The Express.
London, England, 1849-10-18 00:00:00

THE GRAND INDUSTRIAL EXHIBITION.

MEETING AT THE MANSION-HOUSE.
Yesterday a meeting of the banker., morcbante,
and others of the Ci:y of London (a summery of which was
given is the Eareee of that day) was held is the Egyptian-
hell, at she Iffiensienshouse, the Lord Mayor is the chair,
for the purpose of hearing the statement of a deputation from
the Society of Arts, as to the great Exhibition of Industry of
all Nations, proposed by H.R.H. Prince Albert. The meet-
ing was a very large one. Amongst the parties present we
observed—Governor of the Dank of England, Deputy Go-
verns/ of the Bank of England, Chateau of the National
Bank of Inland, Dimity Chairman of the London and
County Bank, Joseph Hume, Beci , 31. P., John Masterson,
EA., M.P., the Worshipful the Lord Mayor Elect, S'r G.
Carroll, 81r John Henry Polly, B. Jones Loyd, BA , John
Dillon, Beg., T. Hawkey, Esq., William Hanbury, l'eq..
Admiral Dundee, M.P., B Gurney, jua., Req., J. Dundee,
Esq., W. Colton, EA.,- Freshaeld Esq., Dr. Buckland,
Rev. Thomas Hanson, Roger Cualiffe, Esq., E. Moron
Esq., C. Hodge, ; Aldermen: Hooper, Air P. Laurie,,
Moen, Musgrove, Salmons, Carden, Copeland, Gibbs;
Messrs. Deputies Harries* and Leake, Sheriff Nicoll, Under-
sheriffs Wire aod Millard. Mr. Moffat, uuovoielobly abseut,
sent the following letter :
My Lord,—l greatly regret that an unavoidable abser.ce
from Loam will preclude my attendance at the Mansion
House on Wednesday, to aid in the demonstration in sop-
port of the proposed grand exhibition in 18-51. I believe it
would be difficult to overstate the material benefits likely ta
accrue trout suck an exhibition ; not to this country alone,
but to the whole wor.d. It is scarcely possible to conceive a
more interesting and useful combination than that in view.
England is at this moment to a Inge extent practically ig-
norant of the arts and manufactures Mother countries—other
countries equally uninformed as to those of England ; the
whole world must gain by the diffusion of prarticel informs.
tion consequent upon such a tethering u that now contem-
plated, which I trust will have the hearty and entire support,
of the City of Loudon.
I hen the honour to be. your faithful servant,
(Signed) Gnu. Morremr.
Right Ron. the Lord Mayor, M.P.
The deputation consisted of the followicg gentlemen:—
Vice-Presidents: Boron o,ldsmid, W. Tooke, Esq., B.
Hotels, Esq., T. U wins EA., R A., T. Webster, Em.,
M.A. Members of Council - H. Cole, C. W. Dlike, J. H.
Bowen. J. Bell, and T. Winkworth, Elmo.; Professor Wood-
craft, J. Scott Russell, W. The, A. Palau, Y. L. N. Foster
(treasurer), G. Barclay, Litt e,- Brett, T. IL Crampton,
A. Symonds, G. H. Drew, G. Drew, C. Barlow, C. W.
%Use, and Dien Wyatt, Escin., and Capt. Buss:awes
Ibbebon.
The LORD MAYOR said that in opening the proceed-
ings of the day it would be needless for hint to tresp.o lung
on the attention of the meeting. Several genUemeu con-
nected with the Society of Arts bad applied to him to give
publicity in the City of London to their most important
views on the particular subject In question, and he bad at
mice placed the Monti ot House at their disposal. Previ-
ously, in Sophism! lost, he bad received from Col. Phipps,
one of the equerries to Prince Albert, the following
2 letter
Osborne Cottage, Sept. 1, 1919.
My dear Lord,—You will probably have heard that His
Royal Highness the l'riace Albert sat present engs.:ed in
muting inquiries to be made with regard to the probable
success of a great exhibition of the works of industry of all
metiers, proposed to take place in London in the year 1851.
The result of these imquinee, so far as they hove hitherto
proceeded, has been most favourable ; and I have now re-
ceived the commands of his royal highness to introduce to
your lordship Mes es. 11. Cole, Fuller, and J. Stott Hmeell,
c. three .embers of the council of the Society of Arts, who
have been actively employed in prosecuting these inquiries
and in endeavouring to promote the success of me proposal
eihitiriou. These gentlemen will be prepared fully to ex-
plain to your lordship the objects and nature of the under-
taking, and the progress that has as yet been made; and the
Prince has commanded me to assure pea of his royal high-
ness's conviction that your lordship will be disposed to afford
these gentlemen such assistance as may be in your lordship's
power towards the formatien of a City committee for the
purpose of inquiring into and promoting this great plan. —I I
have the honour to be, my dear Lord, very faithfully yours,
(Signed) C. B. Platers.
To the Right Hon. the Lord Mayor.
Greatly rejoiced was he in any way to promote objects
which he reseeded as materially calculated is benefit the
whole community and mankind at large. Several of the
gentlemen connected with the Society of Arts had, in the
promotion of this exhibition, visited nearly all the great
towns of the kingdom, arid everywhere they bad found the
authorities and the principal inhabitants cordially ready t 3
meet them. He was quite certain that the enlightened
citizens of London would not manifest lees real than the other
commercial and manufacturing communities of the king-
Alb t farther a design which was fostered by Prince
eet, with the generous aim of diffusing the arts
and the blessings of peace. (Hear, hear.)
