The sense of personal loss occasioned by my brother's death is still so keen and vivid that if I am to write at all about him—and my duty in that respect is clear—it must be out of the fulness of my heart. My earliest recollections of him begin when I was a child and he was a bright, self-reliant lad in the home at Newcastle, the characteristics of which are with artless realism described in the opening pages of this book. It is the simple truth to say that we grew up in an atmosphere of love an

One who tries to tell the story of his life and of his personal experiences, public and private, undertakes a task of rare difficulty. Now that I have completed the work that I set myself to perform some years ago, I recognise more fully than I did at the outset the greatness of this difficulty, and I am only too conscious that, at the best, I have succeeded but partially in overcoming it. The egotism which is inseparable from a narrative written, as this necessarily is, in the first person, is

Birth and Parentage—Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the 'Forties—A Visit to St. Andrews—The Scottish Sabbath—First Acquaintance with a Printing Office—Tyneside in the Mid-Century—In Peril of Housebreakers—At Dr. Collingwood Bruce's School—A Plague of Flies—Cholera—Fire. It was in the old town, now the city of Newcastle-upon-Tyne that I first saw the light—March 29, 1842. My father, the Rev. Alexander Reid, was trained first at the University of St. Andrews, under Dr. Chalmers, and afterwards at Highbury

Aspirations After a Journalistic Life—A Clerk's Stool in the W.B. Lead Office—Literary Ambitions—An Accepted Contribution—The Northern Daily Express and its Editor—Founding a Literary Institute—Letters from Charles Kingsley and Archbishop Longley—Joseph Cowen and his Revolutionary Friends—Orsini—Thackeray's Lectures and Dickens's Readings. One day, in the summer of 1856, I was walking along Princes Street, Edinburgh, looking with wonder and delight upon the beautiful panorama that was spread bef

On the Staff of the Newcastle Journal —In a Dilemma—Lord John Russell and Mr. Gladstone at Newcastle-upon-Tyne—Mr. Gladstone's Triumphal Progress—A Memorable Colliery Disaster—A Pit-Sinker's Heroism—Adventure at a Dickens Reading. At last my term of probation came to an end. My friend and teacher, Mr. Lowes, after a temporary absence from Newcastle, had returned to it to undertake the editorship of the Newcastle Journal , a weekly Tory newspaper which was about to appear in a daily edition. We h

First Visit to London—The Capital in 1862—Acquaintance with Sothern—Bursting of the Bradfield Reservoir—Attendance at Public Executions and at Floggings—Assuming the Editorship of the Preston Guardian —Political and Literary Influences—Great Speeches by Gladstone and Bright—Bright's Contempt for Palmerston—Robertson Gladstone Defends his Brother—Death of Abraham Lincoln—Meeting with his Granddaughter. My first visit to London was on the occasion of the opening of the International Exhibition of

My New Duties—Betrothal—The Writing of Leading Articles—The Founder of the Leeds Mercury —Edward Baines the Second—Thomas Blackburn Baines—Patriotic Nonconformists—Another Colliery Explosion: A Story of Heroism—An Abortive Fenian Raid at Chester—Reminiscences of the Prince of Wales's Visits to Yorkshire—Mr. Bright and the Reform Demonstrations of 1866—The Closing Speech at St. James's Hall—The Tribune of the People Vindicates the Queen. I did not know, when I arrived in Leeds one wintry day in t

Appointed London Correspondent of the Leeds Mercury —My Marriage—Securing Admission to the Reporters' Gallery—Relations between Reporters and Members—Inadequate Accommodation for the Press—Reminiscences of the Clerkenwell Explosion—The Last Public Execution—The Arundel Club—James Macdonell—Robert Donald—James Payn—Mrs. Riddell and the St. James's Magazine —My First Novel—How Sala Cut Short an Anecdote—Disraeli as Leader of the House in 1868—A Personal Encounter with him at Aylesbury—Mr. Gladston

Forming Good Resolutions—Provincial Journalism in the 'Seventies— Recollections of the Franco-German War—The Loss of the Captain and its Consequences to me—Settling Down at Leeds—Acquaintance with Monckton Milnes—Visits to Fryston—Lord Houghton's Chivalry—His Talk—His Skill in Judging Men—Stories about George Venables—Lord Houghton's Regard for Religious Observances. In April, 1870, there came to me most unexpectedly the offer of the editorship of the Leeds Mercury . It came, as readers of the p

A Generous Scot—Paris after the Commune—An Uncomfortable Journey Home—Illness of the Prince of Wales—Revived Popularity of the Throne—Death and Funeral of Napoleon III.—Burial of the Prince Imperial—Forster's Educational Policy—Bruce's Incensing Bill—My Second Marriage. With the opening of 1871 came the armistice before Paris, quickly followed by the conclusion of peace. Then took place the ghastly upheaval of the Commune, and the eyes of the world were once more riveted upon the great city whic

