Part 1

Produced by Bryan Ness, Louise Pattison and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from scanned images of public domain material from the Google Print project.)

Transcriber's Note:

In the original, the speeches of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales are set in a larger type face. In this e-text the larger type sections are represented by indentation. Corrections are listed at the end of the book.

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SPEECHES AND ADDRESSES

OF

H.R.H. THE PRINCE OF WALES:

1863-1888.

SPEECHES AND ADDRESSES

OF

H.R.H. THE PRINCE OF WALES:

1863-1888.

EDITED BY

JAMES MACAULAY, A.M., M.D. EDIN.,

AUTHOR OF "VICTORIA R.I., HER LIFE AND REIGN."

_WITH A PORTRAIT._

LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. 1889.

LONDON: PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING CROSS.

To the Memory of

HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS

T H E P R I N C E C O N S O R T,

THE "NOBLE FATHER OF OUR KINGS TO BE,"

ALBERT THE WISE AND GOOD.

PREFACE.

The year 1888, that of the Silver Wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales, is also the 25th anniversary of the year when the Prince first began to appear in public life. It is, therefore, a fit time to present some record of events in which His Royal Highness has taken part, and of services rendered by him to the nation, during the past quarter of a century. The best and the least formal way of doing this seemed to be the reproduction of his Speeches and Addresses, along with some account of the occasions when they were delivered.

Some of these speeches, in more recent years, are known to all, and their importance is universally recognised; such as those relating to the various International Exhibitions, the foundation of the Royal College of Music, and the establishment of the Imperial Institute. But throughout the whole of the twenty-five years, there has been a succession of speeches, on all manner of occasions, of many of which there is no adequate record or remembrance. It is only due to the Prince to recall the various services thus rendered by him, especially during those earlier years when the loss of the Prince Consort was most deeply felt, and when the Queen, whose Jubilee has been so splendidly celebrated, was living in retirement. A new generation has come on the stage since those days, and there are comparatively few who remember the number and variety of occasions upon which Royalty was worthily represented by the Prince of Wales, and the important and arduous duties voluntarily and cheerfully undertaken by him.

Before carrying out this design, it was advisable to ascertain if there might be any objection on the part of the Prince of Wales. There might, for instance, be a purpose of official publication of these speeches. On the matter being referred to the Prince, he not only made no objection, but, in most kind and gracious terms, gave his sanction to the work, and hoped it might be "useful to the various objects which he had publicly advocated and supported."

The number and diversity of occasions on which the Prince has made these public appearances will surprise those who have not personal recollection of them. The speeches themselves will surprise no one. The Prince has had education and culture such as few of any station obtain; directed at first by such a father as the Prince Consort, and by tutors who carried out the design of both his parents. Accomplished in Art, and interested in Science, in Antiquities, and most branches of learning; with some University training at Oxford, Cambridge, and Edinburgh, and with his mind enlarged by foreign travel, we might expect the fruits of such training to appear in his public addresses. Add to this the kindliness which comes from a good natural disposition, the sympathetic influence of a genial manner, and the grace which is given by a training from childhood in the highest station, and we can understand how the speeches even of the earliest years were heard with pleasure and approval. Some of the speeches are very brief, but are always to the point, and present the gist of the subject in hand. It was Earl Granville who once said, in proposing his health, that, "if the speeches of His Royal Highness were usually short, they were always, to use a homely expression, as full of meat as an egg." Even where there has been no formal speech, we are interested in knowing what the Prince has done as well as what he has said; and therefore some important occasions are included when no speech was made.

It is the variety of subjects that will strike most readers. Let it be noted, moreover, that the speeches now reproduced are only those addressed to meetings where reporters for the press were present. There have been innumerable meetings besides,--meetings of Commissions, of Boards, of Councils, of Committees, at none of which has the Prince ever been an inactive or silent member, but rather the guiding and moving spirit. If the voluntary offices of His Royal Highness were printed at length, they would far outnumber those mere honorary titles with which the College of Arms concerns itself; and are such as imply thought and work, in many useful and beneficent ways.

