The Sun.
London, England, 1864-09-12 00:00:00

The members for Oxfordshire on Agricul-
tural Affairs. .

TFIAME, Friday.
The annual gathering of the members and friends
of the Thame Agricultural and Horticultural So-
cieties took place yesterday afternoon. The at-
tendance was very large and the show remarkably
good.
In the
Spread
niingie. cga large
party dined together at
the
Captain Wykeham presided;
eve
E
and among the company we observed Colonel
North, M.P., Col. Fans, M.P., Mr T. T. Bernard,
M.P., Mr Hugh Hammereley, Mr T. Hobhouse,
Mr T. Taylor, Mr J. Fletcher, Mr A. C. Brown,
Mr J. Round, the Rev. S. Ashuret, and several
other influential residents in the district.
The toasts of " The Queen," " The Prince and
Princess of \Vales and the rest of the Royal
Family," were given and drunk with all the
honours.
The CHAIRMAN then proposed " The Army,
Navy, and Volunteers," coupling with the toast the
name of Colonel North.
Colonel NORTH, M.P., who was received with
loud cheering, briefly responded to the toast. He
said he believed that the army and navy were never
in a more efficient state than they were at the pre-
sent moment, and was fully convinced that they
were ready to perform services with the same gal-
lantry which they had always hitherto evinced.
(Cheers.) With regard to the Volunteers, he was
happy to say that they did great credit to the coun-
try, and was proud at being at the head of the bat.
talion for the county. (Cheers.) The best possible
feeling existed among all the services, and the only
rivalry was which should best perform their services
to their Sovereign and their country. (Loud
cheering.)
The next toast was the "Bishop and Clergy of
the Diocese," coupled with tho name of the Rev. J.
Ashurst.,
The Rev. S. ASHURST, in acknowledging the
toast, observed that in an agricultural district every-
one must feel peculiarly interested in the prosperity
of agriculture. Wnen the land was well tilled
and brought to a high state of perfection it was
advantageous to the landlord, profitable to the
tenant, and beneficial to the labourer in providing
him with remunerative employment. Societies of
this description tended greatly to the promotion of
the R elfare of agriculture, and deserved the support
of the clergy as much as that of any other portion
of the community. Horticultural societies, by pro-
moting the cultivation of flowers, had a most bene-
fic'al effect on the good taste and the morals of the
community, and the only drain back on the present
occasion to the calm erjoyment of the beautiful ex-
hibition of the day was the noise outside and the
obstruction caused by the shows and stalls at the
entrance to the show ground. (Hear.)
The CHAIRMAN then rose to propose " The Health
of the Members for the County," expressing his
deep regret at the absence of their old friend and
neighbour, Mr Henley, which was caused by the
painful bereavement which he had suffered, and in
which he was sure everyone present most sincerely
sympathised. (Hear.) They were, however, honoured
with the presence of their gallant friends Col. North
and Col. Fane, and he Wilted they would continue
to be so honoured for many years to come, for the
presence of county members always gave additional
weight and importance to such gatherings. (Cheers.)
lie hoped the conduct of their representatives during
the past session had given general satisfaction to
their constituents. No gentlemen could hare acted
more fairly and honestly, They had been present
at all the important divisions which had taken place
and had conscientiously done their duty towards
the county of Oaford end the country in general-
(Cheers.) He trusted that Col. North and Col. Fane
would long retain their seats, and be spared to at-
tend these meetings, and that before long they
would again have the pleasure of seeing their old
and tried friend Mr Henley among them. The toast
was drunk with three timea three and "one cheer

wore."

