The Project Gutenberg EBook of Wit and Wisdom of Lord Tredegar, by
Godfrey Charles Morgan
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Title: Wit and Wisdom of Lord Tredegar
Author: Godfrey Charles Morgan
Release Date: May 26, 2012 [EBook #39808]
Language: English
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WIT AND WISDOM
OF
LORD TREDEGAR
[Illustration: Tredegar]
WIT AND WISDOM
OF
LORD TREDEGAR
1911.
WESTERN MAIL, LIMITED,
CARDIFF, NEWPORT, SWANSEA,
MERTHYR, BRECON AND
176, FLEET STREET, LONDON.
FOREWORD.
There are a few observations which may be deemed appropriate in
presenting to the public this collection of extracts from the speeches
of Godfrey Charles Morgan, first Viscount Tredegar; but it is
inconceivable that any should be necessary by way of apology. During
the course of an active and a well-spent life, happily extended beyond
the allotted span, Lord Tredegar has made hundreds of public
utterances. Innumerable are the functions he has attended during
half-a-century and over; and at most of them he has been the central
figure. But while his high station would always have secured attention
and respect for his words, this volume may serve to prove to future
generations what this generation well knows, that Lord Tredegar has
held his listeners by his humour or by his earnestness, according to
the occasion, and that, in the homely phrase, he has always had
"something to say." It is my hope, however, that this little book may
have a still worthier mission. For I think it will be found to reveal
a noble mind. The simple words of Lord Tredegar have time and again
struck deep to the hearts of his audience. Collected here, they reveal
the gentleness of his disposition and the purity of his motives. They
show the consistency of his life. But they do much more. They appear
to constitute a great moral force. Not that his lordship ever posed as
preacher, or constituted himself a Court of Judgment on any class of
his fellows. There is no trace of a superior tone in his speeches. His
words show sympathetic insight into the trials and difficulties that
beset the path of every one of us, and his desire was never to
censure, but ever to encourage and assist with kindly suggestion and
cheering thought.
No aspect of these extracts is so interesting as that which enables us
to observe how faithfully and well Lord Tredegar has discharged his
promises. Long before he could describe himself as a landowner, he
said that if ever he came into that position he would give any
assistance he could to his tenants in the way of improving his land.
He hoped he would never become "such a ruffian as some people would
make landlords out to be." Reading later speeches we find Lord
Tredegar undertaking in his turn conscientiously the public duties
previously discharged by his father. We find him making the
acquaintance of the farmers and studying their difficulties. We find
him raising the Tredegar Show to its present pre-eminence in the world
of agriculture. It is a noble record of honesty of purpose. And
agriculture, as well we know in Wales and Monmouthshire, is but one of
Lord Tredegar's many interests. He has spoken wise words on education;
he has urged the claims of charity. He has led the way in historical
research, and inspired among many whose interest might not otherwise
have been aroused a love of our ancient castles and our dear old
parish churches. He has spoken eloquently of our Welsh heroes and
bards. Upon the value of Eisteddfodau he loves to expound. But it is
not these higher interests of his that have made him so beloved. His
appeals for the ragged urchin of the streets, his appreciation of the
bravery of the worker, his jokes at bazaars, his quips at the cabmen's
annual dinners, his love of old customs, his pleasantries at the
servants' balls, by these and by his transparent sincerity he has won
the affections of all classes of the people, who have found in him a
leader who can share sorrows as well as joys. His brave words have
been the consolation of the widow of the humble soldier slain in
battle, as they have been the encouragement of the boy or girl scholar
shyly taking from his hand a prize. He has told the boys they will be
all the better for total abstinence, and he has dined and joked with
licensed publicans. "Here, at least, is inconsistency," may exclaim
the stranger into whose hand this book may fall. But Lord Tredegar
justifies himself by the fact that having licensed houses on his
estate it is his duty to take an interest in those who conduct them.
Lord Tredegar has never sought to adorn his speeches with rhetoric. He
has always spoken so that he who heard could understand. And yet he is
reputed justly to be among the best of after-dinner speakers. If it be
necessary to delve into the possible secret of his success, one might
hazard a guess that it is because in his speeches it is the unexpected
that always happens. The transition from grave to gay or from gay to
grave is so swift that the mind of the listener is held as it were by
a spell, and all is over e'er yet one thought it had begun.
Much of this, however, is in passing. Quite a multitude, at one time
or another, has listened to the words of Godfrey Charles Morgan. Quite
a multitude has been influenced by them. That multitude, I am sure,
will be glad to have those words in permanent form. There may be but a
sentence chosen from a speech that has been heard, but that sentence
will be remembered or recollected. And to that greater multitude who
by the natural force of circumstances cannot have listened to the
words of Viscount Tredegar, this little collection may serve to show
forth a figure that, though simple, is great in simplicity, and it
were strange indeed if some sentences were not found which may help to
make a crooked way straight.
THE EDITOR.
WIT AND WISDOM OF LORD TREDEGAR.
EPIGRAMMATIC ELOQUENCE.
I would rather trust and be deceived, than be found to have suspected
falsely.
_Reduction of Armaments Meeting, Newport,
March 17th, 1899._
Some people will not go across a street to hear an oratorio, though
they would go many miles to listen to that very entertaining melody,
"Whoa, Emma!"--and I'm not sure that I shouldn't be one of them.--
_Tredegar Show.
November 26th, 1879._
The other day I was doing a little bit of horse-cropping--I'm fond of
that sort of thing--and went into an Irish dealer's yard, where I saw
a horse which grunted very much. Looking at the dealer, I said, "The
horse is a roarer," and the Irishman replied: "Ah, no, me lord, not a
bit of it. I've 'ad 'im from two years ould, an' e' 'ad wunce a most
desprit froight, an' 'e's 'ad the hiccups ever since!"
_Tredegar Show,
November 26th, 1879._
[Illustration: "_'E's 'ad the hiccups ever since!_"]
I do not think there is a man in England who has more at heart than
myself the religious education of children. In 1839 the Chartist Riots
took place at Newport. In the following year National Schools were
opened, and I believe that had the men who took part in these riots
received the education imparted at the National Schools they would
never have decided upon such a misguided course of action.
_Jubilee of Newport National Schools,
May 16th, 1890._
I was rather alarmed when I received the notice, "Peach Blossom Fancy
Dress Fair," and I telegraphed at once to a lady who I thought knew
what was going on and asked, "Am I obliged to come in fancy dress?"
The answer I got was, "You need not wear anything."
_Llangibby Church Fete,
August, 1910._
[Illustration: "_You need not wear anything._"]
I generally pay great attention to what a clergyman says, but you
cannot always take the advice of a clergyman. A certain man had a dog,
and his minister told him that he had better sell the dog and get a
pig, to which the man replied, "A pretty fool I should look going
rat-catching with a pig."
_St. Paul's Garden Fete, Newport,
June 23rd, 1910._
Without some sort of religion no man can be happy.
_St. Paul's Garden Fete, Newport,
June 23rd, 1910._
I am not accustomed to begging, being more accustomed to being begged
of. That is one of the hereditary privileges of members of the House
of Lords.
_Meeting in connection with the new Infirmary for Newport,
March 17th, 1897._
It appears to me that my good qualities increase in proportion as the
hair comes off the top of my head, and it is well that in proportion
as we grow less ornamental we should grow more useful.
_Tredegar Show,
November 29th, 1876._
I really think I must be out of place here. You know I am one of the
hereditary nonentities. I cannot help the hereditary part of the
business, and I have tried all my life to avoid the other.
_South Monmouthshire Conservative Association,
December 22nd, 1909._
You ought, of course, to learn something about ancient art, or you
will be like a certain Lord Mayor of whom I have heard. One day he
received a telegram from some people who were carrying on excavations
in Greece, and who had discovered a statue by Phidias. They thought,
in common with most foreigners, that the Lord Mayor was the most
powerful person in the kingdom--abroad he is supposed to rule the
country. Anyway, they sent him a telegram saying "Phidias is
recovered." The Lord Mayor wired back that he was pleased to hear it,
but that he did not know that Phidias had been unwell.
_Art School Prize Distribution, Newport,
December 12th, 1899._
A noted musician, when asked whether he thought it was right to carry
out capital punishment, replied: "No; because you can do a man to
death with a piano."
_At Llandaff,
June 26th, 1900._
[Illustration: "_You can do a man to death with a piano._"]
I believe I have laid more foundation stones than any other man in
England. I have mallets and trowels sufficient to supply, I believe,
every Parish Church in the country. They are very handsome and
ornamental, and I hope I shall have more of them.
_Foundation Stone Laying, St. John's Church, Cardiff,
March 12th, 1889._
[Illustration: "_I believe I have laid more foundation stones than any
other man in England._"]
We (agriculturists) are looked upon as a long-suffering and patient
race, and some of the manufacturing class think we are fit subjects
for bleeding. In fact, it has been said that agriculturists are like
their own sheep, inasmuch as they can bear a close shaving without a
bleat; whereas the manufacturers are like pigs; only touch their
bristles and they will "holler like the devil."
_Tredegar Show,
December 17th, 1867._
Lord Rosebery is alternately a menace and a sigh.
_Conservative Dinner, Newport,
November 15th, 1895._
We have had an old-fashioned winter, and I do not care if I never see
another. The only people, I fancy, who have enjoyed the winter are the
doctors and the Press.
_Servants' Ball_,
_January 16th, 1891._
MEMORIES OF BALACLAVA.
I consider myself one of the most fortunate men in England to have
been one of those spared out of the 600 about whom so much has been
said and sung. Although my military career has been brief, I have seen
a great deal. I have seen war in all its horrors. It is said to be "an
ill wind that blows nobody good"; so it has been with me. I have
learned to doubly appreciate home and all its comforts. Before going
out to the Crimea I was accustomed to see, on these occasions, farmers
looking happy and contented, and I was in the habit of thinking what a
great nation England was, and how she flourished in all things; but
since the war commenced I have seen the other side of the picture. I
have seen an army march into an hostile country, and in the midst of
farms flowing with milk and honey, and teeming with corn and every
luxury--and there, in a few hours, all was desolation, one stone not
being left on another, and the people made slaves to the invaders. How
thankful we ought to be that we are not suffering at the hand of an
invading army. Now that my military career is at an end I am sure that
a great many of you will sympathise with my father, whose anxiety has
been very great. We were out during the most dreadful period of the
war, and it need not be wondered at that I yielded to the most earnest
entreaties of my father to relinquish my connection with the army lest
I should bring his grey hairs with sorrow to the grave. My father
thought that one such action as I have been in was sufficient to prove
the mettle of his son. I will not further enlarge on the horrors and
miseries of war. May you never see them as I have done, and may we
all meet at this festive board next year.
_Newport Agricultural Show,
December 18th, 1855._
I do not intend to say much about Balaclava to-day because you have
heard the old story over and over again, and I am too old now to
invent stories of Balaclava. On my way down here I stopped to receive
a telegram worded in these terms:--"Fifteen survivors of the Balaclava
Charge send your lordship hearty congratulations and affectionate
remembrances on this day, the 54th anniversary." Well, recollections
of a sad event are at any time, of course, unpleasant, but it is
particularly sad to think that there are now only 15 survivors
remaining out of the Light Brigade of 600. That attenuated number does
not include myself, and there are three other officers still alive.
You may be pretty confident that of these few survivors there were at
least two or three with whom I conversed within a few hours of the
Balaclava Charge. You can imagine those conversations. They were not
very lively ones. They referred probably to some comrade who had been
killed or to the difficulty of filling the place of some officer who
had fallen; because when we drew up after the Balaclava Charge I was
the officer in command of the decimated regiment. All my superior
officers had been either killed or wounded, and I was placed in the
difficult position to find men suddenly to fill the vacancies. So you
can imagine the recollections of those survivors. Since that time
there have been a number of gallant deeds on the part of the British
army, and I hope that those gallant deeds will be remembered, just as
the Balaclava Charge is remembered here. I hope the British nation
will never forget such events as Trafalgar and Waterloo, but will
always hoist a flag or do something else to commemorate them.
_Balaclava Dinner, Bassaleg,
October 25th, 1908._
My own courage in the memorable charge was small, but the deed of
daring conferred everlasting credit on the Senior Officers who took
part in it. I trust that you will keep your offspring fully acquainted
with the heroic deeds of the British Army, and induce them to display
similar courage in the hour of their country's danger.
_Balaclava Dinner, Castleton,
October 25th, 1890._
When a person gets beyond the allotted age of man there must, I think,
be in his mind a melancholy thought regarding the possibility of his
being present on a similar occasion twelve months hence. I am afraid
that some men of my age would have to limp into a room, probably
assisted by a crutch. Fortunately, however, I was able to walk into
the room without a crutch and without assistance, and I am thankful
for that to the Power above. The term "hero" is a term with which many
soldiers do not agree. The mention of the word recalls to my mind the
well-known lines of Rudyard Kipling:
"We aren't no thin red 'eroes,
An' we aren't no blackguards, too,
But single men in barracks,
Most remarkable like you."
I am sure the soldiers who fought with the Light Cavalry at Balaclava
did not think themselves greater heroes than others in the Crimea who
did their duty. Quite recently I read an article in a military
magazine, it dealt with the question of the advance of cavalry and the
arms which should be given them--the lance, the sword, and the rifle.
The article commenced with the statement that it was the business of
every soldier to go into action with the determination to try and kill
someone. I suppose that is right in its way, but it was hardly the
sentiment we went into action with. We went into action to try to
defeat the enemy, but the fewer we killed the better. I have to
confess that I tried to kill someone, but to this day I congratulate
myself on the fact that I do not know whether I succeeded or no. In
these days of long range guns our consciences are saved a great deal,
and so far as killing anyone goes I always give myself the benefit of
the doubt, so that the charge of murder cannot be brought against me.
_Balaclava Dinner, Bassaleg,
October 29th, 1910._
QUIPS AT THE SERVANTS' BALL.
I have arrived at the age when to clasp the waist of one of the
opposite sex for three hours is not considered the height of human
happiness. I remember, however, with pleasure, a time in my younger
days when I thought it was so, and perhaps some of those who can
indulge in a valse without feeling giddy, or a polka without being
"blown," think so now.
_Servants' Ball,
January 14th, 1889._
[Illustration: "_I remember, however, with pleasure, a time in my
younger days._"]
I am happy to be able truly and honestly to say that I have not a word
of difference with any servant of my establishment. Each year as it
rolls onward finds me stiffer in the joints, shorter in the breath,
and less able than formerly to perform the double shuffle, but there
are others coming on--the younger members of the family--who will be
able to kick up their heels as lightly as once I was able to do. As
each year rolls round, too, there are always saddening memories, but
on an occasion of this sort I will make no allusions to them, ... I
hope you will stick to old fashions and old ways. You may be told of
new-fangled ways, and be advised to get rid of the old, but I think it
will be well if you do not pay too much attention to those advisers.
England is like old Tredegar House, and you will find that the customs
now prevailing have been in vogue for over 500 years. You will
probably be told that the best way to make people happy is to make the
poor rich and the rich poor; but, in truth, the richer people are, the
better able they are to help the poor.
_Servants' Ball,
January 7th, 1910._
Many of you waited last night for the old year to go out and the new
year to come in. I did for one. I listened at the window and I heard
bells ringing, and noises which I can only describe as hideous. There
is an invention in this part of the world, which I believe comes from
America (where they have a great many disagreeable things) called a
"hooter." When I listened last night it seemed to me that it was
deliberately hooting out the old year which to so many of us had
painful recollections; and it occurred to me that it was a most
appropriate thing to do. It was the wettest spring, the coldest
summer, the windiest autumn that I have ever known.
_Servants' Ball,
January 1st, 1892._
I can imagine the Bassaleg Parish Council rejoicing in a license for
dancing in the hall, and the teetotallers passing a resolution in
favour of total abstinence, in which case we should have to obtain our
refreshments from the village pump.
