When the health of the Prince of Wales, as their Royal vice-patron was given, the President referred to the appointment of Sir Samuel Baker, the Society's medallist of the year, to the government of Equatorial Africa. The good-will and patronage of the Viceroy in this instance was essentially obtained through the personal influence of the Prince of Wales. Among the guests at their table was the young Egyptian Prince Ha.s.san.

His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales said:--

"Sir Roderick Murchison, your Highness, my Lords, and Gentlemen,--Under any ordinary circ.u.mstances it would have given me great pleasure to be present at this interesting meeting--the anniversary dinner of the Royal Geographical Society; but I feel doubly proud to be here this evening as a vice-patron of so useful and celebrated an inst.i.tution. Sir Roderick Murchison has had the kindness to allude to me as a traveller; I can only say that I feel ashamed almost to stand here with the name of a traveller, when I see around me so many distinguished persons who have travelled, I may almost say from one end of the world to the other. But I cannot be too grateful that my lamented father at an early period gave me an opportunity of travelling and seeing foreign countries; and the same permission being granted to my brother, I feel certain that we have both derived great benefit from seeing those interesting countries which it has been our happiness to visit. No doubt much knowledge and learning may be obtained by reading books of foreign travel, but I feel convinced that all those gentlemen who are members of this society will coincide with me when I say that you cannot form so full or favourable an idea of the countries described by reading of them in books as you can by visiting them yourselves.

"I am greatly flattered and deeply sensible of the kind manner in which Sir Roderick Murchison has mentioned me in connexion with the name of one whose presence we must all very much miss this evening--I mean my late travelling companion, Sir Samuel Baker. I cannot but regret that he was forced to leave this country rather suddenly in order to make arrangements for his great and important undertaking, and could not, indeed, take farewell of all his friends. Sir Roderick has stated that I was in some way instrumental in helping Sir Samuel Baker to carry out the enterprise in which he is engaged. His Highness the Viceroy of Egypt, I know, has deeply at heart the great importance of that n.o.ble enterprise--to put down slavery on the White Nile, and I need hardly tell you that anything I could do in the matter was done with the utmost pleasure and satisfaction. Such an enterprise must meet the approval not only of every Englishman, but of every philanthropist. There are great difficulties connected with it. These difficulties must be great to any one, and they must still be more trying to a European; but I know Sir Samuel Baker to be a man of energy and perseverance, and whatever the difficulties he may have to encounter he is certain, if it lies in his power, to attain the end of his mission."

We may here say that when Sir Samuel Baker gave a detailed account of his experiences, in the Hall of the London University, the Prince moved the vote of thanks, in a speech equally eulogistic.

The Prince again rose after the toast of "The Army and Navy, and Auxiliary Forces," had been given. He apologised for responding for the Army, in presence of so many distinguished officers: but he spoke by command of the President, and a soldier's first duty is obedience.

Admiral Sir George Back, the veteran Arctic explorer, and a leading officer in the Society, returned thanks for "The Navy."

The President next proposed the health of Professor Nordenskiold, of Stockholm, and of Mrs. Mary Somerville. The former received "the Founder's" Medal, for his Arctic discoveries; and to Mrs. Somerville, then in her eighty-ninth year, had been awarded the Patron or Victoria Medal, for her scientific and astronomical researches, and her works on physical geography.

Sir Roderick then proposed the health of Professor Owen, and the Duke of Sutherland, and Dr. Russell, who had been companions of the Prince in his Egyptian journey. Dr. Russell had, through the _Times_, been the reporter and historian of the expedition. The speech of Professor Owen was in happiest vein. Indeed, the whole of the speeches of the meeting, including those of Sir Francis Grant, the Duke of Sutherland, Dr.

Russell, and Sir Henry Rawlinson, who proposed the health of the President, made this a memorable anniversary of the Society.

EARLSWOOD ASYLUM.

_June 28th, 1869._

All travellers on the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, have admired the palatial and splendidly situated building near Red Hill, Surrey, known as the Earlswood Asylum. It is an inst.i.tution for the care and education of the idiot and imbecile. Everything that can be done by kindness and skill to ameliorate the lot of these cla.s.ses, is here in exercise. By far the larger number show some capability of improvement, and not a few have learned some trade or industry, sufficient for their own support. There are now nearly 600 inmates, from all parts of the kingdom. At each half yearly election, there are about 150 applicants of whom the Board usually can elect 30 to 35. The receipts of last year were nearly 25,000, and the charity has 20,000 invested funds.

