The Sun.
London, England, 1866-12-01 00:00:00

" To THE QUEEN'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY.

" May it please your Majesty,—We, your Majesty's loyal
subjects, the Mayor, aldermen, and burgesses of the borough
of Banbury, approach your Royal presence with unfeigned
pleasure that we have obtained permission to address your
Majesty words of welcome on your progress through this
ancient borough.

" We aro not unmindful that we have also the honour of
welcoming with your Majesty their Royal Highnesses the
Prince and Princess Christian and the Princess Louise.

"We do not venture to allude to the object of your Royal
progress further than to express to your Majesty our loyal
and deeply affectionate remembrance of him whose statue
your Majesty is to-day to inaugurate, and our hope that
that remembrance may long stimulate others to follow in
the path of honour and virtue which he so highly adorned.
"Above all do we welcome your Majesty's appearance
on the occasion among your subjects, affording them the
opportunity of showing their undeviating allegiance to
your Majesty's person and to the throne and the institu-
tions of this realm.

" Accept, gracious Sovereign, every wish which loyal
and affectionate hearts can prompt for your happiness, and
that in the hands of the Great Ruler of Events that life
may be long continued which is so closely bound up with
the hopes and wellbeing of your faithful people.
Given under the corporate seal of the borough of Ban-
bury, this 30th day of November, anno Domini 186 G."

To this her Majesty made a gracious reply :—" I
am very much obliged for this address." An offer-
ing of Banbury cakes and flowers made by the little
daughters of the Mayor was as graciously accepted,
and then the train sped rapidly on, arriving at
Birmingham at a quarter to 1 o'clock. The station
here was thronged with people, but no stoppage was
made, though the speed was slackened. Beyond
Birmingham you enter at once the district known
as " the Black Country," a region where Nature
has been lavish of her mineral wealth, and the coal
and iron which help to make England what it is
have been stored side by side in bounteous profu-
sion. It is certainly not inviting, this Black Coun-
try, to the every-day tourist. The air is thick and
heavy with the dense clouds of smoke belched forth
from fiery furnaces and smelting works beyond
count. There are works with all sorts of chimneys,
but the thick smoke is everywhere. And the sur-
face of the soil reflects the cloud, for all along
and the
e
line are heavy, sullen masses of
black shale and refuse from collieries wholly or par-
tially worked out. The eye seldom rests on a bit of
green, smiling
landscape a more complete contrast to the s
• nag
landscape of the Royal county can with difficulty
be pictured. At night the air glows with light re-
flected from a thousand small craters, and the sleepy
traveller who wakes up here as he is whirled along
in the train may easily suppose for the moment,
from sight, smell, and sound, that he is dreaming of
some such region of torment and despair as old poets
have imagined and portrayed. This is the " Black
Country" through which the Royal train has passed
—a district which, however unattractive to the eye,
possesses the greatest interest to Englishmen as one
of the busiest and most important among our seats
of industry.
From Birmingham to Wolverhampton the dis-
tance is about 12 miles, and in that short run the
Great Western passes through Hockley, Soho,
Handsworth, West Bromwich, Swan Village, Wed-
nesbury, Bradley, Bilston, and Priestfield—places
of varying size, but all connected more or less with
the two staple trades of iron production and coal
winning. The special trains which have been run-
ning the whole forenoon on both the North Western
and Great Western systems appear to have carried
off to Wolverhampton the greater part of the adult
male inhabitants, for the spectators are chiefly
women and children. These make goodly show,
however, along the entire route, and denote a teem-
ing population. They line the black banks of the
railway, throng the heaps of coal refuse close by,
and, in their absorbing wish to make the most of
their time in seeing the Queen, sometimes forget to
cheer till the train is gone, and seeing is no longer
possible. here and there you see workmen fresh
from forge or furnace, eager to see at least as much
as their neighbours, but meaning apparently to go
back to work. In most cases the animus rerertendi
is
our nmistakeably wanting. A composed look, and
more orless clean faces, show that work is over for
to-day at least. In fact, it is a general
the whole district, and the population is divided not
so much into those who work and those who don't
as into those who go to the
may possibly capital
who think they see as much, with less
making for the nearest point
trouble and outlay, by
of the Royal route.
Within the time fixed for the arrival at Wolver-
hampton, 10 minutes past 1 o'clock, the royal train
drew up at the low-level station there, the Queen's
arrival being made known to the crowds outside by
the firing of a royal salute and the music of the Na-
tional Anthem. Fortunately, the platform afforded
unusual space for the accommodation of visitors,
some 800 of whom were admitted by tickets. Great
pains had been taken by Mr. Tyrrell, the superin-
tendent of the Great Western, by Mr. Grant, the
goods manager, Mr. Chapman, and other officials
in decorating the station, which, grimy enough at
other times, now looked as gay as flags and plants,

