A Tale of One City: the New Birmingham / Papers Reprinted from the Midland Counties Herald""

attempt to represent Sheffield some little time before he aspired to become a candidate for Birmingham. He made a very plucky fight in the cutler constituency, and the Shef

liament would not have been as

as lucky as to the time in which he took up public life in Birmingham, and he was equally fortunate in regard to the period at which he quitted it. He had set afloat great local schemes, he had laboured assiduously for the good of the town, he had attained

fter he had been for three successive years Mayor of Birmingham, had carried out the large and important schemes associated with his name, and had become one of the representatives of the town in Parliament, he was only forty years of age. It w

or at least some of them, were only fairly started when he relinquished his grasp of them, and it remained to be seen whether they were to prove all they had been painted. If they succeeded, nothing c

ime, considerable ill-feeling and discontent. The piper had to be paid for the great enterprises he had set afloat. With regard to the gas and water purchases, the former has returned a profit to the tune of ￡35,000 to ￡40,000 a

hers in Birmingham to carry out more or less ably what he so successfully began. Some of us are occasionally inclined to think that his brilliant example

d prudent, not to say profitable, undertaking. Experts and some far-seeing men are confident as to its future benefits. We are to have a good supply of excellent water, and we are to save a great many thousands a year in soap. Further, we shall be independent of merely local supplies, which, we ar

ded to apply for an Act of Parliament to carry out the Welsh water project. But its promoters having made up their minds upon the question bustled, I won't sa

their mouths and pressed for a little time for the further consideration of this gigantic scheme. But the opposition was not strong enough

he city is committed. If, however, Birmingham grows and prospers all will be well. If otherwise-and the last census did seem to indicate that our progress, as measured by inc

t him for the daring innovations he made, and the bold undertakings he promoted, have become nearly mute. There are, however, some who speak disparaging

political path. Vituperation is almost too mild a term to describe their expressed disgust when they see one who was, they believed, a man of the people consortin

at, and who has been a leading light for years among our advanced Radicals. Now it so happened that on the evening of our visit the Prince of Wales was at the theatre we attended, and I was greatly amused to notice how interested my d

oppressive agony compared with the right honourable gentleman's feelings when he hears or reads the condemnatory and abusive remarks of some of his forme

iction, he retired into private life for a considerable period, and it was said that during his self-imposed obscurity he sought occupation and solace in the study of Blue Books. Anyway, when he emerged into public life a

e could have foreseen the immediate future. When he made up his mind to erect his house at a great cost he perhaps scarcely dreamed he would so soon become a Cabinet Minister. Possibly

iece of rising ground, and commands a good prospect. In the front of it are the Lickey and Clent Hills some eight or ten miles away, but in the mid-distance is a manufacturing suburb with several tall chimneys which are obtrusively conspicuous, and which b

Chamberlain, M.P. for one of the Worcestershire divisions, is in training to walk in his father's footsteps, and to see eye to eye-or I might say eye-glass to eye-glass-with him in matters political. What the fu

t of globe-trotting, they wonder and ask how did he get such a lot of money? Well, I cannot say, because I do not know, and if I did know I should not tell. Doubtless he had something considerable from

mber of the firm of Nettlefold and Chamberlain, and probably when he retired from that prosperous business it w

er severely criticised. It was understood that he had set his heart upon making the trade of his firm as much of a monopoly as possible, and to thi

hamberlain and some of those with whom he was associated in public work. After a while his trade opponents came to the idea that it would be better

rk upon the business that went up and the businesses that went down. Moreover, it is a little instructive and edifying, as showing how Mr. Chamberlain's combative nature manifested itself in his everyday life. He recognised, as other men have done, that business is not a

ssful men of business. It is their aim and purpose to get money-without harm to others, if they can, if not, others must loo