The Express.
London, England, 1865-11-02 00:00:00

THE ROYAL VISIT TO LANCASHIRE.

Yesterday his Royal Righriees the Prince of
Wake, with the Earl of Derby, and the gentlemen of the
party now visiting his lordship, were engaged in shooting
in the well.stockal preserves of the Knowsley estate. The
Princess, with the Countess of Derby, visited the Raven-
bead ghee manufactory at Si. Helen's. The Earl of
Derby and the Hon. E. Stanley left the Prince's shooting
party at midday and socompanied the Princess to Einenbeitil.
The Revenhead establishment was selected to mein the
honour of the royal visit, not so leach on account of its'
relative importune as for its associations. It is the eldest
rusinufectory of plate glass in England. and it formed
• hundred years ego the animus of what is now a system
of manufsetories. Score of these have outstripped their
prototype in else, and several of them now do • larger buil-
Den ;but Rarenhead still regirded as the establishment
in which visitors may fled most to Interest asailhaleset.l
There is, however, another amoolaldon which probably west
far to commend the place to the Princess of Weiss, which I,
is, that it was visited by George IV., when Pince of Wales,
when he also was visiting at Knowsley. The large hall now
woe for testing is the identical building through which the '
Royal party on that casein were condoned.
Her Royal Highness the Priam= of Wales, after leaving
Liverpool at the aloes of the popular dernonstratios in the
town on Tuesday, was present at the dinner and ball at
Knowsley °DTl's:4day night ; when, in 'rhinos to the digit.
gnished party staying with the Earl of Derby, and the guests
of the Earl of Sefton from Oroxteth-park. several ladies
and geatlemen of the locality were entertained. The
Primes@ lunched with Lady Derby early, and left
Knowsley at two o'clock for St. Helen's. The carriages
entered the high road between Liverpool and St Helen's
by the Eccleston-gate, four miles from St. Helen's, and from
this point proceeded slowly over the remaining four miles.
The road was bard at intervals with people, who chewed
lustily am the Panne passed. The mute cheese nand
some di appointment, as it avoided the town of St. Helen's
entirely, and this arrengemoat, which was the natural one,
and not adopted by special design, spared the Princess the
view of one of the most unsightly collections of houses to
be seen in the whole of Lancashire. The only general de.
mosetratioes of the day on the pert of the town were, the
turning out of the population In crowds, the parading of
bead. of music and companies of school childree, the ringing
of bells, and the displaying of a limited, but
saucily choice, collection of bunting. Two local volunteer
corps—the Loith L.E.V. and the 2nd L.E.V.—were
drawn up at those points of the line most nearly touching
the Were, and presented arms es the royal carriage pared.
The party reached liavenhead about half-past three o'clock,
approaching the manufactory by • long and narrow carriage
drive from the high road. Berrien and lines of venation
and police marked off the approaches, and prevented the
crowd from entering the carriage drive, which is so narrow
that the admission of the public would have inevitably
blocked itlup completely. The drive was spanned by one
or two evergreen anises, decorated tensfully with Saga
At the gate of the works, Mr. Sullivan, the chief pro-
prietor, attended by Mr. Crossley, the manager, was in
waiting to receive the party. A canvas canopy, covering
• platform carpeted with crinieoa cloth, formed the vesti-
bule to the large nesting ball, already mentioned. This is
an enormous apartment, and manias needy • hundred
ovens for tempering gleam. Here their royal bighorns
were shown the process of making rough glees pots and
cylinders ; and a large plate of glass, which was in
course of bring tempered in one of the ovens, was
taken out, and exhibited to the Princess. The
royal party occupied • crimson covered dais,
in the centre of the casting hall, while then and other pro-
misees were explained sad illustrated by Mr. Sullivan. Before
pulling to the other parts el the works a pot of red-hot
metal was brought from one of the funning, poured upon
as iron table, and rolled into • plate. The royal party was
then conducted into the smoothing rooms, where about 100
women and children were at work, reducing the rough
sultan of the plates to smoothens by friction; then
through the apartments in which the grinding, polishing,
cleaning, and staining wen dose ; and lastly, into the silver-
ing room, where her royal highness had the opportunity of
seeing a sheet of glass converted into a mirror.
The party left the works by way of the green around
which ere the hones occupied by the officers, and here the
workpeople were assembled to see them. About 300 women
and girls wore neat white and pink striped jackets, which
had been furnished by the proprietors. The assembly
formed, perhaps, the most interesting feature of the day.
The workpeople cheered the Princess lustily as she left the
building and returned to her carriage. Her royal highness
and party then returned to Knowsley by the way by which
they had come, leaving the town amidst the acclimatises of
the crowds assembled on the outskirts to witness the de-