The Sun.
London, England, 1864-09-15 00:00:00

e=-.-

Cheshire Agricultural Society.

The annual exhibition of this society was held yesterday
at Nantwich, in a field behind Beam-street. The inhabi-
tants had made great preparations to receive the society.
Flags were flying from many houses, and several of the
streets were spanned with evergreens and mottoes. The
Local Committee had been diligently occupied for sonic
months in order to afford the society a welcome, and their
labours resulted in obtaining a fund of £..:35—a larger sum,
we believe, than has ever previously been raised by a local
committee in connection with this society. This amount
was expended in local prizes, for which there were no fewer
than 285 entries, in addition to the 364 entries in competi-
tion for the ordinary prizes offered by the society. Among
the local prizes were two offered for the best. hunters, and
the contest fur them created more public interest than any-
thing else connected with the show. A capital course had
been railed off, and a good stand erected. There were three
hurdles, and a fourth alongside an artificial eitch, sonle 9ft
wide. Several thousands e 1 persons crowded round and
within the enclosure, and watched with great pleasure the
leaping of the 22 competitors. The leaping was very credit-
able, although only one or two cleared all the fences.
The number of entries of stock was larger than usual, and
the show as a whole was above the average. The stock
ai peered to be of a good class, superior indeed to anything
shown before at this society's cxhiLitions. The number of
entries was as follows :—Horned Cattle, 59—pigs,
42
horses, 47—sheep, 85—poultry, 60. The local entries were
—Cattle, 57—horses, 150—dogs, 68— fowls, 14.
In respect to cheese, the show was, ns might be expected,
one of the most extraordinary that has over been seen,even
in Cheshire. The offer of a champion prize of .£2O was quite
a new feature, and it attracted a large number of competi-
tors. Mr Thomas Dutton of Brindley, whose dairy has long
been regarded as one of the first in the county, deservedly
won the much coveted honour. The number of entries in
this class was 59, and of butter 14.
To the ordinary attractions of an agricultural show was
added a good exhibition of flowering and ornamental plants.
The bands of the Nantwicla (331 Cheshire) Volunteers and
of the Crewe Steam-shed were on the ground, and played a
selection of music during the day. Considering the unsettled
state of the weather, the largeness of the attendance was a
matter of surprise. The receipts at the doors were consider-
ably in excess of last year, when the show was hold at
Crewe. The only inconvenience was the mode of ingress
and egress—a narrow passage which was crowded by the
horses being led from the ground, when visitors were desir-
ous of leaving the show. With a laudable view of catering
for the farmers' wives and daughters, while the farmers
themselves were attending the annual dinner, the local
committee had arranged a concert to be given at the Town
Hall in the evening, to ha followed by quadrilles.
Besides the prizes mentioned below, money gifts were
awarded to labourers who had brought up the largest num-
ber of children without parochial relief, and to farm ser-
vants whose length of service had been longest ; and 55
young unmarried woman between the ages of 18 and 25
years, received a sovereign each, with a certificate of merit
for length of service.

THE DINNER.
The dinner was held at the Crown Hotel, where about
150 gentlemen sat down, under the presidency of Mr R.
Wilbraham, of Odde Rode, noar Congleton. Among the
gentlemen present were Lord Crowe. Sir P. de M. Grey
Egerton Bart., M.P. ; Messrs. P. S. Itumberston, M.P.;
R. Barbour, Wilbraham Tollemache, and E. D. Broughton,
and the Revs. A, F• Chater, and 11. I. Blackburnc.

After the usual toasts, the Rev. A. F. Chater, vicar of
Nantwich, responded for the bishop and clergy, and Mr
Humberston for the army, navy, and volunteers. Mr
Dutton, of Stanthorno, proposed the health of the Lord
Lieutenant and the magistrates of the county. and said ho
hoped that the rumour would prove true that tho Lord
Lieutenant (the Marquis of Westminster) was about to be
raised to a higher position in the peerage. Mr W. Tolle-
macho responded.

