The Express.
London, England, 1851-05-09 00:00:00

Lot John Ru .ell.

Mr. Law and a Deputation had an interview with Lord
Seymour yesterday, at the office of lier Majesty's Commis-
sioners of Woods and Forests.

ENTERTAINMENT AT THE MANSION-
ROUSE TO TIER MAJESTY'S JUDGES.

Yesterday evening the hospitable doom of the
Mansion-house were thrown open for the reception of her
Majesty's judges, who were entertained at a banquet
marked with all the splendour and taste of civic hospita-
lity by the Right Hon. the Lord Mayor. There were pre-
sent the Lord Chancellor, the Right lion. Lord Campbell,
Lady Stratheden, the Hon. Miss Campbell, Lord and Lady
Cranworth, Sir Frederick and Lady Pollock, Right lion.
Sir George and Lady Turner, Mr. Justice Venetian, Mr.
Justice Wightanan and Lady Wightman, Mr. Justice Erie
and Lady Erie, Mr. Justice Williams and Lady Williams,
Mr. Justice Talfourd and Lady Talfourd, Baron and Lady
Parke, Baron and Lady Alderson, Baron and Lady Martin,
Sir Fitzroy and Lady Kelly, the Right lion. Dr. Lashing-
ton, M.P., Mr. Serjeant Lioulhurn, Sir Harvey Bruce,
Bart., and Lady Bruce, Mr. Commissioner Fonblatique,
Mr. Commissioner liolroyd, the Dean of St. Paul's, Right
lion. Sir Edward Ryan, Mr. Serjeant Manning, Mr. ser-
jeant Murphy, M. 1., Mr. Serjeant Shee, Mr. Ser-
jeant Gaselee, Mr. Serjcant Clarke, Mr. Ser-
jeant &nazis, Mr. Serjeant Allen, J. Evans, Esq.,
Q.C., M.P., J. Roebuck, Esq., Q.C., M.P., James W
Freshfield, Esq., M.P., the High Sheriff of Surrey and
Mrs. Sparkes, the High Sheriff of Kent and Mrs. Ford
Wilson, the High Sheriff of E"sex and Mrs. Iloneywood,
Mr. and Mrs. Garton!, Dr. Phillimore, the Governor of the
Bank of England, Chairman of the East India Company,
Deputy-Chairman of the East India Company, Mr. and
Mrs. Gerard Lyth kker, together with most of the aldermen
and London magistrates.
On the removal of the cloth the Right lion. the LORD
MAYOR gave "The Queen," "Prince Albert," and the
other loyal and constitutional toasts, which were all duly re-
sponded to ; after which
His LORDSHIP rose to propose the health of tho distin-
guished guests in whose honour the present company had
assembled. The people of this country had long (he said)
been accustomed to look upon respect for the law as the
great palladium of their liberties, and therefore he felt sure
of a hearty response when he proposed the health of those
who were the law's brightest exponents. (Hear.) Need
he say more than to propose the health of her Majesty's
Judges. The toast herbag been duly honoured,
The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE of ENGLAND rose
to return thanks. He begged, in his own name,
and in that of the whole judicial bench, to return
his grateful acknowledgments for the gracious manner in
which the toast had been received. He had been exceed-
ingly rejoiced to receive the Lord Mayor's hospitable invi-
tation, because it was a proof that the conduct of the body
to which he belonged had met with the approval of the City
of London. (Hear, hear.) He was gratified to think that
the connexion between the judges of the land and the Lord
Mayor and aldermen of the City of London was no affair of
yesterday. From ancient times the City of London had a
court of high criminal judicature, in which the Lord Mayor
presided, assisted by the aldermen; while there were some,
and most solemn, occasions upon which the judges of the
land went along with the civic authorities to St. Paul's, to
offer up their prayers to the Almighty for a blessing on
their combined exertions.
The LORD MAYOR, in proposing the next toast, " The
House of Lords," said that they had amongst them a dis-
tinguished individual who had recently taken his seat is the
upper house of parliament. He felt sure that the merit of
that individual were too well known to require lengthened
eulogy from him. He gave, " Lord Cranworth, and the
House of Lords."