artificial flowers, and evergreens could make it. The
royal party on arriving were received by Lord Lich-
field, Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire, and the
Countess of Lichfield, the Bishop of Lichfield,
Major-General Garvock, commander of the Mid-
land district, the borough members (Mr. Villiers
and Mr. Weguelin), the Mayor of Wolverhampton
(Mr. Morris), the Recorder (Mr. J. Powell, Q.C.),
the Town-clerk (Mr. E. J. Hayes), and some other
gentlemen. The Mayor was here presented, and her
Majesty having accepted from the Mayoress (Mrs.
Morris) a handsome bouquet, no time was 1 ost in
forming a procession. First came a troop of yeo-
manry under the command of Major Thorney croft ;
then followed carriages containing the members of
the Town Council, the Recorder, the Mayor, the
borough members, and the Lord Lieutenant. Three
open landaus drawn by four horses contained the
royal party. In the first were Lord Crof ton, Major-
General Sir T. Biddulph, K.C.8., and Lieut.-Col.
Gordon, Equerry to Prince Christian ; the second
contained the Countess of Caledon, Lady in Wait-
ing to her Majesty, Lady Susan Melville, Lady
in Waiting to the Princess Christian, the Hon.
Flora Macdonald, Maid of Honour, and the Earl
of Derby. In the third carriage was the Queen,
the Prince and Princess Christian, and Princess
Louise, Lord Alfred Paget, Clerk Marshal, and
Lieut.-General Grey, Equerry in Waiting, rode on
each side of her Majesty's carriage, where the streets
were wide enough to admit of this ; and a detach-
ment of the Bth Hussars served as escort.

