The Sun.
London, England, 1861-06-01 00:00:00

[PROVIDENT CLERKS' BENEVOLENT
FUND.

The anniversary festival of this excellent insti-
tution was celebrated on Thursday, at the London
Tavern, Bishopsgate-street ; the Right Hon. the
Lord Mayor, M.P., in the chair, supported by the
Sheriffs of London and Middlesex, Messrs. R. F.
Remington, IL Nelson, J. De Vitre, C, Corthorn,
John Abel Smith, Alfred Smee, John Gay, Jervois
Smith, George F. Young, J. A. Hankey, S. P. Low,
Eastty, &c. About 160 gentlemen sat down to a
sumptuous dinner;
The object of this fund is the relief and assist-
ance of those clerks who, by age or infirmity, are
unable to support themselves, and of the widows and
families of clerks who are left without adequate
means of support. Assistance is granted by the fund
in the shape of annuities of 151 to 35/ each, gratuities
and loans. Medical advice is offered gratuitously in
cases of sickness. A 'register of clerks requiring
situations is kept, and every endeavour used to
obtain employment for those in want of it. There
are at present on the fund 62 annuitants, who are
receiving collectively £1,120 per annum.
The CHAIRMAN having given respectively " The
health of her Majesty the Queen," " His Royal
Highness the Prince Consort," "The Prince of
Wales and Royal Family," and the " Army and
Navy, and Volunteers," said he had great satisfac-
tion in rising to propose prosperity to this noble in-
stitution. He would not degrade it by calling it a
charity,because it deserved the name of an institution
in its better sense. (Applause). It was an institution
established for those who were careful and provident,
and for helping those who helped themselves. It did
a vast amount of good, and he had no doubt it would
grow more the better it was known. If it were
possible to make this institution understood
throughout the country, instead of dispensing some
£1,200 a year they would dispense £24,000 a year.
If it was in all respects so deserving of support, it
was hardly possible to suppose any one who had a
regard for the welfare of his country would fail to
assist in this great work. He said the welfare of
his country, because he knew of no body of men
who formed so important a body in the country as
the commercial classes. Our country was mainly
made by its commercial operatives, and those who
were engaged in commerce must depend upon
the intelligence, the zeal, and the integrity of
those whom they employed. The relief offered
was not of a mere eleemosynary character, and the
recipients of the benefits the society dispensed could
not be regarded in the light of persons seeking alms.
He was sure that nothing further he could say
would be required; every one came to this festival,
well knowing what the institution was, and they
came there to support it. He could hardly suppose
that those who had come prepared to give one guinea
would be disposed to give two guineas, or those
who proposed to subscribe five guineas would give
fifty guineas. Nothing would give him greater
pleasure than to find they collected in the aggregate
£5,000, but if they got half that amount he should
be satisfied. (Applause.) Let every one be deter-
mined to do his duty, and to give a good lift to this
institution. The right hon. gentleman concluded
an eloquent appeal by giving " Prosperity to
the Provident Clerks' Benevolent Institution."
(Cheers.)
Mr. JOHN ABEL SMITH proposed " The health of
the Chairman, the Right Hon. the Lord Mayor."
He said he felt great honour and pleasure in pro-
posing the toast, because the chairman was not only
the first magistrate in the greatest commercial city
in the world, but was also one of his oldest and
most valued friends. The history of the Lord
Mayor was a bright example of what might be
accomplished by zeal, integrity, and perseverance.
(Cheers.) He called upon the company to drink
the toast with all that enthusiasm it so justly
merited.

The company respoßded in the most gratifying
manner to the invitation of Mr. Smith.
The LORD MAYon returned thanks. He said
he should be indeed dull and insensible if he did
not express his gratitude for the manner in which
his health had been received. Mr. Smith had
alluded to his success in life, but that fact was
heightened when he found he had so done his work
as to meet with the approbration of his fellow-men.
(Cheers.)
Mr. J. A. HANKEY gave " The Sheriffs and
Corporation of London," to which Mr Sheriff Lusk
responded.

rile LORD MAYOR, rose and stated that he had
just received a note demanding his attendance else-
where (the House of Commons), and his lordship
left the room amidst loud cheering.
Mr. JOFIN ABEL SMITH took the chair.