Colonel NORTH, M.P., after expressing his deep
regret at the cause of the absence of his right hon.
colleague (Mr lienley), assured his friends around
him that, although ho resided at a different end of
the county, he had always felt especial pleasure in
attending the annual gatherings at Theme, and cer-
tainly on no former occasion had he seen a better
chow of produce. (Cheers.) With regard to his Par-
liamentary duties, he could only say, in common
wtih every member of the House of Commons, that
whatever might be his political opinions, he endea-
voured to discharge his duties honestly and con-
scientiously. (Rear, hear.) Of course, no member
could expect to satisfy everybody. Hon. members
were returned to represent certain political opinioes,
and those constituents who did not coincide in such
opinions must naturally feel dissatisfied with their
votes. But, if hon. members did their duty in an
honest and straightforward manner thepeople would
do them the justice to believe that their motives
ware pure and conscientious. (Hear.) So long as he
had the honour orf epresenting the county of Oxford
it would always be his utmost endeavour to serve his
constituents faithfully and honestly. (Cheers.)
Colonel FANE, ALP., in returning thanks, ex-
pressed the aatiefaction which he always felt on
meeting his friends on occasions like the present,
perticularly as county members had such few oppors
tunities of addressing their constituents. He had not
the chance of addressing them so frequently as his
gallant friend (Col. North), but it was gratifying to
him to experience the cordial reception which was
He always endeavoured to act
htly. Whatever his politics
alwayshon e s
honestly
y given
and to
uhpirmi
might be and whatever opinions he might express
before the electors, he could assure them they would
always find him at his post whenever it was neces-
sary for him to be there. (Cheers.) He had listened
with great attention to the remarks of his rev. friend
(Mr Ashurst), and regretted that a larger num-
ber of the clergymen did not attend such gatherings.
He could not say that he entirely agreed in all the
remarks which had fallen from his rev• friend rela-
tive to the noise outside the show ground, causing
an interruption to the proceedings, and the exhibi-
tions cateide obstructing the access of the visitors
to the beautiful field where the flowers had been
exhibited. Now, he was accompanied by two ladies
and two young children, and did not experience the
slightest difficulty in obtaining access to the show
ground. (Hear, hear.) So far from feeling any
annoyance on that account, he had great pleasure
in paying 4d. for a look into one of the peep shows,
(Laughter.) There were other exhibitions which
he had no doubt were well worth seeing, and if time
had allowed he should have been glad to go the
round of the whole fair, and take a peep at them
all. (Continued laughter.) He had no doubt
whatever that those persone who were not able to
obtain tickets for the show ground were very well
satisfied with paying a small sum for a shot at the
bull's eye. (Hear, hear, and laughter.) His rev.
friend was a highly conscientious man and much
respected, but he might be mistaken with regard to
the amusements in which the multitude participated.
(Hear, hear.) He did not think that such amuse-
ments detracted from the interest attached to agrie
cultural societies. Quite the contrary. He believed
that if one half the booths were removed, and the
penny peep shows and other little amusements of a
similar description were put down, a great deal of
the interest and excitement caused by agricultural
and horticultural societies+ would he done away with.
(Hear.) When a county member was called upon to
return thanks, and political matters were excluded,
he thought it was his duty to make such suggestions
as he believed would promote the welfare of such
societies, (Hear.) He bad not had an opportunity
of seeing the ploughing, and regretted that he had
not b2en able to escertain the opinions of many
of the farmers with respect to the use of mechi.
nery. From the conversation which he had recently
had with some farmers in another locality on that
subject ho believed that their opinions coincided in
a great degree with that of Mr. Henley, that, after
all the benefits derived from machinery, there was
eothing like the old
plough.
He had no prejudice
against steam-ploughing, but did not think it could
be carried on with sufficient economy to be beneficial
to the farmer. lie believed that Mr. Tayler'e engine
had cost something like £1,009, and cost him .£3OO
a year in working. He now understood from Mr.
Taylor. that he.worked the rafteltirke about 100 days

in the year, ar.d that the cost of working was about
a guinea per day at present, but the Lord only knew
what it would coat when it became a little older and
required repair. (Hear, and laughter.)
Mr. H. LEE then proposed "The Health of Mr,
Bernard, MY. for Aylesbury." (Loud cheering.)
Mr. BERNARD briefly acknowledged the compli-
ment, observing with regard to political matters
that such changes had taken place that it was diffi-
cult for any one to draw a lice of demarcation, or,
indeed, almost to know to which party he belongvd.
He certainly felt himself free from any political
alliances, and had followed that path which he con-
sidered most conducive to the interests of his con-
stituents and of the country at large. (Cheers.) He
was not a practical agriculturist, but had witnessed
with great p'easure the improvements which had
taken place within the few years, and felt convinced
that they had proved beneficial to all classes engaged
in agricultural pursuits.
" The Health of the County Magistrates" was
acknowledged by Mr. Hammersley (who succeeded
to the chairmanship of the quarter sessions on the
retirement of Mr. Henley). Several other toasts of
a local character were afterwards given and re-
sponded to, and the party did not :separate until a
rather late hour.