_Servants' Ball,
January 9th, 1894._
Railways are springing up all round, and, reading the signs of the
times as I do, I think there will be increased prosperity. If all the
railways now proposed are constructed, we shall be able to paraphrase
the poet's lines:--
Railways to right of them,
Railways to left of them,
Railways behind them,
Most of them silly 'uns.
Into the lawyer's jaw,
And the Contractor's paw,
Go the eight millions.
I shall be able to convert Tredegar House into the "Railway Hotel,"
join the Licensed Victuallers' Association, and do a good trade--if I
can get a license. We have progressed a good deal lately, even in
dancing. I can remember the minuet being the fashion. It was danced
with a great deal of bowing and scraping. Then the waltz, quadrille,
and lancers came. We next had a kitchen lancers, and this year we have
a barn dance. Next year, perhaps, we shall have a pigstye polka, which
will no doubt be very amusing.
_Servants' Ball,
January 8th, 1896._
[Illustration: "_I shall be able to convert Tredegar House into the
'Railway Hotel.'_"]
There have been many changes in the manners and customs of the country
during late years. I am very fond of old customs, and I hope this
old-fashioned Servants' Ball will be kept up by those who come after
me. I am sure there is no gentleman in England who is blessed with a
better lot of servants than I have. If sometimes by my manner I do not
appear pleased, I hope you will make allowance for the business
anxieties constantly hanging over my head, and which do not always
conduce to a pleasant expression. I will relate an incident. An
individual who apparently takes a great deal of interest in me wrote
to me not so long ago and asked, "Why did you look so proud and
haughty when you met me the other day?" I have no recollection of
having been proud and haughty, but I have a very distinct recollection
of a very tight boot and a very bad corn.
_Servants' Ball,
January 8th, 1896._
[Illustration: "_When your toe begins to take a fantastic shape it is
pretty nearly time to give up dancing._"]
I always sympathise with you in your sorrows and try to join you in
your pleasures. In this life, unfortunately, for a good many, there
are more sorrows than pleasures, but I think it is the duty of all who
have it in their power to try to make those around them have, if
possible, more pleasures in their lives than sorrows. I congratulate
myself that I have still a kick left in me. You know that Milton, the
poet, has said in two lines:
"Come and trip it as you go
On the light fantastic toe."
but when your toe begins to take a fantastic shape it is pretty nearly
time to give up dancing. As my toes are beginning to take that shape,
I am afraid I shall not have a kick left much longer. I have always
spoken a few words to you on these occasions--sometimes of sentiment,
sometimes of politics, and sometimes of fun. I usually prefer fun,
because there is generally enough of the other phases around us. I
will therefore content myself with giving the establishment a little
bit of advice, or rather a hint. I have found that what I say on these
occasions has somehow or other found its way into the papers. I do
not know exactly how that is. However, I think it will be more
impressive in print, because if you forget what I say before the end
of the evening, you will be able to read it in the Press next day. My
hint is about fires. There are large fireplaces in Tredegar House,
which is an old one, full of old oak which is liable to catch fire.
During the last few weeks some fine old country houses have been
destroyed by fire. I do not think this has occurred through
carelessness. I know my servants are not careless. What I want you to
understand is the difference between a fire and a furnace. Old Welsh
families--and my family is really an old Welsh family--all believe
that they have very long pedigrees. There are in the strong room at
Tredegar House a great many old records--some of which I have read out
of curiosity. Many of them, no doubt, are mythical, and some are
accurate, but in all my study of them I have not been able to discover
that I bear any relationship to Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. I
therefore fail to see why the household staff should pile up furnaces,
especially now that I assure them I am not quite impervious to fire. I
always like to entertain you a little on these occasions. I will
therefore just sing to you a few lines, and ask Young Charley (the
huntsman) to come in at the end. I notice that Old Charley (the former
huntsman) is also present, and he, perhaps, will join in as well. His
Lordship then sang the following verses to the tune of "Ben Bolt":--
There are soul-stirring sounds in the fiddle and flute
When music begins in the hall,
And a goddess in muslin that's likely to suit
As the mate of your choice for the ball.
But the player may strain every finger in vain
And the fiddler may resin his bow,
Nor fiddle nor string such rapture shall bring
As the sound of the sweet "Tally-ho."
_Servants' Ball,
January 11th, 1898._
Times have changed, and fashions change very quickly--so much so that
I was half afraid you would have petitioned me to allow you to have a
ping-pong tournament. I am glad to see that you still prefer to stick
to the old custom of a ball. Of all entertainments a ball is, in my
opinion, the most harmless. It will always follow that there will be
some who perhaps on the morrow will think that their affections had
not been quite under control, and that they had spoken words of
endearment that perhaps they regretted, and the lady might not. And
perhaps there will always be those whose control over their thirst at
a ball is not quite so strong as that of others.
_Servants' Ball,
January 3rd, 1902._
[Illustration: "_Perhaps there will always be those whose control over
their thirst at a ball is not quite so strong as that of others._"]
I have no doubt that much of what Mr. Perrott has just told you about
the revels that have taken place in the hall during the last 200 or
300 years is perfectly true. There may perhaps have been more fun in
the old days--that is a matter of history. I very much doubt it
myself, and I have a sort of idea, and I hope and trust that at the
Servants' Ball which still takes place here annually--unless there is
some misfortune to prevent it--there is as much fun and revelry as has
ever before taken place in this hall. The old lamp hung over your
heads belonged to a former Lord Mayor of London--Sir Edward
Clark--from whom I inherited some property and plate. That lamp
probably hung in the Mansion House in London some two or three hundred
years ago, and I have no doubt it has seen some peculiar scenes.
_Servants' Ball,
January 8th, 1903._
I also have my little anxieties. I have been hoping and praying that
the enemy will not come up the Bristol Channel and land somewhere near
here before I have got my Territorial Army into position. At the
present moment the Territorial Army in Monmouthshire consists exactly
of 17 men, all of whom are officers. So that unless the enemy give us
due notice that they are coming here, I am afraid that we shall have
to depend principally upon the Tredegar House establishment. I am
quite certain that you will all answer my call, the ladies more
particularly. I don't care so much about the enemy, whenever he comes,
so long as I have the ladies with me.
_Servants' Ball,
Jan. 8th, 1908._
[Illustration: "_I don't care so much about the enemy, whenever he
comes, so long as I have the ladies with me._"]
I take this opportunity of thanking you, and all those in my service
who have spent this year together with me, for the happy way in which
we have been enabled to pass the whole year together in our mutual
admiration for each other. I was going to say affection for each
other, and I should like to think so. We are--I propose using a silly
phrase to express our relations at Tredegar House--a brotherhood of
men. We are here as a brotherhood of men, and a sisterhood of women,
and I should like you to look upon me as one of yourselves. It may be,
before this time next year, if things go on as they are, that I shall
be calling you Comrade Perrot, and you will be calling me Comrade
Morgan. Things are going very fast just now, but I think there is a
right feeling throughout the country that we are going too fast. It
may be that next year, instead of being summoned to the ball here you
will be asked to
"Come and trip as you go
To the light fantastic veto,"
and we shall be invited to dance the Referendum Lancers.
_Servants' Ball,
January 17th, 1911._
[Illustration: "_I shall be calling you Comrade Perrot, and you will
be calling me Comrade Morgan._"]
ON ARCHBISHOPS AND BISHOPS.
It is customary among certain classes to look upon Bishops as men
living in beautiful palaces, faring sumptuously, and rolling about in
carriages; but there is no ploughman who does a harder day's work than
does our Bishop. As to the clergy, many of them labour amongst us for
a stipend which many an artizan would despise.
_Bassaleg Farmers' Dinner,
October 13th, 1881._
There is a certain class of advanced politicians who never lose an
opportunity of serving their own ends by impressing upon their hearers
their particular notions of what a Bishop of the Church of England is
like. That dignitary is generally pictured as a gentleman who receives
a large salary, is clothed in purple and fine linen, fares sumptuously
every day, and lives in luxurious idleness.
_The Opening of the Seamen's Mission Church, Newport,
January 18th, 1887._
We should remember the duties and responsibilities which rest on an
Archbishop. He has a vast correspondence, in which there is not a
single letter that he can write without weighing every word. He is not
like ordinary people, who are able to scribble off their
correspondence; for if a word in a letter from an Archbishop is in the
wrong place, it may upset a college or cause a revolution. If you
study the history of the Archbishopric of Canterbury, beginning with
St. Augustine, then going on to Lanfranc, to Anselm, to Theodore, and
down to Benson and Temple, you will, I believe, come to the conclusion
that I have reached--that whilst many of the men who have gone before
him have filled great parts in making the history of the nation, there
is not one whose character, whose powers of speech, and whose
earnestness in carrying out his duties, exceeded those of the present
Archbishop (Dr. Temple).
_Seventy-fifth Anniversary of St. David's College, Lampeter
October 9th, 1902._
[Illustration: "_There is not one whose character, and whose powers of
speech exceeded those of the present Archbishop (Dr. Temple)._"]
THE TRIALS OF THE CLERGY.
Bishops and Clergy have to deal with all sorts of communications from
parishioners. I remember one case where a clergyman received a letter
telling him he would never do for St. Phillip's because he was
altogether too quiet in his preaching, and not half sensational
enough, but that if he would preach in a red coat in the morning, and
with no coat at all at night, he would be just the man for the job. As
to the Bishops, they have so much to do that one of them--Bishop
Magee, of Peterborough, I believe--summed up the situation by saying
that people seemed to have an idea that a Bishop had nothing to do but
sit in his library with the windows open, so that every jackass might
put in his head and bray.
_Church Luncheon, Newport,
May 16th, 1900._
SERMONS AND SINNERS.
If the clergy only preached as well as they might, there ought not to
be a single sinner in their parishes.
_Licensed Victuallers' Dinner, Newport,
February 7th, 1889._
THE OLD PARISH CHURCH.
I believe that all classes, including the Nonconformists, have a real
love for the old Parish Church and its grey tower, beneath the
shade of which so many of their ancestors are laid. Here at
Michaelston-y-Vedw we have a fine historic building, erected about
1130. I may tell you that one of its old parish registers contains an
interesting entry. It is that "Godfrey Charles Morgan was baptised
here on May 4th, 1828."
_Eisteddfod, Cefn-Mably,
September 15th, 1897._
[Illustration: "_Godfrey Charles Morgan was baptised here on May 4th,
1828._"]
I always take more interest in these historical little rural parish
churches than I do in a brand new Church erected in some populous
district. Of course, the Church is really more necessary there than
among the small Communities; still, there is the sentiment, the old
association of the old Parish Church and the churchyard in which "the
rude forefathers of the hamlet sleep." Those lines of the poet Gray:
"The cock's shrill clarion, nor the echoing horn,
No more shall raise him from his lonely bed,"
often strike me, because the little Church is so closely connected
with the Llangibby family. The Llangibby and Morgan families have been
associated very often before in the long vista of history, but you
have amongst you now a relation of mine, come to live amongst you, and
who will look after this little Church.
RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE.
It is possible that I am very tolerant in my religious opinions. But
seeing that we are now living under perfect tolerance, and that the
religious wants of the people must be supplied, I think it is the duty
of those who own property to see that there is accommodation for the
religious needs of all who live thereon. As science advances there
must be considerable differences of opinion on religion in a large and
important town like Cardiff. A great man once said that tolerance was
simply indifference; I do not agree with him. I think it is possible
to be tolerant without being indifferent to one's own opinions. There
is a great leaning nowadays towards scientific religion. Education is
advancing very rapidly, and philosophical men are trying to make
reasons for every line in Scripture and every line in the Prayer Book.
That may be useful in a way, but I cannot help thinking that many
books written lately by men who are very learned, and with very good
intent, will, if circulated among the young of the country, do a great
deal of harm. I look forward to an increase of religious feeling
throughout the country, and I shall be always ready to assist, as far
as I can, in erecting chapels and other places for religious
instruction and religious worship.
_Chapel, Cardiff,
September 14th, 1894._
I have never posed as one made of that stuff of which martyrs are
made--and perhaps my remarks may offend some, or scandalize others.
But I would rather see any place of worship in the town than none at
all, I will go so far as to say I would rather see a Mohammedan mosque
in the town than no place of worship at all. I have the greatest
possible admiration for faith of any sort. Early in my life I had
occasion to look with admiration upon the faith even of a Mohammedan.
I have listened to the minister of the mosque calling the faithful to
prayers two, three or more times a day, and I have seen the
Mohammedans in the street go down on their knees and say their prayers
in front of everybody. I have seen a regiment of Mohammedans on the
march, and at the hour of sunset every man in the regiment would kneel
on his carpet and say his prayers. Those were soldiers who were not
afraid of their faith, though it might have been the wrong one. I have
watched a poor Italian peasant kneel on the roadside and offer his
small tribute to the shrine. He was not afraid of praying before
anybody; but I am afraid that some of us would rather be seen with our
hands in somebody else's pocket than kneel down and say our prayers in
the Club-room.
_Foundation-stone Laying at Baptist Church, Cardiff,
June 14th, 1894._
[Illustration: "_But I am afraid that some of us would rather be seen
with our hands in somebody else's pocket than kneel down and say our
prayers in the Club-room._"]
THE CRICKETER CURATE.
Cricket is the nicest, best and most gentlemanly exercise in Great
Britain. How general is the love of cricket is shown by the story of
some parishioners who, when asked by their Vicar what sort of a Curate
they would like, said:--"We don't care much about the preaching, but
what we want in the Curate is a good break to the off."
[Illustration: "_We don't care much about the preaching but what we
want in the Curate is a good break to the off._"]
THE BROTHERHOOD OF MAN.
I think you are quite right in commencing with a religious service a
ceremony such as I am about to perform. These institutions are
established for the welfare of the inhabitants, and we begin with a
religious service in order to impress on those who are going to use
the Hall hereafter that, whatever is done inside the Hall should be
done in a way which is really a Christian way. It will not affect in
any way the feelings of those who attend for amusement or instruction,
except to prompt a religious feeling which we all wish to have some
time or other in our lives. I was very pleased to be able to come
to-day and perform the opening ceremony. A little pressure was put on
me because at my time of life you don't recover from any extra
exertion.
I do like this term of Brotherhood. Those who have arrived at my time
of life know what it is to have and to value a really sympathising
brother. I am referring to my own dear brother, who has recently left
us. Throughout our lives we did not have a single word of difference
or a thought of difference, and the word "Brother" will draw me out
at any time. It is the idea of universal feeling that everybody is
trying his or her best in this world in whatever he or she may be
trying to do--it is the feeling of Brotherhood which helps us to get
that feeling.
_Speech at the Victoria Brotherhood, Newport,
March 4th, 1910._
THE USES OF THE PARISH ROOM.
[Illustration: "_The Ploughman returning from his weary work may just
scrape his boots outside._"]
In olden days the ordinary village school was the only place available
for meetings or for general gatherings of the parishioners, and a long
time ago that did very well. But the advance of education is tending
to interfere a good deal with our old ideas and places, and it is now
almost necessary that every Church, or every parish, should have a
clubroom--a room where all classes can mix together and improve the
knowledge they have gained at the various county schools--intermediate
or otherwise. We want the Parish Room to be open to everyone. The
ploughman returning from his weary work may just scrape his boots
outside, and he will be perfectly welcome any time he likes to come
in. I am sure there is a great deal of learning to be acquired, a
great deal of good to be done, a great deal of instruction to be
gathered, in a Church Room of this description, when it is managed in
the way it ought to be. As you know, there are certain superior people
who like essays and that sort of thing, and who, are inclined to sneer
at the village concerts and penny readings and little dances which are
likely to take place here. But we do not all possess the wisdom of
Socrates, the dignity of Pliny, or the wit of Horace. Perhaps I shall
put it more plainly if I say we do not possess the wisdom of
Shakespeare, the dignity of Wordsworth, or the wit of Byron. But there
is quite likely to be as much good sense in a humble gathering of an
evening here as amongst those superior people who always try to teach
us by telling us what we ought to do, what to think about, and what we
ought to remember. Those are the people who advertise the simple life.
