The Sun.
London, England, 1844-08-19 00:00:00

IRELAND.
ROYAL IRISH AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY.-

THE BANQUET AT THE THEATRE.

DUBLIN, AUG. 17.—This reallT splendid banquet took
place in the Theatre Royal, on Thursday evening. The
house was fitted up in a very striking and picturesque
manner, and was very brilliantly lighted. Nearly nine
hundred persons, including an immense number of coun-

try gentlemen, sat down to dinner. The chair was taken
soon after six o'clock by the Duke of Leinster, the Earl
of Erne being Vice-President. Amongst those present
were—the Marquis of Downshire, the Marquis of Kil-
dare, Lord Crofton, Lord Castlemaine, Lord Cloncurry,
Earl of Miltown, Lord Clancarty, Sir Percy Nugent,
Bart., Sir John Power, Bart, Sir R. Bateson, Sir Lucius
O'Brien, Bart., Sir Nicholas Fitzsimon, the Hon. F.
Ponsonby, Right Hon. the Recorder, Henry Grattan,
Esq., M.P.; W. S. O'Brien, Esq., M.P.; N. Maher, Esq.,
M.P.; James Power, Esq., M.P., D.L.; G. A. Hamilton,
Esq., M.P.; Christopher Fitzsimon, Esq., D.L.; George
Roe, Esq., D.L. •, J. L. Naper, Esq. Colonel Munroe,
Colonel Henry White, Colonel J. White, Hon. J. Law-
less, Peter Purcell, Esq., Daniel O'Connell, jun., Esq ,
Hugh Morgan Tuite, Esq., J. Finlay, Esq., LL.D. ;
Nicholas Doylan, Esq., James Grattan, Esq., Surgeon
O'Reilly, Surgeon Carmichael, Surgeon Reund, J. A.
Knipe, Esq., C. Roper, Esq., Edward Lucas, Esq.
After the usual loyal toasts bad been disposed of,
Lord CLONCURRY gave " The Royal Agricultural Im-
provement Society of Ireland."
- _ _

The Secretary, Mr. BULLEN, here proceeded to read
the list of prizes, which occupied a considerable time,
and the enunciation of some of the premiums, especially
that to the little Kerry bull (Paddy Blake) caused much
merriment.

The next toast was " The Highland and Engli,h
Agricultural Societies," which was acknowledged by the
Marquis of Downshire.
The Earl of ERNE, who proposed the next toast, spoke
at some length. His Lordship said he was well aware
that the Irish landlords had been grossly maligned and
vituperated. It was too much the fashion in England to
cry them down, and abuse of them had now become a
popular cry in Ireland. It too frequently happened that
the landlords were abused and vilified by men who had
neither property nor character of their own, and, there-
fore, were at liberty to say whatever they supposed would
best suit their purpose ; but he asked those gentlemen,
did they understand the question upon which they had
undertaken to express their opinion so flippantly, or had
they, before they commenced their attack, taken the pre-
caution of visiting the property of the resident landlords,
and ascertaining by personal observation the real and
actual condition of the tenantry upon their estates ?
Improvements, and great improvements, had been re-
cently effected in the condition of the tenant classes in
Ireland. He made the assertion fearlessly, for he was
in a position to vouch fur its veracity. Great improve-
ments had, he repeated, been effected in their condition,
and by what agency, he asked, had these salutary
changes been brought about? By:ii hom were they effected
but by the landlords ? By what other agency could
they be effected ? Surely it was not the large sums
of money which were collected from year to year, from
month to month, and from week to week, that could
have done this ! [The enunciation of this sentiment
produced a marked sensation amongst the company—
some cheered loudly, others hissed and groaned, and,
amid loud cries of " order, order," from all parts of the
house, Mr. Smith O'Brien, who was seated in the vicinity
of the chairman on the right-hand side, rose from his
chair and walked out of the theatre. He was followed
immediately by Mr. Nicholas Maher, the Member for
'Tipperary, and both the Honourable Gentlemen were
cheered loudly by the great number of those who were
sufficiently near them to observe their movement.] The
vice-chairman continued his address unconcernedly, and
again repeated his conviction that it was to the resident
landlords alone that the country was indebted for those
salutary changes which he described as having taken
place in the condition of the tenant classes.