Long may His Royal Highness have the health and the will for such offices and duties. If his future career is equal to the hopes and promise of his early life, and the performances of the last twenty-five years, he will leave a name illustrious and memorable in the history of the British Empire.

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[***symbol] _The frontispiece portrait, under which the Prince of Wales has been pleased to put his autograph, is etched by W. Strang, from a recent photograph by Van der Weyde._

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

PAGE THE EARLY YEARS OF THE PRINCE OF WALES 1

AT THE ROYAL ACADEMY BANQUET OF 1863 11 FREEDOM OF THE CITY OF LONDON 12 BRITISH ORPHAN ASYLUM 14 AT MERCERS' HALL 16 THE ROYAL LITERARY FUND DINNER 17 IRISH INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION OF 1865 21 INTERNATIONAL REFORMATORY EXHIBITION, HELD IN THE AGRICULTURAL HALL, ISLINGTON 24 THE SAILORS' HOME, LONDON DOCKS 25 ROYAL DRAMATIC COLLEGE 26 FISHMONGERS' HALL DINNER 27 SPEECH DAY AT WELLINGTON COLLEGE 29 INSTITUTION OF CIVIL ENGINEERS 31 THE BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY 33 FRIEND OF THE CLERGY CORPORATION 36 WAREHOUSEMEN AND CLERKS' SCHOOL 38 MERCHANT SEAMEN'S ORPHAN ASYLUM 39 ROYAL VISIT TO NORWICH IN 1866 41 ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION 42 SOCIETY OF ANCIENT BRITONS 44 LONDON INTERNATIONAL COLLEGE 47 THE VICEROY OF EGYPT, ISMAIL PASHA, AT THE MANSION HOUSE 49 FESTIVAL OF ST. PATRICK 50 DUBLIN AND CARNARVON 55 SOCIETY OF FRIENDS OF FOREIGNERS IN DISTRESS 59 ST. BARTHOLOMEW'S HOSPITAL 62 LAYING FOUNDATION-STONE OF NEW BUILDINGS, GLASGOW UNIVERSITY 66 FOREIGN TOUR, 1868-1869 67 THE ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY 69 EARLSWOOD ASYLUM 71 THE ALEXANDRA DOCK AT LYNN 73 VISIT TO MANCHESTER 74 THE PEABODY MEMORIAL, UNVEILING OF THE STATUE IN THE CITY OF LONDON 78 THE SCOTTISH HOSPITAL 81 ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR BOYS 85 INTERNATIONAL EDUCATIONAL EXHIBITION 87 ROYAL GENERAL THEATRICAL FUND 89 ST. GEORGE'S HOSPITAL 93 DULWICH COLLEGE 96 SCHOOLS FOR THE CHILDREN OF SEAMEN 98 NEW GRAMMAR SCHOOL AT READING 100 ALBERT GOLD MEDAL TO M. DE LESSEPS 103 OPENING OF THE THAMES EMBANKMENT 105 WORKMEN'S INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION 106 THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL 107 THE INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION OF 1871 110 ARTISTS' ORPHAN FUND 111 ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR GIRLS 114 EARLSWOOD ASYLUM FESTIVAL 116 HOMES FOR LITTLE BOYS 118 THE ROYAL CALEDONIAN ASYLUM 120 DUBLIN AGRICULTURAL SHOW 122 THE ILLNESS OF DECEMBER, 1871 128 NORFOLK AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY 132 AT GREAT YARMOUTH 135 THE SCHOOL DRILL REVIEW 138 WEYMOUTH AND THE PORTLAND BREAKWATER 139 VISIT TO DERBY 140 RAILWAY BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION 142 UNVEILING THE ALBERT STATUE ON HOLBORN VIADUCT 145 THE BRITISH ORPHAN ASYLUM FESTIVAL 146 BANQUET TO SIR GARNET WOLSELEY 148 ROYAL MEDICAL BENEVOLENT COLLEGE 150 AT THE MIDDLE AND THE INNER TEMPLE 152 NEW GUILDHALL AND LAW COURTS, PLYMOUTH 154 VISIT TO BIRMINGHAM IN 1874 156 THE ROYAL CAMBRIDGE ASYLUM 159 AT MERCHANT TAYLORS' SCHOOL 163 THE GERMAN HOSPITAL 165 INSTALLATION AS GRAND MASTER OF ENGLISH FREEMASONS 169 ROYAL AGRICULTURAL BENEVOLENT INSTITUTION 175 THE INDIAN EMBASSY, 1875-76 180 LICENSED VICTUALLERS' ASYLUM 185 UNVEILING ALBERT STATUE AT CAMBRIDGE 190 INFANT ORPHAN ASYLUM, WANSTEAD 193 THE TRAINING SHIP 'BRITANNIA' 195 CABDRIVERS' BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION 198 THE PRINCESS HELENA COLLEGE 201 NEW HARBOUR AT HOLYHEAD 203 NEW COLOURS TO THE ROYAL WELSH FUSILIERS 205 THE ROYAL HOSPITAL FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN 208 AT KING'S COLLEGE 209 COLONIAL BANQUET AT THE MANSION HOUSE 211 CITY AND GUILDS OF LONDON INSTITUTE 215 THE INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CONGRESS 218 MEMORIAL TO DEAN STANLEY 220 RIFLE VOLUNTEERS 223 BRITISH GRAVES IN THE CRIMEA 225 THE FISHERIES EXHIBITION 228 OPENING OF FISHERIES EXHIBITION 230 CLOSING OF FISHERIES EXHIBITION 231 FINANCIAL RESULTS OF FISHERIES EXHIBITION, AND DISPOSAL OF SURPLUS 235 NEW CITY OF LONDON SCHOOL 237 THE NORTHBROOK CLUB 238 CITY OF LONDON COLLEGE IN MOORFIELDS 239 HOUSING OF THE POOR AND THE WORKING CLASSES 241 THE GUARDS' INDUSTRIAL HOME AT CHELSEA BARRACKS 243 ROYAL NATIONAL LIFE-BOAT INSTITUTION 244 THE HEALTH EXHIBITION 246 OPENING OF GUILDS OF LONDON INSTITUTE 248 ANTI-SLAVERY SOCIETY MEETING IN GUILDHALL 252 VISIT TO IRELAND IN 1885 261 THE DARWIN MEMORIAL 271 THE BIRKBECK INSTITUTION 272 RAILWAY GUARDS' FRIENDLY SOCIETY 274 CONVALESCENT HOME AT SWANLEY 276 THE YORKSHIRE COLLEGE AT LEEDS 278 THE GORDON BOYS' HOME 282 OPENING OF THE MERSEY TUNNEL 286 INSTITUTION OF CIVIL ENGINEERS 290 AT THE COLONIAL OFFICE 293 INSTALLATION AS GRAND MASTER OF MARK MASONS 294 FOUNDATION STONE OF THE PEOPLE'S PALACE 296 SALE OF SHORTHORNS AND SOUTHDOWNS AT SANDRINGHAM 298 SION COLLEGE 301 COLONIAL AND INDIAN EXHIBITION OF 1886 303 THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE 310 THE LONDON ORPHAN ASYLUM 315 THE COLLEGE OF PRECEPTORS 318 THE MANCHESTER EXHIBITION 319 THE LONDON HOSPITAL NEW BUILDINGS 321 DEACONESSES' INSTITUTION AND HOSPITAL AT TOTTENHAM 324 THE FREEMASONS AND THE QUEEN'S JUBILEE 325 THE SHAFTESBURY HOUSE 327 CONSECRATION OF TRURO CATHEDRAL 328 NEW COLOURS TO THE OLD 46TH REGIMENT 330 THE GLASGOW EXHIBITION OF 1888 332 SIR BARTLE FRERE'S STATUE 337 NEW GYMNASIUM IN LONG ACRE (OF Y. M. C. A.) 338 THE ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTE FOR GIRLS 340 WEST NORFOLK HUNT 344 AT BLACKBURN 345 THE ANGLO-DANISH EXHIBITION 347 GREAT NORTHERN HOSPITAL, HOLLOWAY ROAD 349

