The Express.
London, England, 1853-11-17 00:00:00

SOCIETY OF ARTS.

EXHIBITION OF NOVELTIES.
Neetertlay evening the fire! meeting of the society
i. , the pftAtD, season, being its one hundredth session, was
bi'd at the society's house. Ade'phi, and was very fully
i.;.hd.d. The exhibition of inventions patented or in.
vented since the last season was exceedingly well filled,
std attracted very general curiosity and approbation. It
isi hided a cutuiderah.e number of motive machines, and
usher iaveutions connected with steam and railway nieeha-
Iwo. thhihd ng many adaptations of the screw pfo;4fiftir,
2,,,,, hthhattig i
sex important an agent la oceanic navigation.
Sees rsl handsome models were exhibited of railway carriage.,
and also of steam engines. Amongst othen one of a pair of
witlatieg ermines made by Mews. Penn for her Majesty's
~.,w steamer Sob's:. Mr. M'Cennel, of the London and
:sad, Western Railway, exhibits a model of a powerful ex-
press locomotive, wnich is expected to do the distance between
London sail Bibe rmingham (112 miles) in two hours. It is
sotidactury to able to add that the attention of our ma-
chinists has been mach directed to the prevention of amid.
duo, .in railways by Mesas of new buffers, breaks, springs,
h, . is a very large portion of the available space is filled
it: 91 k ontriveneee of this description, all indicating a great
alsinre towarils the siltation of that all-important
pr„iewrs, safety in railway travelling. In the de-
partment of manufacturing machines and tools, the
Ir...do:irking machines take, es might be expected,
a I ',minim, place. The well-known Lancashire sewing
machine is also exhibited, end near it a washing machine,
to complete the operation of automatic shirt.makiag. The
department of building contrivances is rich is new invite-
t,.,,, -bricks, iron hoboes, doors, ventilators, Le , together
with mane important inventions is shipbuilding. Rifles,
&haus, capstans, are included in this miscellaneous col-
kolas ; in which will also be found an ingenious flats"
meat for measuring the speed of a vessel at sea, and in.
tended to supersede, or at least to check, the rather sumer-
tam process of heating the lead. The philosophical instru-
ments include some contrivances foe the amelioration of
spinal discus by Dr. Caplin, a portable appasstus for en-
'bliss the bleed to write, and various models of locks, of
more or less degree of complicity. A patent detector till,
for the prevention of fraud and the discovery of base
em, will be ;utterly looked after by our fee-
Tandy victimised tradesmen, and some portable fur-
adore will remind the spectator of an invention introduced
by Butner Jonathan at the late Exhibition, and which at
the time hardly received the amount of attention it de-
mand. The siocellanemodepartment contaier. many curious
a .rilties, giving to the whole exhibition • character of un-
usual variety sad importance.
Its chair was taken by Hr. HARRY CIIIIITER, who,
having first sod the minutes of the previous meeting, pro-
ne led to deliver the following address :
Ilaviag apologised for the abeam from the chair of Cap-
tain Owen, the chairman said that the Imadrulth session of
the society was now opened. The" public spirit" of Wil-
liam Saipley, who is said to have been • drawing minter,
and brother to the Bishop of St. Asaph, " gave rise to the
&nifty" of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce, in 1763.
Th- best meths( was held on the 29th of March, 1756, at
Rawthmell's Coffee house, in Henrietta-street, Covent-
guileo. In 1643 the society had the honour of electing as
its; resident her Majesty's eonsort, his Royal Highness
Prince Albert, than whom it might jast:y be said—
" Nemo est ',interim miss yogis pinespe."
The society did Minh to excite among the nobility and
gentry a knowledge and love of art elder measares
adopted for this peoples gold and ether came offered
for the best and seemil beet diewins,el erg Mod, by yoaag
gentlemen, the sons and of mein er menem,
iced by young ladies, the RpandignOsses he
lia
peen or geneses. Many time ima Vera claimed
and received. Similar medals and money awards were
given for drawings by the seas and daughters of commoners
of the higher, middle, and tower clasees. In many of these
cases the maximum of age was fixed at fourteen, sixteen,
eighteen ; in others, no limit of ape was declared. Par-
ticular encouragement was held out to young persons who
were desirous or becoming artists, and great stress was laid
at en early period upon the application of art to the im-
provement of design in manufactures. Nor were the ma-
terials and mechanical appliances of art forgotten by the
Society of Arts. It put forth many suggestions of dui.
ilerata ; offered many rewards, and rewarded many in-
ventions and improvements is that direction. The re•
putation acquired by. artists whose works were men
and criticised in the society's room., before sad after adja.
die ,tion, occasioned an application to be made for an exhi-
bition to beheld in the large room. This was granted,
gratuitously, for several years, and the first public exhibi-
tion of the works of British artists in the metropolis was
held at the Society's House, in the Strand, in 1710; and
"hence mese," it was said, "the maul exhibition' eft e
rival sidle." la 1776 the society proposed to the members
of the Beyl Academy, which had bun instituted in 1768, -•
and whisk appears to have sprung from the Society of Arts, I
that they Sheath paint the great council-room, and be I
fellikenenallail by the public exhibition of their works therein.
