The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1868-06-30 00:00:00

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oat that the letters were inserted Id sdvertisemeats, and
were therefore • matter of business so far se the news-
Owere ocieserued. One of the gentlemen did not
iri*Puttiug the letter in the advertisement columns
wee evidence *sough that they were paid for. and.
pointing to • contemporary, be mid he knew there
were advertisements pat Into that paper which wore act
Paid (or. The Rev. H. B. Williams said the letters
were peld for in one paper, bet not in the other. The
Chairman subsequently said it bad been auertained that
they had already bar paid for in one of the papers.
All this is most eatraordWird We were under the im-
.
preesion that we knew • lit • about the matter, bat if
the statements of the Rev. H. B. Williams, and the
oommunicatioe made to the Chairman, have • shadow
of truth in them, we eoefess Our entire ignorance 0 the
whole affair. Bet we will state this authoritatively,
les to show how rashly even • clerical gentleman may
speak in the heat of • persona/ °utast —the: letters were
Inserted in this journal and In a contemporary u
advertisementa, both newspaper' will be pa;rl for thou
Insertions, but neither have been no paid up to the
present time.

The authorship of the letters is, of course. Intensely
Interesting after all the hard words spoken at the
meeting. Happily we are ignorant on the subject. They
were brought no In manuscript, written in a good clerkly
hand, and we venture to think it would puzzle the
experts to tell whose was the oaligraphy. Then, it has
been said, we can recognise the phraseology. Perhaps
so, but these gnomes may also be very wide of the
mark; and, we can say this much, that the current
rumour wbieb attributes the authorship of the letters
to • certain gentleman of Dorchester Is untrue.
We are free to confess that when it was drat
hinted to us that he was their author, we fancied
they were at any rate after his style, but whether
that opinion we. formed front the mention of
his name, or from the letters themselves, it may be
difficult to determine. Bat there is the fact, as we are
Informed on authority—he is not the writer. Now, as
this big guess so freely made touching their authorship
has failed, it will be the noblest course to give up the
inquire, and conclude with Dr. Cowdell that it was
ct • Fenian for it will, we are sure, be far more
lagreeable to us alto believe even that unlikely story,
than to think such letters were penned by one of
our own townsmen.

The following is the rem& of the division :-87 votes,
by 55 governors. were rooorded for the amendment ;
sod 69 vote., blovernors, for the resolution; She
election of two wee therefore decided upon by
a majority of 18 sod 23 governors.

The Chairman &slued the result, which vu hailed
with aura

A vote of *bulge to the chairman, propmed by tit•
Rev. 0. J. Bird, and moonded by Dr. Cowdell, eloped
the prootedinp.

FORDINGTON FRIENDLY SOCIETY.

