Volume Ii Part 15 (1/2)
4.-Lord Stanley was re-elected member of Parliament for the borough of King's Lynn, on his appointment as Secretary to the Colonial Department.
On June 5th his lords.h.i.+p was again re-elected, on accepting the presidency of the Board of Control, vacated by Lord Ellenborough.
-Died at his residence, South Quay, Yarmouth, Sir Eaton Stanley Travers.
A son of Mr. John Travers, of Hethyfield Grange, co. Cork, he was born in 1782, and entered the Navy September 15th, 1798, as mids.h.i.+pman, on board the Juno. He saw much active service, and was nine times mentioned in despatches. He was nominated K.H. on February 4th, 1834, and on March 5th in the same year had conferred upon him the honour of knighthood.
Sir Eaton Travers was a Deputy Lieutenant of Norfolk. He married in April, 1815, Anne, eldest daughter of William Steward, of Yarmouth, by whom he had issue five sons and two daughters.
6.*-”Within the last few days a stone has been placed in the churchyard at East Dereham, in memory of Jean de Narde, a French prisoner of war, who, in the year 1796 while _en route_ from Yarmouth to Norman Cross prison, was lodged in the lower chamber of the bell tower of the church, and escaped therefrom. He was pursued by the guard, and, after some search, was espied in a tree on the Scarning Road, and when summoned by a soldier to descend and surrender he did not comply. His non-compliance forfeited his life, for he was shot off it like a crow. The stone was erected by the vicar and two other gentlemen.”
8.-Miss Vandenhoff, tragic actress, from Drury Lane and Haymarket Theatres, commenced an engagement at Norwich Theatre, in her play, ”Woman's Heart.” She also appeared in ”Love's Sacrifice,” ”Ingomar,”
”Macbeth,” and ”The Stranger.”
22.-In the House of Lords, Lord Sondes presented a pet.i.tion from the Town Council and certain magistrates of Yarmouth, praying for an inquiry into a recent appointment of justices for that borough. It was stated that the magistrates were constant in their attendance upon the Bench, and were sufficiently numerous. The borough contained 31,000 inhabitants, there were 31 magistrates, and 31 policemen. Upon the Bench every shade of political feeling was represented, but all the newly-appointed magistrates were of one political party. The Mayor of Yarmouth had interviewed the Lord Chancellor, and his lords.h.i.+p had intimated that it was his intention to persist in the appointment, and, moreover, he felt it his duty to appoint new magistrates of one particular party. The action of the Lord Chancellor had excited much feeling in the borough.
Lord Cranworth now informed the House that he felt bound to put the magistracy in a position in which justice should not be partially administered, and if an inquiry were inst.i.tuted it should have his entire concurrence. No further action resulted.
23.-At a special meeting of the Norwich Town Council, a resolution was adopted expressing surprise and indignation that a covert attempt had been made to pervert the Grammar School and the Commercial School proposed to be established into exclusive inst.i.tutions, which would not only deprive a large proportion of the inhabitants of the advantage of the schools, but would condemn them in public estimation, and tend to the frustration and utter subversion of the proposed scheme. The Charity Trustees were requested to resist this proceeding, to ascertain at whose instance the suggestion was made, and to consider whether recent complaints did not imperatively demand that a searching inquiry should be inst.i.tuted into the conduct and management of the Grammar School. The Master of the Rolls, on July 17th, gave his decision upon the Grammar School case, which had long been before the Courts. It was ordered that twenty-one governors be appointed; the sum of 1,000 per annum derived from land and house property was to be appropriated to the maintenance of the Grammar School and Commercial School; the benefits of the Grammar School were to be open to all England; and all the expenses to which the Corporation and those who represented Norwich had been put were to be paid by the Charity Trustees. On December 4th the NORFOLK CHRONICLE made the following remarkable statement in relation to the treatment of boys at the Grammar School: ”We have recently been informed of a circ.u.mstance connected with the Grammar School which we could scarcely have credited but for the authority upon which we have received it. It is that there exists in that school a form of punishment which ought long since to have been unknown in a civilised country, amounting very nearly to bodily torture. We have been a.s.sured that for offences of a not very serious character boys are placed for hours between shelves so constructed that they cannot stand upright, but are obliged to stoop until the head is brought nearly level with the knees.” At a meeting of the Governors of the School, on December 8th, it was resolved, ”That in consequence of the informant declining to come to the Governors and substantiate the charge referred to in the CHRONICLE newspaper of last Sat.u.r.day, we proceed no further in the matter; but that we intimate to Dr. Vincent that we strongly disapprove of the mode of punishment alluded to in that newspaper, and if it has been practised, we request it may be discontinued.” The accusation was not denied, either by Dr. Vincent or by anyone on his behalf. On December 27th Dr. Vincent resigned his appointment as headmaster.
