Winslow History | General election, 1895

General election, 1895

In the 1892 General Election the Liberal candidate for North Bucks, Herbert Leon of Bletchley Park, defeated the Conservative, W.W. Carlile of Gayhurst, by 5,153 votes to 4,704. The same candidates were chosen in 1895 but the Conservatives now styled themselves Unionists. Winslow seems to have been relatively quiet as it was in 1892. The Buckingham Advertiser remained staunchly Liberal and the Buckingham Express Conservative.

Buckingham Advertiser, 13 July
LIBERAL MEETING AT WINSLOW.
A large and enthusiastic demonstration in support of Mr. Leon was held on the Market Square on Monday evening. The chair was occupied by the Rev. H. K. Byard. Speeches were delivered by Mr. Joseph Howes, Rev. J Pither, and Mr. G. Rodwell.

Buckingham Advertiser, 20 July
To Harms! To Harms! North Bucks! Vide JOE CLODHOPPER.
Air: “All the Blue Bonnets are over the Border.”

Poll! Poll! Hogston and Dunton men.
North Marston, East Claydon, and Grandborough men too;
Poll! Poll! Swanbourne and Mursley men,
Vote for the yellow and doomed is the blue.
Newton and Drayton men, send all your strength again
Solid for Leon whose your tried friend and true,
All of you Horwood men, mind you are ready then,
None of you fail us, we are looking to you.

Poll! Poll! Nash and all Whaddon men,
Let the Adstock and Winslow men prove themselves true.
Pol! Poll! Gawcott and Padbury men,
Stand by the yellow that’s the color for you.
Heed not the Tories shout, send them to right about,
Take your stand for the cause, whatever you do,
Leon without a doubt, will put them all to rout,
Gay flaunting the yellow, he conquered the blue.

Poll! Poll! Each of you Pagnell men,
Poll Wolverton, Stratford, and Buckingham too,
Poll! Poll! From Hamlet and dell then,
Poll from each village and each town that we view
Shoulder to shoulder, stand join with us hand in hand,
Then, then shall our foemen our solid front rue;
Linked with the Lib’ral hand, throughout this English land,
We range ‘neath the yellow, opposing the blue. …

Pol! Poll! ye sons of all freemen,
Come and take up your part in this glorious fight,
Poll! Poll! Whatever may be then
And vote for Leon, for the cause and the right.
Hark to the rising cry, sounding both far and nigh,
Join you your forces, for the foe is in sight!
Fight for the cause or die! Faint not nor weakly fly,
Come rally the battle, and stand in your might.
W.N.M. [W.N. Midgley]

The outcome of the election was a Conservative landslide, in parliamentary seats if not in votes. The result in North Bucks was:
Carlile (C)    5,266
Leon (L)       4,830
       Majority   436

Buckingham Express, 27 July
WINSLOW.
The polling at this centre passed off quietly and good temperedly. Both sides worked very hard, and the poll was said to be the heaviest known. Mr. John Reader, of Aylesbury, was the presiding officer, assisted by Mr. G. Pass. Mr. T. D. Curtis represented the Conservatives, and Mr. J. Colgrove, jun., the Liberals.

Buckingham Express, 27 July
A NOTICEABLE sign of the growing Unionist feeling in this district was the demand at the drapers’ shops for ties, hat bands, and rosettes of red, white, and blue, of which there were almost as many seen as of the old true blue decorations. Some prominent tradesmen in Winslow has their windows gaily dressed with Union Jacks and Conservative posters.