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SPEECHES AT ROYAL ACADEMY BANQUETS 355

ROYAL BANQUETS AT THE TRINITY HOUSE 377

THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC 391 NATIONAL TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MUSIC 391 FOUNDING THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC 394 THE COLONIES AND THE COLLEGE OF MUSIC 403 INAUGURATION OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC 408

INDEX 417

THE EARLY YEARS OF THE PRINCE OF WALES.

As the record of Public Speeches in the following pages does not begin till 1863, it may be well to give a few dates and incidents of previous years in the life of the Prince of Wales.

He was born on the 9th of November, 1841, at Buckingham Palace. From Windsor, to which the Court removed on the 6th of December, the Queen wrote next day to King Leopold, "We arrived here safe and sound, with our awfully large nursery establishment, yesterday morning.... I wonder very much whom our little boy will be like. You will understand how fervent are my prayers, and I am sure everybody's must be, to see him resemble his father in every respect, both in body and mind."

The Prince, named Albert Edward, was baptized in St. George's Chapel, Windsor, on the 25th of January, 1842. King Frederick William of Prussia was invited to be the boy's Godfather, and he came over personally to undertake the office. The other Sponsors, six in number, were members of the Houses of Saxe-Coburg and Saxe-Gotha, and of the English Royal family. There was a full choral service at the christening. A special anthem had been composed by Sir George Elvey. On the Prince Consort being told of this, and asked when it should be sung, he answered, "Not at all; no anthem. If the service ends by an anthem we shall all go out criticising the music. We will have something we all know--something in which we can all join--something devotional. The Hallelujah Chorus; we shall all join in that, with our hearts." The Hallelujah Chorus ended the service accordingly. The incident is noteworthy, as showing how the infant Prince was committed, at his baptism, not in outward form only, but in devout spirit, to the care of the Heavenly Father.

When the Queen told King Leopold of the removal of the Court to Windsor, she had made special mention of "the nursery establishment." No mother in any rank of life ever paid greater attention to this part of the home, wherever the Court might be. In Memoirs and Recollections of the Queen, by those who have belonged to her household, many anecdotes are found which show the watchful care and the personal superintendence of the Royal Mother.

It is only this year, in the autumn of 1888, that Mrs. Hull, who entered Her Majesty's service as nurse to the Prince of Wales, died, in her seventy-ninth year. She was a kind and conscientious attendant to every one of the Royal children, and the Queen ever retained great regard for the faithful nurse--"Dear old May," as she used to call her. When she retired from the Royal service, and lived in recent years in Windsor, she was always welcome at the Castle. The Queen herself and the Princesses often saw her, and the Prince of Wales frequently brought her handsome presents. In reading the account of her funeral, it is pleasant to see that on the card attached to one of the many wreaths laid on her coffin were the words: "A mark of affection and gratitude from Victoria R. I." A beautiful wreath sent by the Prince and Princess of Wales bore the inscription: "In remembrance of dear old May."

When the Royal children came to be under governesses and teachers, they were taught well the usual branches of early education, and were also trained in practical ways, the boys in the use of tools, and the girls in household work, especially when the Swiss Cottage at Osborne was occupied by the young folk.