Between 2,000 and 3,000 people were admitted by
tickets into the station yard and the approaches. At
the entrance was erected an arch of coal firmly joined
by mortar, with abutments of pig-iron. Picks,
spades, and other implements of the collier's trade
were so placed as to give relief to the material of the
arch, which, though not a sightly object, was one
very characteristic of the local industry. Just bey ond
this was a coal trophy, some 30 feet high, formed of
immense blocks of coal from Lord Dudley's pits,
some of these blocks weighing nearly three tons.
These two structures were built under the superin-
tendence of Mr. Baker, the inspector of coal mines
for the district, and as about 100 tons of coal were
used in forming them, it may be imagined that the
labour was not slight. It is not far from the station
to the market-place, where the statue has been
erected, but the procession took a circuitous route of
nearly three miles. This was necessary in order to
obtain a sufficient area for the spectators. But it
was also her Majesty's express desire that her route
should be so arranged as to give the people, poor as
well as rich, ample opportunities for showing their
loyalty. And certainly nothing could exceed the
enthusiasm and devotion displayed by the whole
population,
town and country, assembled in the
streets. The colliers, the puddlers, and the forge•
men from the iron districts, the workers iu metal,
japan, papier-mache, and the hollow ware which
have of late years been added to the staple trades
of Wolverhampton, lined the barriers, and raised
a mighty shout when the Royal carriages appeared
in sight, renewing it again and again with a
heartiness which could not be mistaken. Some
of the streets are so narrow that there were fears
of accident from the pressure of the crowd either
before or after the passage of the procession. But
those who thought the population of the Black
Country, though well disposed and thoroughly
loyal, might prove unruly in such a crowd were
agreeably disappointed. Barriers were very properly
erected along the whole line of procession ; but
there was no attempt to break through them, and
the orderly behaviour of the people, often under
trying circumstances, showed that all were on their
best behaviour. The arrangements made by the
chief constable, Captain Segrave, and the military
officers were well calculated to insure good order.
Some 1,500 Volunteers were stationed at regular in-
tervals along the route. There was also available a
body of 800 police, including 200 of the Metropoli-
tan force, under Mr. Superintendent Walker ; and
the Yeomanry assisted in clearing the thoroughfares.
The spirit of the people, however, was so admirable
that these precautions were but little needed. The
procession, after leaving the railway station, went
through King-street, Queen-street, Dudley-street,
Snow-hill, Cleveland-street, Salop-street, and Dar-
lington-street to the market-piece. Festoons of
evergreens were hung on each side of the way along
the whole route, and each house had made the most
of its windows, or had thrown out balconies or
erected stands and booths, the testing of which, in
the interest of public safety, must have been a work
of some labour to the town surveyor (Mr. Morgan)
and his assistants. Of course, the show of banners
and the varieties of mottoes and inscriptions were
infinite. Some of the last gave a welcome to the
Queen and Princesses, many alluded to the late
Prince Consort, and Mr. Tennyson's lines " The
silent father of the Kings to be " was frequently re-
peated. On one itninense banner, " The working
men gave hearty welcome to their beloved Queen."
Owing to the fineness of the weather, which allowed
her Majesty to appear in an open carriage, and
owing also to the length of the route and the narrow-
ness of most of the streets, every man, woman, and
child must have had " a good look" at their Sove-
reign, and the consideration shown by the Queen
in affording them this opportunity was evidently
appreciated most thoroughly.
Naturally the market-place, or " High Green,"
was the centre of attraction. The open slope of
ground available here was not large, but it was pro-
bably made the most of. The treacherous weather
of an English November made it, of course, indis-
pensable that the ceremony of unveiling the statue
should be performed under cover, and should be
witnessed under cover. A sort of amphitheatre was
therefore constructed at the expense of the corpora-
tion, covered with canvas, and capable of seating
over 2,000 people. Enclosed in this was the statue
of the Prince Consort, and fronting this again, and
also fronting the visitors in the amphitheatre, was
a
alparty small pavilion, draped with crimson cloth, and
tastefully
decoratedwhich
, to the Queen and the
Royal
oy
were conducted. Upon her Majesty's
National
n
entrance all present rose d uncovered, a detach-
ment of the 39th Regiment
al ogivingA the salute, and a
band playing
wore a black dress trimmed Awith nthem.
peTahned Queenedcfed
with dark fur ; her bonnet was black, and beneath
it she wore a white Marie Stuart
cap. The P rin-
cesses wore ordinary morning costuin
Christian wore a Colonel's uniform, andeOve.rePitrtindtlelice
Order of the Garter. Her M a j esty bowed re
answer to the cheering, and seemed profoundly
impressed with the warmth of her reception. Just
as the cheers were subsiding, and the business of the
day was beginning, a voice called out, " God bless
the
Queen !" and thereupon the popular enthusiasm
broke forth afresh, and seemed irrepressible. Prince
and Princess Christian were also heartily welcomed;
and Lord Derby received a special round of ap-
plause. When all had taken their places and order
was at last restored, the Bishop of Lichfield offered
up the following prayer :
" Almighty God, who has taught us in Thy Holy Word
that the memory of the just is blessed, grant, we beseech
Thee, that the memorial of Thy departed servant now set
up in this place may be a remembrance of him for the good
of us and of those who shall come after us.
" We tray Theo that, as ho lived according to Thy holy
'ndulgence, but
will, not giving himself up to idleness or self-indulgence,
employing his great abilities and his opportunities of his
high station in promoting the true welfare of all classes of
the peoplo in this land of his adoption, so the example of
his unblemished and noble character and the virtues of an
active and beneficent life may stir up many to seek Thy
glory and the good of their fellow-creatures in the several
stations to which Thy providence has called them.
" We heartily thank Theo for the bright promise of life
which through that honoured Prince thou hast been pleased
to bestow upon this nation. We bow humbly before the
inscrutable wisdom by which it was ordained that his sun
should go down while it was yet day with Lim, and wo
earnestly pray that both by Thy mercies and Thy judg-
ments we may be turned nearer to Thee, and may be led to
walk more and more in Thy faith and fear.
" Wo beseech Thee, 0 Lord, to pour upon our most
gracious Queen and upon all her family the continual dew
of Thy blessing. Give her that peace and those consolations
which Thou alone canst give, and make her strong in Thy
strength and happy in Thy favour. Endow her councillors
with faithfulness and wisdom. Preserve her long to rule
over a grateful people, and grant that there may be never
hi
which
weo after
beg
in the n
wanting in her house one to sit upon the throne of this
herae example.
" kingdom All w to uand through the media-
tion of Jesus Christ our Lord.
" Our Father, &c."
The Recorder then read the following
address :
" To THE QUEEN'S MOST EXCELLEET MAJESTY.
" May it please your lilajost y
our Majesty's faithful