STATE OF TRADE.

BIRMINGHAM, Sept. 10,—No abatement in the demand
for Birmingham goods has as yet been perceived in conse-
quence of the additional turn of the screw in the Thread-
ncoile-street parlour. The trade is in the main of a steady
character, very free from speculation; and India, the
foreign market to which a good deal of unsound consign-
ment has previously taken place, is just now the most de-
pressed. The South American and Mexican markets are
steadily improving, and the Pest India trade is good. The
home market from one end of the British Isles to the other
presents a very satisfactory appearance, and the results of
the harvest, which so much exceed the gloomy anticipa-
tions of two months ago, are putting people in good spirits.
The iron trade is about the same as last reported ; a good
demand for plates, sheets, and angle and T iron; with an
improvement for hoops and bars. The minors' strike, how-
ever, is extending. Every morning large bands of men on
strike congregate about the approaches to the mines where
the men are at work, and use every possible means to pre-
vent them going down the shafts. These efforts are in many
cases successful, and the number not at work has increased.
The area of the strike is also being extended, and an expe-
diticn to the opposite extremity of the South Staffordshire
coal field, on Channock Chase, has been organised with the
view of stopping the supplies from that quarter. At least
two iron works have been closed in consequence, and if the
strike goes on and extends, more will follow. The men on
strike, however, arc suffering greatly, and this week they
have not received anything from the union funds.
MANCHESTER, Sept. 10.—It is a long time since we have
had so depressed and gloomy a feeling as that which has
possessed the yarn and cloth market during the closing days
of the present week. The fact is as amazing as it is incom-
prehensible. It is true that during the last few weeks cot-
ton has been inactive at Liverpool; very large imports
have taken place, and tkat a great deal of cotton (500,000
bales) are on the ocean, consigned to this market, but, on
the other side, there is the undeniable fact that the stocks of
manufactured goods in nearly all the foreign markets, and
especially in the principal ones, have been a good deal less-
ened, and in some cases exhausted, so that only a little time
was needed to cause the peace rumours to blow over, and to
give merchants time to gain confidence ere large purchases
fur shipment must probably have been entered upon. But
the mischief begun at such an inopportune moment by the
peace rumours, has been greatly aggravated by the almost
minimum rate of interest to 9 per cent. The consequence
has been that the prices of cotton have declined ld to 2 I
per lb., with a difficulty to sell at that ; while in yarns and
manufactured goods the market has been almost paralysed.
Buyers can scarcely be induced to make ()Mrs at any price,
and where they have, such offers have mostly meant a:ruin-
ous sacrifice to the producer. Generally speaking a good
deal of firmness Exists among spinners and manufacturers,
and few would perhaps make a concession more than pro-
portioned to the drop in the raw material (varying in ld to
21d per lb.), which in itself is ruinous, but of course in cases
like the present there are always people unreasonably
alarmed, though generally there is no panic feeling, and
sales are said to have been made in one or two instances at
Id to 5d per lb decline from the rates of last week. Many
spinners and manufacturers are ibis week talking of
stopping their mills or lessening their production as the
only means of stopping the fall of prices and curtailing
the ruinous loss to which they are likely to be exposed
from selling their goods, made of the dearest cotton that
has been bought since the cptt,,n famine commenced,
under present prospects. There is no doubt that many
willowners have been induced to resume working for
little or no better reason than that their neighbours we re
doing so, and from hearing that some of them had done
tolerably well not withstanding the famine, thus increasing
the competitl ea for cotton and running up prices higher
than ever, when, according to the natural laws of trade,
they should have been lower, and the lesson, if not too
severe, may be a salutary one, derived from the present
semi-panic, unfounded and unreasonable, as many people
believe the rumours and causes of alarm which have led to
:o be.

