The Express.
London, England, 1863-07-21 00:00:00

(Stamped, ld. Additional

ROYAL AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY.

(nos one ows aspourza.)
WORCESTER, MONDAY.
In the very same sonnet in which Milton twines
the battle of Worcester into a " lamest wreath" for
the brow of his favourite Cromwell, the well-known
lines occur :

_
Peace hath her victories
No less renowned than war.
Although the vision of the poet did not include
more than a request that the Lord General would
save free conscience from a certain ecclesiastical
domination, " whose gospel was its maw," and could
not be expected, however prophetic the character
of the poet, to have foreseen the immense gather-
ings for peaceful and yet competitive pur-
poses which take place in modern days,
it is essentially a peaceful victory of the best and
truest kind that Worcester celebrates to-day under
Englandthe pices of the Royal Agricultural Society of
• and Mr. Speaker Denison will be much
better pleased to learn from the public journals
which record this national event, for such it really
is, that the Worcester show has been one of the finest
ever exhibited, than, like his predecessor Lenthall,
that the plains around Worcester have been strewn
with oorpees after a contest of four ass five hours, "as
stifle as ever I have seem," adds the Lord General,
with the addition of a hope that he would "gather
up" the fugitives. Beyond this celebrated civil fight,
won on the famous 3rd of September., the city of
Worcester has little to make it distinguished
amongst the towns of England. The see of Wor-
cester can boast of a Latimer, a Hurd, a Prideaux,
and a Stillingfieet. Its cathedral, now seen to dis-
advantage, as it is undergoing repair and restora-
tion, is not of the finest typo of architecture ; but
it possesses one peculiarity, that the most miserable
of men lies buried ui its precincts. " Mbserrimus"
is the sole word that indicates the character of the
unhappy possessor of the old tomb ; but how many
have there been and are who would dispute with its
nameless occupant the superlative pre-eminence of
woe which he claims for himself 1 A glove menu-
factory, an iron foundry, a porcelain manufactory,
lampreys and a popular sauce, are products asso-
ciated with the name of Worcester, but beyond these
its fame in story does not extend. It has to-day
acquired a new title to remembrance, for of the
twenty-five shows which have taken place under
the auspices of the Royal Agricultural Society, the
Feseut is one of the largest and best represented,
cud "unto this last " be the honour given which is
its due in this respect
Situated in the centre of England, Worcester
seems well adapted for the holding of an agricul-
tural prize show ; but it was only at a compara-
tively recent date that the railway accommodation
to the town has been such as to make it a
convenient locality fur the holding of such
au exhibition. In this respect it is now
well provided, and its convenience has been
further increased by the liberality of the West
Midland Company, which has run a short line
to the show-yard for the conveyance of heavy goods
and cattle. Though not famous itself for any par-
ticular treads of cattle, its vales, particularly that
of the Severn, amend of meadows and pastures of
an extremely rich quality, and no one could make
even a temporary run through the county without
perceiving that it is smooth in field, fair in garden,
and full in orchard. Rising from the river Severn,
which flows by the town with a " sweet inland
murmur," end surrounded by distant hills, it would
seem to be the naturalcentreof &prosperous agricul-
tural district. It is also a cathedral town, and some-
how or other cathedral towns, at least in the rural
districts, have become associated with agriculture
more than any other industry. The very words "pas-
tor," " paatoralt" " fold, " flock," "sheep," and
"rural " deane.nee have exhibited this connexion
between the church and the country, from the meet
ancient times ; but a recent inhibition from
" mitred Rochester" would seem to indicate that
the analogy is altogether wrong, and that farming is
one of the mundane professions from which the
clergy should keep aloof. Agriculture is, however,
for the moment in the ascendant, and no one here
talks of anything but the show. The preparations
for the decoration of the city have been busily
pushed forward within the last day or two, and the
result bee been very successful. The banners,
flags, Arc., that made so goodly a show
on the 10th of March, were brought out
of store, and the Tything, Foregate-street,
the Ones, Broad-street, High-street,Sidbury, and the
London road, end other thorongbfaree, ale once
more made to wear a festive and holiday appear-
ance. On the present occasion the decorations
were not confined to private effort, as triumphal
arches have been erected at the expense of the cor-
poration. The first of these is a towering struc-
ture at the Cross, substantially built of wood, but
crowned with evergreens, and surmounted with
flags and the words, " Welcome to the Royal
Agricultural Society of England." Another arch
placed at the end of High-street, by the cathedral,
and is much the same in character. A third is
erected at the entrance to Battenball-lane—the
roadway to the show-yard. Sidbury-bridge is also
improved by ornameutation, and the Guildhall.
which lately has had its venerable and
picturesque Octet freshened up with paint,
has not been neglected. The arrangements
for the public decoration are under the management
of Mr. Chamberlain, Mr. R. Joselaud, the corpo-
ration architect, Mr. Rowe, and other gentlemen ;
and they are very creditable. Perhaps the prettiest
ornamentations, however, are at the exterior of
the Foregateailway Station, where the decora-
tions are extremely tasteful. The Shrub-hill Sta-
tion has also been decorated with a profusion of
evergreens, ihc. The whole city, in fact, wears a
holiday appearance.
The show ground is situate in Battenhall-lane,
about three-quarters of a mile from Worcester-
cross, and a few yards distant from the turnpike-
gate on the London road. The ground is laid out
in three dertnients—the trial yard, the imple-
ment yard, and the stock yard. The yards
occupy fields on the right-hand side of
the road, the property of Sir John Sehright.
The site has not only been well selected for
convenience, but for picturesqueness of effect.
There is a very fine view from the high ground of
the show yards of a well wooded eminence above
Berwick's Bridge, of the towers and steeples of
Worcester, and of the distant range of the Malvern
Hills. There is a greater extent of ground occupied
fur the purpose of this show than for any previous
exhibition of the Royal Society, there being more
than 20 acres devoted to the exhibition of imple-
ments and machinery in motion, and upwards of
lb scree for the show of live stock of every de-
scription. The whole is enclosed in • wooden
fence, 8 feet high, and some idea may be
formed of the magnitude of the exhibition
when it is stated that from end to end a space of
nearly half a ndle has to be traversed, and that the
implement sheds alone, if placed end to end, would
extend a length of nearly two mike The arrange-
ments were most completeinside. There was ample
space for cattle, judges, visitors, and not the least
inconvenience was felt by anyone. It may be men-
tioned that the entire temporary road (leading from
the London road), made for the occasion, was on
both sides lined with refreshment booths, shooting
galleries, travelling exhibitions, menageries, and all
those minor exhibitions which have so great an
attraction for tLe rural swains and lasses.

