196 RECORDS OF OLD TIMES 



CHAPTER XX 



Altona — Judge in agricultural department at the great Schleswig- 

 Holstein Exhibition — My fellow jurors — The officials' utter 

 ignorance of 'management' — Chaos — Assisted by the English 

 exhibitors, orderly arrangement effected — Awards — Trials of imple- 

 ments : difficulties that had to be removed — Thrashing machines : 

 Walter Wood his own driver — He wins the first prize — Horticultural 

 Show at Hamburgh — The success of the English — Liverpool grapes 

 win against all comers — Shabby treatment of the judge — Non- 

 payment of services and out-of-pocket expenses — Journey home — 

 Borrowing money to get there — Opinion of foreign agriculture — 

 The all-round superiority of English methods. 



At the great exhibition proposed to be held at 

 Altona, in Schleswig-Holstein, I was selected as 

 one of the judges to serve on the jury for live-stock 

 and implements, as representing England. I started 

 on a Wednesday afternoon from home, and as I was 

 to be at Hamburg on Friday evening, I was obliged 

 to travel by the quickest route, and therefore went via 

 Calais, Brussels, and Dusseldorf As I could not 

 speak a word of German I had my misgivings as 

 to how I should fare on the journey. However, on 

 entering my railway carriage at Brussels, I found a 

 Herr Lowenthal, hailing from Liverpool, where he 

 had been settled for some years as the representative 

 of a leading German house, who spoke English as 

 correctly as he did his own language. He proved 

 a most agreeable companion, and of great service. 