LEEDS, Sept. 10.—There has been a fair sprinkling of
merchants in the cloth halls this morning, and consider-
able business was done in several kinds of goods, though in
the aggregate the market was far from being a good one.
Buyers have been on the look out principally for tweeds,
especially those in dark shades and of strong makes. Thick
meltons also have been in good demand, and of these there
was a large clearance. Heavy cotton warp cloths have also
been good to dispose of, such as pilots in drab shades, and
presidents, beavers, and reversiblee keep up a good position.
Considering the advance in the rate of discount, the woollen
trade generally is in a satisfactory condition, and this is
owing to the fact that, as we foretold last week would soon
be the case, the small country houses have begun to supply
themselves with their winter stocks. Many buyers, who
generally operate extensively, hays been here during the
week, but they have shown more than ordinary supineness,
even taking into consideration that this is a mid-season
period, and the secret of their passiveness is the dearness of
money. Their proceedings cause stocks to look more formid-
able than should be the case, and merchants accordingly act
with considerable caution. Much to the gratification of
many holders of such fabrics a spirited inquiry has of late
gone on after seal skins, which have long been passed by
almost all purchasers. Considerable quantities of thin
diagonals have been warehoused this week, Black unions
of the finer sort are not quite so saleable, but superfine
broads keep up wall in everybody's esteem, and realise high
prices, because they are not to be met with in any abund-
ance.

BRADFORD, Sept. 10.—There is now a better disposition
to do business in worsted pieces than existed at the begin-
ning of the week. It has not become much developed, and
is not likely to be, owing to the tightness of money. For
home purposes very few goods are taken, and the foreigners
have only taken some trifling parcels ; most of the conti-
nental and American representatives being absent. Manu-
facturers are rather taken aback that the piece department
should be so flit, and there are cases in which machinery
is being stopped rather than that the millowners should be
led into over production. The demand for worsted yarns
is merely nominal, and prices are uncertain both of single
and other yarns. Orders aro very rare indeed. The price
of wool is tending downwards owing to the heavy stocks
in local staplers' hands; but the prospect of a bettor ha r-
vest than had been expected, and the fact that things are
looking more more hopeful in America, must prevent easier
terms becoming a permanent fact.
HUDD ERSFIELD, Sept. 10.—Business is quietascong the
merchants, but manufacturers are well employed; though
for being so they are not much indebted to a present flourish-
ing trade, but rather to preparation for the next season.
There have only been a few buyers for large houses look-
ing round, but several operating on a smaller scale have
been doing business rather briskly. The desire to buy
goods is not, however, general among that class. Tho best
qualities and styles of fancies are in request, and the same
may be said with regard to the heavier descriptions of goods
Cloths at medium price have been selling, but no great bulk
has been disposed of. There is still a slack inquiry for low
woollens and unions. The consumpticn of the raw mate-
rial has declined, owing to some of the largo spinners
having secured good stocks:
HALIFAX, Sept. 10.—Generally there is slackness in the
woollen trade of this district. Orders are fast expiring, and
no new ones come in to replace them. There is the least
possible business doing in grenappes, camlets, lastings, and
tweeds. The only decided sign of activity is among the
manufacturers of serges. For carpets there is a very slug-
gish inquiry, but machinery is kept at work upon orders
which date from some time back. The same may be said
with respect to damasks, and the cotton mills are running
short time in the expectation that a decline in the price of
the staple will soon take place. An excellent trade is doing
among the silk spinners, but there are sa few new orders to
encourage the exertions of the worsted yarn spinners that
it is likely, if they could secure criers by so doing, they
would relax a little of their high terms of the past. The
sales of wool have been stopped almost altogether by the
enhanced dearness of money.
NorrisnairAss,Sept. 10.—Daring the past week there
has not been much doing in lace goods. This season of the
year is usually a quiet one, and upon the whole there has
been about an average amount of business doing. Plain
cotton nets aro a very slow sale, and there is no improve-
ment in the fancy department. Silk mechlins and silk
quillings meet a dull demand, and there is barely as much
doing in black silk laces and narrow edgings used for trim
wings. There have been a faw buyers in the market during
the week, but no largo purchases have been made. Menu •
facturers are in nil eases printing to order, and all descrip-
tions of stock are kept down. There is not much alteration
in the hosiery trade. A few foreign orders aro in course of
ezectitioL, and a little is cloir, for the home market, Stocks