Lord CRANWORTII returned thanks.
The LORD CHIEF JUSTICE rose to propose a toast
which he was sure required nothing more than its announce-
ment to procure it a welcome reception. The post of chief
magistrate of the City of London was always one of the
greatest importance, but never more so than during the re-
cent season, when London was being visited by strangers
from every quarter of the globe. On the continent, there
was no office of dignity in England held in such high esti-
mation as that of Lord Mayor of London. He remembered
the late Sir S. Romilly, then at the height of his fame, telling I
him that a French gentleman, an earned admirer of his,
once exclaimed, " I hope, Sir Samuel, you may one day
reach the post of Lord Mayor of London, and that, if not
so successful, you may at least come to be Lord Chancellor."
(Loud laughter.) Ile (Lord Campbell) trusted that after
their visit of the present year the foreigners would return
home with a still more exalted idea of the dignity of the
Lord Mayor of London. (Hear, hear.) He believed that
the office had never been filled by a man who united high
ability with greater suavity of deportment, or a more
earnest desire properly to fulfil the duties of his high of-
fice. He had great pleasure in proposing to them " The
Lord Ma or." (Loud cheers.)
The LORD MAYOR felt deeply indebted to the distin•
guished proposer of his health, and to the company for
the manner in which they had received it. His lordship,
in conclusion, gave the health of Sir S. Lushingtan and the
Ecclesiastical and Admiralty Courts.
Sir S. LUSHINGTON felt grateful for the honour done
to his office and to himself, but could not help attributing
some of his lordship's friendly feeling to old acquaintance.
Sixteen years ago the present Lord Mayor of London
proposed him (Sr S. Lushington) for the Tower Hamlets,
and at different times since he had had warm proofs of his
lordship's friendly feeling. He felt gratified to enjoy the
confidence of the citizens of London, because he bad almost
every day to decide on cases in which their most important
interests were concerned.
" The Lady Mayoress" was then given, and appro-
priately acknowledged, after which
The LORD MAYOR gave " Her Majesty's ancient ler-
jeant and the cents at law."
Scejeant MANNING returned thanks, and freely took
up the challenge of hospitality thrown out to Serjeants
Inn. He regretted that of four halls they had been de-
prived of three, but with the one they had remaining they
would endeavour to uphold the hospitality of the coif.
The next toast was " The Government and Company of
the Bank of
Mr. T. HA.l42ll7ll:eturaed thanks, and shortly deer the
company separated.

PRINCE ALBERT ON THE ROYAL ACADEMY.