The annual festival of this excellent and now Amuleh.
lug society took place no Tuesday last. It Ina usually
been held on Whit• Tuesday, but this year, in mese-
quince of the mysteriously sudden death of Mra Legge,
one of the bon. members who took especial interred in
the club, the meeting was postponed; but, although the
interval of a month has elapsed, the remembeance of
her unexpected death and the experienoe of the void her
paaSeg away has occasioned, gave • solemn toes to the
day's prooeedinp, yet it was one of the happiest gather.
tags the parish has known, and we are disposed to think
that if ineetisp of that kind were rather more frequent
In Fordinnton, there would be fostered such snotty and
kind neighbourly feeling, •s would produm the most
gratifying results throughout the parish.
The officer, and member, of the dub resembled at the
sebool•room in the afternoon, and walked to church in
procession, They had neither band nor banners, and the
only insignia visible of 'club walking" was that each
of the members wore • rosette, but we believe it is •
sanely which will favourably compare with any in the
society for respectability of appearance. The sermon was
preached by the Vicar, the Rev. IL Houle, from Ma
Luke KS., 29.31, "Seek not what yo shell eat, or what
ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all
these things do the nations seek after ; and your Father
Imoweth that ye have need of these things. Bat rather
seek ye the kingdom of God, and all them things shall
be added to you." The preacher earnestly enforced our
Saviour's teaching to His disciples, and in practical
application of the exhortetion, he invited attendance at
O meeting to be held on Sunday mornings at Fordington
sehool.room, for the reading and study of the lemons,
the psalms, the epistle and gospel of the day, and to pray
for the Holy Spirit's help that they might take part in
the ober& services with true devotion and heartiness.
At the close of the service, the procession was re-
formed, and the club walked round the green. They
were accompanied by "the mother of the parish,"
whom presence afforded them much gratification ; she
has well won, by forty yams' devoted service to the
pariah, the good will and loving respect of AIL
Proceeding to the school-room, tea was served. More
than two hundred of the members and their friends
with a goodly number of the honorer, members and
well-wisbcre to the society assembled, notwithstanding
that at this bury time of the year some who nave
usually attended could not, much to the regret
of the Vicrr, be present. The walls of the
room were bedecked with evergreens, Intermixed
with a few blossoms, and the tables were plenti-
fully decorated with flowers Several ladies of the
parish, as usual, assisted in the tea arrangements, and
thus promoted the comfort and success of the meeting.
The Church choir during the tea sand several anthems
very nicely, and we should like to hear them rather
more frequently. The whole of the ptoceedinp were
marked by a geniality and sociability as pleasant as it
has been uscoosmon in the perish, and we do hop., as
Oh. View senerieney trram.d..that this LS the beginning
of new life in Fordington.
After the tea, the Rev. H. Mottle expressed his thank-
fatness for the success of the society, and hie belief that
it would be the means of much good in the parish, by
promoting neighbourly feeling and a desire for the
spiritual good of those around them.
The Rev. F. J. Houle, the honorary secretary of the
society, after referring to the lamented death of Mrs.
Legge, which ledthe members unanimously to agree to
postpone the festival, although at some loss to them-
selves, he observed that this was their seventh annual
festival, which reminded him of the old Fordington
club, which broke up every seven years, and he eon-
Masted the difference in the way the two clubs celebrated
their anniversaries. The financial statement was as
follow,: tereeiptv—balanee from the tea at last festival,
£4 154. &I.; in Tres 's bands, £33s. Sid.; honorary
members' subscriptions, £l5 44. 64.; smaller contribu-
Mona, 9e. 64.; monthly payments Irons members,
£22 10s. sd; quarterly payments for doctor, £9 125.;
entrance fees, ; nominee's entrance fees, 5',;
nominee's death pay from 41 members, £1 Os. 64 ; fines,
3s. 44,: total, 4x 84. Expenditure--sick pay to
eight members., £6 61.; medical attendance, £9 12s • W.
Swyre, on death of nominee, Cl Os. 6d.; stewards'
IA • printing el 10s. fird. • invested in Savings' lir=
Lifi 10s. • balance in secretary's hinds £1 15e. fiel. ; toed,
258 a. Ba. The capital ecoount shovn deposit in Savings
Bank up to May 6, 1868, £125 51. 44.; balanos in
secretary's hands, £1 15s. 84.; total, £127 Is. He
thought that showed the club was in a very flourishing
condition, but this he observed was mainly owing to the
contributions of honorary members of whom there are
about 40, which is a rather less number than last year,
but he had the pleasure of annonneing several new sues
—Mr. Robert Demon and Miss Damon, of 5,. each—
(applause) and Mr. R. Hayes, who formerly subscribed
55.. had this year seat 21—(applause). He had received
a letter from Mr. W. Vernon intimating that various
circumstances prevented him being present, bat express-
lag his unabated intermit in everything effecting the
welfare of the members of the club. He proceeded
to say that within the lest two years the number
of member, of the club bad more than doubled, and it
was thought right to take steps for placing it on • sure
bads. To this end the raise had been revised by Mr.
l'ldd Peen, the Registrar of Frleedly secieties, and an
Acigary in London had been consulted as to their male
of payments. He reported that they were teo low for
the benefits given, and therefore it beams very impor-
tant that they should at once rain the subscription, so
as to place the society on s sound financial basis. In
conclusion he tendered the thanks of the club to the
hon. member+ and to the ladies who bad assisted at
the tea. He then read the following letter from Mr.
Horace Moak addressed to the club, baths omitted one
passage referring to himself, and desired us to do the
same, but we have taken the liberty of giving the Wise
In its entirety:—
My dear hiebis,—As one of the earthsst honorary nassibers rd
your society, I am very truly sorry not to be present no your
annual meeting this year. In common with yourselves., I
learnt with desp sorrow • isw weeks beck, that • gap had
beers made in the mobs of our honorary members, by that
sudden and mysterious death which touched all our hearts.
As that meat caused • poelformesent of the tea easeting, I bad
hoped to be able to leiter mace more tel sisembled dub, to
the member. of which, with their parochial and other friends,
ern as truly and tkeply attached. As this cannot be, allow me
by letteeto edisk 3 ward roust May you's.* • prosper°. mar
and many of the. and may each year me you more and
more .elf-reliant, sad Mem you will not fall to be surrounded
by friends ready to lend • helping band when that may be
required. I can Wei pletur• to rnmelf the ..al with which
mem hers ri my own freely and others (and 'modally your friend
and my brother, Mr. Trait. Monk) have bum evening 'hem-
pen. to bring the preparations for your meeting to a stale
of completeness" Let that seel and energy be to all at os a
sign and symbol of what we owe to °unstops and our
neighbour. Ms yi the mars roll on, and as one and
another friend from among us, try more Sbli
more earnestly to rede.m the time, sad to live line of truth,
and honesty, and the fear of God. Accept my beet wishes all
round, and believe use, ever your sincere Mood, H. N.

The Rey. C. .1. Bird addressed the misting, urging
:reties and forethought as social sad a Christian
Z. Charles Moak then read, with skill and tests,
Cheuesem dpielsriAn of the Parson smoopt the
Canterbury Southey's poses ou the battle ot
Blenheim, Taimyr= May Quern, and Barnes's "The
voices that be

6.1, mauls nail spoke on the im-
portant* of Chrietresity ee a personal experience to
seeds of them.

Mr. Mills, one of the stewards, referred to the origin
and of the sosiety, and concluded by proposing
than s to the hon. members, to the boa. secretary, and
to the Vicar.
--

M. John 'Lewis also addressed the meeting.
The Rev. F. J. Noels stated that at present the Thiel
of payment for mareberalcp ranged from Bd. to 10d. a
month according to age, and la a quarter for medical
attendance; sad In eirdnisse the pay given was fla. a
weak for du week, end de. a week for not more than 20
week.; bet be intimated that it was likely the rates of
subscription would be bemired.
The Chairman delivered an earned adddressi etrwont•
leg bis heartfelt desire for a spiritual awaken ng In the
perish, and concluded the meeting by pronouncing the
diction.
As simal, the church bells rang out a merry psalm
thaw Who had attended the meeting wended there way
homewards.