The Press.
London, England, 1853-11-19 00:00:00

SOCIETY OF ARTS.

Tins society has now passed its centenary. The 1110th
session commenced on Wednesday last; the opening
night being attended by an audience more crowded
and inlet ested than any that have for a long period
gathered at the aociety's meetings. 111 x. H. Chester,
chairman of the council, inaugurated the season with
a most able address, in which he gave some cartons
details regarding the first origin and successive opc
rations of the society, whose hundredth birthday they
might be said to be keeping :
" So far back as 1721, proposals were made for the estel.
lishment of a society, to lie called "I' he Chamber of Arts,
fur the preserving and improvement of Imitative know
ledge, the mechanical arts, inventions, and manufacturer.'
In 1748 Benjamin Franklin published his Proposal for
the Improvement of Useful Knowledge among the British
Plantations in Amertea,' by the formation of a society at
Philadelphia, to be called "the American Philosophical
Society, of which he volunteered to act pro itospore
ar
secretary. It was, however, the public spirit' of William
Shipley, who is said to have been a drawing-master. and
'waiter to the Bishop of St. Asaph, which gave rime to the
Society of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce in
Mr. Shipley first obtained the approval and COEICIIMIWr
Viscount Folkestone, Lord Mooney, and Dr. Isaac Abot•
Bishop of Worcester ; and then proceeded to unlibt
others. 'the tirst meeting of the society was held MI lit
Itith of March, I'M., at Ilawthinell's co&e•house, hs Urn-
rietta-strfet. COVelit-gartien, and Mr. Wm. Shipley, who
acted as secretary, put forth this Address to the Public '
' Some of the nobility, clert4y, gentlemen, and merchants,
having at heart the good of their country, have lately tort
together in order to fomt themselves into a society nor the
encountgoment of arts, manufactures, and commerce, In
threat Britain, by bestowing rewards front time to Our for
such productions, inventions, or improvements as shall
tend to the 4..mploying of the poor, tv the isicrease of trade,

NOVEMBER 19, 1853.

