[4] On 7 June 1904, opposition member James Cribb rose as the last speaker in the address-in-reply to the Governor's speech, and raised an amendment which was a motion of no confidence in the Morgan ministry.

[7] The Governor refused and sent for Robert Philp, who declined to resume the premiership, and announced that a caucus meeting of his party would elect a new leader.

[10] The Ministerialist sitting member in Nundah, Thomas Bridges, faced a formidable opponent in the person of Sir Arthur Rutledge.

Rutledge had been a Wesleyan minister in New England and solicitor in Brisbane, before entering the Queensland parliament, where he rose to the office of Attorney-General and accepted a knighthood in 1903.

[11] His public meetings were packed with prominent religious and political leaders, in contrast to a low-key campaign run by Bridges based on his community service and commitment to keep the cost of railway tickets low.