Yesterday a deputation from Brierley Hill waited upon the Right
Hon. the Earl of Dudley, at Himley Hall, to present to his
lordship, on behalf of the inhabitants of Brierley Hill and
the district, their congratulations on his lordship's recent
elevation in the peerage. The deputation started from the Star
Hotel (Mr. English's), about one o'clock, in four carriages,
and consisted of the following gentlemen:--Rev. S. Franklin
(incumbent of Brierley Hill), Rev.--Gray (curate), Rev. J.
Roebuck (Independent minister), Rev. J. Williams (Wesleyan
minister), Dr. Walker, Messrs. Ford, P. Harris, R. Plant, W.
H. Westwood, G. Pearson, Chapman, Wheeler, Williams, Horton,
Homer, and Cook. Upon arriving at the Hall, the deputation
were received by the noble Earl in a very cordial manner, and
Mr. R. Plant, after making a few eulogistic remarks, proceeded
to read the following address:--"We, the undersigned, clergy,
ministers of the gospel, and others, inhabitants of the town of
Brierley Hill and district, beg to present our congratulations
to your Lordship on your accession to your family dignities
and honours, bestowed upon you by the act of our most gracious
Sovereign; and that you may be spared to live long in the
enjoyment of your revived family title, and that it may be
handed down through succeeding generations, is our fervent
wish, who fully appreciate your Lordship's interest towards us,
as exhibited in your untiring efforts to promote the welfare
and prosperity of this locality." To this address were attached
about 1,200 signatures. In order that beauty and harmony should
be better preserved the signatures were transcribed, and with
the dedication and address the _souvenir_ took the form of a
thin royal octavo volume, beautifully bound in gilt russia. On
the outer cover appeared the following words:--"Address from
the town and district of Brierley Hill to the Right Honourable
the Earl of Dudley, 1860." On the frontispiece the Earl's crest
and motto were tastefully lithographed in gold and colours,
immediately succeeding which was the following dedication:--"To
the Right Honourable the Earl of Dudley, of Dudley, in the
county of Worcester, and of Dudley Castle in the county of
Stafford, Viscount Ednam of Ednam, in the county of Roxburgh,
1860." The dedication and address were printed in colours,
and each of the pages containing the signatures was surrounded
with an illuminated border. After the reception of the address,
the noble Earl made a few appropriate remarks in reply. He
said that an address of such a character, signed as it was by
about 1,200 persons, was a source of great gratification to
him, and would have been equally so if it had consisted of
simple sheets of paper, instead of assuming the elegant form
it had. Considering the short time occupied in obtaining the
signatures (one day) it was extremely gratifying to find such a
feeling exhibited towards himself and his house as was evinced
by the 1,200 who had come forward and signed the document on
behalf of themselves and those surrounding them. It proved
that Brierley Hill was fast rising in all the importance due
to a town, and he hoped it would still continue to rise, and
be supplied with such public buildings as it required, towards
which object he should always be happy to render a helping
hand. With regard to supplying the requisite churches and
chapels for the district, his Lordship took occasion to remark
that it was almost impossible to "overtake" the work--to use a
Scotch expression. It was also difficult to obtain ministers
who would enter into the work with a proper spirit, and
properly perform it, and generally it was very difficult to
find sufficient accommodation for the wants of the place. After
alluding to the importance of mechanics' institutions, and
kindred sources of improvement, and remarking that they were
also necessary in a growing locality like Brierley Hill, his
Lordship concluded by remarking that the address presented that
day would be treasured along with the most honoured archives of
the house and family; and as he might not stand again before
the same body of gentlemen, who represented 1200 inhabitants,
and doubtless many more, he begged them to convey his thanks to
each person who had signed the document, and participated in
the congratulations conveyed.
Deputations from Netherton, Sedgley, and Quarry Bank (near
Brierley Hill) were also present. The latter address was as
follows:--"To the Right Hon. Earl of Dudley, &c., &c., &c.
May it please your Lordship, we, the undersigned clergy,
churchwardens, and tenants under your Lordship in the new
district parish of Quarry Bank, Diocese of Lichfield, and in
the county of Stafford, take the liberty of congratulating
your Lordship on your elevation by our most gracious Queen to
the Earldom of Dudley, a dignity heretofore enjoyed by some
of your Lordship's ancestors. We humbly conceive that this
evidence of Royal favour has been most judiciously conferred
upon a nobleman, the management of whose property throughout
this entire district justly entitles him to be ranked amongst
the kindest, most liberal, and best of England's landlords, in
whom an industrious and well-conducted tenantry always find a
protector, friend, and patron; at the same time your Lordship
proves by great liberality your anxiety for the religious and
moral welfare of the people of this district, granting, in
this mining country where land is so valuable, ground for the
erection of a church for the people, for a churchyard, for
parsonage and gardens, liquidating the balance of mortgage
due on parsonage to Queen Anne's bounty, defraying the
entire cost of introducing gas into the church, subscribing
annually towards the support and the education of the young
in the district, and contributing towards the aid of clerical
ministrations throughout the parish. Fervently do we pray that
your Lordship may long be spared to enjoy every blessing, and
that the dignity conferred upon you by our gracious Queen may
descend (with even increased honours) to your Lordship's latest
posterity." The gentlemen comprising the various deputations
were subsequently entertained by the noble Earl at an elegant
and sumptuous luncheon, after which they thanked his lordship
for his cordial reception, and retired.
The Dowager Lady Ward, with two or three lady friends, and G.
Taylor, Esq. (his lordship's estate agent), were present during
the interesting proceedings.--_Birmingham Journal._
After the several deputations had been gone through, it was deemed the
correct thing to invite the noble Earl to a grand banquet, to be given
by the Mayor, and principal inhabitants of the town and district. This
ever-to-be-remembered dinner became the source of much merriment to
those present, as well as annoyance and chagrin to two reporters to the
press, who would not accommodate themselves to the pressure that had to
be put upon the small space afforded in the Hotel Ball Room to seat 128
guests at this dinner; the consequence was, that the eloquent speeches
were not reported at all, and the whole affair resolved itself into a
semi-private dinner party.
It was an unfortunate incident that the then Mayor was neither a
moderate speaker, or well acquainted with the Queen's English, and the
mistakes and blunders that were made, under the eyes and ears of so
many distinguished visitors, were a source of much annoyance to the
better sort of people in the town, who had some sincere regard for
the fame and honour of Dudley. However, this celebrated banquet was
destined to have one Chronicler, who in the following lines records the
proceedings.