The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1872-11-16 00:00:00

MR. W. P. PRICE AND BISHOP
ELLICOTT.

Mr. W. P. Price and Bishop Ellicott were preeentat
the annual dinner of the Gloucestershire Root, Fruit.,
and Grain Society, held in Gloucester, on Saturday.
Bishop Ellicott, in responding to the toast of "The
Bishop and Clergy of the Diocese," referred to the
speech which he made at the agricultural dinner in
August, and said the remarks he then made with
reference to the agitators had been alluded to most un-
fairly by many men of position, who ought to have
known better. One learned gentleman connected with
the city of Exeter, had recently thought proper to make
some very strong allusions to him. With reference to
the remarks which that gentleman made, the Bishop
should like to say that when a man connected with
the Government of the country, at a very critical
period, permitted himself to talk about "burning brows
and itching palms," he really ought not to tax other
people with folly. When a man even of his own craft
and-calling so mismanage a grave case as to make one
of the interested parties a kind of hero, by the use of
strong and even offensive language, and obtained for
him a kind of sympathy, such a gentleman as that
had far better look to matters at home—look to his own
reputation, and leave dukes and bishops alone.
As to the labour question, he could only Ea} he
believed that during the past summer many of the
labourers had been led sway by those who professed to
be their true friends, and had not felt a proper grati-
tude to those who employed them. But he ventured
to hope that the employers would not act with any ill-
feeling towards the men when they returned in the
winter to ask for employment, and that they would
think net merely of the labourers themselves, but of
their wives and families. If that was done it would
create a better feeling between all parties, and the
kindness thus shown to the labourers would not be lost,
but would in time be amply repaid.
Mr. W. P. Price, in responding for "The Members
for the County and Boroughs," al-si referred at some
length to the lairmr question. Re alluded to the attack
which WB9 made upon him as chairman of the Midland
Railway Company by Mr. BOW with reference to the
wages paid to the company's servants, and said his
answer to that gentleman was that the question was
not ens of sentiment, but must be settled on commer
cial principles. But the agitation thus raised
spread to every other branch of industry, along
with it came the rise in prices in everything, and
then it reached the agricultural labourers. Mem-
bers of Parliament, Ministers of Sista, the country
papers, and even the great Times, which was
very hard upon hire, took the question nip aurl dis-
cussed it, but one and all had ultimately to come to
the conclusion that what he had said was quite true,
that the question must he settled by the law of supply
and demand—must be looked at in a commercial point
of view, and not as a matter of sentiment. That the
agricultural labourers should be better paid he heartily
believed, and if they wee they would be better men.
But agricultural labourers were not the only men who
were underpaid; many of the clergy received miserably
low stipends, and in come of the offices in the army
and navy the salaries paid were insufficient. It seemed
to him, however, that many of the working men
were receiving too much money or else did not know
how properly to use it. Only a day or two ago a con-
traotor for the Midland Railway Company, who was
employing upwards of a thousand men, told him that
though the men received from 3n. to 4e. lld. per
day they were constantly in the habit of asking for
"cube" in advance of their wages, which "subs' were
not expressed in current coin of the realm but in so
many quarts of beer; and this statement had since
been corroborated by another large contractor. Mr.
Price also alluded to the question of cottage whom.
modation, and expressed himself in favour of improved
cottages for the labonring classes.

THE LORD MAYOR OF LONDON AND
HIS DUTIES.
flie flews in enumerating the waded and important duties
devolving on the terd MayorofLotelon, write.
The ofareof the Lord Mayor of London is not one
of - only, but involves a large number of corre-
i duties. It is true, we believe, that the Lord
has an allowance If £B,OOO to meet the expenses
mayoralty, but these are believed usually to
amount to some t 3,000 or £4,000 more. In fact, "It
would be difficult," as Mr. Ch al les Knight remarks in hie
London, "looking ou it ana whole, to 6n.ismorelaburious
&Wire. ponei ble situation " For e sample, the Lord Mayor
ham to 'onside at thesittings of the Court of A hlei nitn in
their Court, at the meetings of the Court of Common
Council, and at the Common Hall. At-cording to the
same authority he is Judge of the C,tirt of Hustins
(which, however, does no make any great demands
upon his time), Chief Ccmmiasioner of the Central
Criminal Court (which he officially visits twice during
each session), and presides over the London Sessions
held at the GuildhalL He used also to be a Jus-
tice of the PeAce for Southwark, where he opened
the Sessions and subsequently presided; but of this
duty he has of late years 13,- en relieved by other arrange-
ments. He is Escheator-General in London and South-
wark, whenever there is anything escheatable, a
matter DOW not of very frequent occurrence. Ile is
Chief Conservator of the ThameP, an othe which in-
volves the holding of some eight courts in the year,
and occasionally a ninth, lie has to sign daily hosts of
affidavits to notarial documents which may be rt (tubed
here or for transmission to the colonies ; to attend,
when necessary, at Committees of the Municipal B idy,
and the meetings of the Sewage Commissioners, of
which body he is nu ex officio chief. .

Then, passing on to maters of a more general nature,
in which the city is concerned, or in which it may be
presumed to feel an interest, the Lord Mayor is ex.
pecteil to take the initiative or, at all events, the
lead, in these, and in consequence he is obliged to be con-
tinually in correspondence with members of the Govern-
ment; he presides also at many, it not most, public
meetings held in the City proper; and distinguished fo-
reigners, who may happen to visit the metropolis, have an
acknowledged claim on his attention, and, what is
more, on his hospitality. Ile is an ex-officio member
of Her Majesty's Privy Council during his tenure of
office; and he attends its meetings on the accession of
a new Sovereign when he is the only surviving mem-
ber of that august body, the office of the other Privy
Councillors ceasing together with the demise of the
King.
Then, as if his time were not sufficiently occupied
with the business of the city and Corporation and the
various interests which naturally grow out of it, other
institutions—educational, charitable, and religious—of
various characters, look to him for official, if not per-
sonal assistance; for instance, he is, or was till recently,
• Governor of Greenwich Hospital; he is a Governor
of King's College, of Christ's Hospital, of St. Bar-
tholomew's, Guy's and St Thomas's Hospitals; and a
trustee (along with the' Archbishop of Canterbury and
the Bishop of London) of St. Paul's Cathedral; he is
president or patron of very many other public founds-
Hone.. . . . . . . . .

And, lastly, he sits regularly in his own justice-room
at the Mansion House for some three hours or more
daily to administer the law, sometimes, also, sitting
privately to adjust differences as an arbitrator.
Very naturally the personal state of the head of
so important a body as the City of London has
always been an object of great care and solicitude
on the part of the citizens. Hence the list of
officers, forming what we may almost call the court
of his household; his "sword-bearer," his" mace-
bearer," and his "mondial." The only strange thing
is that, with such a household to keep up and such
a sum to expend the good citizens of London never
thought of giving the Lord Mayor an official residence
until nearly the middle of the last century, up to
which time the Mayors had to content themselves
with their own private houses, or with the loan of the
hall of those City companies of which they might
severally happen to be members. The present Mansion
Ihmee, built by Dance, took 15 years in ita erection,
and was not completed until 1751, under the Mayor-
alty of Sir Crimp Gascorie. An lately as the corona-
tion of King George ~ the Lord Mayor of London
acted as Chief Butler, receiving a gold cup as his fee
on the occasion; and even till a more recent date, his
household included other officers besides those already
named, but which now are obsolete—namely, his
" serjeant-carvers, ' " serjeanta of chambers," and his
"esquires."