subjects, the Mayor, aldermen, and burgesses of Wolver-
hampton, crave permission to offer to your Majesty their
}numble thanks for your Majesty's gracious condescension
in thus honouring this borough with your Royal presence
" The inhabitants of the surrounding districts, of every
class and degree—unequal in their fortunes, but equal in
their loyalty—also assemble here to-day to present their
homage to your Majesty, our beloved and gracious Sove-
reign.

" Inspired by feelings of profound devotion to your Ma,
jesty's person, family, and throne, we presume to approach
your Majesty, and each and all of us most heartily bid your
Majesty welcome.

" We ask your Majesty's permission to welcome also
their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess Christi in
and her Royal Highness the Princess Louise, whose affec-
tionate and dutiful attendance on your Majesty has ob-
tained for us the distinguished honour of the presence of
their Royal Highnesses.
" We pray that your Majesty will deign to honour with
your gracious approval our earnest, though inadequate at-
tempt to testify our devotion to the memory of our late
revered Prince, your Majesty's beloved and lamented con-
sort. We desire to-day, and in this place, to acknowledge
and commemorate the debt of gratitude we owe to his
Royal Highness. Dwelling iu a district of your Majesty's
dominions where the resources of science are constantly
required to dovelope the productions of nature and adapt
them for the use and benefit of man—where art is ever
striving to add grace and beauty to material form, and
where the necessities of a vast industrial population de-
mand incessant efforts to ameliorate their physical condi-
tion, to educate their minds, and to teach them moral and
religious truth—we have felt it to be our duty, as it has
been our delight, to erect this statue of his Royal High-
ness, and thereby transmit to posterity a faithful represen-
tation of that illustrious Prince who, promoting science
by his judicious patronage, and art by his enlightened
precepts, also incited men to all works of Christian duty
by the force of his beneficent example.
" We now humbly pray your Majesty to unveil the
statue, that henceforth your Majesty's loving subjects in
this place may have ever present among them the image
of the good Prince Consort, who, although prematurely
taken away from us, still lives, and will ever live, in the
imperishable remembrance of his virtues.

" May God preserve your Majesty, and send your Ma-
jesty health, peace, and consolation.
" Given under tho corporate seal of Wolverhampton this
30th day of November, 1866."
_ _ _

The Mayor having presented a copy of the ad-
dress, which her Majesty was graciously pleased to
accept, Lord Derby handed to the Queen a sword
with which the " accolade" was bestowed on the
kneeling Mayor, and he thereupon rose up Sir John
Morris. The knighthood thus publicly conferred
called forth fresh enthusiasm for the new honour
paid to the town in the person of its chief magis-
trate. The following gentlemen were then presented
to her Majesty :—Mr. Charles Villiers, M.P., Mr.
Weguelin, M.P., the Recorder, the Town Clerk,
the Clerk of the Peace (Mr. H. Underhill), the
mover and seconder of the address (Aldermen
Ironmonger and Fowler), and the Chairman and
Vice-Clwirman of the Statue Subscription Com-
mittee (Aldermen G. L. Underhill and llawksford).
ller Majesty then commanded that the statue should
be unveiled, and the coverings being withdrawn
disclosed a very effective equestrian statue, in bronze,
of the late Prince Consort. A detailed description
of the statue has already been published. it is
enough now to say that as a work of art the statue is
exceedingly creditable to the sculptor, Mr.Thorney-
croft, and that the likeness is undoubted. An in-
scription on the pedestal simply records the name
and style, with the date of the Prince's birth and
death. Her Majesty and the Princesses, attended
by Mr. Thorneycroft, walked round the statue, and
the Queen expressed her satisfaction with the entire
work.