The first stone of the Asylum was laid by the Prince Consort in 1853, and the building was opened by him in 1855. To lay the first stone of additional buildings, on part of the 80 acres belonging to the Asylum, the presence of the Prince of Wales was asked, and was very cordially given. Accompanied by the Princess of Wales, he went to Earlswood for this purpose on the 28th of June, 1869. The Mayor and the magistrates of Reigate came to the Earlswood railway station with an address of welcome, to which the Prince made reply.

Sir Charles Reed, son of the Rev. Dr. Andrew Reed, founder of the Inst.i.tution (as he was of other important charities), conducted the Royal visitors to the gate of the Asylum, to which they had driven from the station. From the Board Room a procession was formed, to the place of laying the stone. Here another address was read, in reply to which the Prince said:--

"My Lords and Gentlemen,--I thank you for the kind expressions contained in your address. I cannot but rejoice that my presence should be considered an encouragement, and conducive to the prosperity of an inst.i.tution that lays claim to our warmest support. Apart from all other considerations, the fact of my lamented father having taken so active a part in the early formation of the society would, in itself, be sufficient to enlist my sympathy and interest in its welfare. The necessity for affording more extended accommodation, in consequence of the increased number of applicants, is the best proof of the success which has followed your first efforts. We must all appreciate the comprehensive principle which regulates, without regard to social or religious distinction, the admission of all cla.s.ses of our fellow-creatures suffering under an affliction which reduces them to one common level. Finally, I have to a.s.sure you, gentlemen, how sincerely I feel your expressions of devotion and attachment towards the Queen, the Princess of Wales, and the Royal family. I am persuaded they, equally with myself, will watch with increasing interest the success of an inst.i.tution this day enlarged under such hopeful circ.u.mstances."

The Treasurer then handed to the Prince a silver trowel, and Sir Charles Reed, M.P., presented the mallet, which had been used by the Prince Consort on laying the first stone of the "Infant Orphan Asylum" at Wanstead, and which His Royal Highness had afterwards given to Dr.

Andrew Reed. A good supply of mortar having been brought to the Prince of Wales in a mahogany hod, His Royal Highness spread a sufficient quant.i.ty to make a setting for the stone. Then, amid cheering, the stone was slowly lowered, and the Prince tapped it with the mallet, tested it by rule and plumb, and amid a flourish of trumpets, followed by the National Anthem, p.r.o.nounced it to be well and truly fixed. The Archbishop of Canterbury then offered an appropriate prayer, which was followed by a hymn, of which there was an instrumental performance by the hand of the Grenadier Guards, while the words were sung by the entire company.

The Prince and Princess then took their seats, and, to the March of King Christian IX., of Denmark, there was an interesting and, for the charity, a most gratifying procession. It was one of ladies, who to the number of 380 in single file ascended the das where the Prince sat, and deposited in all 400 purses. The Prince had previously, immediately after fixing the stone, handed to the Treasurer, a check for a hundred guineas. A _dejeuner_ followed, and planting of memorial trees and other festivities.

THE ALEXANDRA DOCK AT LYNN.

_July 7th, 1869._

Six centuries ago Lynn was, next to London, the chief port on the east coast. It is nearer than any other port to Holland and North Germany. In course of time the foreign trade of the place had fallen into decay, and the town itself was outstripped in business by Hull, Grimsby, Yarmouth, and other eastern seaports. A time of revival having come, it was considered that the prosperity of the ancient borough would be secured by the formation of docks and accommodation for foreign trade, as the manufacturing districts of the Midland Counties might be brought into connection with Lynn as the shortest route to Amsterdam, Rotterdam, the Texel, and Hamburg. In hope of benefiting the trade and industry of the town, the Lynn Dock Company was formed, and obtained from Mr. Brunlees, C.E., the plans for a great dock, which in due time was completed, and was inaugurated by the Prince and Princess of Wales, on the 7th of July, 1869.

Arriving from London, by special train of the Great Eastern Railway, the Royal visitors were received, with great ceremony, in the Council Room of the Town Hall of Lynn. An address was presented by the Recorder, in which gratification was expressed at their Royal Highnesses having selected an abode in the neighbourhood of the borough, and in showing their interest in its welfare by having graciously undertaken to inaugurate their new dock.