I fancy most of you are living fairly simple lives, whilst those
gentlemen who advocate it so much do not know what the simple life
means. Not very far from us is where "the rude forefathers of the
hamlet sleep," and in Gray's beautiful Elegy we are told:
"Perhaps in this neglected spot is laid
Some heart once pregnant with celestial fire;
Hands that the rod of Empire might have sway'd,
Or waked to ecstasy the living lyre."
Might not some of those who are laid in the Churchyard close by, if
they had enjoyed the advantages we have, have "wakened to ecstasy the
living lyre," or been great members of either parish councils or
county councils, or even Members of Parliament! I think that before
this room has been in existence many years we shall find that some of
those attending the gatherings which I hope will take place here, have
done their best to make themselves prominent in life, especially in
trying to keep before the world the truths of that religion which we
have thought so much of and heard so much of to-day.
_Opening of Church-room at Llanvaches,
February, 1909._
GENTLE MANNERS.
There is one great thing that will carry you comfortably through life,
and that is a nice, gentle manner. I see you all have nice, gentle
manners, and what I ask you to do is to carry them outside the school,
and retain them when you are on the roads or in the fields, or in your
own homes. I ask the boys to cultivate the same language outside as
inside the school, and the girls the same manners.
_School Prize Distribution, Rhiwderin,
April 24th, 1891._
Bad language is unnecessary. Bad words are used by some people in
every other sentence, without any necessity at all, and they mean
nothing. If you can only learn to drop those disagreeable words you
will be much more pleasant members of society. I like to see boys
lively, spirited, and anxious to amuse themselves whenever they can.
But they should be kind and gentle to their mothers and sisters. It
is the nature of boys to be tyrannical to the other sex, but they will
lose nothing by being as kind and gentle as they can be.
_Boys' Brigade Inspection, Newport,
April 19th, 1894._
[Illustration: "_It is the nature of boys to be tyrannical to the
other sex._"]
It has been well said that good manners are something to everybody,
and everything to somebody. Some people will not take anyone into
employment unless they have good manners. As an old soldier, I know
the value of _esprit de corps_. A hundred soldiers with the spirit of
their corps are worth two hundred who do not care a straw about the
regiment.
_Pontywain School,
December 15th, 1909._
Mr. Labouchere has said he would rather have a gentleman of bad morals
who voted right, than a gentleman whose morals were right but who
voted wrong. Well, I would rather have a gentleman whose manners are
good, even though he votes wrong, than one who votes right and whose
manners are bad.
_Licensed Victuallers' Dinner,
July 13th, 1891._
REVERENCE FOR RELIGION.
As I grow older I find that the younger people are the less they like
advice, and the less likely they are to take it. But I hope you will
henceforth be good citizens of this great country. In your Brigade you
are taught to have reverence for religion and respect for authority,
which are great principles to get on with.
_Boys' Brigade Inspection,
April 4th, 1895._
THE TEACHING OF REFINEMENT.
There has been a great deal of talk lately about education. We have
had board schools and national schools, and we are now going to have
technical schools. But there is one point we have not yet arrived
at--the teaching of refinement. I look upon the Eisteddfod as
encouraging literature and music and art, as one of the great
institutions for the encouragement of refinement in general life. We
may become very well educated and very scientific, but unless there is
refinement among us in general life, we will naturally tend towards
roughness of manners.
_Brecon Eisteddfod,
August 18th, 1889._
IN PRAISE OF HOSPITALS.
We are met to endeavour to raise sufficient money to erect a hospital
or infirmary worthy of the town of Newport. There are two statements
nobody can dispute: Newport is a large and yearly increasing seaport,
and a town of this magnitude ought not to be without a large and
splendid hospital. I am afraid that with many people the idea of a
hospital or infirmary does not go further than a small subscription
and a few admission tickets to give away. But I wish to explain to the
public generally the enormous advantages and the necessity of a good
and well-organized hospital in the town. Whatever subscription you
give you may be pretty nearly certain that the money will be spent in
the right way. All other charities are more or less liable to some
sort of imposture, but that is almost impossible with a hospital. I
remember, as a soldier in the old days, that there was a certain sort
of complaint we used to call malingering. If a man wanted to shirk any
duty he pretended to be ill, but was very soon found out by the
regimental doctor. So in the same way hospital doctors will soon find
out the malingerer. A hospital is a high school of medicine for young
doctors, who not only mix with scientific people at the institution,
but gain a high moral feeling, so that there is no room for small
petty jealousies amongst the medical practitioners. Then look at the
injured people carried to the hospital. They have the best of care,
and in most cases are turned out cured, sound and strong. If it were
not for the hospital, they would probably be cripples or invalids for
life. In that way hospitals save the rates. I am sure that hundreds
are yearly turned out of the infirmary sound in mind and body, able to
support their families and keep them off the rates.
Then, again, a hospital makes an excellent school for nurses. That is
one of the greatest benefits possible, because the authorities of the
hospital are always strictly careful that nurses, before they are sent
out, are thoroughly proficient. I am sure no building ground or house,
or any other little present I may have given in the course of my life,
will be more useful than the land I have given for this site. I hope,
in addition to the land, to be able to give a good sum of money if I
see it is required.
_Meeting in connection with a new Infirmary for Newport,
March 11th, 1896._
WHEN IS A HOSPITAL A SUCCESS.
This toast has always appeared to me very difficult to word. I do not
know whether success to the Infirmary means a full Infirmary with all
the wards engaged. It reminds me of a celebrated American who, when
asked what sort of a town he had just left, remarked that it was very
flourishing, for every hospital was crammed, every workhouse was too
full, and they were about to build another wing to the gaol.
_Cardiff Infirmary,
January 25th, 1911._
RECLAIM THE STREET URCHIN.
The Arabians have a proverb to the effect that "The stone that is fit
for the wall should not be allowed to lay in the way." Amongst the
children who wander about the streets there are many who are, so to
speak, quite "fit for the wall"--that is to say, they may, through
being brought under drill and other conditions found in the Brigade,
be turned into respectable members of Society.
_Bazaar at Cardiff,
April 13th, 1898._
[Illustration: "_The stone that is fit for the wall should not be
allowed to lay in the way._"]
THE INFLUENCE OF WOMEN.
[Illustration: "_Broke the engagement off because the young man said
he had never heard of Browning._"]
Women exercise a great deal of influence upon the affairs of the
country, even without taking part in business, politics, or anything
of that sort. For all I know, there may be some girls here who will
affect political and many other movements in connection with the
welfare of the nation. Girls ought to be made to think that they will
have great power in the future, and to realise that they may be able
to influence some one for good, not by their great learning so much as
by the power that a good girl or a good woman exercises over men. I
heard the other day of a young lady who was engaged to be married, but
who broke off the engagement because the young man said he had never
heard of Browning. I am glad to be able to tell you that she thought
better of it afterwards.... It was said of the great Queen Cleopatra
that when the Roman Emperor fell in love with her she was the means of
altering the history of the world. Some say that if Cleopatra's nose
had been shorter, the face of the world would have been different. The
fate of some young men may depend upon the noses, as well as upon the
learning, of some of the girls present.
_Re-opening of Howell's School, Llandaff,
June 26th, 1900._
A FRIEND FOR THE FRIENDLESS.
There cannot possibly be an object in the wide world more worthy of
sympathy than a girl without a friend. All over the world this Society
has its habitations, and it has already befriended 4,000 girls. It
renders assistance when they are penniless, provides friends when they
are friendless, and religious consolation when they require it.
_Girls' Friendly Society Bazaar, Newport,
April 24th, 1895._
THE BRAVERY OF THE WORKERS.
I think it is my duty to allude to the dreadful accident which took
place in July at the dock extension works. The facts stated in the
report should be printed and go, not only to the Shareholders, but to
the country generally, as a record of the heroism and endurance that
our workers, from the highest engineer to the lowliest navvy, were
capable of under distressing and dreadful circumstances. We hear so
much of the decadence of the English race nowadays, that I think the
report of the disaster at the docks is well worthy of being printed.
_Half-yearly Meeting Alexandra (Newport and South Wales)
Docks and Railway Coy., London,
August 5th, 1909._
I have always admired the working collier, and if British records
could be printed thousands of colliers would be found as much entitled
to the Victoria Cross as those soldiers who have performed doughty
deeds on the battlefield.
_Workmen's Outing at Tredegar Park,
August 8th, 1885._
In the old Town Hall of Newport many great celebrities have received
testimonials, compliments and honours--warriors, church dignitaries,
financiers and great politicians; but I do not think any circumstance
like the present one has arisen before, and there could not be a more
interesting ceremony than that which we are about to perform. It is
necessary to make a slight excuse for the time which has expired since
the great disaster on July 2nd, 1909. Those who remember the incidents
know perfectly well that the whole of the dock premises and the town
were in a state of excitement for some considerable period, and a
large number of unfortunate men were overwhelmed by the disaster,
while others fortunately escaped. I think the officials have done
their very best to try and select those who really performed heroic
efforts. Those who have not received recognition, but think they
deserve it, will, I feel sure, make all due allowance, and give those
responsible the credit for having done their best. It is satisfactory
to the directors to know that they have a body of men around them who
are ready to do their duty. It is a trait of the educated British
workman of to-day that, when given something useful to do, he will
perform his task heroically--heroism is characteristic of him.
_Presentation of Certificates for Bravery on the occasion
of the Dock disaster, Newport Town Hall,
March 14th, 1911._
A TRIBUTE TO THE ENGINE DRIVER.
[Illustration: "_The feeling of a Newport cabman when his horse runs
away._"]
I have the greatest admiration for engine drivers, particularly those
on the Great Western Railway, on which line I travel most. I have
often wondered at the admirable manner in which they stop and start
their trains. Mr. Gladstone once said that he could understand the
mind of a great historian like Gibbon, or of a great poet, like
Milton, Byron, or Wordsworth, but that he could not understand the
formation of the mind of a man who wrote poems and plays like
Shakespeare. Personally, I cannot understand the mind of an engine
driver on an express train. I have been myself, in some very
disagreeable positions, and have had some very nasty half minutes. Not
very long ago I found myself underneath my horse in a muddy ditch and
the half minutes I spent in waiting for a friendly hand to drag me
out, and in wondering whether assistance would come before I was
suffocated, were very unpleasant ones. Only a fortnight ago, too, a
gentleman was driving me in a light vehicle down a narrow roadway when
we saw a runaway horse attached to a lorry galloping towards us. It
seemed as if there was nothing for it but for us to be knocked into
the proverbial cocked-hat. However, our vehicle was drawn very close
to the side and the runaway just cleared us. I can understand, too,
the feeling of a man driving four horses when they run away with him,
because that has happened to myself; or the feeling of a Newport
cabman when his horse runs away. But I cannot understand the feeling
of sustained courage on the part of a driver of an express engine with
his train going at 60 miles an hour through the darkness of the night,
perhaps in a storm of snow or sleet. To use a pretty strong
expression, it must be like "hell with the lid off." Those who travel
on railways ought to think more of the responsibilities which rest on
railway employees.
_Railwaymen's Dinner,
April 21st, 1908._
TEMPERANCE "IN ALL THINGS."
[Illustration: "_There are many Radicals who take a great deal more
than they can carry._"]
When I talk of temperance I mean temperance not only in drink, but in
all things. There is temperance in eating, and temperance in life. In
the present case there are three sections--the temperance people, the
Sunday closing people, and the total abstinence people. I cannot see
how the question of religion can enter into party politics. I have
known many Tories who were habitual drunkards, and there are many
Radicals who take a great deal more than they can carry. There is
always a difficulty in drawing the line between the enthusiast and the
fanatic. Enthusiastic gentlemen generally get what they require.
Fanatics, on the other hand, by the way they advocate their
principles, turn people away.
_Opening of the new Temperance Hall, Newport,
May 2nd, 1889._
I believe that if the medical men of the country published their
opinions concerning the cases which come under their notice, it would
be a revelation to the general public how great a proportion of
illness is due in one way or another to alcoholic drink. I cannot,
however, help noticing that a great improvement and advance has taken
place in the cause of temperance. A good many years ago, when there
was going to be a great family festival--a wedding or something of
that sort--one of the family retainers was asked if he was going to be
there. "Of course," was his reply, "and won't I just get drunk." That
seemed to be the prevailing idea of enjoyment--to get drunk. But that
attitude has been changed.
_Band of Hope Festival, Newport,
May 3rd, 1900._
[Illustration: "_Coming out and making themselves disagreeable to
their neighbours._"]
I have no doubt there are several in the hall who, like myself, are
not total abstainers, but we are all one in our endeavour to promote
temperance generally. To those who cannot be temperate, we advise
total abstinence. There is nothing, I am sure, so fruitful of good as
the advocacy of temperance amongst children. When children are taught
to advocate a particular cause they do it more effectively than older
people. But we are sometimes apt to become too much imbued with one
particular idea, and it is never well to be too much of a bore to
those around us. A little child was asked not long ago what she knew
about King John and Runnymede. She had evidently been a worker in the
temperance cause, and replied, "Oh, yes; he's the man they got down to
Runnymede and made him swear to take the pledge." She had forgotten
about Magna Charta, and thought of only one kind of pledge. There is
nothing that disturbs the general happiness and comfort so much as the
action of those who persist in going into a public house when they
need not do so, and coming out and making themselves disagreeable to
their neighbours. I only hope that some of the younger portion of you
will live to enjoy a Bank Holiday without seeing a single drunken
person.
_Band of Hope Union, Newport,
May 29th, 1901._
TOTAL ABSTINENCE.
There is a rule in the Boys' Brigade according to which you are
supposed to be abstainers from drink. I need not say what a good thing
that is. You will all be very much better for being abstainers. You
will save a great deal of money, and probably keep your health up
better. I wish I had been a total abstainer in my youth. I should have
saved a great deal of money.
_Boys' Brigade Inspection, Newport,
April 19th, 1894._
AN ANGELIC VISION.
There is a phrase about "the happiness of the greatest number." It is
an expressive phrase, but different people have different opinions of
happiness. I was hunting in the Midland Counties and I asked, "Where
is Tom?" The answer was, "He's retired, he's living the life of a
hangel; he's a-heating, and a-drinking and a-cussing, and a-swearing
all day long." That may not be your idea of the life of an angel, if
it was my friend's idea.
_The Tredegar Show,
December 18th, 1872._
[Illustration: "_He's retired, he's living the life of a hangel._"]
CHATS TO AND ABOUT CABBIES.
I have had many rides in the cabs of Newport, and have always found
the cabbies very good drivers, prepared to go the pace according to
the fare they expected at the end of the journey.
_Cabmen's Dinner, Newport,
November 8th, 1889._
[Illustration: "_Prepared to go the pace according to the fare they
expected at the end of the journey._"]
[Illustration: "_You try to blow me up on my way to Tredegar House._"]
I wish you had chosen some other Patron Saint than Guy Fawkes, for Guy
Fawkes tried to blow up the House of Lords, and on each anniversary
you try to blow me up on my way to Tredegar House. Some persons may
think that one Conservative Peer more or less does not matter, but I
prefer that the experiment of blowing up should be tried upon the body
of a Radical Peer.
_Cabmen's Dinner, Newport,
Nov 5th, 1896._
[Illustration: "_Look here, cut it short guv'nor! I've got the cab by
the hour._"]
There are very odd traditions about cabmen, and I am certain that
sometimes they are not deserved. I have been told it is something of a
tradition that it is the pride of a cabman to be able to whistle
louder, to hit his horse harder, and to tell a bigger lie than anybody
else. I believe that to be absolutely untrue, though some of you may
know better than I do. One of you is supposed to have nearly upset a
wedding. That was a dreadful thing to do. The bride and bridegroom
were both at the Altar and just about to have the knot tied nicely.
