The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1882-03-14 00:00:00

Correspontenct.

THE KING'S STATUE.

To At 'Maur.

"The thing of beauty," "the joy for ever," likened
as • relic to Atonebenge, the leaning tiwe• of Pita,
and many other famous relics, expressions of its
remaining in :Vale rio ; in fact, wit, wia loin, and such
grand c'se.ical quotations came from the epeakers'
mouths at our big teen ineo tin,/ on Tuesday, like
steam out of a boiling kettle, or my old clock that
goes with • whiz, or the rollinz sou ohs from a drum,
that I could eics,eely fancy it wee the poor o d dta new
of good King Georo they sere talking about, but
were • sort of aiiing themselves. I w;sh they had
spoken • title more about the S:atue itself, for that is
the only thing about which there ii any p.ablic diff-r-
-enoe of opinion in our town, and I, therefo-e, trouble
you with this letter, so that your numerous risers
may know and think for thorium res. It u • nly look
at the front of it you will see itten The gr iteful
Inhabitants to George the Third on his •attaining his
50,1 s yew."
Nothing about the Mug binti•lf ! No, that, doubt.
leas, in their wisdom they thought unneoesear ; they
only wished to speak of their own 'gratitude.' They
fill up the space in a har4e tanl, sod cspitel
61.,,5t am lag. ae the; of the king, the oame
of "I. Hamilt in," and inform y u that be wan an
aiehitect, and there they leave it. No doubt, a I cal
geniue unknown outaide of the town, of whom Gr,l,
the would have errit..en : -
' • r., fortune and to fame unknown,
F•ir ecienai frowned not n hie trim
And modesty marked him (not) for her own."
-

Our architect; of the present dity are to bumble-
mind. d, they put their camre to their works in some
out of the way cur. aer. Mr. H .tuilton evlde,tly
thought that ho, na ne sh mid be koown, and hi, so
doing was scar ely sec indary ia Oup.,rt owe to that of
the kini's I Your rea has must form their own opinion
up ,n what Ido nut hod at • t say is a
.great outrage
u• on good taste. Go t the other side of the pedv eel,
and there you see • long insoripthu in v.-ry small
letters. A stranger would nature ly think before reel-
ing it that it would be all about th • King, like hat on
the Eita-ens on the Gull ,hail of the City of London,
aindaid within tong or five yaws of the Wey-
mouth statwn, by the Cori oration of London.
I send you epics of b. Ut, .o that your rea lent
way read them both, and judos for themselves.
Imeuipti a on the Statue, In the Guildhall,
Loudon :

