The Sun.
London, England, 1846-05-07 00:00:00

muter that they owed his presence on that occasion"; bee es,
in his official capacity, he presided over, and led,
ported every commercial interest in the I_JPP'.. and Housesup-
ported
of Par-
iament —(Hear, hear.) How deep aoa responsible such a
position was must be k'ilown and .:epreciated by men Who
were as intimately cam. 'town
thei trade anti commerce
of this City as theme he we‘s addressine.. He believed now
the Society had taken root that it would flourish, and that it
Would never be, uprooted.—(Cheers.) How could it be, when
it was so sur/ported, and when they remembered that the
President sat' the Board of Trade had come down to the City to give hiction and to express lie approbation of the
Institution, and to identify himself with them—a large class
of the commercial community of London?-(Hear hear.)
It was impossible it could fail to be prosperous, and if it
should prosper they should look back upon that day with
pleasure, and upon the conduct of the Noble Lord with gra-
titude--(Cheers)—because he had allotted one day from the
official duties to which he was so heartily devoted in order
that he might afford himself some little relief from business
by
assisting the Ir.Stitution. He concluded by proposing
"Health and Prosperity to the Noble Chairman," which was
received with t).,e most enthusiastic applause.
he felt him:
The Cluny:mart briefly returned thanks. He assured them
he owl self quite unable adtquately to express the ac-
kind which he thought he ought to offer for the
nr.inner in which they had received the toast and drank
it. F,.e assured them that he spoke with perfect sincerity
when he said that Mr. Hankey, in expressing himself as he
bad done, had praised him far, very far, above his deserts.—
b(Cries of " No, no.") He felt a just pride in the honour they
ad conferred upon him at his time of day, and after so short
u apprenticeship in the effice which he had the honour to
hold. In holding that office, however, he laid no greater
claim than this to their regard—a strong desire, which he
sincerely believed was felt in common by
every public man
in this city, of whatever politics, and consisting in an in-
creasing desire to promote the great interests of this great
commercial city in that -way which they thought best, and
at the same time to exert' himself unceasingly to promote
that object—to give every part of his time and every faculty
of his mind to disreharge the duties of the office which he
filled, which he thought were inadequately and unsatisfac-
torily performed; but they would allow him also to say that
he laid no more claim, nor did he desire any praise for being
preseet on that occusion, as he derived the greatest pleasure
from it. Without the zealous services of clerks in public
offices, the heads of those offices, whatever might be their
talents, would find themselves in a difficult position at every
stop they took. De had discharged the duties of the chair
wish great pleasure, and if he could feel that he had added
one tittle to their benefit, or one member to the society who
might enjoy the blessings it was calculated to bestow, he
should be fully satisfied.—(Cheers.)
Glee—" Maying."
The CHAIRMAN again roe% and said he had the honour to
propose to them to drink the healths of four gentlemen to
whom that company and the City of London were under great
obligations—he ineant the Members for the City of London.
--(Loud cheer 9;) He said the City of London was under
-11creat obligations to those gentlemen, and as a Member of the
00180 of_T-erds he must be permitted to say that it was by
E2o.4_eall a great joke to be a Member of the House of Com-
-,us a the present rnement.—(Laughter.) They had great
tesponsible duties entrusted to them to discharge, and
he asked them to couple with that toast the name of Lord
John Russell.—(Loud cheers.) There was one peculiar ad-
N'antge of such meetings, that they gave to men who en-
tertained different opinions on public politics an opportunity
of meeting together in public without the fear of clashing
opinions, or the possibility of a debate.—(Laughter and
cheers.) Although he had differed during his political life
from the Noble
.; Lord, they would, he was sure, be perfectly
cenfident thr.,t on an occasion such as that not one word
should be introduced which would show such difference of
opinion.;—(Cheers.) He trusted, ho'vrever, that they would,
not entertain so unfair an opinion of him as to consider that,
although opposed to the Noble Lord and those who thought
with him, he (Lord Dalhousie) was unwilling to do justice
to his qualifications—(Cheers)—and although he and his
colleagues dissented from the opinions of the Noble Lord in
Many respects, he and they were' ready to do all credit to
his undoubted abilities, unspotted character, and undoubted
courage.—(Loud cheers.) There were none more ready
than his political opponents to acknowledge and to admire
them.—(Cheers.) He concluded by proposing the health of
" Lord John Russell and the Members of the City of Lon-
don," which was drank with great applause.