His Royal Highness made the following reply:--

"Mr. Mayor and Gentlemen,--I thank you for this address, for the loyalty and attachment you express towards the Queen, and for the kind welcome you offer the Princess and myself. It is peculiarly gratifying to us to visit you on an occasion like the present. The revolutions of time and science would have had the same effects upon King's Lynn as upon other commercial ports but for the energies of the inhabitants. Without them its ancient name would have become interesting only for its antiquity. But in the century in which we live it is permitted neither to town nor to community to rest quiet or to stand still. The energies I have referred to, I have learned to appreciate from living in your neighbourhood, and, indeed, I have been called on to partic.i.p.ate in them as regards the navigation of your waters. I fervently pray that the Dock we are about to open this day, may, under the fostering auspices of a beneficent Providence, open out new sources of wealth and commerce, shedding the blessings which are derived from them on your town, and contributing to the prosperity of our beloved country."

The Royal party then visited the Grammar School, where the Prince received and responded to an address from the Masters and Scholars, and presented to the successful compet.i.tor the gold medal, given annually, through the munificence of the Prince, as a prize for cla.s.sical and modern languages in alternate years. The Prince presented the prize, saying:--

"I have great pleasure in presenting you with this medal. On a former occasion I presented it at Sandringham, but it is more pleasure to you to receive it among your schoolfellows. I hope this medal will contribute to your success in future life, and that it may be a stimulus to you for further exertion."

On arriving at the Dock, the circ.u.mference of which was densely crowded, the Royal visitors were greeted with cheering, bell-ringing, and every demonstration of welcome. When it came to the ceremony of declaring the dock open, an agreeable surprise was added by the terms in which the announcement was made:--

I DECLARE THIS DOCK NOW OPEN, AND THAT HENCEFORTH IT IS TO BE CALLED THE ALEXANDRA DOCK.

The announcement was received with vociferous acclamation. The Prince's intention had been signified to the Chairman of the Dock Company only a few minutes before, and was quite unknown to the ma.s.s of the spectators, who expressed their delight by repeated salvos of cheering.

At a banquet afterwards given, when the toast of the Royal visitors was given, by Mr. Jarvis the President, the Prince said that he regarded King's Lynn as his country town, and should always feel the deepest interest in its welfare.

VISIT TO MANCHESTER.

_July, 1869._

The annual show of the Royal Agricultural Society was held in 1869 at Manchester, which the Prince of Wales visited on the 29th of July, accompanied by the Princess of Wales.

There are some who remember the first visit of the Queen and Prince Consort to Manchester in 1851. The Royal party then proceeded along the ca.n.a.l to Worsley from Patricroft, where the wonderful engineering works of James Nasmyth were inspected. In 1869, the Prince and Princess of Wales were conducted along the same ca.n.a.l, but in reverse direction, the barge going from Worsley, through Patricroft, to Old Trafford. The Prince and Princess, with their host and hostess, the Earl and Countess of Ellesmere, drove from the Hall to the stage where the royal barge was waiting. A large flotilla of boats followed as a guard of honour, including some of the Manchester Rowing Clubs. It was a strange and picturesque ca.n.a.l scene, the barges being towed by horses ridden by postillions, and the towing path all along the route, for five or six miles, being kept clear by mounted patrols in livery. It was a great gala day in those densely peopled regions.

In pa.s.sing through Salford an address was presented by the Mayor, Aldermen, and burgesses of that borough, in the Reading Room of the Royal Museum. The address expressed the great pleasure experienced by this, the second visit of the Prince to their town, enhanced by the presence there, for the first time, of the Princess of Wales: "We cherish a lively and affectionate remembrance of the visit of Her Most Gracious Majesty the Queen to Peel-park in the year 1851, when she witnessed the a.s.semblage of 80,000 Sunday-school scholars, and listened, not unmoved, while they sang the National Anthem. This event was commemorated by the erection of a marble statue to Her Majesty in the park, which was publicly inaugurated by the late and much revered Prince Consort, who on that occasion inspected and manifested a deep interest in the free museum and library in the park. We deeply deplored the loss of the late Prince Consort, and erected a marble statue to his memory, in close proximity to that of the Queen, and near the spot where he stood when inaugurating the statue of Her Majesty."