From an account sent by a correspondent to a
morning contemporary of the anniversary dinner given on
Saturday by the members of the Royal Academy of Arts,
and from which reporters were excluded, we learn that the
chairman, SirCif A atm LocK EAtITLAC it, the new president, I
after the Queen's health bad been drunk with all loyal en-
thusiasm, proposed the health of the Prince Consort, who
was present, as follows : 1
" I have now, gentlemen, the honour to propose to you
'The health of his Royal Highness Prince Albert and the
rest of the Royal Family.' Ilia royal highness's liberal
and habitual encouragement of art is universally known.
If that disposition on the part of his royal highness be I
greatly attributable to a genuine love for the fine arts, it also
arises, I venture to say, front a conviction of their utility as
auxiliaries in the work of national education. The same en- f
larged view looks to the benefits to be derived from the ap-
plication of science and art to manufactures, and sees in that ,
application the elements of social improvement as well as
commercial advantages. The great scheme for bringing
together the productions of the world's industry, the
interesting results of which most of those whom I have the
honour to address have already had the gratification of
inspecting, owes its success hitherto to the support which it
his received fruit his royal highness.La support, gentlemen,
which has been manifested, nut in a mere nominal patron-
age, not alone in good wishes, but also in active participa-
tion in the labour of superintendence. And, with reference
to such labours, let me be permitted to add that, in the per-
formance of official duties undertaken by him, his royal
!Ilcas bring' to the subjects requiring his attention not
yizhnowledge and intelligence, but equauimity and bIIIC.
volence--qualities calculated at all times to promotu the sa-
tisfactory despatch of business and to effect the solution of
difficulties, but which, in one of his royal highness'sexalted
station, acquire a much higher value from the admirable
influence of such an example.
'f be PRINCE replied to the tout in a speech which was
received with much enthusiasm. He said,—Mr. President,
my lords, and gentlemen, you have been very kind in
responding with so much warmth to the toast which your
president has just proposed to you, and he will allow
me to thank him very cordially for the flattering expres-
sions which he used towards myself in introducing to you
that toast. I shall feel very happy if the future should prove
that tho Great Exhibition, to which all nations have so gene-
rously contributed, should, among other advantages which I
firmly I ope will result from it, likewise tend to assist in the
promotion of the fine arts in this country, of which you are
the representatives; and I feel proud that we can show to
the many foreigners who are now visiting our shores speci-
mens of British art such as these walls display. Although I
have, since my first arrival in this country, never once missed
visiting the exhibition of the Royal Aoadcmy, and have
always derived the greatest pleasure and instruction from
those visits, it is but seldom that my engagements will allow
me to join in your festive dinner. I have, however, upon
this occasion, made it a point to do so, in order to assist in
what may be considered the inauguration festival of your
newly-elected president, nt whose election I have heartily
rejoiced, not only on account of my high estimate of his
qualities, but also on account of my feelings of regard towards
him personally. It would be presumptuous in me to speak to
you of his talent as an artist, for that is well known to you,
and of it you are the best judges; tar of his merits as an
author, for you are all familiar with his books—or, at least,
ought to be so ; or of his amiable character as a man, for
that also you must have had opportunities to estimate; but
my connexion with him, now for nine years, on her
Majesty's Commission for the Promotion of the Fine Arts,
has enabled me to know what you can know less, and what
is of the greatest value in a president of the Itoyal Academy
—1 mean that kindness of heart and refinement of feeling
which guided him in all his communications, often most
difficult and delicate, with the different artists whom we
had to invite to competition, whose works we had to criti-
cise, whom we had to empty or to reject. Gentlemen, the
production of all works in art or poetry requires, in their
conception or execution, not only an exercise of the intel-
lect, skill, and patience, but particularly a concurrent
warmth of feeling, and a free flow of imagination. This
renders them must tender Omits, which will thrive only
in au atmosphere calculated to maintain that warmth, and
that atutospherc is one of kindness—kindness towards the
artist personally, as well as towards his production. An
unkind word of criticism passes like a cold blast over their
tender shoots, and shrinks them up, checking the flow of
the sap which was rising to produce, perhaps, multitudes of
flowers and fruit. But still criticism is absolutely neces-
sary to the development of art, and the injudicious praise
of an inferior work becomes au insult to superior genius.
In this respect our times are peculiarly unfavourable
when compared with those when Madonnas were painted it
the seclusion of converts; for we have now, ou the one
hand, the eager competition of a vast array of artists of
every degree of talent and skill,and, on the other, as judge,
a great public, for the greater part wholly uneducated In
art ; and this led by professional writers, who often strive
to impress the public with a great idea of their own
artistic knowledge, by the merciless manner in which they
treat weeks which cost those who produced them the
highest efforts of mind and feeling. fhe works of art, by
being publicly exhibited and offered for sale, are becoming
articles of trade, following as such the unreasoning laws of
markets and fashion, and public, and even private, patron-
age is swayed by their tyrannical influence. It is, then, to
an institution like this, gentlemen, that we must look for a
counterpoise to these evils. Here young artists are educated
and taught the mysteries of their profession; those who
have distinguished themselves, and given proof of their
talent and power, receive a badge of acknowledgement from
their professional brethren by being elected associates of the
Academy, and are at last, after long toil and continued
exertion, received into a select aristocracy of a limited
number, and shielded in any further struggle by their well-
established reputation, of which the letters ' R.A.' attached
to their names give a ',ledge to the public. If this body is
often assailed from without, it shares only the fate of every
aristocracy; if more than another, this only proves that it
is even more difficult to sustain an aristocracy of merit than
one of birth oe of wealth, and may serve as a useful cheek
upon yourselves, when tempted at your elections to let per-
sonal predilections compete with real merit. Of one thing,
however, you may rest assured, and that is the continued
favour of the crown. The same feelings which actuated
George 111. in founding this institution still actuate the
crown in continuing to it its pato onage and support, recog-
nising in you a constitutional link, us it were, between the
crown itself and the artistic body. And, when I look at
the ameniblage of guests at this table, I may infer that the
crown does not stand alone in this respect, but that those
feelings are shared also by the great and noble in the land.
May the Academy long flourish and continue its career of
usefulness."