The clergyman began to deliver his address, but the bridegroom
appeared to be in a great hurry, and said to the clergyman, "Look
here, cut it short, guv'nor! I've got the cab by the hour." That was
rather natural on the part of the bridegroom but the clergyman became
very angry, and very nearly threw up the case....
[Illustration: "_Look here, Mr. Huddleston, I call you a thief, a
blackguard, a scoundrel, and a villain._"]
Cabmen are limited in the language they may use. Judge Huddleston,
when a barrister, was defending a client against a cabman, who had
been using very bad language. The advocacy of Huddleston won the case.
The next day the cabman called upon him and said: "Look here, Mr.
Huddleston, you told me yesterday that I must not call people so and
so. What are your charges for telling me what I can call anyone
without getting into trouble?" Mr. Huddleston named his fee, cabby
paid the money, and inquired what names he might call a man with
impunity. Mr. Huddleston referred to his law books, and replied: "This
is what you may call a man without being had up for libel or
defamation of character. You may call him a villain, a scoundrel, a
blackguard, and a thief, always supposing you don't accuse him of
having stolen anything." The cabby took up his hat and said: "Look
here, Mr. Huddleston, I call you a thief, a blackguard, a scoundrel
and a villain; not that I mean to say you ever stole anything. Good
morning." So you know now exactly what you can call a man if you do
not like the fare he gives you. At the same time, I do not believe you
would say such things.
[Illustration: "_That's where Lord Tredegar buried his charger; he
made that mound himself._"]
Then, again, a cabman is always supposed to be a driving encyclopedia.
When Newport cabmen are driving along Caerleon Road or Chepstow Road,
credulous individuals ask them the name of every house and place they
pass, what it means and what it is. Strangers want to know, and you
must tell them something. There is an extraordinary tradition about a
cabman driving along a road, when a lady fare asked him what "that
mountain was with the tump on the top." "But what is the tump for?"
persisted the lady. "Oh, that's where Lord Tredegar buried his
charger; he made that mound himself," was the reply. Such stories are
very interesting and amusing, but they spoil history, and that is why
I think we are indebted to cabmen for the extraordinary traditions
that go about the country.
_Cabmen's Dinner, Newport,
November 5th, 1898._
Cabmen have traditionally bad characters, and are supposed to possess
a vocabulary which is not taught in the Intermediate Schools. They are
also supposed to have a special method of calculating distances and
coin. All those ideas are exploded like nursery rhymes, such as
"Whittington and his Cat." Cabmen are well looked after. There is the
Excise Officer and the Cruelty to Animals Society, and, if these are
not enough, there is the Watch Committee.
_Cabmen's Dinner, Newport,
November 6th, 1899._
[Illustration:
"_But the top of a 'bus
Is the place for us
To see the coves go by._"]
You have to compete with tramcars, motor cars, and all kinds of
horrible conveyances. Having been interested in nursery rhymes since I
was very young, I have been looking through some children's books
during the last few days to see what is provided for the children of
these days, and I came across the following lines in a book for
children:--
The hansom takes you quickest,
The growler keeps you dry,
But the top of the 'bus
Is the place for us
To see the coves go by.
I advise you not to give that little book to your children, as it will
induce them to ride on the top of a 'bus instead of taking a cab.
_Cabmen's Dinner, Newport,
November 8th, 1902._
[Illustration: "_Fast women and slow horses._"]
I have never been able to find out exactly why the cabmen's dinner is
fixed for Guy Fawkes' Day. I have looked up Guy Fawkes' pedigree, and
I cannot find that he ever drove a growler or even a hansom cab. Then
I thought it might have something to do with Inkerman Day, which is
all upset nowadays, as you know. Inkerman was always called a
soldiers' battle, because it was so foggy that the generals could not
see what they were doing. I have an idea that it must have been a
cabmen's battle, and that it was cabmen who fought at Inkerman or
commanded at Inkerman. Speaking of cabmen, I think that they are like
Lord Rosebery's Dukes--poor, but honest. This is not an epoch-making
dinner; it is not even a record dinner. "Epoch-making" and
"record-making" are terms which are frequently used now-a-days, and I
wish people would give them a rest for a time. I remember a young
gentleman who came into a fortune and very soon got through it because
his company was very indifferent, he being very fond of racecourses
and other iniquities of that sort. He went through the Bankruptcy
Court, and when asked how he accounted for getting rid of his fortune
so quickly, he replied, "Fast women and slow horses." Now I think
cabmen would probably make a profit out of fast women and slow horses.
One of you will take a very fine lady to Caerleon Racecourse next
week, and, having a slow horse, will take two hours to do the journey,
and charge a two hours' price. But I always like this society for one
particular reason, namely, it has no small societies belonging to it.
There is no Cabmen's Football Club to write and ask you for a
subscription. So far as I know, there is no cabmen's band, or other
small institutions of which we have so many in every other circle of
society. There is no cabmen's congress, and no cabmen's conferences
and that is a great merit in the society, because I know that when I
have done one thing, I have done all that I shall be required to do.
_Cabmen's Dinner,
November 5th, 1909._
TALKS TO LICENSED VICTUALLERS.
Although the devil is not as black as he is painted, I hope neither I
nor any other gentleman present bears any resemblance to his Satanic
Majesty. The Scythians, it is reported, first debated things when
drunk, and then whilst sober, and perhaps at the end of this gathering
I may be able to form a better opinion of the members of the Newport
Corporation.
_Mayor's Banquet, Newport
March 18th, 1886._
A few months ago, in the silly season, "The Times" had about a couple
of columns of letters from people discussing the uses and abuses of
drink. I read the letters carefully, and came to the conclusion that
there was a lot to be said on both sides. An octogenarian of 83 wrote
to say that his eyesight, hearing, and teeth were all sound, and that
he had not tasted spirituous liquors in his life. Shortly after,
another octogenarian of 84, in addition to claiming the healthy
condition of the previous writer, spoke of intending matrimony. He,
however, said his memory was not so good as it was, but, so far as he
could recollect, he had never been to bed sober in his life. After
reading the first letter, I thought it was a "clincher," and went to
bed without my usual brandy and soda, saying there would be no more
licensed victuallers' dinners for me. When, however, I read the second
letter, I changed my mind about the dinner. It has been said that life
is not all beer and skittles, but it is a good thing to have something
to drive away the depression which occasionally visits every one who
has arrived at manhood.
_Licensed Victuallers' Dinner, Cardiff,
March 15th, 1892._
In the old days barons drank strong ale. The barons would have their
liquor strong, and local veto at that time would have meant loss of
licensed victuallers' heads. Some people may wonder why I so
persistently attend the Licensed Victuallers' Association
meetings--for I do attend regularly. I will tell you why, in a few
words, if you will not tell anybody else. There is a clause in the
family settlements that compels me to do it. I endeavour to act up to
those settlements.
_Licensed Victuallers' Dinner, Newport,
March 9th, 1892._
I am not surprised that Members of Parliament are rather shy of going
to licensed victuallers' dinners. They have to be very careful of what
they say. Words, it has been said, are given to conceal thoughts.
After dinner, sometimes, thoughts get the mastery of words, and
Members of Parliament have to think a good deal of the future. They
have to ponder over the teetotal vote, and they have to be very
careful that they do not offend the licensed victuallers. The
difference as regards the members of the House of Lords is this--they
do not worry themselves about the teetotal vote, and they do not care
a _darn_ for the licensed victuallers.
A certain number of people think they can arrange everything
satisfactorily upon an arithmetical principle. The latest fad is "one
man one vote." If you do not take care it will be one man one glass. I
would like to know how that could be arranged on arithmetical
principles satisfactorily. There are a few other burning questions
which I have never yet seen satisfactorily answered. One is 'What is
Home Rule?' and the other is 'Have you used Pear's Soap?' Until we can
find satisfactory answers to these, I think that legislation in regard
to licensed victuallers will be quiet for a bit. I have never
considered it necessary to apologise for dining with licensed
victuallers. If there are any who think that in dining with that
company I am stepping down from a pedestal on which I ought to remain,
all I can do is to answer them in the beautiful motto of the Order of
the Garter, "Honi soit qui mal y pense."
_Licensed Victuallers' Dinner, Cardiff,
February 28th, 1891._
[Illustration: "_If there are any who think that I am stepping down
from a pedestal._"]
CAKES AND ALE.
For my own part, I cannot see how the country could get on without
Licensed Victuallers. Some years ago when a Frenchman wanted to
describe an English country gentleman, he said he was one of those
who, whenever he had nothing to do, suggested to those about him that
they should go out and kill something.
[Illustration: "_If a time arrived when there were no more cakes and
ale._"]
There is a type of politician who, whenever he has nothing to do, says
"Let us go and abolish something." If this type had its way it would
abolish the Lord Mayor's Show and Barnum's White Elephant. I do not
think the country would be one whit happier if a time arrived when
there were no more cakes and ale.
_Licensed Victuallers' Dinner,
January 29th, 1884._
THE GREAT LAND TYRANT.
I am now like the old man of the sea--someone you ought to get rid of.
I am a great land tyrant. If you want a bit of land you can't get it.
If you want a piece for a recreation ground you can't get it. If you
want a piece for a Church you can't get it. If you want a piece for a
school you can't get it. If you want a place for any other amusement
or for athletic grounds you can't get it. Why? Because it belongs to
Lord Tredegar. So if you treat me like Jonah, and throw me overboard,
perhaps it would be much better for you.
_Conservative Association Meeting, Newport.
August 24th, 1910._
TWO LORD TREDEGARS.
It appears to me sometimes that there are two Lord Tredegars.... Most
of you have been children at some time or other, and so most of you, I
am happy to think, are acquainted with nursery rhymes. There is one
which, probably, a great many of you have heard of. It is about an old
lady with a basket who was going to market. She laid down on a bank
and went to sleep, and a pedlar passing by, for some reason or other,
cut her petticoats considerably above her knees. When she awoke the
first thing she said was, "Surely, this is not I." And sometimes, when
he awoke in the morning, and saw what was said about Lord Tredegar, he
was inclined to make the same remark, "Surely, this is not I." When I
read of a Lord Tredegar who is trying to reap what he has not sown,
who binds his tenants down to covenants which do not exist, and who
exacts the uttermost farthing from his miserable tenants, I think
sometimes there must be two Lord Tredegars.
_Tredegar Show,
November 24th, 1888._
[Illustration: "_Surely, this is not I!_"]
THE TRIALS OF BENEFACTORS.
[Illustration: "_I have lately started a store in the village._"]
The other day a friend of mine was in much the same position as I am
to-night. He owned a large estate in the neighbourhood, and he was
asked to preside at a meeting of the candidate who was going to come
forward. I asked him afterwards if the meeting was successful. "Oh,
yes," he replied, "it was fairly successful, but they began to find
out my failures and shortcomings." I said, "What have they found out
about you?" The reply was, "I have lately started a store in the
village, so that the agricultural labourers might have their beef and
groceries at cost price. I thought that was rather a good thing to do,
but it was far from a good thing in the opinion of my opponents. All
the butchers and grocers declared they would make it very hot for me."
I am in a somewhat similar position, and I told my friend so. "What
have you done?" asked my friend, and I replied, "I have given a public
park to the Newport people." "What has that to do with it?" "Well,"
said I, "they make out that it has increased the rates."
_Conservative Meeting, Newport,
February 2nd, 1894._
WHAT IS A PHILANTHROPIST?
There are moments in a man's life when there is a contest between the
lip and the eye, whether we should smile or cry. I am sure you would
not like to see me cry just now, but there is a certain amount of
sentiment in an affair of this sort. For a person in my position it is
rather trying. I feel very much like the little boy you all knew in
your nursery stories. The boy had a pie, and "he put in his thumb and
pulled out a plum and said 'What a good boy am I.'" That is what I
feel now. I suppose I should feel like a philanthropist. You probably
all know what a philanthropist is. A philanthropist is an old
gentleman, probably with a bald head, and he tries to make his
conscience think he is doing good all the while he is having his
pocket picked.
_In reply to a vote of thanks._
"A SPLENDID FELLOW."
[Illustration:"_A philanthropist is an old gentleman, probably with a
bald head._"]
It has been wisely said that there is nothing a man will not believe
in his own favour. Well, after the way you praise me I believe I am a
splendid fellow altogether. But one's name is not always spoken of
with that reverence with which a lord's name ought to be mentioned.
Still, I suppose there is such a thing as ignorance among men about
those who do not live in the same station as themselves, and I always
put it down to that. Some day or other they may come to find out that
what they say against Lord Tredegar is not all true.
_St. Mellons' Show,
September 29th, 1909._
NATURALLY A CONSERVATIVE.
You will not wonder that I am in a graver mood than is usual on these
occasions. For more than 30 years my lamented father occupied this
chair, and I believe he was present on every occasion of this kind. In
that time, the show has been raised from a very small one to be one of
the most important in the country. My father has left me, amongst
other possessions, an hereditary trust in the shape of this
Agricultural Show. If I have given any hope that I shall fill the
position as my father filled it, I shall feel very much flattered. It
is not my intention to make great changes. There is no way of showing
disrespect more than in making great changes, turning everything
topsy-turvey, as if we knew everything better than those who went
before us. I am naturally Conservative, and come of a Conservative
family. I intend to keep to what was good of my late father. I have
inherited a great trust in this show, and I hope that in future it
will be seen that the show has not lost its prestige, its popularity
or its utility.
_Tredegar Show,
December 15th, 1875._
POLITICS ON THE BRAIN.
Everybody now has got politics on the brain. We dream of politics and
we almost drink politics--at least, we have been drinking politics
to-night. So far as I am concerned, I should like, Rip Van
Winkle-like, to go to sleep for the next two months and wake up to
find the general election over; only then I should like to wake up to
find it had gone the right way.
_Farmers' Dinner, Bassaleg,
October 13th, 1885._
THE UNRULY HOUND.
[Illustration: "_I lick him whenever I have the opportunity._"]
It is wrong to introduce politics at this dinner, and, in fact, I have
no great liking for politics on any occasion, though I do at times
have a little to do with them. And I have a little way of my own. I
have a most unruly hound in my pack, which I call "Radical," and I
lick him whenever I have the opportunity. It does the hound good, and
at the same time eases my own mind. Though I have no great love of
politics, I think this is a time, if ever, a member of Parliament
should feel inclined to speak. There is one subject which must be in
everybody's mind, and for the consideration of which everyone must
brace himself in the next session--that is "tenant's right." That is
a question in which every agriculturist must take a deep interest; and
for myself I think meetings of this sort much more likely to promote a
goodly feeling between landlord and tenant than the provisions of any
Act of Parliament.
_Tredegar Show,
December 14th, 1889._
THE WHOO WHOOPS.
I thank you for the way the toast of my health has been received; but
I do not quite see the propriety of "whoo whoops" at the end. That is
an expression that sportsmen use only when they are about to kill
something; I do not see its applicability in the present case. I hope
that you do not mean all you have expressed.
_Tredegar Show,
December 13th, 1871._
M.P.'S AS BADGERS.
During the intervals of pigeon pie and boiled beef, I have had the
pleasure of a few minutes' conversation with Mr. Cordes, and from that
conversation I have come to the conclusion that a Member of Parliament
holds the same position to the human race that a badger does to the
animal race. Some people think that the only earthly purpose for
which a badger can have been created was that of being baited, and I
have an idea that some persons seem to imagine that a member of
Parliament was created for nothing but that we might bait him. But on
this occasion we have been brought together not to bait Mr. Cordes,
but to fête him.
_Conservative Banquet, Newport,
January 20th, 1876._
THE HONOUR OF BEING M.P.