Lord Crewe proposed the members for the county. Sir
Philip Egerton, in responding, said he entertained the opi-
nion a few years ago that the multiplication of small socie-
ties might damage the central society, but ho had changed
his opinion. That multiplication of local societies had had
the effect of materially strengthening the county society.
They excited an interest in districts where the county
society could not penetrate, and induced farmers to come
forward and compete in the larger society. Yet ho thought
the small societies were too formal in their organisation,
having patrons, presidents, and so forth. They should
rather follow the example of those societies—like those of
Over and Tarporley—which held monthly meetings,
when discussions were held on farming topics. Ho
wanted the Cheshire farmers _to throw away some of
their modesty and come forward to communicate infor-
mation to their brother farmers on agricultural subjects.
There had lately been an incursion upon Cheshire, and
barons and squires, from another county, encouraged by
their success last year, had been having a groat gathering of
cattle at a Cheshire county town. That had had no effect,
however, upon the show of that day. (hear, hear.) But ho
hoped that there would be no more raids from Lancashire,
and that Cheshire gentlemen would support their own
Society. At the Agricultural society's meeting to take place
at Great Budworth, Sir Harry Mainwaring was going to
give a dissertation on the six curses of Cheshire. (Laugh-
ter.) Sir Harry's notions did not tally with his. He thought
the greatest curse to a farmer in Cheshire was the pleuro
pneumonia ; and anything that would alleviate or remove
that dreadful disease would be the greatest benefit that could
be conferred on the farmers of Cheshire. (Hear, hear.) He
considered that the disease resulted more from external than
internal influences. The fluctuations between warmth and
cold, wet and dryness, had much to do with the disease ; and
one of the most important points to be discussed by dairy
farmers in Cheshire was the best mode of wintering stock
upon clay farms. This was a landlord's as well as a tenant's
question. (Hear, hear.) He believed that much depended
on the construction of the buildings. Ho would like to see
the Royal Agricultural Society propose a prize for an essay
on the subject of the wintering of stock. (Applause.)
Mr HUMBETISTON, in acknowledging the health of Lord
Combermere, said ho had seen Baron ➢farochetti's statute
of the figure of the venerable and gallant field marshal
which is to be placed in front of Chester Castle, and he
considered that the Baron had produced a most excellent
likeness. He expected that within a year the statue would
be erected. During the past session Parliament had not
been unmindful of the cattle disease. Two bills directed
against that disease were introduced and referred to a com-
mittee, which took some most important and valuable evi-
dence. The conclusions arrived at were that the disease
was now mitigated in form; that for the last year or two it
had been on the decrease ; and that the right course to take
with fat stock was, to kill an animal as soon as it was
attacked (when it would not be injured for feed), and to
separate infected animals at once from the healthy por-
tion of the herd. Tho latter should bo kept in good con-
dition. Of course the killing of diseased animals would
entail a oertein loss, but he believed that such a course
would generally be the means of saving the whole stock.
One of the bills was reported to the house, but the Irish
members objected that some of its clauses were too stringent
and it was thrown out. Some of its provisions wore, how-
ever, very valuable. Such were, that no man should know-
ingly take an infected animal into a fair—(hear, hear)_
that every care should be taken in driving such animals
on the road, and that a penalty should be imposed for
placing such cattle in unfenced fields or on commons. He
thought there was little doubt that the bill would be in-
troduced again. Another bill related to the importation
of cattle, the idea being that the disease did not exist origi-
nally among home-bred cattle.

Tho CHAIRMAN gave "Success to the Cheshire Agricul-
tural Society." He said that, notwithstanding the recent
invasion of the northerners, the mooting of that day had
been a complete success. The receipts at the gates had been
£24o—(applause)—against £206 last year, which was nn
advance from £l6O in the previous year. Not only had the
number of visitors been larger than over, but the interest
taken in the welfare of the society had been greater than
over. This was mainly owing to the reception given to the
society by their Nantwich friends. (Hear, hear.) The com-
petitors would see that a good deal of change had taken
place in the form of the premiums, At the annual meeting
it was resolved to give a champion prize for cheese, and to

increase the prizes for the best cultivated farms and for
horses; those wore changes in the right direction. But he
did not think that the reduction in value and the increase
in the number of prizes for stock was likely to attract the
winners at the local shows to send to the parent society.
The result had confirmed his impression, as the show of
cheese had never been equalled, while tho cattle entered,
though good, were not in an increased number. He con-
cluded by proposing continued success to the society. (Ap-
plause.) There were several other toasts, chiefly of a local
interest.

Mr D. A. H. Lighton, who recently sustained
severe injury by a fall on board her Majesty's ship Bri-
tannia, is doing well. Good hopes aro entertained of hi*
recovery.
A NOVELTY IN JOURNALISM.—French ingenuity
has just devised a moans of producing a newspaper
which is to bo distributed gratis, to contain no advertise-
monts and yet to give a profit to its proprietor. The pros-
pectus of the Journal (les Abonucs appears in the Figaro,
but is by no means intended as a joke. The paper is to ap.
pear twice a month, and to consist of 32 quarto pages. It is
to contain a Parisian chronicle, reviews of books, articles on
the fashions for the ladies, works of fiction, travels, S:c.
Also caricatures, autographs, and occasionally music. The
paper is to be white, the print good, and is to bo distributed
gratis—to all persons, its projectors adds, " who commis-
sion me to subscribe in their name to a daily paper, to one
of the principal French reviews, or to a weekly illustrated
paper." While that subscription lasts, the subscriber will
receive the Journal des Abonnes, whose proprietor's profit
is to consist of the trade allowance made to him by the
papers to which he is commissioned to subscribe.
M. do Villemessant, the director of the Figaro and
of ono or two other journals, announces the ap-
pearance of the Ist number of the new paper for
the Ist of October. lle reckons on an enormous number
of subscribers upon tho terms ho proposes, but even then
he
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profit if
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papers. The speculation seems a hazardous one, but he
' counth confidently GA its proving remunerative,
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