The Amboy, with Sir Joshua Reynolds at its head, re-
heed thispopesel; bat, in the following year, Bury, who ~
bid slimed the refuel with the rest, volunteered to decorate
the atlas without my ressaeration at all. The " Hand-
book of Landon" stated that when he made his offer
Wish was aseepted) be had but 16s. in his pocket.
Ail sorts of arta, soleness, and inanufac uses bed been es-
owned and impend i and the Seal anneme distributed
in premiums and bounties eansiderably eneenini the ens
0100,000 L Medals were ars given, on the maim of Mr.
Baker, in 1756. The first gold medal, whisk wan designed
and presented to the society by Flausaa, was awarded, In
1755, to Lord Folkestone, " for eminent services •" and the
first silver one was presented, in 1757, to Lady Lemke
Grenville "for a drawing." The Free Economical i=
of St. Petersburg was established in 1786, upon the
and in consequence of the meccas, of the Society a Ann.
and many of the institutions of the United Hindus owed
their existence to its example and usiouragesseat. As an
example of what had been due is this way, he need only
specify the formation of the Photegrephic Society, which
was founded within these walls, at the conclusion
of their late Exhibition of Photography, the first
of its kind that had ever been held in this country.
It was unnecessary to remind them of the distinguished
part which was played by the society in reference to the
Great Exhibition. Here originated the ceanexion between
our illustrious maiden% sad the ether founders and con-
ductors of that wonderful enteembe and almost every
name that was familiar to their as having had an
important shank' the glories of that gembest work of these
times was to be km& en the yell of ger members. After
esse theareatimem the peat extent to which the infin-
ite*, of the embilly bed been felt in the colonies and foreign
countries, the Asinine premissied to say,—The council of
the torrent year would 41111110‘14111 to carry on with good
vigour what had been SeMenendliell with good judgment;
and, at their retirement, to lame behind them some things
worthy of record. They would folly consider the results
of the Exhibition at Dublin, with a view to their profitable
am. They felt deep interest in the muss of the intended
Exhibition at Paris, sad desired that the arts, manufactures,
and commerce of the United Kingdom and its dependen-
cies might be fully and boisourebly represented in
it. They would also readily assist the promotors
of peovintial exhibitions which might be held in connexion
with any of the enasiated institistloos. The efforts of the
society would be continued to procure an amendment of the
law of partnership; to peepers the mind of the public far
the adoption of a decimal system of weight., measures,
coins, and accounts; and to abolish thou taxes, .. g. the
dati. s on paper, which were specially injurious to arts,
commerce, and manufactures. The quinquennial Bwiney
prise, of 1001. sterling, contained in • goblet of the same
value (designed by Mr. Macßae, ILA.), will be adjudged
by the council, in January next, to the author of the best
üblished work on jurisprudence, attention being parties.
Poly dirt clad to that branch of jurisprudence which relates
to arts and manufactures. Those applications of science and
art by which the well-being of our poorer brethren
who laboured In our towns, villages, fields, mines, and
ships, might be promoted in the improvement of
house., clothing, food, fuel, instruction, amusement,
and health, were deeply intenstiag to this ...icy.
The progress of mechanics( invention, and the applications
of machinery to arts, manufactures, and trades, and to the
uses of daily life, were now more important than ever.
The " sulk. s'• which afflicted the manufacturing districts
were regarded by the council with deep regret. The machete
felt an equal interest in the well-being of the mailers and
men. Experience of the past evils of former strikes was
found insufficient to prevent their recurrence ; but it might
be hoped that, when we had • real education of the people,
these lamentable spectacles would be no more men ; and it
was worth conjecturing whether, when education wan im-
proved,
an amendment of the law of unlimited liability,
and the introduction of partnerships en commandite, by
placing the mu in the position of masters in such partner-
skips, might sot have some effect towards restraining work-
men from taking up, as such, a position which was inconsis-
tent with the essential conditions of mastership, and had en
imesitahle tendency to destroy the means of employment.
The council was thoroughly convinced that an improved
education for the whole people, rich and poor, adult and
Akild, was the first requisite for the improvement of menu-
:lactate., commerce, and arts; that • liberal measure of
fitelssice must eater into that education ; and that it was the
elate of the society to promote vigorously this great civet.
la the pursuit of this purpose they ought to be powerfully
• sated by the associated Detainee. It was important that
they should continue to du what they did at priest; bet
et ey might do it better, and do more. They generally
lamunteri that they were unable to maintain in eflaiency
their Clarets for systematic inst-ection. The mused. .was
of opinion that the mechanic, artisan, or labourer had at
precut no sufficiently obvious inducement to suss con-
tinuous MUM'S in his local institute. His promotes educa-
tion had not prepared him for it. There was
little or no emulation to incite him; no exerninetions
to teat his progress; no certificates nor diplomas to
reeved it, on present and tangible rewards fur his success.
Wanting such encouragements, the youth who, after hi.
daily wink, purely for the love of knowledge, parelleri it
an regular attendance at his institute, was a hero of no
stun order ; and suck youths were not abundant is any
thus of society. It was hoped that during the present m-
elon the council might be aMe to establish a system whereby
examinations might be held ia several districts, and certifi-
cates of proaress and attainments, and possibly prises,
might be awarded to the eleglotudente of the institugMi