It is a great honour still, I am sure, to be a member of the British
House of Commons. Lord Rosebery, when he was chairman of the London
County Council, in a speech that he made--and I dare say many of you
have been interested in some of Lord Rosebery's speeches because he
has a fund of humour, and very often one is not quite certain whether
he is in earnest or in jest--once said that the position of a town
councillor is much more important than that of a member of Parliament.
It is quite possible that an individual member of a County Council or
a Town Council may be more important as an individual than a member of
the House of Commons, but his vote can only mainly affect the
locality, whilst the action of a member of the House of Commons may
not only affect the whole of Great Britain, but the whole of the
British Empire. So I venture to think the position of a Member of
Parliament is a little more important than that of a member of a Town
Council or a County Council.
_Monmouthshire County Council,
February 2nd, 1910._
NELSON'S SAYING.
There still exists in the bosoms of our public men the feeling which
animated Lord Nelson before the battle of the Nile, when he said,
"To-morrow I shall have either a peerage or Westminster Abbey."
_Press Dinner, Cardiff,
May 9th, 1891._
THE DISADVANTAGES OF THE PEERAGE.
[Illustration: "_Receiving eggs that are not fit for breakfast, and
cats that have not received honourable interment._"]
There are advantages and disadvantages in belonging to the House of
Lords. The peers are deprived of the right which other citizens have
of standing on the hustings and receiving eggs that are not fit for
breakfast and cats that have not received honourable interment. But
they have the privilege of British citizens of being roundly abused by
those whose talents lay in that direction.
_Associated Chambers of Commerce,
Newport, Sept. 21st, 1892._
SWEEPS AS PEERS.
[Illustration: "_I am acquainted with some sweeps._"]
A certain gentleman who certainly thinks that the constitution of the
country could be reorganised and set straight at once by a magazine
article, says that if the House of Lords rejects the Home Rule Bill
there is a very simple way to remedy the affair. Mr. Gladstone will
then, he states, collect 70 sweeps and make them peers so as to gain a
majority. Whether the gentleman intended to insult the sweeps or to
insult the House of Lords I do not know. I am acquainted with some
sweeps. I have always looked upon sweeps in the same way as I look
upon licensed victuallers. They are a body of men who are carrying on
a very difficult profession with credit to themselves and advantage to
the country. Moreover, the sweeps with whom I am acquainted are most
of them Tories, and I shall not be surprised if as soon as those 70
sweeps are collected and made peers, and have washed their faces and
put on their coronets and robes, they do immediately range themselves
on the Opposition side of the House, and do, as most new Gladstonian
peers do, vote Conservative directly they are created.
_Newport Licensed Victuallers' Dinner,
February 23rd, 1893._
YOU CANNOT PLEASE EVERYBODY.
I have no doubt that if the House of Lords were to pass by a large
majority the disestablishment of the Welsh Church in the next Session,
the Welsh party would say the hereditary principle was the only one to
be depended upon. On the other hand, if the Lords were to pass by a
large majority a Local Veto Bill, I have no doubt the Licensed
Victuallers would at once go in for the abolition of the House of
Lords.
_Cardiff Licensed Victuallers' Dinner,
March 28th, 1894._
I am not a landlord myself, but I have strong opinions about the right
of property, which I hope, in future legislation, will always be
considered. If ever I become a landlord, I hope the interest which I
have always felt in the welfare of my respected father's tenants will
lead them to suppose that I shall never become such a ruffian as some
people would make landlords out to be.
_Monmouthshire Chamber of Agriculture,
February 25th, 1874._
I confess I was much comforted in reading one of those amiable, kind
and Christian-like speeches for the total suppression of landlords. I
looked into the dictionary for the meaning of the word "landlord," and
I found it was "a keeper of a public-house." When I read that, my soul
was comforted.
_Newport Licensed Victuallers' Dinner,
January 30th, 1880._
I have always taken great interest in those who live on my property,
it does not matter whether on agricultural land or in the bowels of
the earth. A great landowner does not rest on a bed of roses. The loss
to a landowner who only owns a small agricultural property, in days of
agricultural depression when tenants cannot pay their rent, generally
means a few hundred pounds and the reducing of all his expenses. But
when it comes to great commercial interests, to owning the land on
which our great ironworks, great tinworks, and collieries are
situated, and when those interests are depressed, it means not a loss
of a few hundreds, but the wiping off of several thousands. And it
means occupying themselves night and day in ascertaining how they can
help to still carry on those great interests which have employed so
many hands, and which are so necessary for the welfare of the
population of the district.... A great ironmaster, Mr. Carnegie, who
found it to his best interest to carry on his great works in America,
has enunciated a sentiment which appeals to me, to the effect that it
is the business of every rich man to die poor. Sometimes I feel that
will probably be my fate if I go on as I am doing. However, I shall be
poor in good company.
_Presentation to Lord Tredegar of Miners' Lamp
and Silver Medal at Risca Eisteddfod,
October 5th, 1896._
Considerable difficulties attach to the position of a man who happens
to own land round a large and increasing town. So many demands are
placed before him. There are demands for building sites and for open
spaces and public parks. It is difficult, when the land is limited in
area, to satisfy all requirements. I hope, in a short time, however,
to be enabled to make a present to the town of Newport of a public
park, one which will not cost much in laying out for use.
_Mayoral Dinner, Newport,
December 22nd, 1891._
It may possibly happen that if the order to which I belong is swept
away, I may become a candidate for municipal honours, and perhaps
aspire to the civic chair. At present, however, I have my own
responsibilities, for I am deeply troubled with what I may term the
four R's--Rates, Roads, Royalties, and Rents.
_Mayor's Banquet,
March 18th, 1886._
KEEP US STILL OUR SHORTHORNS.
A gentleman who was very fond of writing poetry wrote a couple of
lines which might be quoted against him although he has long since
joined the majority. He wrote:--
Let laws and learning, art and commerce die,
But keep us still our old nobility.
The last line can be altered as you like, and you can put anything you
like for laws and learning, I would say buffaloes or anything else,
but keep our shorthorns. In breeding shorthorns a pedigree of a long
line of ancestors is indispensable. Mr. Stratton and myself have tried
to work on those lines by breeding the nobility of shorthorns.
_Stock Sale at the Duffryn, Newport,
October 7th, 1909._
[Illustration: "_I always find great difficulty in obtaining entrance
to the dairy competitions._"]
INTEREST IN DAIRYING.
My thoughts are at the moment running on ground rents, royalties and
wayleaves, so if I wander from the subject I hope you will forgive me.
I cannot regard the subject of dairying without thinking how we would
have stood now supposing we had taken up the question as we ought to
have done twenty years ago. We would not now be taking a back seat
with the foreigners. But I always now find great difficulty in
obtaining entrance to the dairy competitions, if I go there casually.
Whether it is the attractions of the pretty dairymaids inside, or the
coolness of the atmosphere, there is certainly very great interest
taken in the competitions and that is satisfactory.
_Monmouthshire Dairy School Prize Distribution,
November 5th, 1895._
WHERE ALL CLASSES MEET.
Of all meetings which take place in the course of a year, there are
none attended with such universal good as an agricultural meeting,
because here all classes can meet, whereas in nearly all other
meetings the attendances are of a sectional character. For instance,
race meetings--many people think them wrong and never attend them.
Then there are Church Extension and Missionary Meetings--a great many
do not like to attend them. But as to agricultural meetings,
everybody seems to like to attend them, from the clergy to the racing
man, the mechanic, the agricultural labourer, and the meetings must,
therefore, promote a deal of harmony among classes. An agricultural
meeting is much more effective than the proceedings of Messrs. Bright
and Cobden, who are going about preaching a war of classes.
_Tredegar Show,
December 15th, 1863._
WHERE THE AGRICULTURIST SHOULD STUDY.
Some excursionists were going around the house of either Wordsworth or
Tennyson--I forget which--and asked a servant where was her master's
study. She replied, "Here is my master's study, but he studies in the
fields." That is the lesson to be learnt in respect to agriculture.
_Agricultural Exhibition, Newport,
December 2nd, 1910._
A BLUE BOTTLE AND A BIRD.
I hope you won't do what I did last time. It was a day very different
from this. It was very hot. I saw an animal in the ring that I did
not care the least about, and just then a great blue-bottle settled on
my nose. The consequence was that I bought the worst animal at a very
high price.
_Stock Sale at the Duffryn, Newport,
October 7th, 1909._
A LIMIT EVEN TO SCIENCE.
[Illustration: "_Just then a great blue-bottle settled on my nose._"]
In regard to scientific agriculture, I am not sure whether we are not
rather overdoing things; but there is no doubt that, notwithstanding
all the science we have, we have never succeeded in making a cow have
more than one calf in a year, or a sheep more than two lambs. That
goes to prove that there is a limit even to science in agriculture,
and it reminds me of the saying, "You may pitchfork Nature out of
existence, but she is sure to come back to you."
_Bassaleg Show,
October 11th, 1910._
AN EYE FOR A GOOD PAIR OF HORSES.
Some men have an eye for one thing and some for another, but I think
if I have a weakness it is to fancy that I have an eye for a good pair
of horses, and for a straight line. When I see a line I can judge if
it has been ploughed straight, and then I can judge whether the
ploughman has had too much. Of course, that sort of thing never
happens at a ploughing match, but still it is as well to be on the
look-out.
_Farmers' Association, Bassaleg,
October 17th, 1876._
AS CATTLE DEALER.
Just before I came to the meeting I had put into my hand a small--a
very small--paper in which I am described as a cattle-dealer. But I am
not at all ashamed of that.
_Newport Conservative Meeting,
April 5th, 1888._
THE BEST FARMER.
It was the late Lord Beaconsfield, I believe, who said that the best
educated farmer known spent all his life in the open air, and never
read a book. There is a great deal of truth in that, and although
science may aid farmers, observation and experience in the proper
treatment of land and crops will do much more.
_Tredegar Show,
December 26th, 1890._
FOX-HUNTING AND DIPLOMACY.
Many people imagine that to be a Master of Foxhounds you have only to
get a horse--but besides the matter of pounds, shillings and pence,
you have to create an interest amongst the farmers over whose land you
hunt, and whose sheep, pigs and lambs you frighten. One, therefore,
has to use a certain amount of diplomacy.
_Gelligaer Steeplechases,
April 12th, 1910._
Nothing tends to brush away the cobwebs so much as a bracing run with
the hounds. Fox hunting is an admirable sport, and my neighbours shall
enjoy it as long as there is a fox to be found on my estate.
_At Tredegar House,
October 30th, 1884._
AT AN ATHLETIC CLUB DINNER.
When I came into the room I expected to find one half of the company
on crutches and the other half in splints. I am not at all certain
that I am the proper man to be President of this club, because I think
that the President of an athletic club should measure at least 48
inches round the chest, and ought to have biceps of 18 inches, and
scale at least 14 stone 7 lbs. I am afraid all the dumb bells in the
world would not get me up to that. I am what might be called an old
fossil, though I cannot boast of the garrulity of old age, and
therefore I will not tell you that when I played football I was always
kicking the ball out of the ground into the river; or that when I
played cricket I always drove the ball into the river. Those are facts
well known in Newport.
_First Annual Dinner of the Newport Athletic Club,
April 19th, 1890._
HUNTING.
I am always delighted to see any member of the Corporation at the meet
of my hounds. If they came out horrid Radicals they would go back half
Tories.
[Illustration: "_I am afraid all the dumb bells in the world would not
get me up to that._"]
"One touch of nature makes the whole world kin," and there is nothing
like a meet in the open country for setting things right between
friends and neighbours.
_Mayor's Banquet, Newport,
January 15th, 1884._
A clever satirist has said that nature made the horse and hounds and
threw in the fox as a connecting link. In my opinion, fox-hounds and
hunting are the connecting links between the landlord and the tenant
farmer.
[Illustration: "_'Oh the devil!' I exclaimed. 'No, not the devil,'
said the farmer, 'but the fox.'_"]
I have made many pleasant acquaintances lately in my hunting
expeditions, and I hope we shall always remain on the most amicable
terms. But some have astonished me with their argument. Said one,
"Beg pardon, Major, I have lost such a sight of poultry." "Dear me,"
I said. "Yes, we lost forty ducks the other night." "Oh, the devil!" I
exclaimed. "No, not the devil," said the farmer, "but the fox." I
asked the farmer how he managed to count so many. "Well," was the
reply, "I had four ducks sitting on ten eggs each; and that made
forty." Well, the Chamber of Agriculture has not yet settled the
knotty point of "compensation for unexhausted improvements." However,
the argument ended in our parting very good friends, as, said the
farmer, "I and my landlord have been friends hitherto, and as I hope
we shall continue to be."
TWO UNPROFITABLE HONOURS.
I have the honour to hold two offices which, if I did not enjoy the
friendship of the farmers, would be very thorny ones. One of them is
that of being a member of Parliament for an agricultural county. You
will agree with me that, in such a position, if I were not on good
terms with the farmer, I would often be on a bed of thorns.
The other office I hold is that of master of a pack of hounds. I think
also if I were not on good terms with the farmer that would not be a
very pleasant position. I do not know that there is any similarity
between the two offices, except that neither of them has any salary. I
hope and trust that it will be a very long time before the country
will be unable to find men willing to do the duties in either capacity
without being paid for them.
_Tredegar Show,
December 19th, 1865._
THE HAPPY FARMER.
A great many people fancy that the farmer lives in a beautiful
cottage, with vines climbing over it, that the cows give milk without
any milking, that the earth yields forth her fruits spontaneously, and
that the farmer has nothing to do but sit still and get rich.
_Tredegar Show,
December 16th, 1875._
EQUINE EXPRESSIONS.
Our great orators, whenever they want to be more expressive than
usual, make use of phrases savouring of horses and carriages. When the
Grand Old Man came into power, it was said he would have an awkward
team to manage. Again, when a great division was expected some time
ago, and there were doubts as to which way two gentlemen would go, it
was said that Mr. Fowler had kicked over the traces and that Mr.
Saunders would jib. Equine expressions are quite in the fashion.
_May Horse Show Dinner,
May 4th, 1893._
KINDNESS TO ANIMALS.
My experience of life is that a man who loves horses is a good member
of society. A man who is kind to his horses is kind to everyone else.
I belong to a Four-in-hand Club, two of the leading members, Lord
Onslow and Lord Carrington, being close personal friends of mine. A
relative of Lord Onslow once wrote:
"What can Tommy Onslow do
He can drive a coach and two;
Can Tommy Onslow do no more
Yes, he can drive a coach and four."
Yet Lord Onslow and Lord Carrington are something more than splendid
whips; they are highly successful governors of British Dependencies.
_May Day Horse Show Dinner,
March 2nd, 1889._
TALKS ON EDUCATION.
I have been delighted to hand so many prizes to lady pupil teachers,
and I recall the philosopher who once said, "All that is necessary is
that a girl should have the morals of an angel, the manners of a
kitten, and the mind of a flea." But after this distribution one
cannot go away with the impression that the female mind is only the
mind of a flea.
_Pupil Teachers' Prize Distribution,
January 16th, 1903._
We have been informed, to-night of different foreign educational
systems, the German, the French, and the American, which we are
generally told in this country we ought to copy. In the French system
there is too much centralization. Every teacher, whether at a
university or at a small elementary school, is simply a Government
Official. The German system is a splendid one, but it is all
subsidized by Government. The English Government is not generous
enough to do that for English Schools, so we can hardly hope to copy
the German system. Then there is the American system. That is also
certainly splendid, but unfortunately we have no great millionaires in
England who will help us to copy the American system. It has been
said that when an Englishman becomes a millionaire, and he feels that
he is nearing his end, he thinks--to use a sporting expression--that
it is time to "hedge for a future state." Then he builds a Church. The
American millionaire founds a university, or leaves large sums of
money for a training college, and I think he is right.