Lord JOHN Russann then rose, and was received with the
Most enthusiastic cheering. After it had subsided, he said—
My Lords and Gentlemen, I rise to return thanks on behalf
of my colleagues, Members for the City of London, as well
as thyself, for the great honour you have done us. No
l_doeubt, as tlie Noble Lord has told you, the duties of the
Bible mbers
of the City of London are serious and respon-
; have but a partnership in those duties. There are
party of those duties which are performed by my col-
eagues ; but it will be sufficient for me to say that
am not altogether an inactive and inefficient Member.—
(Load cheers.) I feel deeply the honour that has been done
personally to myself, and which consists of a character not
Separate, but combined with that of the other Members of
the City of London. I feel deeply the honour which has been
done me by the speech made to you by the Noble Lord who
fills the chair—the Noble Lord placed at the head of a great
and responsible office, and who discharges the duties of that
office with eminent ability—(Cheers)—and who, by his kind-
ness and courtesy, has made those duties which are often
themselves irksome in comparison to others, at once useful
and agreeable.—(Cheers.) I feel it a great honour to have
been thus distinguished by that Noble Lord, and I feel like-
wise the honour which you have done me in the manner in
which you have received the toast proposed to you. I trust
by a strict performance of that which I consider my duty to
the public—by never felgetting that I have to represent a
great and important portion of this empire, and by duly
weighing the con sequences of every vote I have to give—I
may, in some manner deserve that confidence.—(Cheers.)
The Noble Lord told you, truly, that he and I do not alto-
gether agrte in opinion. lam happy to think this diffe-
rence is Lot, perhaps, very wide--that in general principles
we are 'not far distant--but of this lam sure, that I should
give 'credit to him, as I trust lie and you will give credit to
me, that arriving at the best conclusion that our under-
standings can arrive at, we did that which we feel for the
benefit of the country, and not from personal or private, or from
a feeling of party interest. The country will do us the justice
to consider us faithful servants.—(Loud cheers.) Gentlemen.
lam happy to have the opportunity of attending to-day on
the occasion of the anniversary of a Society which is so
'useful to the City, and so excellent an example. I will not
detain you a moment in speaking of the benefits of this So-
ciety, because the Noble Lord in his speech has eloquently
and fully stated these advantages in a manner which leaves
nothing to fill up.—(Hear, hear.) But I may, perhaps,
be permitted to mention that there are collateral
advantages attendant upon societies of this kind.
In the first place, with regard to the individual, every insti-
tution which induces a man to carry his thoughts beyond
-the day, to look somewhat beyond the business, and when
the business is done, which carries him to consider what
will be the results of his labours on the comforts of
himself and those connected with him, and will in-
duce him, for each of these reasons, to provide to the
best of his ability for himself and them in the season
of need—l say it tends to give sobriety to his thoughts,
regularity to his conduct, and elevation to his moral and re-
ligious sentiments.—(Cheers.) Then let me add further, if
it does this for the individual, societies of this kind do much
socially for the State. They combine together the different
members of society, and bring the merchant nearer to those
he employs than is the habitual result of the business of the
ds.y. They tend to bind together men in the
different states of life, not formally, having; sympathy
with one another, to wish the individual welfare, by
acting disinterestedly for the benefit of all.—(Cheers.) But
it is this, gentlemen, it is this separate combination, it is the
fitness of every stone in the arch to its particular place, that
gives the solidity and atrengh to the whole arch on which
British society rests. In other countries there have been
clever and distinguished men, brilliant warriors, eminent
and gifted poets, and all-wise and able legislators; but of
countries where all orders are combined, where the soldier
and the officer, the crown and the subject, the
lord and the clerk are combined together in
their various relations, I know of no country to
be compared to that to which I have the happiness to be-
long.—(Applause.) And when I say this, I am not depart-
ing from the subject of this night, because this great whole
is made up of several particles, and every society which
brings men together in such relations of charity and fellow-
ship tends to the welfare and to the promotion of this har-
mony to which I have referred. Gentlemen, you will allow
me again to thank you for the response which you have
given to my health, and I trust you will allow me to give as
a toast, " The City of London, and Prosperty to its Commerce."
