The Sun.
London, England, 1844-05-03 00:00:00

GENERAL PENSION SOCIETY.

- _
The annual festival in aid of the funds of this institution
took place yesterday evening, at the London Tavern, Bishop-
gate-street. At six o'clock the Marquis of Clanricape took
the chair, when upwards of .two hundred gentlemenltit down
to dinner.

Over the chair was a well-executed transparency of her
Majesty, with the following appropriate motto, "Our Royal
Patron, she is the very soul of bounty."
As soon as the cloth was removed, the usual loyal toasts
were given. which were duly diSposed of. After which,
The Noble CHAIRMAN proposed the toast of the evening,
which was " Prosperity to the City of London General Pen-
sion Society, and may it flourish for ever." The Institution,
lie said, 11114 received in its very infancy the sanction and
support of the parents of our beloved Queen,
the Duke and
Duchess of Kent, and the -King of the Belgians, and they
would be gratified to hear, that her Majesty had followed
their good example, and taken the society under her protec-
tion. He then made a feeling appeal to those present in be-
half of a charity which had already conferred blessings upon
many who were unable to help themselves, and which was
also to be instrumental, if properly supported, in benefiting
many snore who might become fitting objects of its benevo-
lent operations.

_ .
The Secretary, Mr. RICHARDSON, read the report, which
was exceedingly voluminous, and included the names of a vast
number of Noblemen of high rank, as subscribers to the In-
stitution. Before reading the report, the Secretary made
some preliminary remarks, in which he stated that the So-
ciety was formed in 1818, or providing permanent relief to
decayed artisans, mechanies, and tradesmen generally, and
the widows of such persons above sixty years of age—that
the male pensioners receive 225. per month, and the females
155.—ab Out thirty of the pensioners were above eighty years
of age, and upwards of twenty above ninety.
The subscriptions for the evening were exceedingly liberal,
amounting, in all, to nearly 1,100/. Among the numerous
donations announced were—the Queen, 100 guineas ; the
; J. Deacon, Esq., 10/.
guineas annually ; the
Queen Dowager, 101. annually ; the Earl of Aberdeen, 20/ ;
Duchess of Cambridge, 10/. ;
1:u5I/c.iss Coutts Burdett, 20/. ;
Lord Beresford, 20/. ; Earl of Haddington, 10/. ; Luke James
e
of Shrewsbury, 10/. 10s. ;
Hansard, Esq., 501.; Earl of Burlington, 30/. ; the Trustees
e Earl
the Duke of Buccleuch, in
, 5
Mr. Thwaits, 501. ; Marquis of
Ccol‘i for.oasut.Btlnti;
het
Countess
ICassilirlrAaoo
Ifjl
ti m:LvhooEenuoiseddgeEe:
Leicester,
se
e3s3:citihC...:,sohilp..o.aielißtoit2healeis.
additionThotn as Btaorinngs,lE.,sq2.s,l. ;
Bristol, 25/.
The vocal arrangements were entrusted to Mr. Bruton,
assisted by Messrs. F. Martin, H. Smith, J. Perrin, Giffin,
and Miss Steele, the last-named volunteering her professional
services for the occasion.
airs
iarrs, A
y of militarydu
theringd thea,,..
ban d
evening
in attendance, enlivening the corn-
with many of the most popular
The dinner, wines, and attendance were excellent, and the
manner altogether in which the entertainment was given did
great credit to the proprietors, Messrs. Bathe and Breach.

Yesterday an unusual degree of interest was ex-
cited on the Whitstable road, from a wager between two
Canterbury gentlemen. The following are the particulars :
—A wager for ten pounds was made by a gentleman that he
would find a workman that siould sharpen in a workmanlike
manner 1,900 hop poles in ten hours. The feat of strength
commenced at six in the morning, and such was the interest
that a large concourse of persons assembled to witness the re-
sult—all positive that it c)uld not be completed in the given
time. Two thousand and forty-one poles were sharpened in
seven hours and four minutes, to the surprise of the specta-
tors, and perfect satisfaction of the gentlemen ,appointed
umpires.—Kentish Gazette.
TRIAL BY JURY.—On Tuesday the friends of Mr.
Davies, proprietor of the Cadogan Arms, King's-road, Chel-
sea, to the number of sixty—and comprising the most re-
spectable and independent gentlemen and tradesmen of that
locality—met at dinner in the above tavern, to celebrate the
acquittal of Mr. Davies in a recent prosecution at the Old
Bailey, for an assault upon
i an individual who had been
guilty of provoking conduct n his coffee-room, to the great
annoyance of his customers. The chair was taken on this
occasion by Mr. Todd, an opulent neighbour. The nature
and character of the prosecution against Mr. Davies, having
been described, the healtth of that gentleman was proposed
with all the honours, and having been drunk with marked
enthusiasm, the worthylandlord, in a short speech, expressed
his acknowledgments for the kindness and sympathy evinced
towards him by his friends. " Trial by Jury," " The Liberty
of the Press," and several other toasts characteristic of the
occasion, were given and responded to during the evening.