_Technical School Prize Distribution, Newport,
December 3rd, 1902._
Sir William Preece has said that there were five new elements
discovered within the last century. There were others undiscovered,
and it only remained for some student to discover one of them to make
himself famous, and, like Xenophon, return to find his name writ large
on the walls of his native town. A celebrated poet once declared--
"You can live without stars;
You can live without books,
But civilized man
Cannot live without cooks."
Some people may be able to live without books and only with cooks. But
without science and books we should not have had our Empire. Books
and science help us to keep up the Empire. It is for these reasons
that I do what I can to encourage technical and scientific education.
_School of Science and Art Prize Distribution,
December 4th, 1901._
You can be quite certain that no hooligan ever attended an art school.
The intelligence and refinement of manners brought about by the study
of sculpture, painting, and architecture have more to do with the
stopping of drunkenness than any other teaching you could think of....
The charm of these art schools for me lies in the fact that we are
always expecting something great, just as a fisherman at a little
brook, where he has never caught anything much larger than his little
finger, is always expecting to hook some big monster. In these art
schools I am always expecting some great artist or sculptor turned
out--somebody from Newport Schools--not only a credit to himself but
to any town, somebody who will become a second Millais or a great
sculptor.
Newport has improved a good deal of late years, and I am sure the
study of painting and architecture has had much to do with it. In
looking over some old papers in the Tredegar archives the other day,
I came across a description by two people who passed from Cardiff
through Newport about 100 years ago. They said: "We went over a nasty,
muddy river, on an old rotten wooden bridge, shocking to look at and
dangerous to pass over. On the whole this is a nasty old town."
_School of Science and Art Prize Distribution,
December 5th, 1900._
Sir John Gorst has made reference to the indisposition of the
territorial aristocracy to encourage high intellectual attainment. I
think "territorial aristocracy" is rather an undefinable term, and
perhaps school children will be asked what it is. I do not think that
those who own land are as a class opposed to high intellectual
attainment. The County Councils to some extent are representative of
territorial aristocracy, and 41 of the 49 County Councils of England
and Wales have agreed to spend the whole of the Government grant in
education. That is a sign that the territorial aristocracy are not
averse to intellectual attainment.
Perhaps Colonel Wallis will ask some of the children in the school
what the meaning of "territorial aristocracy" is. I read that when a
child was asked what the meaning of the word Yankee was, the reply
was that it was an animal bred in Yorkshire.
_Opening of the School Board Offices, Newport,
March 11th, 1898._
Victor Hugo once said that the opening of a school means the closing
of a prison. That is very true, regarded as an aphorism, and I wish it
were true in reality, because there would not be any prisons left in
England.
_Opening of Intermediate Schools,
October 29th, 1896._
I am pleased that technical schools are taking such a firm hold in the
town. I feel more and more that the teaching of art is doing a great
deal of good. There is a great improvement in the tastes of the
people, shown by the architectural beauty of their residences and in
decorations generally.
I was very much surprised a short time ago at reading a strong article
by "Ouida"--whose novels I have read with a great deal of interest--on
the ugliness of our modern life. She certainly took a very pessimistic
view of the matter and seemed to look only at the workaday part of the
world--at the making of railways, the knocking down of old houses, and
the riding of bicycles. I do not see that those things come under the
title of art. One of the objects of instruction at the art schools is
to induce students to create ideas of their own. At the same time I do
not think you could do much better than study the old masters, than
whose works I do not see anything better amongst modern productions.
The great silver racing cups given away now, worth from £300 to £500,
do not compare with the handiwork of Italian and Venetian silver
workers. I have some pieces of plate in the great cellar under
Tredegar House which I do not think it possible to improve upon.
_School of Science and Art Prize Distribution, Newport,
January 24th, 1896._
One or two little incidents in my own experience lately shew the value
of studying some particular trade or science or some form of art. Only
the other day I met a young lady at a country house. Before I had seen
her a few minutes she remarked: "I suppose you don't remember me, Lord
Tredegar?" If I had been young and gallant, it would have been natural
for me to have replied: "Such a face as yours I am not in the least
likely to forget." But I thought I was too old for that, and merely
said that I did not remember at the moment having met her previously.
The young lady then informed me that she had received a prize at my
hands at a great school, and that in handing her the prize I had
remarked, "You have well earned the prize, and it is a branch of art
that, if continued, will prove very useful in after life." That branch
of art had enabled her to take the position she then occupied.
The other incident was that of a young man who had been left by his
parents very poor. He had the greatest difficulty in getting anything
at all to do, because he had never made himself proficient in any
particular trade or science. I agree with the man who said one should
know something about everything and everything about something.
_School of Science and Art Prize Distribution, Newport,
December 17th, 1894._
It has been well said, I forget by whom, but I think it was Dr.
Johnson, that you can do anything with a Scotsman, if you catch him
young. I think you can say just the same of the Welshman or the
Monmouthshire man.
_Newport Intermediate Boys' School,
November 4th, 1910._
One day I accompanied a young lady to her carriage on leaving a public
function at which I had officiated. The band struck up a martial air,
and I stepped actively to the time of the music. Remarking to the
young lady that the martial air appealed to an old soldier, she said,
"Why, Lord Tredegar, were you ever in the Army?" That is the reason
why I think we should have memorials and why I shall be very glad to
have this picture in my house.
_On the occasion of the presentation of a Portrait of his
Lordship's Statue in Cathays Park, Cardiff,
September 19th, 1909._
The commander of the French Army said of the Balaclava Charge that it
was magnificent, but that it was not war. I do not know what the
French general called war, but my recollection of the charge is that
it was something very nearly like it. I have to thank the Power above
for being here now, fifty-five years after the charge took place.
Whether this statue will commemorate me for a long time or not is of
little moment, but I know it will commemorate for ever the sculptor,
Mr. Goscombe John.
_Unveiling of equestrian statue of Viscount Tredegar in Cathays Park,
Cardiff, on 55th Anniversary of the Balaclava Charge,
October 25th, 1909_
THE ARCHÆOLOGY OF MONMOUTHSHIRE.
Anyone who lives in Monmouthshire, a county rich in its old castles,
churches, camps, and cromlechs, cannot fail to be some sort of an
archæologist, and it is this mild type I represent. I have always had
a great fancy for history, and anyone who studies the archæology of
Monmouthshire must be well grounded in the history of England. The
county has held a prominent place in history from the earliest period
down to the present day, commencing with the Silures, and passing on
to the Romans, Saxons, and Normans. Some locality or other in the
county was connected with each of those periods.
One little failing about archæology which has always been a sore point
with me is that it is apt to destroy some of those little illusions
which we like to keep up. I hope when we go to Caerwent, during the
next day or two, my illusion concerning King Arthur will not be
dispelled, for I love to think of King Arthur and his Round Table
having been at that place. Alexander wept because there were no new
worlds to conquer, but I hope archæologists will not weep because
there are no new ruins to be discovered. An old stone has been picked
up on the moors at Caldicot, and scientific men know that the stone
proves the Marches to have been reclaimed from the sea by the Romans.
The question of the origin of Roman encampments is one about which
there is a great deal of doubt, and I hope to hear some new story when
we inspect the ancient part in Tredegar Park.
_Fourth Annual Meeting, Cambrian Archæological Association,
August 24th, 1885._
MONMOUTHSHIRE STILL WELSH.
In the reign of Henry VIII, Monmouthshire was annexed to England, and
therefore we are not now exactly in Wales. But 300 years have not
eradicated the Welsh language and the Welsh traditions.
_Farmers' Association Dinner, Bassaleg,
October 23rd, 1877._
FREEDOM OF MORGAN BROTHERHOOD.
I take my opinion of freedom from Dr. Samuel Johnson, and that is good
enough for me. Dr. Johnson said that freedom was "to go to bed when
you wish, to get up when you like, to eat and drink whatever you
choose, to say whatever occurs to you at the moment, and to earn your
living as best you may."
[Illustration: "_I talk of Buccaneer Morgan._"]
The Lord Mayor has hoped that he will prove to be a member of the
Tredegar family. The name of Morgan is a splendid name. You can, with
that name, get your pedigree from wherever you like. Whenever I talk
of bishops, I remember to speak of Bishop Morgan. If I speak to a
football player, I talk of Buccaneer Morgan, and so it goes on in any
subject you wish. I do not care--even if there is a great murder--a
Morgan is sure to be in it! I do not wish to detract from the Lord
Mayor's desire to be in the pedigree, but, at all events, we can all
belong to a Morgan Brotherhood.
_Reply to toast of "Our Guest," at City Hall, Cardiff,
October 25th, 1909._
When the agitation for the new Technical Institute was going on, I
daresay most of you heard all sorts of objections to it on the ground
of expense and of there being no necessity for an institute of this
description. Some of the agitators went back to Solomon. They said,
"Solomon was the wisest man who ever lived, and he has told us that
'He who increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.' So why," said they,
"do you want to have more knowledge?" Another objector said, "A little
knowledge is a dangerous thing," and then somebody else said, "Of the
making of books there is no end," and "Much study is a weariness of
the flesh."
All those old sayings were trotted out, but there was the other side
to bring before you. There was the dear old lady who was so proud of
her son--he was a kind of artist--that she thought he would become a
second Gainsborough. He got on very well, as she thought, and one day,
meeting his professor, she said, "Oh, Professor, do you think my son
will ever learn to draw?" and he replied, "Yes, madam, if you harness
him to a wagon." Happily, Newport went the right way, and built what I
fancy is quite one of the most up-to-date technical institutions in
the country.
_Technical Institute Prize Distribution, Newport,
December 21st, 1910._
It is very difficult to address a mixed school of boys and girls. You
require totally different things for boys and girls. A learned
gentleman was once asked his ideal of a girl, and he replied, "Most
like a boy." Asked his ideal of a boy, he replied, "Only a human boy
who dislikes learning anything." I was a human boy myself once, about
70 years ago, and I hated learning anything except running about and
making myself disagreeable to everyone. My experience of girls is that
girls want to learn when a boy doesn't. A girl is nearly always
anxious to learn, whilst a boy only wants to amuse himself.
A great M.P. gave an address about education a week or so ago, and
said our system was all wrong, that facts were no use, and that
thinking was what they wanted. I totally disagree with him. Facts are
wanted, for it is from facts you get on to thinking. One examiner was
much amused by the notion of a boy who said that what struck him most
was the toughness of wood, the wetness of water, and the magnificent
soapiness of soap. That boy was going to get on; he was thinking more
about facts than anything else.
[Illustration: "_He was what they called 'a devil of a chap to
jaw.'_"]
Another great school question is with regard to punishment, whether it
is good to order a boy or girl to write out a certain number of lines
or learn so many lines of poetry. A well known gentleman of the world,
politically and otherwise, when at school was what they called "a
devil of a chap to jaw." That was the expression of a fellow pupil. He
was constantly in the playground jawing, and they sentenced him to run
around the ground five times when he spoke for more than three
minutes. That was supposed to cure him, but it did not. He speaks now
more than anyone in the House of Commons.
_Pontywaun School Prize Distribution,
March 17th, 1911._
A HYBRID COUNTY.
We in Monmouthshire are in a sort of hybrid county. A great many
people think we are in Wales and a great many people think we are not.
Cardiff is very jealous of us--jealous because we can get drunk on
Sundays and they can't. I hope we shall continue to be a county of
ourselves, and when this great Home Rule question, which is so much
talked about, is settled we shall, no doubt, have a Parliament at
Newport-on-Usk, or else at Monmouth-upon-Wye.
_Newport Athletic Club Dinner,
April 27th, 1891._
INTEREST IN EXPLORATION.
I wish to renew interest among the people of the neighbourhood in the
exploration work at Caerwent. The reason, perhaps, why some of the
interest has fallen off, is the illness and death of the late Vicar of
Caerwent, who always took the greatest possible delight in explaining
to visitors the history of the ancient city and the nature of the work
of excavation.
There is a great deal of fresh ground to be explored. I am glad to
find that there is an increasing interest in Great Britain in this
kind of work, and I hope it will continue to increase. If we expect to
find any interest at all in matters of this kind, it would be in Rome,
and yet we find that in that city it has been decided recently to pull
down some of the most valuable remains in the city, the great Roman
wall, which for so long a period kept out the Goths and the Vandals
who besieged the city. If that is possible in Rome, any indifference
to this kind of work in Great Britain is not surprising. There is a
fascination about the work of exploring, as we are always expecting to
find something which has not been found before, and which may be very
useful for historical purposes.
All this part of the world is very interesting, not only Caerwent, but
Llanvaches, where we find early Christian evidences, and Newport,
where we have a castle of the Middle Ages. I cannot help thinking,
when I look at the collection of Roman coins in the Caerwent Museum,
that it is not absolutely impossible that one of them may be the very
coin which Our Saviour took and asked whose image it bore. For all we
know, that very coin may have been in the possession of a Roman
soldier stationed in Jerusalem at the time of the Crucifixion, and
brought by him to Caerwent.
_Newport Town Hall, on the occasion of a Lecture on
"The Excavations at Caerwent,"
March 24th, 1908._
OLIVER CROMWELL AND NEWPORT.
There are few Newportonians in this hall who do not remember perfectly
well the curious little house, with a low 16th century portico,
situated at the bottom of Stow Hill. It was regarded with great
veneration by antiquarians, but was no doubt looked upon as a great
nuisance by the great body of the people. However, that old portico is
now treasured at Tredegar House. The house was called "Oliver
Cromwell's House."
I think you will agree with me when I say that few people slept in so
many bedrooms as King Charles I. or Oliver Cromwell is said to have
done. There is a room at Tredegar House called King Charles the
First's room, but it was not built until ten years after that Monarch
was beheaded.
With regard to the little house called Oliver Cromwell's House, there
is some reason to believe that Oliver Cromwell might have occupied
it. It was, sometime, occupied by the Parliamentary troops, because I
have at this moment an old fire back, which was found in the cellar
with the Royal Arms of England and the Crown dated 16-- something
knocked off. No doubt this was found in the house by Parliamentarians,
who immediately proceeded to knock off the crown. We know that Oliver
Cromwell passed that way, because he went to the siege of Pembroke and
found great difficulty in taking that town.
I have a copy of a letter Cromwell wrote to Colonel Saunders, one of
his leaders, in which, after congratulating him upon his zeal and
close attention, he referred to "the malignants--Trevor Williams of
Llangibby Castle, and one Sir William Morgan, of Tredegar," and
directed him to seize them at once. That shows that Oliver Cromwell
knew all about Caerleon, Newport and Tredegar.
_Opening of Tredegar Hall, Newport,
March 14th, 1895._
WELSH PEOPLE EVEN IN CARDIFF.
I am glad to find that the Welsh Church movement has been such a
success. I was asked on one occasion if there were many Welsh people
in Cardiff, and I confessed there were. When further asked if there
was a Welsh Church there I had to admit with shame that there was not.
From that moment I resolved to back up as much as I could the movement
for providing a Church for the Welsh-speaking inhabitants of Cardiff.
No one could walk the streets of Cardiff without being impressed with
the number of Welsh people one met and heard talking in their own
language. Probably a great number of those simply came into the town
for the day, but a considerable number must be residents of the town.
I see a great many ladies present, and I would urge them to do what
they can, for, in the words of a Church magnate, who was, if not an
archbishop or a bishop, certainly an archdeacon--"mendicity is good,
but women-dicity is better."
_Laying of the Foundation Stone of a Welsh Church at Cardiff,
July 2nd, 1890._
THE SIEGE OF CAERPHILLY CASTLE.
[Illustration: "_Two hundred tuns of wine! That is better than a
Temperance Hotel._"]
I am impressed by the energy displayed by the agriculturists of the
district in sending such satisfactory exhibits. At the same time, you
must not fancy yourselves quite too grand at the present day,
because, if you read history you will find that during the siege of
Caerphilly Castle, some 400 or 500 years ago--when the castle was
taken--there were 2,000 oxen, 12,000 cows, 20,000 sheep, 600 horses,
2,000 pigs and 200 tuns of wine inside the Castle walls. Two hundred
tuns of wine! That is better than a Temperance Hotel.... If you walk
round this show you will not see one single sign of depression. It
grows larger every year. Cattle grow better, the horses better, the
women grow prettier, and the men grow fatter.