25.-Died at Hempnall, John Holmes, aged 104. ”The deceased leaves behind him a son, Thomas, aged 87 years, and a grandson, aged 60 years, the latter himself being a great-grandfather, thus presenting the remarkable fact of a man living to witness the sixth generation, and to see his great-grandson become a grandfather.”
30.-The first annual dinner of the Norfolk and Norwich Anglers' Society was held at the Bell Hotel, Norwich, under the presidency of Mr. R. N.
Bacon.
APRIL.
3.-Mr. R. Rising, of Costessey, rode his horse for a wager over nine consecutive single hurdles set up in the centre of a field. ”This was performed in excellent style, coming back also over the same ground, and not refusing one. The spectators were rather astonished to see Mr.
Rising repeat the feat with cap in hand. The judge of the bet, one of the first riders in the Norfolk Hunt, asked permission to ride the horse himself, saying he had ridden many good horses, but never one that would take a single hurdle. Upon Mr. Rising consenting, he rode the same round, thus making the animal in all leap 54 single hurdles.”
11.-Died, in his 82nd year, Mr. John Venning, of Surrey House, Norwich.
A native of Totnos, Devons.h.i.+re, he spent several years in Russia, as the representative of a firm of merchants. He became a member of the church at which the Rev. R. Knill officiated in St. Petersburg, and devoted his time and means to improving the wretched condition of the neglected and depraved populace of the Russian metropolis. He founded a school on the Lancasterian system for poor Russian children, a free school for the children of foreigners, a refuge for the reception and care of the helpless and dest.i.tute, a lunatic asylum in which the best modes of treatment were introduced, the Litofsky prison, constructed to admit of the cla.s.sification and separation of prisoners; and he remodelled the great hospital for the reception of invalids. Mr. Venning gained the esteem of the Emperors Alexander and Nicholas, and the hearty co-operation of the Empress Dowager, as well as of other members of the Imperial family. Through his instrumentality all exiles starting for Siberia were furnished with copies of the Scriptures. When the destructive inundation of November, 1824, overwhelmed the city with the waters of the Neva, the Grand Duke Michael sent General Politica with 20,000 roubles to Mr. Venning to distribute among the suffering populace.
”Throughout his long life Mr. Venning was a conscientious Dissenter-an Independent-but he saw without regret his nearest and dearest relations staunch members of the Church of England.” He married a daughter of Mr.
Meybohm, of St. Petersburg, by whom he was survived.
22.-St. John's church, Yarmouth, erected at the estimated cost of 1,700, was consecrated by the Bishop of Norwich.
24.-Died, in his 77th year, Mr. Thomas...o...b..rn Springfield, one of the magistrates of Norwich, and head of the firm of Springfield, Son, and Nephew, of St. Mary's, Norwich, and Coleman Street, London. Born in a comparatively humble sphere, he rose from the position of a small tradesman to a large silk merchant, ”and during his career won and lost several fortunes, in consequence of the fluctuations of the silk markets.” His business career ended prosperously. He took an active part in all local matters, from the election of a parish beadle to that of a member of Parliament, ranging himself on the side called Radical.
As he himself avowed, whenever he engaged in a contest he went in to win, and many of his victories were, doubtless, most costly. In 1827 he was elected one of the Sheriffs, and in 1829 Mayor of the city. After the pa.s.sing of the Munic.i.p.al Reform Act, he was, in 1836, selected to be the first Chief Magistrate under the new order of things. With a majority of one only of elected councillors, the Liberals were able to add sixteen aldermen to their number. This power they then exercised to the fullest extent, selecting men of their own party only, a one-sided system which was pursued without a break to the day of Mr. Springfield's death. In 1852 he was solicited by requisition to become a candidate for the representation of the city, and if he had been inclined to accede there is little doubt that he would have secured his election. In private life Mr. Springfield exhibited many good traits; he was never unamiable nor ungenerous, and there were not a few persons in the city who could trace their first advancement in life to his a.s.sistance.
MAY.
5.-The action in relation to the East Dereham Corn Exchange came before the Vice-Chancellor's Court. An order was made upon the Corn Exchange Company to pay the costs of the suit, except so far as they were incurred by the inquiries raised as to the user of the site occupied by the Corn Exchange, for the purpose of fairs and markets, and that they also pay the costs of the proceedings by way of indictment on the several counts upon which a verdict had been found for the Crown. The case was then ordered to stand over until after the Trinity term, for the consideration of the Attorney-General as to what further decree or order, if any, he might think right to apply for. The Vice-Chancellor declined to order the building to be pulled down as asked for by the relators, because it was a great public improvement. On June 26th the final decision was announced, namely, that upon payment by the proprietors of the new Corn Exchange of the costs awarded by the Court of Chancery and of 100 to the East Dereham Corn Market Company, the suit would be withdrawn, and in case of any indictment laid a _nolle prosequi_ be entered. ”These proceedings are, therefore, terminated. The hall is to remain, and the payment for admission will continue as heretofore.” (_See_ February 16th, 1866.)
JUNE.