anal to the ►riche+' and honaturof this kingdont,bypmunating
industry and einulat : nods though at present their
plait is not complete, it it has. nevertheless. been resolved
to make a beginning in manner foible ing—via., for eauladf,
madder, and drawings. eke.' The meetings continued to
he held at Rawthtnell's, and various other places, until, on
the Nth of October, 1771, the society assembled for the
first time in their present building iu the Adelphi.
cianit Folkestone was elected tiro president on the :oth of
February, 1755, anal occupied the presidential chair until
Lis decease in 1761. Lord Romney was president from
1791 to 1703 ; the Duke of Norfolk' from 1793 to NIA ;
his Royal Highness the Duke of Susses from lan to Istl3,
when the society had the honour of electing as its presi.
dent her Majesty's Consort, his Royal Highness moo,
Albert. ( Therms.) In 1'447 the society was incor•puralevl
by royal charter for bestowing pemutiary and honorary
rewards fur• meritorious works in the various departments
of the tine arts, fair discoveries, inventions, and improve-
ments in agriculture, chemistry, mechau►ies, manufact sues,
and other useful arts, for the aulication ul such natural
and artificial products, whether of hums', colonial, or foreign
growth anal manufaeture, as appear likely tat of fresh
objects of industry, and to inen.ase the trade of the realm.
by extending the sphere and operations of Itritish com-
merce. At the first meeting of the 'satiety, three• w•ta of
rewards were otfered—tirst, 3ltl. fn• this prasluct ion I d'enhalt
rosins in England ; secondly. 3411. fat madder grown in
England; and, thirdly, 151. each for the lest anteing,' by
buys and girls under fourteen years of age. (I 'tor
Great attention was bestowed utstu the promotion of what
were then called the polite arts.' Among the most ills.
tinguished of the British artists who received the mociety's
honorary rewards were Nollekens, flacon. Haman, Sir
Thomas Lawrence, Sir William Ross, Edwin Landseer,
Allan I Itnnii wham, :Nuke:sly. Wyatt', and Millais. Calaway.
the painter, received the first prize ever awarded, when he
was only fifteen years of age. Sir W. Ross, who subsequently
received many rewarda,obtaineal his first prize ii I SII7 , when
he was oily twelve years of ago, for a draw itig of 'Watt Tyler.'
The society did munch also to excite amaing the usability
anti gentry a knowledge and love of art. :.111,tug other
measures adopted for this purpose. gold and silver medals
were offered for the• Is r and SPeollel•leat drawings of any
kind, by young gentlemen, the sons and grandma's of peers
anal peeresses, and by young ladies, the daughters avid
granddaughter's of peers or peereases. Many of them•
ruealals were claimed and received. Similar medals 1
money awards wene given fair drawings lo the sons mid
daughters of commoners of the higher, middle, and lamer
classes. In many of these eases the tllaxillllllll of age was
fixed at fonneen, sixteen, and eighteen. Particular en
couragement was hell out to young pristine who Awe de-
sirous of becoming artists ; and great stress wee laid, at an
early period, upon the application of art to the iu►plove-
ment of design in matinfiwtonsa. The fist public exhibi-
tion of the works of British artists in 'the metropolis was
held at the society's house in the Stroud, in litio ; anal
hence arose the. annual exhibitions of the rival twists.
Indeed, it. appeared that the Valid Academy, 'alining bowl
the Society elf Arts. The reclaiming of hogs and G. 11,4,4110
of land from the sea ; the planting of wastes the int ou-
&teflon of useful and omitmental trees anal plants; And
the li►provcment of agriculture and hnrtkniture. haul been
also from first to last promoted bey the sachet!• with great
zeal anal success. The premium lists were full of notices
of such objects as the cultivation of tient!, ; the intrasalite-
tion of foreign grasses, anti of nude for food for cattle ;
the improvement of agricultural implements—the elleoll•
ragement of drill husbandry, drill ploughs, drain ploughs,
and searifieatorta, horseshissi, 11,ot-cutters, straw-titters;
the benefits of bone manure : the analysis of soils; irriga-
tion, water tin'ailink'S, tanks and earls for eadlecting and
distributing liquid manures—anal alp these before 1790.
(Cheers.) In 1753 a reward was otterrat for inventing a
Machin. to answer the purpose of mowing air reaping
wheat, rye, barley, oats, or beans, by which it might be
done more expeditiously and cheaper than by any method
then practised. The total amount distributed in pre••
minims anal bounties exceeded considenibly the autism of
100,090/. The society had taken sm active part in im-
proving our postal system--domestic, colonial. awl inter-
national ; in exposing unjust and injurious maims polies,
fiscal restrictions, and laws damaging to trade and com-
merce ; in collecting trade reports anal statistics in con-
nection with arts, commerce, anal mauiuufactltl'e•s ; in asset
eating a decimalisation of weights, measures, collie, and
accounts; in amending the laws of partnership; and in
promoting education in art anal iwiellet. (4 'Seers.) It
IA as tcessary to remind the meeting of the distin-
guished part which was played by the society in reference
to the threat Exhibition. It was sntlicie•it to state that the
exertions of this moiety prepared the public mind for the
idea of the Exhibition : that there originated the connec-
tion between their illustrious president and the other
founders and luctawa of that wonderful eat•rplido;
that it was first aumumcod to the world by his Royal high-
ness as president of the Society of Arts ; and that almost
every name which was familiar to their memories as
having had a very important share In the glories of that
greatest work of these times was to be found on the roll of
the members of the society. (Clieerg.) Liddy the
social v hal ext... 1. 1 its communications And its means of
usefulness. In the United Kingdom it had entered into
an alliance, for mutual benefit, with three hundred inde-
pendent institutions. The tesolution to establish the
union of inatitutes was passed, under Lord Lansdowne's
presidency, on the lsth of May last year. It was carried
out during the summer, and had for its object, on the one
1111141, to raise the institutions, on the basis of perfect lot•al
freedom and self-government, tat a position of power and
utility which, isolated anal centrell•as, they could scarcely
attain ; and, on the other hand, to secure t'r the Society of
Arts the powerful co-operation of 111111Wrialq and widely-
spread bodies of intelligent, locally influential, and
spirited men. ' ('(this..)"
Adverting to the ohjeetil which would occupy the