--(Great cheering.) I trust that that commerce may, from
day to day, and from year to year, flourish more and more,
and that the British empire may set an increase to all na-
tions in the world, and will tend to the exampleoffhries atedsoem,
peace, and prosperity.—(The Noble Lord resumed
amidst enthusiastic cheering, which lasted several minutes.)
The toast having been warmly responded to,
W. G. Pitescore, Esq., rose to returnthanks
toast, as his name had been connected with it. for the
It was the
intention of the committee to have entrusted the task to
Mr. Baring, who was more intimately connected with the
commerce of the City of London than he was, but that_
gen
-
tleman, much to his regret, and to the regret of them all,_
had been prevented from attending by a slight accident. If
this bad not occurred to him he would certainly have been
present, for they all knew that from the commencement of
that Association down to that period he had given both his
time and money for its benefit.—(Cheers.) In hisadbssenceti
there re, he had been called upon to say a few or
they iliould be few, because he could
theyadd little
tow the' an
abfe,
appropriate, and feeling speeches which had heard that
night. The Noble Lord who had proposed that toast truly
said that they might look for prosperity, and he d idnot doubt
it, because as long as British enterprise and Britishindustry
was connected with the City of London it could not fail to con-
tinue to advance in prosperity. Yet there were times when
success gave place to depression, and consequently to want of
employment, but that connected with this Association would
not materially suffer during those periods, as it extended
its hand to them in the season of difficulty and danger.
Was to
nd to
no this, then, a great inducement to them all to join
give it their hearty support, since this uncertainty
of commerce was added to the uncertainty of health.—
(Hear.) He had watched the progress of the institution
from its commencement until its arrival at that point.
Although they had man Principles laid . down for..
its government, they found t,
when clerks themselves gave it
they had but little to do
a self-supporting institution, andeirbsupport.; it was, in fact,
esides, it made them, as
individuals, and as a class, less dependent on those who gave
them employment, and induced ptt
tr employ.ers, when they
saw the utility of the institution ve it their
sympathy and support also. Ile evishoedgito say that the earnestcon-
duct of clerks had been watched, and, as they
ihnad been found
deserving, they wished to aid them in form
those who were in reduced circumstances, sof to
fund for
order to
prevent them from having recourse to eleemosynary aid,
aid,
'which would give them that feeling of self-respect
felt by those who knew that they were able to support th was
selves from a fund which they had created. He concluered-
by
makesexresing a hope that they would do all in their power
to the institution more generally known by inducing those with whom they were acquainted to become members.--
Mr. R. H. JONES then read the list of subscriptions, which
amounted to nearly 7001.
The announcement of the majority of them, especially the
larger sums, were received with great applause.
J. WOOD, Esq., congratulated those present oe the pros-
perity of the Institution, and considered that those who had
been entrusted with its management deserved their utmost
thanks. They consisted of thirteen individuals, who were
employed by some of the first houses in the City, to whom
all honour should be given, because, in addition to the
duties which they had to discharge to their employers, they
devoted the few hours which they could spare from those
duties to ;the Association, for the benefit of those who were
not, perhaps, in as good a condition as themselves. When
the Institution was about to be formed they applied to the
Board of Excise to support them, but they refused, because
every clerk was compelled by Act of Parliament, if his salary
did not exceed 100/. a year, to allow two-and-a-half
Per cent to be deducted for the purpose of creating a fund
for their future wants, or in case they were disabled by ill-
ness or age, and from the salaries of those who receive more
than 100/. five.per cent. At the age of sixty-five the clerks
in that office were allowed a superannuation—not "pensions,"
a word which was much abused when applied to those in the
service, because in the case of these clerks they only re-