The Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1860-02-23 00:00:00

INTERESTING PRESENTATION.

On Tuesday, at noon, a number of g,entlemen assembled
at Mr. Lynn's Waterloo Hotel, fin• the purpose of pre-
senting Dlr. Nightingale, on his retirement from the office
of public judge, with some substantial recognition of his
public services. The articles with which was pre-.
stinted consisted of an elegant gold time-piece mounted
on marble, and a silver model of a horse and greyhound
also mounted on marble. They were made by Mr. R.
C. Hall, electro plater, of Manchester, and their value
is estimated at about 1175. The clock bears the follow-
ing inscriptioh :
Presented to Mr. William Nightingale, by the cou:sers of
England and Scotland, as a mark of their respect and esteem,
for his manliness, straightforwardness, and independence as a
public judge, during a period of twenty-seven years. 21E4
February, 1860.

Among the gentlemen present were T.- Brocklebank,
Esq., T. 1). Hornby, Captain Spencer, G. Blanchard,
H. Hardman, Captain Bayly, Mr. Borron, Mr. I'caton,
Mr. Gardner, &c., &e. Mr. H. Hardman having taken
the chair, proceeded forthwith to call upon Mr. Bake to
present the articles.
Mr. JAMES BAKE then delivered the following
address xise to nertOrm a vrry th;a
morning,_ but in doing so 1 must say it is mingled with
pain, because I am sure there are many gentlemen
among us more- fitted than myself for making this
presentation. As, however, 1 cannot prevail upon them
to undertake the office, I have consented to do it myself.
It is about two years since Mr. Nightingale announced
his retirement as public judge, and at that time I con.
sulted with some -of my hien& upon the desirability, or
rather the necessity of presenting something to Mr.
Nightingale. The matter, however, was then post-
poned for sonic months, and after that time I wrote a
circular, referring to Mr. Nightingale's retirement, and
soliciting the help of the coursers of Great Britain to-
wards providing a suitable testimonial for presentation.
The circular was published in Bell's Life, and was as
follows :--

TO THE COURSERS OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.
GENTLEMEN,---TWO years ago air. W. Nightingale retired
from the coursing field as a public judge, in consequence of a
bodily infirmity, brought on by over exertion in the execution
gf h,s duty, much to the regret of a numerous circle of friends
and acquaintances ; since that time up to the present, myse:f,
along with twiny others who have known him throughout his
career as coursing judge, have thought it a duty we owed to
him, to call upou you to join us in subscribing towards pro-
viding a suitable testimonial, to be presented to him on his
retirement, at such time and place as a committee to be ap-
pointed for the purpose should think fit. _

The grounds of fity ,appeal are these, I believe Nighingale
to be an honest man, and some observations may be mute at
the presentation to prove it; he has been a courser from
chilohood, and a public judge for about thirty years I believe
it will not be denied, that during this time he has been con-
sidered to be A 1 in his pfofession, and, farther, that the public
judges of the present day will yield to hint the palm. I may
be considered to be speaking boldly, but you will give me
credit for sincerity when I tell you I have run doge under him
for twenty-five years, in Lancashire, Yorkshire, Derbyshire,
Cutuberland, Wiltshire, and Scotland, and so thoroughly con-
vinced was I of his knowledge of coursing, and his integrity, that
1 have always voted for film, at every meeting at which I ran my
dogs, where the judge had to be elected by the subscribers ;
therefore, I do Hope, all those who think with me, will come
forward, and show that old and valued services' shall not be
forgotten, and als,), that in the decline of life, he may have
sla.ethotg, to loOk back upon, and bejtble to say, my ftiends
have not forgotten me, although I am deprived of that plea-
sure I once enjoyed, and that I have done my duty as a man.
—I am, yours respectfully, JAM BAKE.
You will see from this that I state my convictions on
the value of Mr. Nightingale's services as a public
judge; and that I thought, with many others, that it
was the duty of society to make some acknowledgment
of the services of a man who had so much benefitted it.
I also state in that circular that I consider Mr. .Night-
ingale stands A 1 in his profession, and that the public
judges of the present day will yield him the palm.
believe that the coursers of England are much indebted
to him for his fair and unbiassed judgment, He made
his first appearance in public in 1831 ; and on that
occassion I received the favourable impression res-
pecting his • honesty and integrity which I him
ever since maintained. Mr. Nightingale was after-
wards elected judge at various meetings, —at •
the Chatsworth and the South Lancashire cup meetings.
In 1838 he was judge for one of the largest meetings
that is held ; but, as the public are naturally fickle, it
is. no disparagement of Mr. Nightingale to say • that
fitAcitr.that in
other judges were subsequently introduicsed.a
speaker' then went
Night-
ingale had not judged much in Lancashire; his chief
employment was in Scotland ; but it
seventeen out of twenty of the Waterloo annual meetings
Mr. Nightingale was the judge. The
Nightingale hati
on to say, that front these and other similar filets the).
would no doubt think he was quite justified in appealing
no more
to the couriers of England Ott behalf of Mr.
another.
had been
gale. He bad no doubt that Mr.
had his smiles and frowns, like Other men ; but the
'They Ivere so well
st(Tibleimor
acquainted with the gentleman whom they had met to
thfarnownthaotf ofon one
l)
honour, that it would be unnecessary to dwell very much
upon his private character or the•extraordinary
ever-
tions he hail made for the public good. The inscription
on the pedestal of the time-pieee spoke of Afr. Nightin-
gale 's manliness and independence; and he (Ih.. Bike)
could remember many instances in which those qualities
had been wilily displayed. Daring his career as a pub-
lic judge, about £200,000 of money had been awarded
by him ; and this might show the importance of the
office. Seeig, then, that in such a responsible position
,
Mr. Nightingale had so honestly discharged his duties,
he had great pleasure in presenting him with those
gifts .
as memorials of the esteem in which he was held by the
coursers of England and Scotland.
Mr. NIGATINGALE, who seemed much affected, briefly
returned thanks, after which the gratifying proceedings
concluded with a rote of thanks to the chairman.