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THE PRESS.

attention of the conned during the pres.ent
Mr. Chester briefly indicated the character of thow‘
po•:.:(Nsing chief importance :
- -

nong WoUhl Ile 1110 ettolcay.our to olowelop the
Union of 10eill institutions, and the foreign and colonial
correspondence, and to consider the result% of the
tion at Intblin, with a view to their profitable 111 W. The
society felt a deep interest iii the suceess of the intended
Exhibition at l'stis, and desired that therein the mist, nor
linfoto•tures, motion' ttttt leo* of the Unitosl Kingdom and its
dependencies Might lie (Idly Alla hunottiil6ly represented.
The councilwould 110 what it ruul.ll.l pnomoto this abject.
ho..TA. 1 The aborts of the soden would also
Is' rill•
liuurd to proociwo• an nwendlneut of his of
to prepay.. Ow mind oof the 'midie fur the adoption of
decimal system of weights. measures, coins, awl see ii ;
and to abolish those taxes--such as the duties on pallet
which were specially injurious too pills. 441 1111 l Wive. and ingt-
iinfitetitres. The 'strikes' *inch afflicted the 111141111fite•
turing districts were regarded by the co WI with deep
regret. The society felt an etplal inlereht the well-
being of the Minden' itlid Hien. It Wits to hi hoped that,
when We had a real cdtr,aion.ll. the 'Wittily, theme laiiii.litik.
bur spretaclos Might be Ho MOM seen lint it Wits worth
etillill•lttring whether sit smetioltotent of the law of moll
tinted liability, and the introshael of partnerships es
by pbwing the men in the postilion of wastrel
in melt partnerships, might not have some ruler( toanr,b,
restraining won-kitten front taking up, its such, a position
which was itrou.i.lcul with the v 1044.116141 ion% of
Mastership, and which lioul an how liable tooloohnoey to
destroy the Mettilii of elllployMent. (eiterr..)
rouuril was Ihorollglily isourinceol that Itli
Lion for the whole people—rich ruUi isle, Minh Mill Alibi--
%%Its the that nspiisite fur the improt einem of immitfac•
titres, ell Tel*, and arts; that a lilwrid meouotno of
wholly,. must 4.1114. r just,' that
(lie ditty of the sowiely too Iwamoto. rigonvtlsiy 11141 Rural tolo-
jeet ; Itnlli, without iliVolVillg the soeiety 111 soy religions or
srlilit al controversies, the conned W 4.111.1 lent'
baud toliluculion mlidi rracti
cal. •heel'il.) Among the subjects of
Ciotti .I•llslitint HMI
I 'MD4IIIIII4 ion of 'Ventilation till s.iliui'is's.' ' See
in Machines,' • Slotionfosettire of l'srpets,' 'tics, and its
applieatioills 1.1 di 11 111.Stil. 1114144. They hoped, also, too hare
a goo,sl olisetission on the law Sit parents, in onion. that the
subject might loo• fully eliteiolateol ; tutu that measures might
IN' taken it, 111..1'111V •111.11 111114.11411115.111 m of the tau HS might
be &tined requisite. ( 'hoer.. )"
Afterwards the meeting dispersed about the rooms
of thoo society, and Koine lime was spent lii i•NHlllilkisig
the models and drawings of arsiels,s
patented, and registATed since (b.isoloor, I 14;e4, which
were exhibited its them. 'Cho Lancashire sewing
machine wart shown at work, and attracted n consi.
&table amount of motive. The chine capattle
of producing between live hundred and six hundred
tine and strong stitches per minute in a straight,'
angular, or circular fonts, and will make any portion
of garments with the exceptisin of the buttsas.lsoleti.
The quartz•crushing machine of Mr. Benton was also
the subject Of much attention'.