, while speaking with commendable liberality of the folly of expecting absolute identity of view between a con- stituency and its representative, that Mr. Forster no longer repre- sents the "advanced section" of the Liberal party, to which he himself (Alderman Scott) belonged. But the meeting was evidently by no means disposed to grieve over this condition of things, at least if the " advancement " of Liberalism were to mean, as it did, devotion to secular education and to hostile demonstra- tions against the State Church. If either of the Bradford Members is to be displaced under the Ballot, it is far more likely to be Mr. Miall than the Vice-President of the Council. Yorkshire con- stituencies are not bad judges of political capacity and sincere devotion to the cause of the people.
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