The Sun.
London, England, 1851-08-29 00:00:00

FRIDAY

BANQUET TO MR. STEPHENSON
We yesterday published a summary of the pro-
ceedings at the grand banquet given at Bangor, in
honour of Robert Stephenson, Esq., M.P., together
with an epitome of the Hon. Gentleman's speech. We
now furnish a full report of the'reply of Mr. Ste-
phenson to the toast of his health, end also the
speeches of Mr. Locke, M.P., and Mr. Paxton.
Toe CHAIRMAN (Colonel Pennant, M.P.), in pro-
posing the health of their distinguished and respected
guest, observed that a large portion of the improve-
ments that had taken place in this country, within the
last quarter of a century, have been owing to the
talents of civil engineers.—(,`-fear, hear.) The mi-
neral wealth taken from the earth, and so adapted as
to enable our manufacturers to compete with all the
nations of the world ; the docks and canals by which
the trade of the country was carried on; And more
recently, the various railways end all their conco-
mitant advantages; each and all bore the itnpress of
the hand of the civil engineer, and to that class of
the community a very heavy debt of gratitude was
due.—(Elear, bear, end cheers.) And among
that class no one stood mere exalted for soundness
of judgment and probity of character than their
honoured guest, Mr. Robert Stephenson.—(Pro-
trgeted cheering.) Inheriting as he did a name al-
ready conspicuous in engineering science, he had
added to that name a renown not confined to this
country nor to Europe, but which was known and
appreciated in every civilized country in the world.
—(Cheers.) The engineer who was striving to drive
through the jungles of India, or to connect the shores
of the Pacific with the Atlantic, must make himself
acquainted with the trials and difficulties which Mr.
Stephenson had surmounted, before he could feel
perfect mastery over those obstacles which might be
thrown in his way. The Britannia- bridge stood out
an a monument of his genius, alike noble in its pro-
-1 portions and imperishable in its fame.—(Cheers.)
They had long had before them the production of
Telford's genius, the Menai suspension-bridge, and
therefore were in some degree able to judge of the
difficulties which had attended Mr. Stephenson
in the accomplishment of his stupendous task. Day
by day they had seen him superintending the put-
ting together of those gigantic tubes; day by day
they bad seen them floated, and ultimately' they had
seen them elevated to their present height. The
feelings of admiration at witnessing the gradual pro-
gress and ultimate completion of the work had elicited
that testimony of the principality to the genius of
Mr. Stephenson.—(Great cheers.) But he believed
there were other more indirect causes which had con-
tributed to the homage they were then offering him.
He (the chairman) believed that the Britannia-bridge,
by the facilities which it offered, would confer very
great benefits on the country generally ; and he might
therefore reasonably suppose that these feelings had
to a considerable extent induced the tribute of praise
which had given rise to that assembly.—(Hear, hear.)
It might indeed be said that this acknowledgment of
Mr. Stephenson's services ought to have been made
sooner, but he would remind them that the Britannia-
bridge had now stood for one year; it had survived
the test of the winter's gales, and he would now like
to know where were the prophecies of those who had
predicted that it would be unsuccessful. Some had
said the tubes would never be floated, others predicted
that they would never be raised, while others again
confidently averred that if ever they were raised they
would assuredly fall down again.—(Laughter and
cheers.) Where were all these prophecies now ?-
1 (Enthusiastic applause.) He would not longer delay
them, but called on them to join in the pleasing duty
of drinking the health of their distinguished guest,
Robert Stephenson, Esq.
The toast was received with the greatest enthu-
siasm, nine times nine hearty cheers, and the Kentish
fire being given. As soon as the cheering had sub-
sided,
Mr. STEPHENSON rose and spoke as follows :
" Gentlemen, in rising after the eloquent address
which you have just heard, to return you my heart-
felt thanks for the honour which you have done me
on this occasion by making me your guest, I feel
that I must rely on your sympathy and kindness to
excuse the inadequate and imperfect manner in which
lam able to express myself.—(Loud cheering.) But
I will in one word, with all sincerity, express to you
that I feel most deeply the honour you have conferred
on me this day—a day which will be remembered by
me, not merely as one in which I have received this
high compliment, but it will also be remembered by
me as a test of the thorough appreciation by the in.
