The Express.
London, England, 1849-06-15 00:00:00

PRINCE ALBERT AT THE SOCIETY OF ARTS.

Yesterday the annul diatribntion amongst the enc.
medal competitors of the numerous prises and honorary tea-
time** given by the council of the above institution, with
the view of esesuraging excellence la the various depart-
ments of the floe arts and manufactures and in mechanical
ptriessees,zotrothaa;in the council chamber of the society,
*der the otitis Royal Highness Prince Albert.
His AL HI BMWS having taken the chair, pro-
ceeded to Wren the assembly. He said—Ladies and 'au-
tism* I was very sorry that I was prevented last year
from disehalmage of my duties as the president of this
the chair on the occasion of the hatable-
-elleas3 ia on
Itheby ves is awarded by the unwell of the society, and I
laae
OEM will permit t
oes users you that, although
absent on that ion, I have not withdrawn
ass tie society any portion of the support which I feel it
blew duty to give it, sod that I have not ceased to pay
'Math* to its interests. (Applause.) It is a source of
mash pitmen sad gratifimtria to me to be afforded
the opportunity of fulfilling my duty today by
pessidleg our your proceedings, end I an happy to be
emthled b inform you that the secretary of the society will
seed a report, from width you will leant that the society
hoe boa making much progress during the you. I have
teeby forming those works of art which in the °piens of
the sensen mid* their inventors and producers to the
moils end other prises of the society, and I feel gore that
the moepetition and seeking after excellence, which the pro-
Medie. of the society are calculated to produce, will be
Mat meeerisily conducive to the advancement of the vari-
ous banshee of arts, manufactures, and commerce, which it
bee bees formed for the purpose of encouraging, I
Uwe been myself induced this year to offer two
midi ell ley own account, to be competed for. (Loud
apiensea) I have offered them for the best papers on two
en** widely different from each ether, but arpearing to I
mese be nmatyspabie of much elucidation by batiste( the stimulus
of esespettlon applied, and public attention directed to
them. The first medal I intended es a reward for the inten-
d* of snood cement to bind pieces of glass together, which,
in my epfebn, would be important, u promoting t e seabed-
*lin of glass for metals, thereby coneiderably increasing
elesdisms and improving the public health. (Hear.) The
selemin use of glass is the way I have pointed eat has
been prevented hitherto by the want of a mesons ninth
possesses the necessary degree of tenacity, and I gee wry to
aslant up to the present time it has ink** hood possi-
ble to produce a cement which realises the rem* desired,
and consequently the medal has not been awarded. Per-
sons acquainted with the manufacture of the article will
know that one of the chief muses of the difileully is to be
found is the extreme slipperiness of the parts which it is
desirable to join together. The other medal I have offered
for the best *ay on a subject of much national
Importance, namely, the cultivation and manufacture
of sager. (Load applause.) The widely prevailing
*trees which has lately covenpreal oar West Indian colonies
hie itheatred considerable striation to the mmanagement and
wrath lase of sug sad has lid to the enquiry whether, by
the meet new and improved machines, designed to mac-
ulae*** and increase the produce of te sod, it might not
le IBM plentifully and cheaply produced, and much of the
= a:stress relieved in ecauqueuss. Several essays,
very valuable summedoae and improvements
Inge been sent in, and the prise has been awarded to Mr.
law en the author of the most valuable and practical of
them treatises. It is most satisfactory to me to see her Ma-
jesty's Secretary of State for the Colonies present on this op.
maks, thereby showing the importance attached to the subject
by the present government. I will not detain you any binges ;
bat, before I it down, I will take this opportunity of stating
' that the beautiful pictures in this room are the production of
one artist, and display in a most striking manner the im-
provements and alterations which have taken place in his
style of paining ; and I trust that they will meet with your
approval.
His royal highness then resumed his seat amid general
applause.
Mr. SCOTT RUSSELL, the secretary of the society,
read the annual report of the council, in which they con-
gratulated the members of the society upon the close of
*ether year of usefulness. The number of members had
thabled,and the *venue hed increased from SOO& to 1,0001.
