The contest for the County in 1868, when Mr. Gladstone and Mr. R. A. Cross (now Lord Cross) were the candidates, is very fresh in my memory. The question of the day was the Irish church. Mr. Gladstone delivered a series of very brilliant addresses, but to the surprise of everyone Mr. Cross's replies were equally brilliant, and we thought very crushing. We took the candidates, Cross and Blackburn, in a coach and four, to canvass Colonel Blundell at Crosby Hall, and Mr. Weld Blundell at Ince. I was shortly afterwards made chairman of the Waterloo Polling District, and in 1880 became chairman of the Southport Division. The first contest in this division was between our candidate, Mr. John Edwards Moss (now Sir John Edwards Moss, Bart.), and Dr. Pilkington (now Sir George Pilkington). It was an uphill fight; Southport had always been a Radical place, and remained true to her Radical principles. The electors were very fastidious; they took exception to our candidate wearing rings on his fingers, and helping himself while speaking to a little sherry and water out of his flask. We unfortunately lost the election. When the next election came round, we had to look about for another candidate, and tried for several, but they were not attracted to Southport; in the end we invited the Honourable George Curzon, the eldest son of Lord Scarsdale, of Kedleston. He had lately been defeated at Derby, but he was a young man, only 27, with a record of a very brilliant university career, and had been president of the Union at Oxford. Mr. Curzon accepted our invitation, and came down to Southport to deliver his first speech, which was very brilliant, and quite took everyone by surprise. He was very boyish in looks, which occasioned one rough Lancashire man to get up in the meeting and exclaim, "Thou art o'er young for us." Mr. Curzon quickly replied, "If you will return me as your member I promise I will improve upon that every day I live." In moving a vote of confidence in Mr. Curzon I predicted that he would one day be Prime Minister, he so greatly impressed me with his intellectual power and great eloquence.