habitants of this neighbourhood of the difficulties
which have been encountered and successfully
overcome, in the construction of that noble and
gigantic work the Britannia-bridge.—(Renewed
cheering.) That this appreciation has been most
sincere on your part I feel, not only from what has
fallen from the chairman, but from the exceedingly
kind manner in which you have received me.—(llear,
hear.) You have had ample opportunities of observ-
ing the gradual progress of this work ; you have
watched with anxiety those perilous operations which
from time to time have passed in review before you,
and having so appreciated these operations, I feel
more acutely the position in which you have now
placed me.—(Hear, hear.) It would be expected of
me I know, that, under the circumstances, I should
go into a detailed recapitulation of those difficulties in
the construction of the Britannia-bridge to which I
have alluded in general terms, and which may not be
understood by an ordinary observer; but I am
happily relieved from that necessity on this occa-
sion ; for all the doubts and anxieties which
existed during the construction of the bridge,
but which have been solved by its completion,
have already been given to the world by my
friend and valued assistant, Mr. Edwin Clark.—
(Loud cheers.) Of the merits of that work I have
had ample testimony from almost every quarter of the
i world, wherever engineering science has made any
progress, and I am now daily receiving proofs of the
value which it has proved to the whole
profession
wherever it has been pursued to any great extent.—
(Renewed cheers.) It is sometimes the case, that
when an engineer has finished a work involving many
difficulties, it may pass out of his mind; but in my
case, I assure you, it is not so, for the Britannia-
bridge has occupied my attention, and I cannot but
think that that work is yet far from having developed
its influence on society either here or in any part of
the principality.—(Hear, hear.) You in this imme-
diate neighbourhood may perhaps be, at the present
time, participating in its advantages to some extent ;
hut I feel that the Chester and Holyhead Railway is
destined to form, at no distant day, one of the princi-
pal railway links in the British empire.—(Pro-
longed cheers.) I shall not follow the chairman
in the remarks he has made as to the benefits
conferred upon the country by railways, for the fact
of their usefulness is now denied by no one. Their in-
fluence on society has not only been to give an im-
petus to commercial pursuits, but they have diffused
comfort and happiness throughout every corner of the
land, and more especially have they proved beneficial
to the working-man above any class of the commu-
nity.—(Hear, hear.) They have raised that class in
point of locomotion to a level with the peer, and they
are carrying an amount of warmth and comfort to his
hearth which he had never before the means of enjoy-
ing.—(Cbeera.) No one can take a retrospective view
of twenty years past without feeling that civilisation
had at that period reached a point beyond which it could
not pass without the aid of increased powers of locomo-
tion. The powers of the horse were strained to their
utmost limit—nay, we had even gone beyond what
any well-cultivated mind could justify.—(Hear,
hear.) A new species of locomotion was necessary;
and it was accomplished. And how was it accom-
plished ? What circumstance in our position
allowed us, in the comparatively short period
of twenty years, to raise up such a stupend-
ous system of improvement in locomotion ? The
answer is that we have been able to do it from one
circumstance alone—the abundance and cheapness of
iron.—(Loud and continued cheering.) And this
circumstance reminds me of what occurred to- me
some time ago during a visit to Copenhagen. I there
visited a museum, and heard a lecture from a man
who had spent his whole life in the study of mecha-
nics and philosophy. He had in his museum work-
men's tools showing the rudest state of barbarism,
and also every improvement up to the highest state of
refinement. He was most enthusiastic in pointing oil
to me the gradual improvements made, and, if I did
not fully appreciate every article he endeavoured to
explain to me, he made me dwell upon it until I did
so appreciate it. He illustrated to me the first tools
which the artisan used—they were bone ; he traced
them up from the rudest state to a state of comra-
tive perfection, and when he came up to a pacertain
point he said, " You observe how slow has been the
improvement up to that time, but (pointing out iron
tools) look how rapid it has been since the discovery of
iron." I do not make these observations of digres-
sion from my immediate subject merely for the pur-
pose of relating to you the circumstance, but in order
to lay before you the train of thought which it raised
in my mind.—(Hear, hear.) I thought he was quite
right, but I reflected thus :—" How little does this
man think what iron is now doing round about him !
He has been deeply engaged in study, but he does
not know as well as I do what an influence iron now
has upon society and the world. He does not know
that there has been as much iron taken from the
bowels of the earth as would suffice for a girdle to
encircle the earth itself."—(Hear, hear.) He might
have said that we are now producing iron from the
earth which is diffusing wealth and happiness
throughout the world.—(Cheers.) The all-civilizing
thing is iron ; and I much doubt whether we are yet
arrived at that height of civilisation which I believe
we are destined to enjoy. I believe we shall be yet
more civilised, from the existence of an article of ma-
terial wealth beneath us—end that is iron.—(Renewed
cheering.) I will not detain you longer, but return
you my most sincere thanks, and let me assure you
that I appreciate your kindness most highly. The