Sir Ralph Wedgwood's candidature for Cambridge is very interesting. The
return of Independent Members for the Universities—e.g.; Sir Arthur Salter, Mr. A. P. Herbert, Mr. T. E. Harvey, and Miss Rathbone—is in fashion at present, as it should be. An influential group of over three hundred members is responsible for the invitation to Sir Ralph Wedgwood, the choice finally falling on him, instead of on a well-known historian who had been asked to let his name be considered, on the ground that Sir Ralph's promin- ence in the railway world, and his special knowledge of transport problems, would make him a particularly useful Member. With Sir James Jeans and Mr. Kenneth Pick- thorn as Conservatives candidates, Sir Ralph's prospect of securing one of the two University seats may depend to a large extent on whether a Labour candidate is run. But the working of proportional representation always makes pre- diction regarding university elections a precarious exercise.
* * * *
Previous page
