The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-11-28 00:00:00

'lle that fights aml runs away
May live to fight another (lay ;
But he that is in battle slain
Will never live to fight again.'

(A, laugh.) And, what is worse, suppose our sailors had acted
upon it!• You smile at the idea as extravagant and in-
credible ; but let me tell you that the base and cowardly
adage which I have just quoted is the very countepart of
another, which is the gospel of bad workmen in every part
of the world, and which is not unknown even in English
workshops—l mean the adage that 'Good work is bad for
trade.' I have lately I wen reading a report, furnished to the
Government by our foreign Consuls, on the character and
condition of the working classes, as they are called, in almost
every part of the civilized world. It is most interesting
and Instructive, end well worthy of the attention of any
artisan who wants to know the state of Industry in foreign
countries, and to compare it with that of his own. As the
general result of the inquiry, it may be said that there is
not much to tempt the British artisan to change his posi-
tion at home for that of the workman in any country
not under British rule, or blessed with institutions
of a kindred character. But there Is one remark, in
particular, that occurs with lamentable frequency through-
out the Report ; that, with few exceptions, the foreign
workman does not appear 'to take pride in his work,'
nor (to use a significant expression) to 'put his character
, into it.' :Cheers.) A remarkable Instance of thla is men-
tioned of a country which generally constitutes an honour-
aide exception to this unhappy role Switzerland, Bayou
all know, is a country famous for its education and its
watches : yet the following passage from the Report will
show that neither knowledge nor skill will suffice without
the exercise of that higher quality on which i have been
dwelling. 'As v rule,' it says, 'Owlss workmen are com-
petent in their several trades, and take an interest in their
work ; for, thanks to their superior education, they
. .

fully appreciate the pecuniary advantages to their
masters, and indirectly to themselves, by adhering
strictly to this course. A striking Instance of the tin-
poll, y of acting otherwise has lately h4ppened at Cl.
lmler, in the Bernese Jura, and produced a deep Im.
pression In this district, for some years past, great
tolling off in the quality of the watches manufactured
. .

has token piece, owing T..",..tbe inhabitants finding it much
more profitable to increase the production at the cost of the
workmanship than to abide by the old rules of the trade
They prospered beyond all expectation for a considerable
time, but finally their watches got such a bad name that
they bec.ime misaleable, and the result is a general bank-
ruptcy of nearly all the watch manufacturers of this por-
tion]. district.' No so did that master workman of
Cremona, the great Straduarius—(clieers)— who devoted
himself during a life of more than ninety years to the work
wbieh he honestly believed God had given him to do—to
elaborate and bring to perfection the most exquisite instru-
ment of music that has ever been fashioned by the hand of
man—tcheers)—and who could say, in no irreverent spirit,
'Tin God gives skill
_ . . .. . . .

„.. ......
But not without haunts; God could not make
Antonio stradivari's violin
Without Antonio.'
(Cheers and a laugh). Not so did the heroes of British in-
dustry—tLe Watts and fitephensons, the Arkwrierlits and
liargreaveses, the Flaxmans and Wedgwoods, the Wheat-
stones and Faradays, and ninny more of our own day whom
it would be invidious to partieulalise—by those untiring
efforts to attain perfection in their several departments, even
more than by their inventive genies, the vast fabric of British
manufacturing industry has been raised and its supremacy
established. (Cheers) Not so, I trust, will any of those
whom I have had the honour of addressing forget what #
due to themselves, as workmen who have their own and
their country, character to maintain for excellence in every
department of industry. (Cheers.) No station is so high as
to be exempt from this duty; none so low as not to be
dignified by the faithful discharge of it. (Cheers.) The
works theniselvss upon which an this labour is bestowed
must of necessity perish but the qualities which have
been gained by the faithful and honest discharge of the
daily duties of life will endure for ever, and find scope for
their exercise inn higher and holier sphere.” (Loud and con-
tinued cheering.)

AGRICULTURAL LABOURERS. —Mr. Arch, who
is slowly recovering from a severe illness, presided on
Monday at a meeting of the executive Committee of
the Labourers Union at Leamington. Mr. Hilliard,
the Lincolnshire delegate who accompanied over 400
emigrants to Canada, presented his report. He spoke
highly of the Canadian arrangements, and stated that
within three days after arriving at Toronto all under
his charge obtained employment, some getting a
dollar and a quarter per day beside house rent and
tiring. He also visited other union emigrants whilst
in the country and found all doing well. Some la-
bourers not over twenty were earning at the plough
Mom 120 to 120 dollars per annum.

CHRISTENING AT BUCKINGHAM
PALACE.
The christening of the Prince, the son of the Duke
and Duchess of Edinburgh, took place on Monday,
at Buckingham Palace, in the presence of the Queen,
the Empress of Russia, the Prince and Princess of
Wales, and the other members of the royal family.
Her Majesty and Princess Beatrice left Windsor
Castle shortly before half-past time, and tra-
velled by special train ciii Slough, West Dray-
ton, Southall, llanwell, and Westbourue JUXICLi.,II
to Poiblincton, which was reached at a quater
after ten o'clock. The royal party entered two open
carriages drawn by four horses, and, escorted by a de-
tachment of the Royal Horse Guards and proceeded
by outriders, drove to Buckingham Palace, where
: they arrived at half-past ten. A few persons were
present to witness the arrival, and her Majesty, who
seemed in excellent health, acknowledged their saluta-
tions. The Prince and Princess of Wales left Sandring-
ham by six cial train, and on their al rival in. London
at once prockeded to Itteliegh.an Palace. Previous
to the ceremony Count Sehouvaloti, the Russian
AtuhasParlor, °mut de Jarnac, the rewly-
accredited French Ambassador, and his Exeel-
henry M. Comyn, the Spanish Minister Plenipoten-
tiary, were introdined to her Majesty by the
Earl of Derby, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs,
and presented their credentials. The Empress and
the Queen were two of the sponsors for the young
Prince, who received the names of Albert Alexander
Alfred Ernett William, the two former names being
those of the two grandfathers, the late Prince Consort
and the Emperor of Russia, and the other names 'being
those of his father, his grand uncle (the Duke of Saxe-
Coburg), and the Emperor if Germany respectively.
The ceremony was performed in the boudoir Of the
I Empress.