The Sun.
London, England, 1845-12-31 00:00:00

ANNIVERSARY DINNER OF THE
NATIoNAL AIERCANTILE ASSURANCE

The annual anniversary festival of the National
Mercantile Assurance Association took place last

evening, at the Lond,m Tavern, Bishopsiate-street,
R. IV ileoxson, Esq in the chair.
Among those present we observed—W.Nicholson,
Esq., on the right of the chairman, and Mr. Alderman
Sidney on his left ; Geo. Moore, Esq., IV. Lawson,
Esq., Eck ard Baker, Esq., Giles Redmayne, Esq.,
Geo. Cursham, M.D Chas. Ray, D. Hull,
Esq., Murdu Young, Esq., David Waddington, Esq.,
John Brag-g, Esq , Edward Perkins, Esq., J. R.
Cufiley, Esq., John Stoker, Esq., E. Stockdale, Esq.,
Jaun s Walsh, E,q., R. J. Mullidge, Esq., M'Cul-
loch, Esq., J. P. Massey, Esq., J. W. Brookes, Esq.,
A. D. Cufdey, Esq., W. H. Smith, Esq., A. Wilson,
Esq., &c.
The company began to assemble at five o'clock, and
shortly after that hour about 200 gentlemen sat down
to a dinner, which included all the delicacies of the
season, and which was put upon the table in the best
style of those first-rate caterers, Messrs. Bathe and
Breache. The wines, too, were of excellent quality,
and were supplied without stint.
Messrs. Hobbes, Hatton, Hawkins, Machin, and
Master Norman were the vocalists (Mr. Hatton
presiding at the pianoforte), and Toole, the Toole,
was the toast-master, and, as such, surpassed all his
former doings as master of the revels.
The cloth having been withdrawn, and the " Bene-
dictus " having been sung by the vocalists,
The CHAIRMAN rose, and said that he had to pro-
pose as a toast the "Health of the Queen."—(Cheers.)
He was sure it was needless for him to say anything
more, for that was a toast that, in every assembly,
must be received with affection and loyalty.
Drunk, upstanding, with three times three. Air—

" God save the Queen.
The CHAIRMAN then proposed the "Health of Prince
Albert."—(Cheers.) He thought her Majesty might
be justly said to have been most fortunate in hay-
ing allied herself with a prince whose conduct,
since his arrival in this kingdom, had been such as to
secure to him the good opinion of the public at
large.—(Loud cheers.)
Drunk with with three times three. Glee—" Hail,
Albert, hail."
The CHAIRMAN had next to propose the "Health of
that illustrious lady, the Queen Dowager," whose
many private virtues, as well as her great public
benevolence, had won for her the esteem of all classes
of the community. With the health of the Queen
Dowager, he begged to couple that of " the Prince
of Wales' and the rest of the Royal Family."
Drunk with three times three. Madrigal—
is Sylvia ?"
The CHAIRMAN then rose and said, I am now about
to propose a toast of great national importance—" The
Army and Navy of England." I think it may be
fairly said that to these great branches of the public
service the country is indebted for much of its great-
ness in the scale of nations, and for much of its

" Who

commercial prosperity.—(Cheers.) It is owing to the
exertions of these services that our ships are found in
every port, bearing to us the fruits of the industry of
every clime, and that Britannia rules triumphant o'er
the waves.— (Cheers.) War, with its attendant
horrors, is ever to be deprecated (Cheers)
and I trust that the day is far distant

whmi this country shall be compelled to have recourse
to arms to defend our national rights and our
national honour.—(Loud cheers.) But I do think

that it is to our army and our navy in a great degree
that we are indebted for the long and happy peace
which this country has enjoyed, and by which each
man has been enabled to sit under his own vine and
his own fig-tree, none daring to make him afraid.
Drunk with three times three. Grand chorus
," To arms," which was rapturously encored.
The CHAIRMAN then said—Gentlemen, it is now
my pleasing duty to propose to you a toast in which
you are all much interested. I think it may be said to
be the one that has brought together this evening this
very large and very respectable company. lam sure
that you have already anticipated me, and therefore I
give at once " Prosperity to the National Mercantile
Assurance Society."--(lmmense cheering.) Through
your kindness last year I had the honour of filling
the chair at your annual festival, and it was my duty
to give you something like an account of the rise
and progress of this Society, of the difficulties which
we had encountered—of the fiery ordeal through
which we had passed—the tempest in which we had
been tossed and buffeted, and which, at one time,
almost threatened the dissolution of the Society. But
now a more pleasing task devolves upon me—
thanks to the moderation, temper, firmness, and de-
termination of a little band of your Directors, only three
in number, who stood up for what they con-
sidered the defence of your rights and liber-
ties (Immense cheering) -- against a fearful
majority of the then board of Directors we have
been enabled to overcome every difficulty, and to hand
over to you, your society uninjured and unimpaired.
—(Loud cheers.) It is therefore my pleasing duty
this evening to endeavour to present to you something
like a sketch of our present position, and of our
future prospects.—(Cheers.) Early in this year the
Directors called the Proprietors together to exercise
one of the most important privileges with which
they are invested, the election of four
gentlemen as Directors. You were then
pleased to elect four gentlemen as Directors, and I
congratulate you on your choice, for by that elec-
tion you obtained the services of men of sterling
worth, high business character, and unblemished
reputation.—(Cheers.) At that meeting it was re-
solved that a further increase in the number of shares

