An Autobiography of an Ancient Athlete & Antiquarian

AUTOBIOGRAPHY votes..;.~ On what such electiou meant I wrote a pamphlet ·" The Recent Norwich Election and its Lesson,'' which ,came out first in a Radical paper "The Norfolk Review," edited by Mr. Fred Henderson (" Local Topics," of the "Daily Press"), and it was afterwards published separately -0n 16th March. It is hardly worth while for me to reprint my paper, but I may cite two passages, viz., that "our very existence '' both as freemen and tradesmen depends on our keeping "other nations off our soil and the seas open for our ships '' to bring us the food we can't grow here," and that " of ' '. course if we cheese-pare our Navy and can't keep the seas " open that will be another story," and I wound up thus: '' A word of prophesy and I have done. It wont be long "before the Labour voters will adopt so much of the "' Chamberlain scheme as will put a duty on all imported "manufactured articles, and this will do much to improve H their own position and English finance." To this article Mr. Henderson replied on p. 207 (et seq.) in much the tone that a supreme being would address a black beetle, but without seriously answering any of my points, and he wound up : "As for the I..,abour Party "' adopting so much of Mr. Chamberlain's scheme as will "put a duty on foreign manufactured articles coming into "' this country we will not follow Mr. Rye into prophesy on "' that point. But we think not, we think not.'' Now that a Radical Government bas recently done what I prophesied I have no reason to be ashamed of my prophesy. By an irony of fate "Local Topics," who in the same number so strongly deprecated the Cavalry Barracks, having been tried by the fire of the War, has -come out in the most patriotic way, and proved himself one of our most useful recruiters. His very able daily essays and his pamphlet warning the public of the danger of a premature peace are worthy of a far larger circulation than a local paper can give. -K·At Sprowston for Boileau, and at Dereham for Boyle. At Dereham I wrote down a prominent Radical in my diary as being an -0ily humbug. He got into conversation with me, and asked me the way to a certain place, and I had no scruples in directing his motor by a route which took him through a deep ford. Next day I saw he was late at a meeting, and I don't wonder at it.