HENRY COLE, EA . said that before he submitted to
the meeting the detail of the proposal which Prince Albert
desired should be laid before the citizens of Loneloa, he
begged it to be understood that up to the present time the
proceedings were strictly preliminary, It being the wbh of
h:s royal highness that nothing so tar should he taken as ab-
solutely settled on this propcsal, beyond the fact that it was
intended to have this great exhibition. This matter had
been under the cousiteration of the Society of Arts, of
which Peince Albert was president, for the last five years,
sad during the past two years his royal highness had been
carefully watching the symptoms of public feeling on the
subject, taking on all occasions a deep interest in
any thing which appeared calculated to teach the
people to appreciate an institution of this kind. (Hen,
hear.) This year, as the meeting would probably re-
member, the Society of Arts had organised the limn erhi.
i bition of works in the precious metals that the world ever
saw, the 'hist specimen being contributed by her Majesty.
(Hear, hear.) The experiment was so successful, that the
Nina felt himself warranted in c insidering how to mature
the hr vaster exhibition now contemplated. Shortly after
thls ell the 30th Ince last, l.is Royal Highness commanded
the ellamdones at Buckingham Palace of several members of
the Mum& and of the secretary of the Society of Ails, and
went Into various details of what, he considered should
be the chief features of the proposed exhibition.
His Royal Highness considered that such collection and ex-
hibition should consist of them divisions :—Raw Materials,
Machinery and Mechanical Inventions, Manufactures,
Sculpture and Plastic Art generally. It was a qua
tion whether this exhibition should be exclusively limited
to British industry. It was considered that whilst it
appears an error to fix any limitation to the preduc-
time of seisms, machinery, and taste, which are:erne country,
but belong Is a whole to the civilised world, particular ad-
vantage to British industry might be derived from ?lacing it
in fair competition with that of other nations. Upon this
particular point Mr. Cole said,—The opinion througnout the
country seemed unanimous. (Hear, hear.) Of from 600 to
700 gentlemen whom the deputation had consulted through.
out the country, there was bat one who had expressed an
opinion that the exhibition, in the fint instance, should be
one of British industry only, and this gentleman h'snself,
when his opinion was put is print, for the Prince's
consideration, so changed the opinion teat he desired
it might be cancelled. (Hear, hear.) The Provost of
I Edinburgh, when consulted open the point, said that the
preparations for such an exhibition, if a general one, would
direct the mind of the whole world to the peaceful pursuits
of industry, and by friendly competition and generous ri
miry, more closely than In any other way, cement the
amicable relations of all the nations of the earth. (Hear,
hear.) Mr. Kershaw, an extremely large cotton spinner,
who sent out a sillies of miles of cotton yarn from his
mill every week, was decidedly of opinion that the exhibi-
tion shoed be open to all tee nations of the world. Mr.
Wailer, the pest glen painter at Newcastle, con.
&heed tke lay the exhibition opts, to the world
the meet important feature of the plan. Messrs. Week of
Glory, angemed the opinion that it was most desirable
to compere our prolosffises not only with those of our even
countrymen, but with those of 'artisans ; and that in this
point of view especially the exhibition would be well worth
all the messy it might cosh (Hear, hear.) He observed
fatelher, tint one effect resulting from the exhibition, highly
blesffidal M the English trader and conducive in its way to
Meriele, would be its showing the ladies of this country that
I Ohne class of articles sold them as foreign were in fact
Made in England. (Hear, hear.) Mr. J. Smith, of
Sheffield, considered that it would be most advantage-
ous to our worker in metals to have brought under their
lbw the but productions in this elms of the coati-
' neat, tbougkke feared that, for the tins, One specimens would
some of second best in the competition. Messes. Hoyle and
( Sims, of Manchester, a name of world-celebrity, said, by all
I swam have the exhibition open to all nations ; Mr. Alder.
UM !held added, that all the Lancashire people wanted
yes a fair field and no favour. Give them these, and the
men of Lancashire feared no competition. (Hear, hoer.)
'ffise master of the Merchants' Company at Edinburgh very
smphically put it that the tendency of the exhibition would
be to rub the sharp corners of the nations oti--(heer)—and
so enable them to get on more comfortably together. The
Zee. Mr. Yate, of Devon, regarded the exhibition as alums
of advancing to that puled when people would tun their
swords into plougbs, their spans into praising hooks. (Hear,
hear.) The next point to which Prince Albert &adenoid
linnet wm the site of the proposed exhibition. Various
sties were suggested as most suitable for the building, which,
, • was settled, must be, on the first occasion at least, a sous-
weeny ens. The government had offered the area of Somer.
mesteme, or, if Mat wen unfit, a more suitable ens on the
pregerty of the crown. His royal highness pointed out the
Mint ground in Hyde-pars, on the south aide, parallel with
and between the Kensington drive and the ride commonly
sailed Rotten-row, as affocciing advantages which few
biller placer might be found to poems. Applica-
tion for this site could be made to the crown.
It was further settled, that by offering very large premiums
in money, sufficient inducement would be held oat to the
various manufacturers to produce works which, although
they might cot form a manufacture profitable in the gervral
market, would by the effort necessary for their secomplwo-
mein, permanently raise the powers of production, and im-
prove the character of the manufacture itself. The prizes
proposed to be submitted for the consideration of the com-