As the prospect of a general election came closer so the political tempo in1905 increased. Labour's first big meeting was at the beginning of February.

In the words of 'The Grimsby News' : "A vast audience had gathered, ostensibly to listen to Labour and socialistic speeches, but really to see and hear one of the first ladies among the aristocracy of the land - the Countess of Warwick. The large number of ladies in the audience, and the liberal sprinkling of members of the two political parties declared the true inwardness of the gathering. At the mention of Lady Warwick there was enthusiastic applause, whereas an appeal to send Tom Proctor to Parliament appeared to fall on deaf ears".

The Rev. Archer was in the chair, and seemed uncertain as to why he was there. It turned out that the main reason was that he had been asked to do it ! And he did declare himself a Socialist.

On the platform were also Mrs Bridges Adams, a campaigner for education reform, and Robert Smillie, a Scottish miners' leader. Mrs Adams gave "a delightful speech", but the audience had not come to hear her.

The Countess of Warwick said she had come to Grimsby at the instigation of Keir Hardie, and because she was a member of the Social Democratic Federation.

I am not a politician....the big fireside and the domestic care of the children and the household were what was my portion in life.

Even an old woman like myself (laughter followed as Lady Warwick seemed and looked exceedingly youthful) may live to record a vote for a Socialist member of Parliament. When that vote comes to me, may it be one vote based upon my citizenship, and not the many votes based upon my property qualificaton.......In that case I believe I should have 13 votes.

Socialism is the end in view. I thank you for having the patience to listen to one who is not a speaker, but one who is heart and soul in this movement.......

Press Reaction
At this time 'The Grimsby News' was published twice weekly, was a strong Liberal supporter, but was giving Labour meetings lengthy reports. 'The Telegraph' was a daily paper and was strongly Tory.

The Telegraph used the report of this meeting to attack the Grimsby Labour Representation Committee. Their Headlines were "Socialists or Labour leaders ?", and "Lady Warwick lets the cat out of the bag".

"She in one or two sentences of her speech has torn the veil which had served ... to hide the real character of the present so-called Labour movement." And "the handful of men who have designated themselves the representatives of Labour in Grimsby are now known, as is their candidate, in their true colours. They are Socialists, and as Socialists they have no right to pose as representatives of the working classes of the town".

This anti-socialist theme was to persist, and become even more strident in the 1920s.

Frances Maynard, the Countess of Warwick inherited an estate of 30,000 acres whilst a little girl. She moved in high society, and was the inspiration for "Daisy" in the song "Daisy, Daisy, ....". In the 1890s she carried on a long affair with the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII), but this came to an end when she became a socialist, having, according to her own account, been dramatically converted by Robert Blatchford

Most of this must have been known by women in Grimsby, so no wonder so many went to the meeting. She was due to speak again in Grimsby after the first world war, but unfortunately missed her train connection.
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Women and Labour

Kier Hardie was a strong supporter of votes for women, as were a number of other leading Labour men. However, the number of women in trade unions was small, and were sometimes treated as second class members.

Later on the Labour Party came out clearly in favour of women's suffrage, and gained the support of some women for this reason.

Mrs Pankhurst and Arthur Henderson were the main speakers at the next big meeting in April. Arthur Henderson spoke about the great problem of the unemployed. They had had a splendid second reading debate on the Trades Disputes Bill, but their appeals went unheeded. They would persist in their efforts.
The working classes had not the wealth, but they had the votes. He was glad to say they had succeeded in uniting labour as never before.

Emmeline Pankhurst was the leader of the more militant wing of the suffragette movement. Arthur Henderson was to be Secretary of the Labour Party for many years, and Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary in Labour Governments. In 1934 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.