The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1859-11-08 00:00:00

MART'OCK AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY.

The annual meeting of the Mattock Agricultural AMO-
ciat i n was held on Thursday last, and was the most
successful gathering that has taken place since the for-
mation of the society. After the morning's ploughing
match, for which 26 ploughs competed, the members
and friends of the association dined at the White Hart
Hotel, where prizes were distributed to the best plough-
men and to deserving labourers. Mr. J. Gundry
presided, and there were about seventy guests pre-
sent.

To the toast of "The Bishop and Clew, of the
Diocese," the new vicar, the Rev. E. A. Salmon,
responded, advocating the desirability of the elm gene.
rally promoting meetings of that description.
The CH AIRR A N, in proposing" The Army and Navy,'
remarked that there never was a time when the twin
services deserved to be received with more enthusiastic
acclamations. (Cheers.) The army was now being made
more consonant with the feelings of the people generally
the volunteer movement bringing, as it were, that ser-
vice nearer to the general population. (Hear, hear.) If
an attack were made upon England by any Power, the
sturdy courage and defiant determination which animated
our fathers in former da)s would not be found wanting
in the present generation. English yeomen and Eng-
lish gentlemen had nerves as strong, courage as dazing,
frames as enduring and healthy, as ever they
(Cheers.) In the toast of 'The Army and Navy," be
included the yeomanry, militia, and the rifle volunteers.
' (Cheers.) . . . .