_East Glamorgan Agricultural Show, Caerphilly,
September 7th, 1899._
GWERN-Y-CLEPPA.
The foundations of Gwern-y-Cleppa, the palace of Ivor Hael, have been
traced around a tree in Cleppa Park. Although it has been termed a
palace, I think it more likely to have been something of a manor
house, for Ivor was the younger son of a younger son, and therefore
not likely to have had very large possessions. Ivor's generous nature
has been well depicted by his celebrated bard, Dafydd ap Gwilym.
I have read in a book an account of an incident which tradition
alleges took place near the spot on which we are standing. This was a
contest between Dafydd and his rival bard, Rhys Meigan. Dafydd's
shafts of satire overwhelmed his opponent, who fell dead--the victim
of ridicule.
_Cardiff Naturalists' Visit to Gwern-y-Cleppa,
May 10th, 1893._
IN PRAISE OF EISTEDDFODAU.
As long ago as the 15th century an ancestor whom I have been reading
about lately--Ivor Hael--appears to have been celebrated particularly
for his support of the Eisteddfodau of that period and of music in
general. Later on, my grandfather and father always did their best to
promote the idea of the Eisteddfod, and on several occasions presided
at those gatherings. I, personally, consider the Eisteddfod a great
institution.
One of the reasons why many of our English friends do not support
Eisteddfodau, and are inclined to speak slightingly of them, is
because of the religious side which commences with the Gorsedd; but I
think if our friends paid a little more attention to it, and attended
oftener, they would not be inclined to ridicule the institution.
An Eisteddfod, anywhere, is a very interesting event, but one at
Pontypridd seems to be of all others the most interesting. Pontypridd
itself is full of reminiscences of old and modern Wales. On that very
stone--the Rocking Stone--on the hill where some of us have been
to-day, some very earnest bards, no doubt, at different times had
their seats, and it does not require a very vivid imagination to
picture on that stone one of those unfortunate bards that were left
after the Massacre of the Bards of Edward.
Then we have not far away the remains of the old monastery of Pen
Rhys, where tradition says rested Ap Tudor, or at all events to whom
the monastery was erected. At that very place, that great terror of
England and of the Normans--Owen Glendower--who was at that time
residing at Llantrisant, was stated to have presided at an Eisteddfod
soon after his incursion into Wales. Great bardic addresses were
delivered there, and one, written to Sir John Morgan of Tredegar, is
now in the archives of Tredegar.
Coming to later times, we have Cadwgan of the Battleaxe, who was
supposed to have been sharpening his battleaxe at the time he was
going down the Rhondda, so that it must have been pretty sharp by the
time he arrived at his destination.
[Illustration: "_There is at the present moment a wave of music-hall
melodies passing over the country._"]
There is at the present moment a wave of music-hall melodies passing
over the country, and I think it is one of the duties of the
Eisteddfodau to try to counteract the music-hall fancy, now so
prevalent. Not many days ago, I was reminded of an incident in which a
lady asked a friend whether he was fond of music, and he replied "Yes,
if it is not too good." Unfortunately, that is the opinion of about
one-half of the civilized world.
The aim of the Eisteddfod is to patronise good music which, combined
with high art, has a tendency, as the Latin poet puts it, to soften
manners and assuage the natural ruggedness of human nature.
_Eisteddfod, Pontypridd,
July 31st, 1893._
Miniature Eisteddfodau, one of which we are celebrating, are most
interesting, as being a sort of prelude to the great National
Eisteddfod which takes place annually. There is something peculiarly
interesting in these essentially Welsh gatherings, because however
much we who live on this side of the Rumney may, from legislative
causes, be considered English, we never hear of an Eisteddfod taking
place on the other side of Offa's Dyke, which in my opinion is the
boundary of Wales.
Offa's Dyke was formerly a great mound and ditch erected by King Offa
somewhere in the year 900 or thereabouts, as a boundary between Wales
and England, and it ran from the mouth of the Wye to Chepstow. We
seldom hear of an Eisteddfod taking place on the other side of the
dyke. It is true there are the great Choral Festivals, but those are
festivals held in the grand Cathedrals, at which very grand company
assemble, and where some of the most celebrated singers sing; they are
not competitive in any sense. Here we have competitions, not so much
for the prizes as for the honour of the thing, for the honour of the
Welsh nation, and for the advancement of music and art in Wales.
_Risca,
October 5th, 1896._
TREDEGAR HOUSE.
Tredegar House is generally believed to have been designed by Inigo
Jones, but it was not built until after that architect's death. It was
built by William Morgan, and finished about 1672. A residence formerly
stood on the spot, which Leland mentioned as "a fair place of stone."
Owen Glendower, when he ravaged Wentloog, and destroyed houses,
churches and Newport Castle, probably destroyed Tredegar House. On an
inquisition being taken after this period of the value of the
lordship, the return was _nil_.
_Cambrian Association Meeting,
August 28th, 1885._
A LITTLE FAMILY HISTORY.
[Illustration: "_I have made the discovery that the Morgans were never
remarkable for very great talent._"]
As far as I have been able to read the family history, I have made the
discovery that the Morgans were never remarkable for very great
talent; but for many generations we have lived in much the same spot,
and it has been our motto to make life happy to those around us, and
to assist those with whom we come in contact. I believe my family have
lived for this object. There are many days in the history of the
family that are much treasured by us, but there will be no one day
more honoured than the memory of this one. When I hand these addresses
to Lady Tredegar, and express to her the kind sentiments everyone has
made use of as to the memory of the late Lord Tredegar, we shall one
and all be thankful, and the memory of this day will live long in the
heart of every member of the Tredegar family.
_Tredegar Memorial Corn Exchange, Newport,
September 4th, 1878._
The Mayor has spoken of the commercial spirit which, he stated, has
recently been evinced by the Tredegar family. His Worship in that
respect erred a little, for several hundred years ago there was a
gentleman who called himself Merchant Morgan. He sailed on the Spanish
Main, and brought back with him a great deal of money which he had
made in trade--or otherwise. From that day to this, the Morgans have
been very well off. Later, there were ironworks in Tredegar Park,
carried on by Sir William Morgan. Those works paid also, and when he
had money enough Sir William Morgan removed them away, restored the
green fields, and left other people to attend to the works.
_Mayoral Banquet, Newport,
December 15th, 1881._
Sir Henry Morgan played an important part in the stirring drama of
Empire-building. His name has become a household word, and his daring
exploits on the Spanish Main in the 17th century rival in song and
story the heroic adventures of Drake, Frobisher, and Hawkins. It is
mainly to him that we own the island of Jamaica, the most wealthy of
our West Indian possessions. He was not a plaster saint, it is true;
but it is incorrect to call him a pirate, for there is no gainsaying
the fact that all his actions were justified by instructions he
received from time to time from his Monarch, Charles II, who
countenanced every movement of his, and even empowered him to
commission whatever persons he thought fit, to be partakers with him
and his Majesty in his various expeditions and enterprises. He was
cruel in the ordinary sense of cruelty exercised in warfare, no
doubt, but only when in arms against the blood-thirsty Spaniards. As a
leader of men he was never surpassed by any captain of the seas, and
in his glorious conquest of Panama--which the great Sir Francis Drake
in 1569 had failed to take with 4,000 men when the city was but poorly
fortified--Sir Henry ransacked it in 1670 when it had become doubly
fortified, having with him only 1,200 men, and without the aid of any
pikemen or horsemen.
The charges of cruelty and rapacity levelled against him are beneath
contempt and criticism. The Spaniards tortured and murdered wholesale,
and who can wonder that the heroic Welshman made just reprisals, and
carried out the Biblical adjuration "an eye for an eye, and a tooth
for a tooth," when punishing the apostles of the Inquisition and
assassination.
It is due to one John Esquemeling, the author of the first account of
buccaneers, "The History of the Buccaneers of America," first
published in 1684, that Sir Henry was designated a "pirate."
Esquemeling had served under Morgan, and, being dissatisfied with the
share of prize money allotted to him after the expedition at Panama,
nursed his revenge until his return to Holland some years after. Sir
Henry took action against him, and claimed to obtain substantial
damages from Esquemeling for his malicious and misleading statement.
THE LATE COLONEL MORGAN.
The death of my brother, Colonel Morgan, has plunged us into grief,
and all the neighbourhood felt the death of one whom they all loved,
almost as much as I did myself. I feel that life can never be the same
to me again.
_Servants' Ball,
January 11th, 1910._
[Illustration: "_The death of my brother, Colonel Morgan, has plunged
us into grief._"]
THE MONMOUTHSHIRE TRIBUTE.
[Illustration: "_What have I ever done to deserve this tribute._"]
Some 50 years ago two Statesmen were discussing the merits of Mr. Pitt
and Mr. Fox. The first statesman said the oratory of Mr. Pitt was
remarkable because he was never at a loss for a word. The other
statesman replied, "Yes, but Mr. Fox was never at a loss for the right
word." I, this afternoon, cannot find the right word. I can hardly
find any word at all to express adequately to you what I feel on this
occasion. I have put this question to myself many times in the last
month or so--"What does it all mean? What have I ever done to deserve
this great tribute?" I thought that my duty was to go back over my
past life, and I began very early, a very long time ago. I went back
to the Chartist Riots. I don't suppose there are any of you here who
know much about them except by hearsay. I was a very little boy at the
time, spending my holidays at Ruperra Castle, and I was just going
with my little terrier to hunt a rabbit that had got into the cabbage
garden, when the post-boy, who had been sent to Newport to bring out
the letters, rode in, pale and quivering, and flung himself from his
pony and said that the Chartists were in Newport--"they are lying dead
all over the street, and the streets were running with blood. He
passed through a lot of people with swords and pikes, but whether they
were coming on to Ruperra he did not know." What he effectively did
was to pose as a great hero among the maid-servants, and I remember
afterwards going up to the post-boy, saying, "Bother your Chartists;
come out and help me to catch this rabbit."
That was my first beginning in sport--my first excitement. Then I
thought a little bit more. I have a distant recollection that very
soon after, I was gazetted as a Viscount. I saw in a newspaper which
does not hold the same opinions as I do, the question, "What on earth
is Lord Tredegar made a Viscount for?" and the answer was, "I suppose
because he has been Master of the Tredegar Hounds for 30 years." I
thought, therefore, that I had better leave sport alone for this
occasion. For some time I have had running in my mind a stanza written
by one who may be called the Australian bush poet, Mr. L. Gordon, a
gallant man, who spent most of his time roughing it in the bush. The
lines are as follows:--
I've had my share of pastime, I've had my share of toil,
It is useless now to trouble. This I know;
I'd live the same life over if I had the chance again
And the chances are I'd go where most men go.
Mr. Gordon thought he knew where most men go; I don't. I don't pretend
to know, but I had thought, until lately, that I would not wish to
live the same life over again. But now, when I am here this afternoon,
and have received from the hands of so many of my greatest friends
these magnificent testimonials of their opinion of me, I can hardly go
wrong if I say I would live the same life over if I had to live
again.
Well, when I went on with my early history, I found that very, very
soon I got among tombstones and family vaults, and I thought that the
less I called to mind those among whom I spent my early life the
happier it would be for me, certainly on this occasion. But still I
wonder what it is that I have done, that has caused so many of my
friends and neighbours to gather together to present me with this
great tribute of their affection and respect.
It is true that I have had more than my share of this world's goods.
There is one thing that has always comforted me when this has been
thrown in my teeth, and that is that it was a young man who went away
sorrowfully because he had great possessions. I believe I have tried,
more or less successfully, to help those in difficulties, and to give
to many comfort and happiness who otherwise would have been in much
distress and suffering; but I am quite sure that there is no person in
this hall who would not have done exactly the same under the same
circumstances. I have no doubt that I shall be able to find a place in
Tredegar House for this picture. It will, I hope, be a monument in
Tredegar House to help those who come after me to try and do some
good in their generation with the wealth which may be at their
disposal. I thank you from the very bottom of my heart for this great
tribute you have paid me.
_This Speech was made in December, 1907, in acknowledgment of
Monmouthshire's tribute to Lord Tredegar, which took the
form of an oil painting of himself, a gold cup, an album,
and £2,000, which his Lordship handed over to various
Hospitals._
THE JUBILEE OF QUEEN VICTORIA.
We are about to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee, not so much because Her
Majesty has merely reigned fifty years, but because she has reigned 50
years in the hearts of her people.
_County Meeting with reference to Queen Victoria's Jubilee, Newport,
February 9th, 1887._
THE LATE QUEEN VICTORIA.
The expression of the country's appreciation of the character of her
late Majesty has been done grandly and well. Statesmen on both
political sides have told of their experience of her, not merely their
opinion, but the result of the interviews they have had with her. All
classes have borne testimony to her goodness and greatness. We, as
humble subjects of Her Majesty, knew her sympathetic qualities.
Everybody present has benefitted in some way directly or indirectly
through her. I think of the line which says--"One touch of nature
makes the whole world kin." It was the touch of nature in her
character, and her sympathizing feelings, which have made the whole of
the civilized world, and much of the uncivilized world, mourn on this
occasion.
_Monmouthshire County Council,
February 6th, 1901._
THE LATE KING EDWARD.
It has been well said by a poet that "Fierce is the light that beats
upon the throne." Since those words were written the light beating
upon the throne has become ten times more powerful, but in the case of
King Edward that fact has only tended to emphasise His Majesty's charm
of life and of personality, and the power of his will, which have
benefitted not only this country but the whole civilised world.
_Usk Quarter Sessions, June 22nd, 1910--in moving a
Vote of Condolence on the death of King Edward._
THE PENNY WHISTLE OF REPUBLICANISM.
There never was a time when the country was more loyal. The penny
whistle of republicanism which tried to blow its notes some time ago
has, I believe, burst itself, for it found no sympathetic echo in the
heart of the nation. I believe there is no harder worked man in the
United Kingdom than the Prince of Wales. From morning to night he is
at the beck and call of somebody or other, and we always find him
ready to respond to the calls made upon him.
_Tredegar Show,
December 16th, 1875._
ON PRETORIA DAY.
We have done our best to publicly recognise the success that has been
achieved in the occupation of Pretoria, and to do honour to Lord
Roberts and his gallant army. You can tell the kind of man Lord
Roberts is by his despatches. You can depend on it that whenever you
read a despatch from Lord Roberts you are reading what is true,
complete and accurate. I hope we shall soon see Lord Roberts, who is
an old and good friend of mine, in Newport again.
_Pretoria Day,
June 7th, 1900._
ADMIRATION FOR AMERICAN SAILORS.
I have a great admiration for American sailors and the American people
generally. When the Crimean War broke out, in the summer of 1854, the
first soldiers sent out of England were the cavalry regiments, and I
went with them. At that time England had been at peace for 40 years,
and when war commenced the authorities knew little about the transport
of cavalry. We did not go out as a whole regiment in a large liner,
and arrive at our destination without the loss of a horse, as would be
the case now. We were sent out in troops of 40 or 50 at a time, in
small sailing vessels of 500 tons. In the ship in which I sailed the
horses were packed in the hold, and when they got to the Bay of Biscay
a violent gale sprang up. In a few hours half a dozen horses broke
loose and struggled about in the hold. There was only one American
sailor among the crew, and he went down and "calculated" and uttered
dreadful oaths. But he had not been down in the hold half an hour
before he had all the horses tied up again. Ever since then I have had
the greatest respect for American sailors.
_Cardiff Eisteddfod,
August 4th, 1902._
IMPROVEMENTS IN THE ARMY.