In the story of the 'Early Years of the Prince Consort' there is an amusing reference to the interruptions of the schoolroom studies by the old Duke of Saxe-Coburg, who loved to carry off the two boys, and take them on excursions. The Prince himself did this sometimes, as when the two elder children, in the autumn of 1846, were taken with their parents in the _Victoria and Albert_ to Portland, Weymouth, Guernsey, Dartmouth, and Plymouth, between August 8th and 25th; and to Jersey, Falmouth, St. Michael's Mount, and the Duchy of Cornwall, between September 2nd and 9th. Of these excursions details are given in the Queen's 'Leaves from a Journal.' The Queen tells how, at several places off the Cornish coast, "boats crowded round us in all directions, and when Bertie showed himself the people shouted, 'Three cheers for the Duke of Cornwall!'" ... In the Journal, under date September 7th, Prince Albert having that day landed to visit some mines, the Queen has this entry, "The Corporation of Penryn were on board, and very anxious to see the Duke of Cornwall, so I stepped out of the pavilion with Bertie, and Lord Palmerston told them that that was the Duke of Cornwall; and the old Mayor of Penryn said that 'he hoped he would grow up to be a blessing to his parents, and to his country.'"

On September the 2nd, on the evening of the day when the Royal yacht left Osborne for the Channel Islands, "Bertie put on his sailor's dress, which was beautifully made by the man on board who makes for our sailors. When he appeared, the officers and sailors, who were all assembled on deck to see him, cheered, and seemed delighted with him."

In 1847 there was another holiday journey, this time to Scotland, the Queen and the Prince taking with them, as before, the two eldest children, with Miss Hildyard, their governess. They embarked at Osborne, in the Royal yacht, on the 11th of August. On the 14th they were at Pembroke, when the dockyard and the castle were inspected: thence along the coast of Wales, landing at Bangor, from whence there was an expedition to Penryn Castle, and thence past the Isle of Man to the Scottish coast. Of this journey a detailed account is given in a letter to Baron Stockmar. At Rothesay in the Isle of Bute, the Prince Consort says, "The people were as much rejoiced to see the Duke of Rothesay as the Welsh were to salute the Prince of Wales on their native ground." It was this enthusiasm about local associations that led the Queen, after the first visit to Ireland, to desire for the Prince the title of Earl of Dublin.

During 1848 and the following year there was much in the state of public affairs, at home and abroad, to occupy the attention of the Queen and the Prince Consort, but they were anxiously considering the plans for the future education of the Prince of Wales. In May 1848 negociations had been opened with Mr. Birch, who had been highly recommended as tutor. In the spring of 1849 the appointment was made, and Prince Albert, in a letter to the Dowager Duchess of Gotha, dated Windsor Castle, 10th April, thus wrote, "The children grow more than well. Bertie will be given over in a few weeks into the hands of a tutor, whom we have found in Mr. Birch, a young, good-looking, amiable man, who was a tutor at Eton, and who not only himself took the highest honours at Cambridge, but whose pupils have won especial distinction. It is an important step, and God's blessing be upon it, for upon the good education of Princes, and especially of those who are destined to govern, the welfare of the world in these days very greatly depends."

Of the course and conduct of the studies of the Prince, under Mr. Birch, from 1849-1851, and under his successor, Mr. Gibbs, from 1851-1858, it is not necessary to speak. His other teachers were efficient in their departments, such as Mr. Corbould, who taught drawing to all the Royal children; and M. Brasseur, the French teacher, to whom the Prince paid a visit when in Paris in 1888. As in the earlier years, so when he was under tutors, the real education for public life was less in study than in the companionship and the example of his parents. A man of wide knowledge and of varied accomplishments like the Prince Consort had higher views of education than mere scholastic routine. He took his son to all places where a love of arts and sciences might be encouraged and fostered, and hence the Prince obtained knowledge and acquired tastes not universal among young Englishmen, in times before the subjects of academic training and honours had been enlarged, mainly through the influence of the Prince Consort, as Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. From his father also he inherited the taste for music which has been since turned to national benefit. But above all, he was often taken to meetings and festivals connected with charitable institutions, a Princely duty in which the son has been proud to follow the example of his lamented father.