Various toasts followed, and towards the clove of the
evening, in speaking to the toast of " The Possessors of
Collections of Pictures who occasionally throw open their
Galleries to the Public," Lord WESTMINSTER stated that his
gallery was open every Thursday to those who honoured
him by desiring to view it, and regretted that he could nut
throw open its contents more frequently. He agreed in all
that had fallen from Lord John Russell on the subject, and
expressed the interest with which he viewed the prevalence
of that good understanding among the artists of all coun-
tries which the Great Estubition was sure to exend, and
of which the presence of two pictures by Russian artists
in the Academy Exhibition of this year was a gratifying
evidence.

Sir Charles Eastlake quitted the chair at 10 o'clock, and
the mectiug broke up.

THE DIOCESAN SYNOD AT EXETER.—EXETER,
Tut,itenxv, MAY B.—The Bishop of Exeter has now com-
pleted his arrangements for the forthcoming diocesan Synod,
to be held here on the 25th, 26th, and 27th of June. His
lordship has ordered that each of the following deaneries
shall elect two clergymen as representatives :—Aylesbeare,
Cadbury, Exeter, Dnnkeswell, Dunsford, Honiton, Kenne,
l'lymtree, Tiverton, Barnstaple, Chumhigh, Holsworthy,
liertland, Shirwel, South Moltnn, Torrington, Ipplepen,
Morton, Oakbampton, PlyUlpton (Plymouth), Tannerton,
Tavistock, Totton (Totness), W.mdleigh, East Cornwall,
West Cornwall, Trigge Major, Trigge Minor, Pydre,
Powdre, Kerner, and Penwithe. The right of election is
to be vested in tho clergy holding preferments within the
several deaneries. The bishop, in his address to the clergy,
says—l appeal to you for counsel on the greatest question
that has ever been brought before the consideration
of the church of England—at least since the ad-
justment of our articles, and our book of Common Prayer.
I need not tell you that the bishop and his clergy, with the
people, arc a complete church; perhaps, in some respects,
more to be recognised as such than a national church,
because we all know that a diocesan church is the appoint-
ment of God himself—a national church we believe to be
in full accordance with the gracious will of God, carrying
out, under his directions, his great views, but still it is not
appointed to us in Scripture. I look upon that as a human
institution, upon our own diocesan church as a divine insti-
tution. I believe that one great article of our creed, " One
baptism for the remission of sins," has been at least ignored
as such by the highest tribunal to decide on points of faith
that the state in this country knows. I believe it is our
duty to declare whether we assent or not to the denial—the
virtual denial of that great article of our creed. The synod
will consist of nearly 200 persons, 62 of whom will be
elected by the clergy. The other members will be the Very
Rev. T. 11. Lowe, the dean; Hey. W. J. Phillpotts, M.A.,
the precentor, the chancellor of the church ; tke Rev. E. C.
Harrington, M.A., the five canons, the Venerable J. M.
Stevens, Archdeacon of Exeter; the Ven. It. M. Fronde
M.A., Archdeacon of Totness; the Ven. W. J. Phillpotts,,
M.A., Archdeacon of Cornwall; the Ven. J. Bartholomew,
Archdeacon of Barnstaple ; the sub-dean, the bishop's
chaplains, and 31 rural deans. The election of representa-
tives will not take place until the beginning of June.

CALLS TO ME BAE.—Tho Easter Term calls to
the bar of the Hon. Society of Lincoln's Inn were made
yesterday (May 8), and they comprise the after-mentioned
gentlemen : Henry It. Farrer, M.A., John G. Mayo, Esq.,
Thomas P. Beckworth, 8.A., Townley Yilgate, M.A.,
Frank W. Bush, M.A., Francis S. Reilly, M.A., Francis
H. Appeal, M.A., Henry Wilbraham, MA., Joseph N.
Higgins, 8.A., Thomas W. Wiglssworth, M.A., and James
W. Langworthy, Esq.

1 BILUESPEARE A THOIIOI7OII SAmon.—Let me point 1
attention to a genuine nautical expression, in the nee of
which Shakspearo shows himself a thorough Uilor :

• Th;wind sits in the shoulder of your mil."
" Hamlet," set I, sc. 3.
Ina " fore and aft sail" of the present day the " shoulder"
is the foremost upper corner, and the last part of the can-
vas on which the wind fixes its influence when a vessel is
sailing by the wind, or e►en of the wind." The " veriest
lout" in the " afterguard" will appreciate the truthfulness
and beauty of the metaphor. .Notes and Queries.

SECOND EDITION.