should take place, and, in consequence, your Di-
rectors have, since that time, issued 10,000 addi-
tional shares, the whole of which have been eagerly
taken up.— (Cheers.) It is gratifying to me to state
that we consider this as a great step gained, inasmuch
as it will add to our stability in the public estima•
tion, by increasing our pledged capital. (Hear,
hear.) This has not been a year in which life
as-urance associations have in general experienced
very great successes. This is to be attributed to the
large speculations which, during the first nine months
of the year, were made in rail way shares. The public
mind seemed to be so absorbed in railway matters,
that the still more important subject of life insurance
was negketed. Things, however, have now come
round to their usual channels, and life insurance
associations have so progressed within the last three
months, that, judging from our own experience,
taking all thin4s into consideration, I think that life
insurance companies have reason to. be satisfied.
I now come to an important part of the business of

the evening. You know that it has been determined
by our constitution that periodically the. Directors
should proceed to make a division of the profits of this
Society. The year 1846 is one of the periods fixed
for that division. It is my gratifying and pleasing
duty to be able to inform you that our funds, in con-
sequence of the exertions of our actuary (Mr.
Jones), whose exertions have been great indeed, more
particularly in devoting to your service many hours
after the usual time of business, have been placed in
such a position as to enable us to declare to our pro-
prietors and policy-holders a most liberal bonus.—
(Cheers.) This is neither the time nor the place to enter
into further details on this subject but I feel called
upon to say that I. feel confident that the bonus which
we shall be able to declare, must and will be highly
satisfactory to all.—(Loud cheers.) To our com-
mercial friends I would say, that I hope that they
will be stimulated to make exertions during their
journies through the length and breadth of the land.
—to interest their friends and customers in our be-
half as far as they can do it.—(Cheers.) Their
hearts are with us.—(Cheers.) I know they will do
their utmost.—(Loud cheers.) Before I sit down I
may be permitted to say that the Directors have long
felt the want of larger premises, in which to conduct
the business of this Society. We have long been
seeking for premises in some leading thoroughfare,
such as we ought to possess, bet, owing to the many
public companies which have recently started, land-
lords have asked exorbitant rents, and we have ex-
perienced considerable difficulty in procuring premises
which will suit us ; but through the exertions
of our Directors we have at length been enabled to
procure eligible premises, which we hope to occupy in
the course of a few months. They stand in the
Poultry, with a frontage in Charlotte-row, and when
we get there I doubt not that we, with your zealous
co-operation, shall make this society what we all wish
it to be—one of the first in the city of London.
The toast was then drunk with three times three.

Song—" Oh, if there's a pleasure," beautifully
sung by Mr. Hobbes' and enthusiastically encored.
Mr. NicuoLsox felt proud of the honour which
had been conferred upon him, in having the proposal
of a toast entrusted to him, but he was sorry
it had not fallen into more able hands, see-
ing as he did, around him so many gentlemen
who were so much better able to do it justice.
The toast he had to propose was " The Commercial
Travellers of the United Kingdom." He had him-
self for many years the honour of belonging to that
important, energetic, and noble class of men. For
forty years of his life 11,1 had been one of that great
and important body ; but he believed that in his time
the body of commercial travellers had not possessed
one-half of the energy and importance which it now
possessed. There was no situation in life requiring
more energy and decision than that of a commercial
traveller. They were required to exercise sounder
judgment and greater zeal to fulfil their duties pro-
perly than any other class of men were called on to
exert. It had been his happiness to belong to their
body for many years, although for the last eight or
nine years he had retired from pablic business as a
commercial traveller. But his former experience
justified him in saying that they were a most impor-
tant body—the representatives of the commercial
world. There was no class of men throughout this
kingdom who ought to occupy a more important