The Express.
London, England, 1865-01-05 00:00:00

LOAD PAutsaaroN AND THE ISONSEY LA-
BOUM!: ENCOURAGEMENT ASSOCIATION.

SOMBER, WigwamAt_

Lord Palmerston presided this afternoon at the
eleveatkaainaldietributinu of prises givesby the Libation'
Eacduragement Association to the labourers in the district,
for prollaiesoy in agriculture, length of service, L.
Upwards of aixty labourers and their wives were eater.
Lined at dhow in the new Corn Exchange. At the rem
dodos of the entertainment, and after distributing the
Pawl.
Lord PALMILIPTOI spoke of the benefits to themselves
and to the awantry anderred by thaw who had that day
*Wised prises. He Warned on their duty of giving
their children the bed duration they could, particularly In
raiding, writing, sad arithmetic. In writing he thought
the instruction now given was not the most useful. ail-
tree (said Ms lordship) who are taught to mite are
taught to make up-strokes nee, and down-strokes
bed ; the coesequenoe of which is that writing often
leeks like as sees Mlles, a hale lying on one tide,
se that it is &Moult for the eye to make out the
letters of which that writing professes to De composed.
(Lashler.) Children should be taught to write • large
head, I. form each letter well, and sever to
aged 'Dither it looks beautiful or not. If it
answers OS wpm it being eerily reed, that is the
Wag 'bids ought to be aimed at. (Cheers.) Now, with-
melds is le every dais • most useful attainment, and not
merely that arithmetic which consists in chalking down
figures epee • slate and writing them in ink upon • piece of
paper ; but that which is valuable to • man especially en-
gaged in industrial panaile is the power in his owe mind
of making a ready sad 'say aaloulatios of the matter at
which he mats to arrive at • couclusios. (Cheers.) TIM
is entirely • habit—a habit easily acquired to • certain ex-
tent if boys are only taught in • proper way to arrive at it,
not by fancying in their own minds that they see before
them • slate with figures, and performing the same
proms which they would perform upon • piece
of paper, het by building up, as it were,
bit by bit in their own minds the calculation at which they
wish to arrive, and they will find that the easiest thing is
the world,up to • wide limited extent. (Hear). T mean M-
asao of that in the model school in Dublin. The mental
arithmetic cleat was called up, and the muter asked the
boys—urchins some two feet and • hall high, and now
mare than 12 years old—many qualities whlok were as.
mooed moat readily. At last he said, "Now, boys—tight-
pesos • day—what is that is four years r Now that
la exactly the sort of calculation that agricultural labourers
have to make In an incredibly short space of time four
boys held up their Lode as • token that they had made the
calculation in their own minds. Three el them
mentioned the MOO mum The fourth mentioned •
differeet ma. The mater said to the fourth boy,
" You are wrong." The boy said, "I am sot wrong:,
" Well, said the master," if you are not wrong, prove it."
The boy said, "In four years there is • leap year, and I
have added Bd. for the leap year." (Laughter.) Well, I
say that habit of mind, and that faculty c 4 combination' is
• mast useful thing, particularly for thane who are engagedsed
In Industrial occupalleas. (Haar, beer.) They eta oaks.
Isle what • ditch ought to oat for • certain diatoms. There
is he matter of agricultural employment in which that
power of mental calculation may not be usefully employed.
Well, then, education is an exoelleot thing, but that is not
ell that children ought to be taught. They should also be
taught good aoudad—good conduct is taught in many ways ;
at least in two ways--firet, by prom it, and then more
powerfully by example. Now, you all oss give your
children good precept,. because the rules of good oondust in
life are plain mid simple. The difference bete's" right and
wrong, between good ociadast and bed sooduct, is intuitively
and instinctively knows to all, and therefore you have the
metes of instilling those erisoiples into your children ; bat
you have also the assistance of those ministers of religion
belonging to different creeds, who are ready said always
occupied in madding paresis to give that good isstructios
and good advice to their children. But whatever good ad-
vice you may give your children, if the parents pursue •
bad and rootless course of conduct, domed upon it the
children will follow the example instead of following the
advice. They will turn oat ill, and probably worse
than the parsed whose example they are imitating.
There are few principles of human nature droner
thee that of imitation, and where children see • man and wife
quarrelling—the mother dirty and the father drunken, and
the house uncomfortable, it is not in human nature possible
that those children should be, the girls clean and well con-
ducted, the sous sober, honest, and industrious. (Hear,
hear.) It is unseemeary to press these things upon you,
because you who have gained the. rewards are men and
women whose conduce in the put is • security for your
good 'deduct in the future, and gives • certainty that your
example will be as good as your advice, and that your fami-
lies will be • comfort and honour to yourselves and • benefit
to the community of which you are members. (Cheers.)
But your example will not be confined, as
your precept, will be, to your own families.
Your example will spread throughout the district
to which you belong. Yoa must, therefore, think—and it
is • satiafactory tad cessoling reflection to have in your
minds—that while by good conduct and by well bringing up
your children, you are contributing to your own advantage,
and contributing to the honour of your families, you are
also spreading an example which will be metal to the whole
district, and through that district to the whole country, of
which you will therefore be worthy members. (Cheers.)
Well, friends and neighbours, I have nothing further to
say to you. lam aware that much of what I have said is
useless to you who do not require it. But still truths,
however deeply they may be engraven on the minds of men,
are sometimes usefully repeated, and therefore I think we
do well on these occasions to remind you of those princi-
ples of which I have no doubt you are all conscious, and
which cannot be too of tea impressed upon the hearts and
minds of all clime of her Majesty's subjects. (Load
cheers.)

