He was known for having written pamphlets on political topics, such as monetary and land questions, the Anglo-French treaty of 1860 and banking in Scotland.
The Conservative candidate was William Robert Bousfield (12 January 1854 – 16 July 1943), admitted to the bar of England and Wales in 1880.
Bousfield was elected MP for Hackney North at a by-election in 1892 and retained that seat until he was defeated in 1906.
Previously some working men, with a trade union background, had been elected to Parliament as Liberal-Labour candidates but none without Liberal support.
He was elected Independent Labour MP for West Ham South in 1892 and sat until defeated in 1895.
During this time he was the person who presided over the meeting which created the Independent Labour Party (ILP) in 1893.
Hardie contested Bradford East for the ILP in a by-election in 1896 and Preston at the 1900 general election for the Labour Representation Committee (LRC).