Nominally the show was opened on Wednesday
last, in reality it opened only to-day. The three
days of last week were devoted to the preliminary
trials of machines and steam cultivators, but ex-
cept those who were immediately interested in the
result nobody was attracted to the scene. The
aspect of the place to-day, however, was quite dif-
ferent. Though only open to exhibitors and those
who could aftord to pay the balf•guiuee entrance
fee, the allow yard presented a very brisk,

[TWOPENCE

animated, and picturesque appearance. The judges
were punctually in the yards at 8 o'clock,
and commenced the arduous and often perplexing
labour of selecting the prizes. To give anything
like a minute detail to-day of a show which con-
tains no less than 5,839 items is the implement
department, and 1,219 in the stook department,
would be simply impossible. We must therefore
confine our observations to some general remarks
on the stock show. Of shorthorns there
were altogether 152, divided into eight dump
viz. :-1. Bulls above 3 and not exceeding 8 years
old, of which there were 13. 2. Bulls above 2 and
not exceeding 3 years old, of which there were 15.
3. Bulls above I and not exceeding 2 years old,
of which there were 28. 4. Bull salves above 8
and not exceeding 12 months old, of which
there were 35. 5. (lows above 3 years old,
of which there were seven. 6. Heifers in milk or in
calf, not exceeding 3 years old, of which there were
17. 7. Yearling heifers, of which there were 17.
& Heifer calves above 6 and under 12 months old,
of which there were 20. The whole of the short
horns are contained in the shedsnumberecl from 00
to SS. Then come the Herefords, of which there is
afine display, divided like the short horns into eight
classes—L Bulls above3and not exceeding 6 years,
of whieh there are five spe6mena. 2. Bulls above 2
and not exceeding 3, of which there are ten. 3.
Balls above 1 and not exceeding 2, of which there
are 15. 4. Bull calves above 8 and not exceeding
12 months, of which there are 19. 5.
Cows above 3 years, of which there are 13. 6.
Heifers in milk or in calf, of which there are 1L
7. Yearling heifers, of which there are 17.
8. Heifer calves above 6 and under 12 months, of
which there are 8, making altogether 96 specimens
of the Hereford breed, which are contained in sheds
SS to W. Next come the Devon', which, like the
others, are divided into eight similar classes, con-
taining respectively 5,2, 9,6, 7,6, 6 and 8, or 49
samples of this class These are contained in sheds
from VV to WW. Of the Sussex breed there are
five classes, two of bulls, one of cows, one of
heifers, and one of yearling heifers. There are 4in
the first class (bulls above 2 and not exceeding 6
years), 1 in the second, 4 in the third, 2 in
the fourth, and 3 in the fifth class, making
14 altogether, and to be found in shed
WW. Of " other established breeds" there
are likewise five similar classes contained in sheds
lettered from WWtoA A A. There are 11 spe-
cimens in Class 1, six in Class 2, 23 in Class 3,
23 in Class 4, and ten in Class 4—making altoge-
ther 73. It may be said of the show of cattle gene-
rally that the animals represent the highest types
for symmetry, flesh, sleekness, and beauty of
colouring. There was also a tine display of sheep
and pigs. The horses, however, were the portion
of the stock which attracted most attention. The
show was large, and the specimens fine. " Neville,"
the winner of the 1001. prize, is a splendid animal,
and attracted universal admiration.