Go.rff• Um Third( born and bred a Briton;
endeared to a brave, free, an-I loyal P-oPicle by hill
public virtues, by his pre-eminent example of private
worth in all the 101‘00111 of domestic life, by the
uniforms COArlia of unaffected pity, and entire s•do-
mission to the will of Heaveo. The widow and firm-
ness of his character and cooncile enables him so to
apply Um resources of lois empire, no Li direct the
manes energies of hie still -cts, thet he m .intalned the
dignity of hie crown, pre.ereed invio'ate the constitu-
tion in Ohiirch and ntate, and mcoreil the orintnerce
and prosperity id his flowed ~Iming • long period
of unexampled difiluuli y. in which the dessilV c.ntai.in
of Frerch prii c10t..., and the doni e ring Aggressions
of French power, ha i nearly oiss .Ir. d the :rams and
destroyed the independence of every other government
and nee ion in Europa -Vhei Lo-. 1 Mayor. Aldermen
and Coma:mos, of the City of London, have erected
this Statue in testimony of their undeviating loyalty
and grateful attachment to the best of kings, in the
551 h year of his reign, Ade. 1817 i, Birch, Mayor.'
" Inacript'on on the Weymouth Statue :
"Guildhall, Weymouth, October 15, 1809. •
"Thomas Bower, Mayo-, in the chair.
"At a general meeting of the inhabitants of this
borough to consider on the moet proper mole of
celebrating the commemoration of the 50th year of the ,
reign of our Sovereign on the 25th inst. Reaolved
one innously. That • congramlatory a 'dreg. be '
presented to his M desty by the members of this
borough. That public dinners &111 general illumine-
lions art all ad speed to th-s, oc maims, or to the law-
ful times in which we live ; but in the °pinkie o this 11
ineetint the inhabitants, aft, • rstitning thank- t e the '
Almighty for His gracious protewl n of their ki•ig an
c nutty during this eventful rei.m, eh ,u 1 I, out far at
their mane will all ew, to con lime to the comfort of
their poor brethren, and adminider to the relief of
their fellow townsmen, now priaoners of war in tie
hands of the enemy. That, if it ii desirable, eubscrip.
lions be entered into and • cournitte appoia• 'ii to
arrange the proper distribution of the money. That
one.ha-f of the sum subscribed be appropriated to the
relief of such prisoners of war ad belo., t • the two,
and the other half be distrib ated in relief at the &sore-
tiom of the committee to such -amities in the town as
may mom require the same. That a Statue of
his Majoity be erected at the expense of the
Inhabitants as • In 'mortal to future ages of
the virtue. of the monarch, and the gratitude
which the town feels for laving been o
(eminently bon mewl by the Royal ',resew's. Thet
Governor Arbiithno.' Robert Am n -Id, John Her met
Brow°, oaq , Edward Bayiy, James B atlett, John
i trete, Ftobeit &nee, übristopher Calton, JUMP,
I) s. Thom .s ..ymoock_ William Deard ig,
Ellary, Jo in Few, Jun Ferris, John Hereford,
I.e.' go H .rv•v, William bass Joseph Johns, Richard
Jerrard, Henry Kellaway, Wilda= Langrtsh, John
1.a.-grush, Witham Lode,, 'thorns* M.rtin, Esq.,
It rt Miller. Richard Years., Jams Richards,
JA ors Sc tt, !lowa. Tia w.l, John Tigard, Matthew
Vistas, J ho Wool, and Joseph Webb, being poi...nod
of a &atm) of Our excellent king, and, having offered
t present it to the inhabit...MA at large, we do return
them one sincere thanks for their meuellicenoe, and for
this ad liti••nal proof of their attachment to their
fell .w townsmen. That a separate subscription be
opened for the erection of thin Statue. That Governor
.arbuthoot, John Herbert Browns Robert Bever,
.114:11114 Bowe-, Edward SAO!, Charles Bowles, John
(crouch, Rev. Dr. Cracknell, Rev. M. Gorton, John
Honford, Jmeph Johns, Robert Miller, Henry Hayes
Third, Stephen Warne, Samuel Weston, ant William
William', Esq., be • committee with full power to
erect the Statue with suitable inscription, and to
purchase any spot of ground which may be oonsidered
eligiole for the purpose."
Now look at the Corporation of London and the
inscription on their Statue. They filled the space In
with a descriptiom of the virtues of the good king, his
work, his character, and said it wag out of loyalty that
tb.-y erect. I the Statue, and made no mention of their
goo I intecitio..e I Our good people, in the inscription
on their Statue, say nothing of their loyalty, but fill
up the inscription all about themselves, their gratitude,
and their good inteutions. They say they were going
to give an address ; that instead of giving public
dinners and spinout' illumination., they should return
thanks to Go I for the pr • dection of their king and
country, and col.ect monies t relieve prisoners aud the