The next toast was, " The tenantry and agricultural
Labourers of Ireland."

Mr. NAPER, of Loughcrew, a most excellent landlord,
responded to this toast, and, in the course of his obser-
vations, said that he hated the idea of raking up old
feuds. The hour had come when they should forget
the past, and look nobly to the future. They should
commence upon .a new system ; they should reorganise
their agricultural interests, and he who would desire that
success should attend his projects as an agriculturist in
this country, should make it his study to apply not only
to the hands, but to the sound head and the warm heart
of the Irish peasant.—(Cheers.)
Other toasts followed, which were responded to by the
Marquis of Kildare, Lord Crofton, Mr. Stewart Blacker,
&c. The company separated at eleven o'clock.
LORD ERNE AND MR. SMITH O'BRIEN.

The offensive allusion of the Earl of Erne to the Re-
peal Association, noticed in the preceding report, in-
duced Mr. Smith O'Brien to address the following letter
to the-secretary of the Agricultural Society immediately
after he had retired from the dinner :
" 82, Lower Mount-street, Aug. 15, 1844.
Sir,—A circumstance occurred this evening, at the
dinner of the Agricultural Society, of such a nature as
to render it necessary that the subscribers of the insti-
tution should be informed upon what principles it is
founded.

" For my own part, I became an original member of
the society, under the impression that every successful
effort to augment the amount and value of the agricul-
tural produce of Ireland could not fail to confer benefits
upon all classes of our population.
"I attended the dinner this evening, under the belief
that the political opinions of the managers of the society
would not be allowed to manifest themselves in such a
manner as to wound the feelings of any section of the
subscribers. The speech, however, of the Earl of Erne,
one of the vice-presidents, was of a character so offen-
sive to those who, like myself, seek to secure the welfare
of their native land by procuring for it a national legis-
lature, that it left me no alternative but either to quit my
seat or to convert the meeting into a political debating
society.
" I preferred the former course, even at the risk of
appearing to shrink from the vindication of my own
opinions, and of those with whom it is mx wide to concur.
"I have now to ask, respectfully, whether the council
,puiction the language used this evening by Lord Erne ?
7, "If his Lordship's conduct meet their approval, I take
"the liberty to request that you will remove my name
tfrom the list of subscribers.—l have the honour to be
your obedient servant, " WM. S. O'BRIEN.
" To the Secretary of tho Royal Agricultural Society."
are smh
ea
el
nafadebdellreedosksteloidgseetdno
" P.S.—As I propose to leave Dublin to-morrow
unless
answer evening,y transmitdifcityahotuiormwB2oily,lto, wtratkoyeuaoLer,
otuol
street, before five o'clock to-morrow."

This admirable letter—so remarkable for manliness,
good temper, and forbearance, for the sake of a Society
established to promote and foster agriculture in Ireland
—caused a meeting of the council of the Society yester-
day, at which Lord Erne attended, and in a manner
highly creditable to him, expressed his unqualified
sorrow for the offensive expressions which he had uttered
on the previous evening. Immediately after the meet-
ing of the council, the subjoined abstract of their pro-
ceedings was transmitted to Mr. Smith O'Brien, by Mr.
Bullen, the Secretary :
" Dublin, 37, Upper Sackville-street, Aug. 16.
" Sir,—l beg to acknowledge the receipt of yours of
the 15th inst., which I laid before the council this day,
when the enclosed resolution was agreed to, a copy of
which I have been directed to send you.—l have the
honour to remain, Sir, your obedient servant,:
" EDWARD BULLEN, Secretary.
" William Smith, O'Brien, Es+, M.P.,
62, Lower Mount-street."
" ROYAL AGRICULTURAL IMPROVEMENT SOCIETY OF