39S THE WEDGWOODS. 



be established to his memory ; and these, happily, have been 

 accomplished. 



In 1859, the project of a public statue to Josiah' Wedg- 

 wood was broached. This laudable project originated with 

 Mr. Joseph Mayer, of Hanley, and was carried out to a 

 successful issue by Mr. Edwin Allbut, the secretary. The 

 circulars and papers issued by its promoters thus well ex- 

 pressed the feeling of the district : 



"It is a time-honoured custom that an intellectual and grateful 

 people should seek to perpetuate the memory of its distinguished 

 men by erecting STATUES to their honour. The bronze and the 

 marble do not simply recognise the genius that once emanated from 

 a single soul ; they also declare that its scattered rays now light up 

 many intellects, and are widely diffused among the race. 



"Prom all England's worthies it would be difficult to select one 

 to whom this remark would be more applicable than the late JOSIAH 

 WEDGWOOD. Though dead, his memory still lives amongst us, in a 

 thousand beautiful and classic forms which he introduced, and by 

 the improvements and inventions by which he converted a rude 

 manufacture into one of the highest developments of art. In him 

 were blended classical taste, scientific skill, and practical ability; 

 and this rare union of qualities, warmed and vivified by a tempera- 

 ment singularly poetic and artistic in its manifestations, was entirely 

 devoted to one great practical object, involving the elevation and 

 employment of his fellow-men. 



"Throughout the length and breadth of England, the name of 

 Josiah Wedgwood is a ' household word.' In this particular dis- 

 trict, honoured by his birth and residence, and enriched by his 

 genius, there is not an employer hardly, indeed, an operative 

 who cannot more or less fully repeat the story of his active and 

 useful life. 



"It is perhaps owing to this remarkable familiarity with his 

 name, that no monument has been hitherto erected to his memory. 

 But nearly two-thirds of a century have now elapsed since his 

 decease. Longer delay might be mistaken for ingratitude; and 

 although time can never obliterate the benefits he has conferred, the 

 few contemporaries who can still personally identify them as the 

 direct result of his perseverance and genius are fast passing away, 

 and with each succeeding generation tradition becomes fainter. 



"Impressed with these views, a number of gentlemen assembled 