poor. in fact, all " they " from beginning to end.
They praise and butter themselves, and hint down
this self-praise aud self.glorificadon to p ..terity II
It ie true they use the w•rds "excellent king." say
that they had res dyed that a Statue siiould be erected
as a memorial of the vi • turn of the king and of their
gratitude, but, with these exceptions, they complet-ly
ne the king, and, like oo .r Mr. Hamilton, with his
name, mold, r themselves, And make their own actions
mod intentioas the met important and prumiuent
things ti be handed down to poderity •
They then say some of thems Ivor are already
p 'seemed of a Statue of the king, and offer to ries it.
How kind! How generous ! (or how mean II of these
gentlemen to have a reedyonade Statue lying upon •
hand, and dou't g' to the expense of erecting it at
their own cost! It c•.uld ot be very much, and there
were roveral of them! dly when the balance of
fun!, c was to go for he benefit of the p liners
and the poor! ! ! (nal there( ore what thy took to ,
erect the it .tu, to y mast h ore deprived the prisoners
and the poor I' that 4)( Cant. Is it any CIO lit to them?
I fail t .03 it, and this gift of dr us they thereiu
describe as " their mundoo ice." Coe cannot help
smiling at their si when we reiol further on
that they give i- ae a prod of th ir attachment t itheir
feilow townsmen!!! Such a haling was goo I and
right, but oi.e wou h.ve thoeght that on such an
occasion tney would have statad tit y gave it from •
loyal feeling to their good kig I They 101 l .w by the
words "• &able iuscrdrioo.' They surely cannot
mean the name of J. Hamilton, architect, beit.g no
prominent, or the glorifying of themselves?
Now, how cams the Stelae in the town awl those
parties p •sseemd if it beforehan I? I am t.ll th.t
previously POIXII pars 'nn gumtree led iii up ettiog the
old clearer of the 'o'.'ugh, ..n ) were led to believe
that a new cha ter wou d be granted, c-ut doing dter-
ati one f a vour ibis ti their views. Ibis thiy were going
to snake • matter of greet r-j clog, in other w note ad
a art of vict ,ry over their fellow t owneinen wh . sup-
pe.ta I the II charter, and they determined to erect •
Siatne..f the king in hmoor of the occarroo, end they
pllor.. seed o:.e with .ut a pon)e.tal awl had it is the
tow., waiting. Though the kilo-nee of Sir William
Pulteney, the new charter then granted IVA 4 exactly
tithe old one. I hese per. nes were so up.'
at this that they put the Statue sway. in some ba .k-
-yard io the town, and there it re owned for a I ug
time. That was how, lamtol, it came here.
It appears that in the 50th year of the reign id King
George public dinners aud geoeral illuminations were
t take place at all porta of the kiogdom.
Toe Weymouth people ototaioed some roach !tone
from Portland at m nlerate etpenes, foimed it it
•he shape o' the present p edict al, c xi it with cement,
obtains I this Statue, place lit on this pedestal, and on
such cemett cause! he •OOVII inscript on to be written.
That we, how thie ''thing' of beauty, and • ' Joy'
for ever" eat Inroad.' .beat I I
I G2orge the Third's high character aa a soy .reign and
his noble worth eo fully(butt v-n then not edequ tely)
set out on the Inscription on tint sta. ue watch the
C rporation of London placed on their Golitio .11; and
, the beuefite hie presence, ox leo many ocemoone, hr .ught
to our town, making It • o uoted for • i.lace if here tit
f.l reeort, demand • omething more t•iiin wna was
th-n done. I sores with those . think that such a
status with such an inacripti on strou.d be placed else.
where, and anoth r, which as a work of art we may
value an I be prowl of, be substituted ix its place, and
the Prince of Waled be sake 1 to unveil it. Not only
would the name of Weymouth be ma Is known from
one sod of the country to the otter as having been the
neciet of royalty for health, and obt doing It; but the
present inhabitants would publicly show themselves as
I /yal as their Anne iturs,atid the wn (II do not hestliate
to ray) would have each a" season " as it hed not had
for many • year, an I everyone reap a benefit. I un-
derstand a considerable sum of money haa been
promised for it, and there would be no dculty iri
oollecting a large now to c itry out each • porpoise. If,
however, the Weymouth people are satisfied
with thing. an they were an I call them "joy.
for ever and see other watering ilaces, like
B eurnemouth, surials them in the race for public
patronage, and be I- ft all ',thin I just as their " p t,"
Ica tam ui,, an I it .or " nowhere"lii c emparis
with th la. • p min 01 the kingdom, I don't 440 why
others shoal object or iuterfere.—l am, your.
VERITLS.
7th March, 18i2.