Mr. GEORGE FREDERICK YOTJNG proposed " The
Health of the chairman, the treasurer of the Insti-
tution, and that of the trustees." He had been
for many years cognisant of the kindly services of
Mr. Smith.

Mr. SMITH, in acknowledging the toast, said the
success of this institution had always been one of
the things nearest his heart, and no one more
heartily rejoiced at the prosperity they had arrived
at than himself. He had from the first supported
the institution, and he should continue to do so,
and he confidently anticipated that the institution
was destined to take its place as one of the most
useful in the world. (Cheers.) The clerks of Lon-
don had within themselves, as a class, the elements
to achieve success—all that was wanted was the
energy to use them, and this they ought to do by
giving the institution their most extended support.
He could not better conclude his remarks than by
giving them as the next toast "The health of their
able and tried friend Mr. Jones and the members of
the committee." (Loud cheers.)
The feast was heartily responded to.
Mr. JONES said he was sure his co-directors must
be gratified at the manner in which the toast had
been honoured. There was, however, one draw-
back on their happiness that evening, that was the
absence of their deputy-chairman, Mr. Welsh ; but
the success of the evening would be a source of
great pleasure to him under his illness. The suc-
cess of the present anniversary had been such that
next year they would be able to double the number
of annuitants to be elected. (Cheers.) He thought
the society stood in a proud position, when it could
be truthfully asserted that they had granted the
benefits of the institution to 80 per cent. of the
claimants. (Loud cheers.)
The subscriptions amounted to nearly £2,500.

CRYS7AL PALACE SCHOOL OF ART,
A2VD LITERAZURE.

On Thursday Dr. Dresser's fifth lecture on Botany
took place in the School. The subject was, this
time, the flower. The lecturer commenced by
noticing the-two typical organs of the plant—the
stem and the leaf—which have occupied the two
last lectures. The. flower, it appears, is not a dis-
tinct organ, but simply a branch with leaves ;
hence, when considering the flower, we are making
acquaintance with the diversified characters in
which the typical organs appear, and are not be-
coming conversant with new parts thus the
morphological department of botany is that to
which we must now direct our attention.

The stalk, or axial portion of the flower, under-
goes remarkable modifications, as is seen in the
strawberry, where the edible portion of which—the
so-called fruit—is the summit of the flower stem,
and has become a reservatory of rich juices. The
fig is another singular modification of the flower
stalk ; here every little fruit—the so-called seed—
results from a distinct flower which has grown from
the interior of a hollowed stalk.

The leafy or foliar organs of the flower usually
appear under four modifications of form, and thus
the flower is made up of a stem portion, from which
the leafy organs spring, and four distinct series of
parts, which are, however, all diversified aspects of
the foliar type.
The two outer series of floral parts are termed the
floral envelopes, as they are destined to envelope the
more tender central member, and the two inner the
reproductive series, as they are concerned in the
production of seeds which are destined to Multiply
the individual. The outer floral envelope is termed
the calyx, the inner the corolla ; the outer repro-
ductive series the andraeceum, and the inner the
pistil. The calyx consists of leaves termed sepals;
the corolla of leaves termed petals ; the andrae-
ceum of parts termed stamens, and the pistil of
members termed carpels.
After a number of features of particular interest
had been enunciated respecting the flower, and the
student had been particularly cautioned against
mistaking certain flower heads for individual
flowers—as those of the daisy, chiniaster, sun-
flower, and chrysanthemum—attention was
directed to the hours at which certain flowers
bloorss l 0
ck of Linnvens.o nsl ,an d this intrc-
edxupc
eat? dtahned
well-ono
nt hr
o their
floral
The major convolvulus opens its blossoms between
3 and 4 a.m. ; yellow goatsherd, 4 and 5 ; wild
chicory-, 5; dandelion, 5 and 6; sow thistle, 6 and
7 ' scarlet pimpernel, 8 ; field marigold, 9.
After the lecture the majority
of the audienca
met in the large studio for the di • ssection of flowers,
under the supervision of the professor.
Each stu-
dent was provided with a collection of flowers to
operate upon. The attendance on the lectures is
regularly increasing,
and
as the facilities of the
palace for illustration are becoming more fully
known, the class is taking that high position in
relation to botanical • instruction which its import-
ance deserves. The lectures on botanical classifica-
tion, which will form a course of six, will commence
. on June 13.