Bringing the Leeds Mercury into Line with the London Dailies—Friendship with William Black—The Dissolution of 1874—The Election at Leeds—Mr. Chamberlain's Candidature for Sheffield—Mr. Gladstone's Resignation—Election of his Successor—Birth of the Caucus—The System Described—Its Adoption at Leeds—Its Effect upon the Fortunes of the Liberal Party—The Bulgarian Atrocities Agitation. It was in the autumn of 1873 that I undertook a formidable task as a journalist. I had long been of opinion that the

A Visit to Haworth—Feeling Against the Brontës in Yorkshire—Miss Nussey and her Discontent with Mrs. Gaskell's "Me"—Publication of "Charlotte Brontë: a Monograph"—Mr. Swinburne's Appreciation—An Abortive Visit to the Poet—Lecture on Emily Brontë and "Wuthering Heights"—Miss Nussey's Visit to Haworth after Charlotte's Marriage. I have said that during the stormy days of the atrocities agitation I was engaged in other work than that of political writing. This was the completion of a little book in

Politics in Paris in 1877—An Oration by Gambetta—the Balloting—The Republic Saved—Gambetta's Funeral—A Member of the Reform Club—The Century Club—A Draught of Turpentine and Soda—The "Press Gang" at the Reform—James Payn and William Black—George Augustus Sala and Sir John Robinson—Disraeli's Triumph in 1878—A European Tour. In the autumn of 1877 I went over to Paris, in order to watch the General Election of that year. It was a fateful moment in the history of France. The Royalists, and the whol

Death of my Sister's Husband and of my Brother James—An Accident on Marston Moor—Sir George Wombwell's Story of the Charge of the Light Brigade—His Adventure on the Ouse—Editing a Daily Newspaper from a Sick Bed—Reflections on Death—Death of my Mother—Serious Illness of my Only Daughter. There is a great deal of truth in the lines which declare that sorrows and troubles do not come alone—"they come not single spies, but in battalions." I have had experience of the fact more than once in my own l

Mr. Gladstone's Position in 1879—His Decision to Contest Midlothian—How he came to be Adopted by the Leeds Liberals—The Conversation Club—A Visit from John Morley—The Dissolution of 1880—Lecture on Mr. Gladstone—His Triumphant Return for Leeds—His Election for Midlothian—Mr. Herbert Gladstone Adopted as his Successor at Leeds—Mr. Gladstone's Visit to Leeds in 1881—A Fiasco Narrowly Avoided—A Wonderful Mass Meeting—Mr. Gladstone's Collapse and Recovery—My Introduction to Him—An Excursion to Tunis

The Beginning of Mr. Stead's Journalistic Career—His Methods—Birth of the New Journalism—Madame Novikoff and Mr. Stead—Mr. Stead's Attacks upon Joseph Cowen—How he dealt with a Remonstrance—W. E. Forster—Mr. Chamberlain's Antagonism—The Leeds Mercury's Defence of Forster—How he was Jockeyed out of the Cabinet—Forster's Resignation—News of the Phoenix Park Murders—Forster's Reflections—Mr. Gladstone's Pity for Social Outcasts—Mr. Chamberlain's Brothers Blackballed at the Reform—Failure of an Atte

Forster a Pioneer of Liberal Imperialism—His Political Courage—His Unfortunate Manner—His Home Life—Intrigues in the Cabinet—The Plots against Forster's Life—Reaction in his Favour—Forster and Lord Hartington—The Former's Grief for Gordon—Forster and Lord Rosebery—Mr. Stead and the Pall Mall Gazette —His Responsibility for the Gordon Imbroglio. I should like to dwell upon my visits to Forster at his own home at Wharfeside, and to describe the frank, wholesome talk which I had there on many diffe

"The Lumley Entail"—"Gladys Fane"—My Experience in Novel Writing—About Sad Endings—Imaginary Characters and Characters Drawn from Life—Visits from William Black and Bret Harte—Black as an After-Dinner Sneaker—How Bret Harte saw Haworth Parsonage, and was Roughly Entreated by a Yorkshire Admirer—A Candid Opinion on the Brontë Monograph. I now propose to hark back a little in order to bring together some reminiscences and experiences that lie apart from the graver political events with which I hav

More Antagonism towards Forster—A Household Suffrage Demonstration at Leeds—A Meeting at the Carlton Club and a Coincidence—Forster and "the most Powerful Man in Europe"—Single-Member Constituencies and the Cumulative Vote—Dynamite Outrages—Police Protection for Statesmen—I Receive Threatening Letters and Get a Fright—Death of Lord Houghton—Lord Derby and how he was Misunderstood—An Unconventional Dinner at Lord Houghton's—A Visit to Tangier—In Peril of the Sea—Gibraltar "a Magnificent Imposture