Before leaving the pavilion her Majesty also de-
sired the Mayor to tell her subjects in Wolverhampton
that she was greatly pleased with her reception and
with the loyal feeling which bad been manifested.
The procession then returned to the railway station
in the same order, but by another route, passing
through Skinner-street, School.street, Waterloo-
road, Stafford-street, Little Berry-street, Prince's
street, and Queen-street. This route led through
" the Irish quarter" of the town, in which
there is a large Irish population. There had been
some stupid whispers of a possible Fenian demon-
stration here ; but the loyalty of the poor people was
as loud and apparently quite as sincere as in the other
parts of the town, and their little display of ever-
greens and artificial flowers was in its way touch-
ing, for they evidently gave what they could afford,
and gave it with right good will.
Among the company assembled in the amphi-
theatre to witness the principal ceremony of the day
were Lord Lichfield, the Earl of Shrewsbury, the
Earl of Harrowby, the Earl of Bradford, Sir R.
Peel, the Bishop of Lichfield, the Hon. A. Wrottes-
ley, Mr. S. Hill (Recorder of Banbury), Mr. Hart-
ley, Mr. Hill, and Major Thorneycroft. All those
who could make their way to the railway station
did so, in order to witness the Queen's departure.
Several rooms in the station were fitted up as re-
freshment and retiring rooms for the Royal party,
and the resources of the Great Western Railway
Company were aided by Mr. S. Cartwright, Mr.
Hartley, and other gentlemen, who lent pictures
and furniture. The plants in the station, of which
there were many hundreds, were furnished by Mr.
Lowe, nurseryman, who also, provided the Queen's
bouquet. At the station the Queen and their Royal
Highnesses had luncheon, and when they came upon
the platform to return to town, Lady Morris, in the
name of the ladies of Wolverhampton, presented to
the Princess Christian, in eirurnemoration of the
Royal visit, a very elegant bracelet, with the word
" Souvenir" in large diamond letters. The Princess
accepted the gift, and in a few words expressed her
acknowledgments.

The return journey began at a quarter to four,
and the Royal train, stopping at Banbury as before,
arrived at Windsor in exactly three hours. At four
o'clock a luncheon was given in the Corn Exchange,
Sir J. Morris presiding. The Earl and Countess of
Lichfield, the Earl of Ilarrowby, the Earl of Dart-
mouth, Mr. Villiers, M.P., Mr. Weguelin, M.P.,
Major-General Sir J. Garvock, and Major Anson
were among the guests. Several congratulatory
toasts were given, and the Mayor's health was pro-
posed by Lord Lichfield. At night there was a gene-
ral illumination, on a scale altogether unprecedented
in Wolverhampton. The magnificent devices, pro-
vided by the Messrs. J. Defries, of London,, shone
out with the greatest splendour, and fully supported
the high reputation the firm have secured in illumi-
native displays at all great public rejoicings in all
parts of the world. It is estimated that aquarter of a
million people witnessed the Royal visit, but other
accounts place the number much higher. All
must admit that Wolverhampton has acquitted her-
self worthily in the reception she has given to the
Queen ; and the capital of the Black Country has
shown itself by no means so black as it has been
painted.

Queen Isabella, of Spain, is about to pay Lisbon
a visit, leaving her own dominions in a state of
misrule, to which, fortunately for civilisation, few
countries of Europe in this century have yet been
reduced. With liberty annihilated, with person
and property at the absolute disposal of irrespon-
sible rulers, with gaols crammed with political pri-
soners, with ships freighted with innocent men in
a worse than negro slaves torn from their
homes in Africa, exiles to be transported to a deadly
tropical climate—her Majesty, with her conscience
at ease, proceeds on her Royal tour through the
country she has desolated, to be received with all
honours by her Royal cousins of the neighbouring
kingdom. In Spain we will soon have a fine sample
of the depths to which a nation will sink under the
bigoted sway of priests and the tyranny of a mili-
tary usurpation.

Mr. William Miller, who was appointed chief
cashier of the Bank of England on the retirement of Mr.
Matthew Marshall in 1861, died yesterday morning, at the
ago of 57. Mr. Miller, who entered the service of the Bank
in 1829, has long suffered from a complication of disorders,
including asthma, but the immediate cause of his death
was bronchitis.

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