I always feel some diffidence in returning thanks for the Army, since
I am no longer in it; but I may add that I am proud to have belonged
to it. No gentleman who has been in Her Majesty's Service can look
back with other than happy feelings to that time. When I first joined
the Army, it was not in its present state. Many things connected with
that Service have improved. Among others, the social condition of the
soldier has been improved. I feel that no individual in this country,
however high his position may be, need be ashamed of his connection
with the Army.
At one time, the people of Newport knew more about soldiers than now.
Some time ago I asked the Duke of Cambridge to send a regiment, or
part of a regiment, to Newport, and his Grace said, in answer to me,
that the people would be obliged to stir up a riot in the county if
they wished to secure the presence of soldiers! I hope such a
contingency will not arise, living as I do in the county. However, his
Grace promised to do his best in the matter, and I hope we shall soon
again have the advantage of a regiment in Newport.
_Dinner to Lord Tredegar and Alexandra Dock Directors,
July 27th, 1865._
THE BOY SCOUT MOVEMENT.
The Boy Scout movement instructs the boy just at the time when he is
between school and a trade, when it would perhaps be better if he
stayed a bit longer at school, for the time hangs heavy on his hands;
and that is the time when you catch hold of these boys and give them
an interest in their country, and an interest in the necessity of
having somebody to protect the country. The Scouts that I have had any
experience of are all boys who seem to have improved in their manners,
their ways, and their education very soon after they have joined the
Boy Scouts.
_Meeting in Newport in connection with the Boy Scout Movement,
March 14th, 1911._
NOT KNOWN HERE.
When the ironworks were started here they received the name of
Tredegar, and the town itself was also called Tredegar. It is rather
disagreeable to me at times. I have letters addressed, "Lord Tredegar,
Tredegar, Monmouthshire." They are sent to Tredegar, where they are
marked by the postal officials: "Not known here; try Tredegar Park."
LIFE'S TRAGEDY AND COMEDY.
Life is said to be a comedy to those who think and a tragedy to those
who feel, and as we all feel and think we must meet with a good deal
of comedy and a good deal of tragedy. I hope you all have more comedy
than tragedy.
_Presentation to Lord Tredegar of Miner's Lamp and
Silver Medal at Risca Eisteddfod,
October 5th, 1896._
NEWPORT A SECOND LIVERPOOL
I hope the day is not far distant when Newport will be a second
Liverpool, and Maindee a second Birkenhead.
_Tredegar Show,
December 13th, 1864._
OXFORD AND CAMBRIDGE.
I have read somewhere that an Oxford man walks about looking as if
Oxford and the rest of the world belong to him. A Cambridge man, on
the other hand, walks as if he does not care a--well, does not care
two straws who the place belongs to.
_Seventy-fifth Anniversary of St. David's College, Lampeter,
October 9th, 1902._
DOCTORS-OLD STYLE AND NEW.
[Illustration: "_The old-fashioned gentleman, who first of all pulled
out a watch as big as a warming-pan._"]
The owning of a hospital is not a very lively proceeding, but I cannot
help giving a few of my reminiscences in connection with doctors. I
can go back to the real old-style of doctor; not the present-day smart
young gentleman with the radium light in his pocket, but the
old-fashioned gentleman who first of all pulled out a watch as big as
a warming-pan, and who felt the pulse and asked the patient to put
out his tongue, and ended up by saying "Haw!" That meant a tremendous
lot, for he did not tell any more.
I well remember a medical friend of mine saying once that he lived in
a land flowing with rhubarb, magnesia, and black draughts. That was
the way we were treated as children, and which possibly enabled us to
live a long life.
_Opening of a Hospital at Abertysswg,
October 3rd, 1910._
ALL SORTS AND CONDITIONS.
I am one of those who like mixing with all sorts and conditions of
men. I can dine with lords and ladies whenever I like, but I cannot
always dine with an assembly of working men.
_May Horse Show Dinner,
May 4th, 1893._
[Illustration: "_I can dine with lords and ladies whenever I like, but
I cannot always dine with an assembly of working men._"]
A CONTRAST IN CORRESPONDENCE.
I have a great deal of correspondence of one sort and another. I keep
no secretary, and my correspondence is with all sorts and conditions
of men. Only this morning, in the hurried moment before I left, I
wrote two letters, one to a descendant of Warwick the Kingmaker, and
the other to a little boy living in the back slums of Newport about a
football match. That is the sort of correspondence I like, for I like
to mix with all sorts and conditions of men and do what I can for
them.
_Foundation-Stone Laying, Presbyterian Church, Newport,
August 27th, 1895._
DREAMS AND TEARS.
I never remember to have had a dream that was merry. I never remember
to have awakened from a dream with a smile or a laugh; but many times
have I done so with tears on my cheeks.
_Bazaar at Ystrad Mynach,
September 9th, 1909._
THE PRECIPICE OF MATRIMONY.
You have heard things said about Matrimony. It is an annual occurrence
at this dinner, until I have become like a man who can walk along the
verge of a precipice and look down without falling over. I have
looked so long without a desire to plunge, that I am able now to look
over without any danger of falling.
_The Tredegar Show,
December 17th, 1867._
HOW TO LIVE FOR EVER.
People who regularly study the newspapers come across advertisements
of many things calculated to make them doubt whether there is any need
for a cottage hospital at all. In fact, as far as I can see, judging
by these advertisements, there is no reason why anybody should die.
_Pontypridd Cottage Hospital,
May 5th, 1910._
PUNCTUALITY "THE THIEF OF TIME."
As an old military man, I fully appreciate the value of punctuality.
Undoubtedly punctuality is the first great duty in this world if we
wish to carry on business satisfactorily. There are those who say
punctuality is a great mistake, because a deal of time has to be spent
in waiting for other people. That is a very pleasant way of looking at
an unpunctual individual.
_Intermediate School Prize Distribution,
October 19th, 1898._
NO KNOWLEDGE OF KISSES.
[Illustration: "_My brother and I had a fine-looking animal. We used
to smoke our cigars as we gazed at it._"]
There is no prize worth much that does not take some trouble to gain.
I have heard that kisses, when taken without much trouble, are not
worth having. Of course I do not know anything about that sort of
thing. My brother and I had a fine looking animal. We used to smoke
our cigars as we gazed at it, and think there was nothing like it in
the world. We thought we would send it to Birmingham; and then, if
any good, to Smithfield. It was of no use, however. It reminded me of
a celebrated trainer who used to come into this county, who said: "Oh,
you've nothing at home to try him with. You think your horse goes very
fast past trees." I expect it was very much the same thing with our
ox. It looked very good alongside the cattle trough.
A SMART RETORT.
When I had the pleasure of presenting Bedwellty Park to this town
(Tredegar) one of my critics asked: "Are you quite sure, Lord
Tredegar, that you have not given the Tredegar people a white
elephant?" That simile did not trouble me, for I told them I was quite
sure in a few months the park would be as black as the rest of
Tredegar.
_Bazaar at Tredegar,
May 23rd, 1902._
THE BUSHRANGER'S METHOD.
[Illustration: "_Young man, this is a two dollar show._"]
Just as I came into the hall, I encountered an individual dressed in a
rather extraordinary garb. I looked him up and down, and saw that he
was well armed. It reminded me of the case of a minister in the
backwoods calling on a bushranger to go round with the hat. The latter
did so, and the first young man he came to dropped in two or three
cents. The bushranger looked at him in a peculiar way, cocked his
pistol in a significant manner, and said, "Young man, this is a two
dollar show." The young man at once dropped in two dollars. I think
that perhaps my friend might come round with me presently, we might
frighten some of the gentlemen who have come here with full purses.
_Congregational Church Bazaar, Newport,
October 22nd, 1896._
MAKING THE WAIST PLACES GLAD.
I have a little advice to give to you in conclusion. A school-boy was
being examined in Scripture knowledge, and was asked the meaning of
the words, "Make the waste places glad." He answered, "Put your arm
around a lady's waist and make her glad." That, I think, is a very
good hint for the young men present, and I advise them to make the
evening as pleasant as they can for the ladies. To the ladies I would
say this--"Don't put too much faith in the promise of love that may be
whispered in your ears before the close of the ball."
_Servants' Ball,
January 4th, 1899._
AS OTHERS SEE US.
A celebrated philosopher has said there are three different
personalities about a man. First, there is what God thinks about him;
secondly, what his friends think about him; and, thirdly, what he
thinks of himself.... There is another personality to be thought of,
and that is the opinion of newspapers. It is very difficult to arrange
those different personalities, because one's own opinion is entirely
different from other people's. I like a gentleman who proposes my
health to lay it on thick, as some of it is sure to stick, whether I
deserve it or not.
_Opening of the New Hospital, Abergavenny,
October 6th, 1902._
THE MIGHTY LORD MAYOR.
Many people have the impression that the Lord Mayor of London is the
greatest man in this kingdom. There is a line or two in an old song
relating to a lover who did not like to pop the question to his girl.
He said:--
"If I were a Lord Mayor,
A Marquis or an Earl,
Blowed if I wouldn't marry
Old Brown's girl."
That represents a great deal of the feeling in this country about the
magnificence of the position of the Lord Mayor of London.
_Newport Conservative Meeting,
July 25th, 1901._
A DAY OF GREAT JOY.
It is a high honour, because it is the greatest that the Lord Mayor
and Corporation have the power of conferring upon anybody. My only
drawback is the fear that I cannot be worthy of the others whose names
are on the roll of Cardiff's freemen. You know that comparisons are
odious, and when you read the names on that list and compare mine with
them, I hope you will look with leniency upon me. The Lord Mayor
promised me just now that he would not be very long in his address and
in his references to me on this occasion. At one moment I felt very
much inclined to remind him of his promise, as the great King Henry IV
did with a Lord Mayor who went on his knees to deliver the keys of the
city. Without delivering them he rose from his knees and said, "I have
twelve reasons for not yielding up the keys of the city. The first is
that there are no keys." The King said, "That is quite enough; we
don't want any more reasons." I felt inclined to stop the Lord Mayor
and say, "You have said quite enough about me; I will take the
remainder for granted."
[Illustration: "_I see no reason why I should not be civil to the
Members of the Corporation unless they are uncivil to me. I should
probably do then what other people would do._"]
I see no reason why I should not be civil to the members of the
Corporation unless they are uncivil to me. I should probably then do
what other people would do. The Lord Mayor has said that Glamorgan
could not claim me as a Glamorgan man. Well, I was born in Glamorgan,
at Ruperra Castle, on this side of the Rumney. I know that if a man is
born in a stable it doesn't make him a horse, but I always understood
that the place of your birth had a certain claim upon you.
It is not very long ago that I was discussing with somebody what I was
going to do in the future, and I quoted the line from Shakespeare: "My
grief lies onward, but my joy is behind." I think now that I spoke a
little too soon, this day being one of great joy to me, as you can
easily understand.
_Presentation of the Freedom of Cardiff to Viscount Tredegar,
October 25th, 1909._
THE GOOD OLD ENGLISH OATH.
I never was good at personal abuse. I have got a good old-fashioned
oath when I am angry--a good old English oath, good enough for most
people--but that is only when I am very angry. And though we have been
told that this is the greatest crisis we have ever seen, unfortunately
I cannot get angry enough about it to abuse other people. But in the
circumstances, if I am put to it, I think I would quote Falstaff, who
said, "If any part of a lie will do me grace, I will gild it with the
heaviest terms I have."
_South Monmouthshire Conservative Association,
December 22nd, 1909._
PRAISE IN BUCKETSFUL.
[Illustration: "_If I live a little longer, I should like it in
buckets._"]
Oliver Wendell Holmes, the celebrated American writer, said that when
he was young he liked his praises in teaspoonfuls. When he got a
little older he liked them in tablespoonfuls, and later on in ladles.
I think I have had a good ladleful this afternoon. If I live a little
longer, I should like it in buckets.
_Cardiff,
September 14th, 1897._
AN EASY SOLUTION.
[Illustration: "_I should like the suffragettes to marry the passive
resisters and go away for a long honeymoon._"]
I have a notion by which we could be relieved of two wearisome
questions. I should like the suffragettes to marry the passive
resisters and go away for a long honeymoon.
_Servants' Ball,
1907._
A READY ANSWER.
Four or five years ago I received a letter from the War Office asking
how many horses I would put at the service of Her Majesty in case of
emergency. I wrote back and said, "All of them." By return of post I
received a letter saying that I had given a very patriotic answer, but
that it did not help them in the least; what they wanted to know was
how many horses I could put upon the register. I sent back and
registered eighteen horses. That was the whole of the Tredegar Hunt.
Well, a couple of days ago I received a notice that all of those
horses would be wanted. So if the Tredegar Hunt collapses suddenly,
you will know the cause of it.
_St. Mellons Ploughing Dinner,
October 12th, 1899._
WELCOME.
What a beautiful word is the English word "Welcome!" What a world of
sympathy it expresses! It does not matter whether the welcome comes
from a father, mother, brother, or sister, or from the girl of your
own heart. It is always the same. I have arrived at the time of life
when I can not expect an eye to look brighter when I come, but many
eyes are brighter when they fall on these volunteers who left their
homes, not when they thought the war was over, but in the time of
England's darkest hour. That was the time when our gallant Yeomanry
and Service Companies went to assist their country in its distress.
They went to redeem again the honour of England, which at one moment
looked as if it were rather smirched. They must have seen suffering by
disease and bullet wounds, and in other ways, and must have been
brought face to face with all kinds of distress, and witnessed the
agony of death from disease and bullets. All that tends to make a man
more sympathetic to those whom at other times he might be inclined to
blame.
_Presentation to returned Volunteers (Boer War), Rogerstone,
July 26th, 1901._
THE SEVEN AGES.
I liken myself to Shakespeare's "Seven ages." I have been the baby,
the schoolboy, the lover, and the warrior, and I am now the Justice,
but unlike the poet's justice, I can not boast of "a fair round belly
with good capon lined." Having disappointed the poet in one thing, I
hope to disappoint him in another, and not to degenerate into a "lean
and slippered pantaloon."
_Servants' Ball,
January 10th, 1893._
A DELICATE POINT.
[Illustration: "_Some difficulty might be experienced in getting the
ladies to wear the costumes of those districts._"]
The bazaar may be described as an "European fair," because the stalls
represent most of the nations of Europe. The reason for that is that
if we went to Africa or other dark countries, some difficulty might be
experienced in getting the ladies to wear the costumes of those
districts.
_Opening of "World's Fair" Bazaar, Newport,
April 29th, 1891._
THE HISTORIC HOUSE OF LORDS.
It is in itself no great thing to be a lord; in fact, there used to be
a saying, "As drunk as a lord." But it is a great thing to sit in the
House of Lords. That House is an institution which I believe every
country wishing for constitutional government has, for the last
hundred years, striven to imitate, but without success, and in my
opinion they are never likely to succeed, because the House of Lords
is an institution which, being the growth of centuries, can not be
imitated in a day. It is recruited from various classes of society,
and it is simply impossible to create a body similar to it all in a
moment.
In the old days, some three hundred years ago, King James, being in
need of money, thought it would be a very good thing to create an
extra rank, namely, that of baronet, and he sold baronetcies at £1,000
a piece, which brought him in a goodly sum of money. Anyone applying
for a baronetcy was required to show a certain amount of pedigree,
proving that he had had a grandfather or something of that sort. Now,
if his Sovereign calls him, there is nothing to prevent any one,
having talent and worth, from entering the House of Lords, even if he
never had a grandfather. Great divines, great soldiers, great
statesmen, great lawyers, and great engineers, representatives of all
the rank and wealth of the country, are to be found in that august
body; and I think it is a long time since any expression on the part
of the House of Lords has been adverse to the general opinion of the
country.
_Licensed Victuallers' Dinner,
January 16th, 1876._
FINIS.
WESTERN MAIL, LIMITED, PRINTERS, CARDIFF
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