bbtirheA Dcourse o
fE It. Ho,
address
ow
rm., actkhnehloetd
nl.gebarotlie netroatbi.
served that he felt proud in having for 12 year. of his
life belonged to that noble profession. The British army
had always shown themselves equal to all the daring
acts of bravery of those who came before them. They
would all recollect with what pain they heard of the
sufferings and irivations their heroic soldiers under-
went in the Crimea, At one time (if Englishmen could
think such a thing) they almost feared their soldiers
would be overcome. Subscriptions poured in, and every-
thing VMS done to encourage our countrymen to perse-
vere in their arduous siege. and eventually they carried
everythicg before them. They proved themselves equal
to any army, and superior to any army that could he
brought against them. All their difficulties arose in
the first instance from their being too few in ambers.
The 20.000 English in the Crimea occupied half the line
of battle, while the French, with • much larger num-
ber of men, only occupied the other half. The British
were consequently worn out with fatigue, but still
bravely accomplished the work set them to do, proving
that they inherited the same indomitable courage their
ancestors possessed. More recently in India they had
astonishingly attested their powers, making it evident
that neither sun nor snow could daunt the English
soldier when he once had the enemy shown to him.
With respect to the navy, he might mention that he
had the honour of belonging to a family which had
done some service to the country. His family alone
had taken and destroyed upwards of 50 ships of was
from the enemy. (C)ieers.) In former days no service
distinguished itself so much as our navy, and if they had
another opportunity of meeting the foe they would give
the same account of them their ancestors had given for
ages before. Britain, however did not now possess that
naval superiority she once did. During the late war and up
t 01552, England had always very nearly double, and fre-
quently treble, the navy of France, owning •larger marl-
time force than any other two Powers could bring against
her. That was no longer the case, for during the Russian
war the French greatly increased their navy, and it was
done sol secretly that it was only in February last the
English Ministersknew that the increase hadtaken place,
and then, to the surprise of all England, it was found
that France was equal to us in screw line-of-battle ships,
and superior in screw frigates. They had 29 line-of-
battle ships, sail we had 29; but of this number nine
English ship.' were inferior to those of the French,
while they possessed 12 screw frigates more than we did.
It was the duties of the constituencies of this country to
strengthen the hands of their representatives by insist-
ing that a proper navy should be kept up. The efforts
made by the late tiovennuent, which he was happy
to say had been continued by the present, tended to
make our power by sea more efficient. That power
should be extended until England should not only be
prepared to thoroughly depend upon the navy for pre-
sent duties, but be able at all times to promptly man
every ship of war. The French were able at ten days'
notice to man every single ship they had got, having a
reserve of 92,001) sailors properly drilled and instructed
in all nautical affairs. It was the duty of this country
to look bo serious • matter straight in the face. If we
were prepared we could withstand any enemy, but the
state of the English navy contrasted badly with the
state of the French navy. It took at least
six months, and frequently a year. to man a
single British line-of-battle ship. Knowing that
the French had a fleet equal to our own, and
were abl, to man the whole of that Beet on a
fortnight's notice, and being also aware that we were not
able to man our fleet except in a much longer time he
considered that England was certainly not free from the
possibility of a French invasion, nor prepared for such
an emergency. This feelin,,,, was expressed by the Duke
of Wellington, at • time when our navy wee superior to
that of the French. The hon. baronet alluded to the
great Duke's warning concerning the paramount neces-
sity for making preparations of defence, and went on to
say our volunteer force should be as efficient as possible.
Ile was glad to hear the militia, yeomanry, and volun-
teer rifles coupled with the army and navy, for he was
better
rtocomdepanfendy,
co Re
nvinced
re
no
emarmen ywocouuldldbenotbebteteinr
this
country than the bold yeomen, if properly disciplined.
(Hear, hear.) All they wanted was discipline. Let each
man take his rifle in Ilia hand and no force in the world
could stand before them. Entertaining the opinions to
which he had given expression, he hoped they would
nut think him a vain alarmist in saying what he had
said. He had consulted some of the most eminent men
in the kingdom on the subject, and they agreed with what
lie had that day stated. Ile thought it right boldly and
straightforwardly to tell them what he thought upon
this important question; and lie was well assured that
the yeomen of Somerset would share in the feeling now
existing from Land's-end to John &Groat's, and right
willingly conic forward, if needed, valiantly to defend
their dear old country. (Applause.)
Mr. E•srgENT awl Lieutenant HicH•grig replied for
the yeomanry, and testified to the readiness of the Lang.
port and Ilminiter troops to serve the country whenever
danger :night arise.
Sir A. Moe, 111.1... In returning thankt for the toast of
Member, for the Hedeni Division or mid he me-
gstrded these societies as of the greatest utility. They assem-
bled to d all they codd 1., benefit time- h Mercies... Thom
classes were-equal to those above then, in this respect. Every
man should emksvour La do his &it,. In that station of life in
aehleli It p1am...1 God ha plus: him. Every nun who did so en-
dear."ur descried the re.peet of hi .fellow countrymen. He be
tiered i.e class of men were more to be respected than the agri-
cultural labourers. No nun were advancing more than they
were. They, as well as the farmers, were making rapid strides.
They were introducing machinery requiring a great deal of in-
re and could
givtmag
tcrut:on a ti.tti.h"hby iartif
to
Impro-
vement of their disclllgs. (idoa, lacer.)
, the labourer, were not Sell lodged, and this circumstance led
to many immoralitiem s aong tm he. They would beoniy doing
their duty as lamsajlom-,j, in ta-Icing to promote beste
rge meeting
at ilminster the other day • genUeinan told him that he had
been %kiting Mr. Sturt's estate, In Donstahlre, and during the
riga remarked to the ',s-ner that he seeind to wish to keep his
cottages in good condition. Mr. Kurt answered that that was
his wish, sod that the tarrying out of the wish bed cost him
£lO,OOO. It was a noble way of spending his mousy. It did
not produce a reward In the shape of interest, but It
the tone of feeling and character of a class of mem they t
In England to be most proud of. (Owen) They war:Vse
bone and sinew of England. and he would ask the tenesalbw-
titers what they could do without them? How would they pi
recruits for the army? The hest soldiers they weld led were
agricultural labourers. on them the prespnity of the leastry
depended to a considerable cahoot. They fought bravely la Ils
defence, and Weft, in fact, tbe foundation sad the /ills al in-
laud. (Applaitsa)