On the =Cow of the Rev. Mr. £MP3OI, n vote of thanks
Ina given to Lord Palmerston, who brießy wcknowLdged the
compliment.

A large number of the members of the society afterwards
dined together at the White Horse Inn, under the mei-
&Nosy of the Holt. R. Darrow, ILP., and there were also
present Mr. G. Eyre, Mr. Wyatt (the mayor), Mr. Alderman
Pinniek, Lieutenant Aliso% Mr. Alfred Bonham Qatar,
Mr. C. L Lords, the Rev. W. H. Emplion, the Re►. T. H.
Trugett, Captain Powell, dm, &a.
After the usual loyal and patnotio toasts had been given
and duly honoured,

Mr. LOILDAN proposed the health of the magistrate* of
the county, coupling with Mistreat the name of Mr. Eyre,
sa a geetkenan who had exerted himself to promote the in-
terests of the society.
Mr. ETEZ acknowledged the tout, and proposed the
"Mayor and Corporation of Romney," to which the Mayor
responded.

The CHAIRMAN then rose to propose a toast which he
said was immediately connected with the Labourers' Amo-
ciation—be referred to the noble President, Lord Palmer-
ston. (Loud cheers.) Although he bad now passed the
unparalleled spot 80—the only prime minister who had ever
led the country at that age—he (Mr. Dutton), having
known the noble Mid intimately for many years, could
my that he had never men him look better for the last four
or eve years than he did at present. (Load rimers.)
Although at his great age it was impossible to predict how
long the noble lord might be spared, he did not me why be
should not be spared some time longer to conduct the affairs
of this great country in a manner in which be believed no
other public man in the present day could cooduat them.
(The toast was drunk with three times three, and one cheer
more for Lady Palmerston.)

The Rev. Mr. Erect proposed "The Health of the hoe.
Secretary, Mr. Lerdon, who, in respoodiug, referred to
the improvement which was visible in the industry of the
county, which was mainly atteibutabls to the existent"' of
the society, by which also the moral and social improvement
of the labourer had been much improved.
Several other touts were afterwards given and responded
to.

ROYAL (3101APHICAL Bocisrv.—Tbe next even-
ing meeting eM he held ois Monday at 8i p.m.. at Ealing-
ton-house, Bir R. I. Murchison, president, in the
chair. The peplos to be reed are-1. Visit to the sown
of the Tigris sod Euphrates. By Mr. J. 0. Taylor, Her
Majesty's Consul at Diarbekr. 2. Lake Nor Tsal-eas sad
its seledienebood. By H. A. Abeweil.