The Prince made the following reply:--

"Mr. Mayor and Gentlemen,--The Princess of Wales and myself thank you very cordially for your address, and for the sentiments you are good enough to express towards us. It is very gratifying to us to have the opportunity of paying you a visit, and to observe the evidences of the growing wealth and population which have raised Salford to the position she now occupies in the Empire. It will be highly satisfactory to the Queen to learn how deeply engraven on your hearts is the recollection of the visit she paid you in 1851, and how cherished and beloved is the memory of my lamented father. On my own part, I can but acknowledge the kindness of the terms in which you have alluded to my past years. For those which are to come I can only say that it will be the one effort of my life to merit the good opinion of the people I am so proud to call my fellow-countrymen."

In driving through the park the Royal visitors had been conducted past the white marble statues of the Queen and the Prince Consort, and those of Richard Cobden and Joseph Brotherton. Leaving the park, the streets and ways being everywhere densely thronged, they reached the Manchester Town Hall, where another address was delivered, expressing joyous welcome from the loyal citizens, and especially the feelings of satisfaction at the presence of the Prince, as President of the Royal Agricultural Society, "believing the same to be an evidence of the deep interest manifested by your Royal Highness in the success of all movements which have for their object the advancement of art and science and the progress and welfare of the people of this great empire. It has been the special privilege of your Royal Highness to an unusual extent to visit and personally to become acquainted with other Courts and countries, and with distant portions of Her Majesty's dominions, and we rejoice to believe that the valuable experience thereby acquired gives to all cla.s.ses of Her Majesty's subjects an a.s.surance that your Royal Highness will ever be foremost in all efforts to extend true liberty and civilization, and to develope those free inst.i.tutions which are the pride and glory of our country."

To which address the Prince replied:--

"Mr. Mayor and Gentlemen,--I thank you for the kind expressions of loyalty and devotion towards the Queen, the Princess of Wales, and myself contained in your address. I have gladly availed myself of the opportunity afforded me, in the fulfilment of my duties as President of the Royal Agricultural Society, to visit a city second to none in the Empire in commercial importance, to become better acquainted with its history, its locality, and the sources of its prosperity. The wise provision of my lamented father and of the Queen, my dear mother, has secured for me at an early age the advantages of visiting the centres of the world, the most remarkable and the most deserving of study for their interest and for their development of the elements of wealth. In admiring, and, I trust, appreciating, the successful result that has distinguished foreign exertions, I have also learnt to look with increased admiration on those wonderful works of human ingenuity, perseverance, and industry, the products of the heads and hands of my own countrymen, and especially of those who now surround me. May we all be grateful, gentlemen, to a superintending Providence, which has blessed the efforts of our commercial enterprise and the free inst.i.tutions of our country,--themselves a pledge of our future prosperity."

The Prince presided at a general meeting of the Council of the Society, and opened the proceedings by a brief speech which was loudly applauded.

He also received in his own marquee a numerous deputation from the Agricultural Society of France. At the close of the meeting the Royal visitors drove to a station on the Manchester South Junction line, where a train was waiting to take them to Brough, near Hull, via Normanton; the Prince having engaged to be at Hull in the afternoon in order to inaugurate the new Western Dock at that town.

The princ.i.p.al object of the Prince's visit was to see the Royal Agricultural Show, the members mustering in great force for the occasion from all parts of England. At the midday luncheon the Chairman, the Earl of Sefton, gave the toast of "The Queen," who was deeply interested in the agricultural affairs of the Kingdom, and set the practical example of being an exhibitor at the present Show. The Chairman next proposed "The Health of their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales."

He said the present toast should be the last. He had to ask them to drink to the health of the President of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, coupled with the toast of Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales. He had looked forward to this meeting for a long time, and it was with the greatest pride they learnt that it was to be held under the presidency of His Royal Highness. The reception their Royal Highnesses met with the day previous and that day sufficiently testified to the loyalty and attachment of the people of this country to the Crown. It was difficult to allude to the good qualities of His Royal Highness, but he was ever foremost in the furtherance of works of charity and usefulness. They also experienced the warmest attachment and the truest loyalty towards the Princess.

His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, in replying, said:--