The valuate esairdalag the trsossetions of the society for the
1 yew emended la inperleace say yet bated. They also ex-
=embibellen at tie pros** that a great nationalex-
of British meamfactures, es the sore principle as
the " Exposition° in Paris, would be carried out. Many of
the difficulties which it was supposed lay in the way
of sae It en exhibition had been removed. Many
of the neessfeentren, who thought it would be injurious to
Men to expose their inventions to the public pee, had been
sweetened by the SUOMI of the Parietal exhibition, and had
given their cordial adhesion to the project. It was intended
that the exhibition should be quinquennial, and the council
bad made application to the Board of Trade and the Com.
missionees of Woods and Forests for a suitable site and
building, and it was intended to hold the first grand
display in 1861. They then tendered their thanks to
the possessors of Mr. Etty'e pictures, who had forwarded
them to their beatitudes& for exhibition, and took
occasion to pan an eloquent eulogium upon the
painter himself. The competition for the medal presented
by his Royal Highness Prince Albert for the best paper on
the cultivation of sugar, had produced eight Seethes, several
of which the society deemed worthy, of rifted beside the
ens to which his Royal Highness's rue had been assigned.
Mr. Leon and Dr. Mitchell, who obtained the two chief
prism, were both colonists, and the merits of Br. Mitchell's
were so nearly equal to those of Mr. Leon's, that his
Royal Highness had pro*** to continue a similar prize for
next year, in the hope that Dr. Mitchell might be induced to
come forward as the claimant of the first prize nest year.
Tan Pantos then presented the large gold model to Mr.
Leon for hie paper on the cultivation and manufacture of
*gar, end accompanied it with a few lemplimmiteri obser-
ve**. The second prize, eemislieg_of the me-;
dal, was awarded to Dr. Mitchell, sue wed bided to Earl
Grey to be transmitted to him. • •
Essi GREY said that the colonies ever ti deep debt of
gretiside so his Royal Highness for the ettraides which the
inmost he had taken in their wens* was enisulated to Rive
to their prospeeity. He was glad to and that colonists had
amid a dodge/ visas, and he hoped that Dr. liflochell
would be thesneeseeful competitor he the first prize next
year. He would have mesh pleasure in ' trouneitting to
the governor of the colony, fa which Dr. Mitchell resided,
the very beautiful medal which had been awarded to him.
:tiatorFArr; M.P., to ethos an WV
emanufacture a the of isoloolal edger, been en.
for an expression of his opinlwa as to is
Za.that he had received the paper only on the previous
and was unable to give a detailed report t-
iny IL lie could say that so far u he had examined it,
▪ wea, a meritorious production, and the obligaticas of the
stheneelkomd of the mercantile community generally, were
Om le Ids Royal. Highness for drawing attention to the
arsoly ellogremmat in the process of making sugar—s
smeethelses tes *Yob, until remedy, then had been se
made' altered* es improvement during the let fifty
yen,.
lin ROYAL Ilieneemss then presented the following prizes
he map ea colonial subjects :—.To Mr. Litdedale, for his
ass/ ea the pietism la the manufacture of sum in the
ellealle, the large medal. To Mr. Wray, in Retinue-
hews* of the veldt of his printed work on the manures-
Wee efpeger, the Mee silver medal. To Mr. James lobe-
lia, then sample et %Abner* wool, and his efforts to intro-
doss the *Me el pe more is New Smith Wales, the large
dine eee.al.
iipahleva Ilk sesdel was then *muted by his Royal
dtepip Alkalis goad/sun :—To IC B.
iliagess, thr
*design in oessesies sod
ertni pen lasagia.
truivntaltses me thus, for the easaileens set liwaealt
*tare exhibited la their leggiesithetar4theil
he.; Mews. Jammer sell fur the
exeenths ia ea the top of s
neeltiallaralia= J. A. ilte the to
resew elide n —ee
Gledishse C=StaleasellielCo impany, as -we
seperkelty el Anis ilea terilage.