Reminiscences of Demerary. o47 



I might here mention that one by one the old Coffee Houses came 

 to grief. Party politics, intrigues, and possibly broken heads, caused 

 their downfall ; and the Royal Agricultural and Commercial Society 

 might have shared the same fate had it not prudently passed a stringent 

 rule that nothing of a political nature might be discussed within its 

 walls. It is hard to appreciate the difficulties which attended the under- 

 taking, the success of which was very doubtful. The Press of those days 

 gave a very faint encouragement, for referring to the proposed new 

 Society the "Gazette" remarked that whilst the object of the Associa- 

 tion was mainly to bring persons together to promote inquiry on matters 

 connected with our minor industries it was proposed further that a 

 library, a museum, an official and commercial room, and a gallery 

 of models should be established — this gallery of models I take to be 

 a jest on the part of the paper because it was not included in our 

 founder s scheme. The " Gazette " goes on to say that many of the 

 advantages of a private club should be obtainable here ; but the paper 

 becomes absolutely prophetic when it concludes by saying that the 

 Society would no doubt flourish, " not so much for the sake of its main 

 objects as the allurements of its subsidiary enjoyments." Of all the 

 attractions offered the gallery of models was the only one not forth- 

 coming, but w r e have a very excellent exemplification of the sculptor's 

 art in memory of our founder, the late Mr. William Hunter Campbell, 

 and next to him we have two interesting works of art, one a painting 

 of the late Mr. John Croal and the other the bust of the late Dr. 

 Blair. I have just been admiring them and it is hard to think when you 

 see them looking so peacefully there, almost at one another, that at one 

 time they were involved in a sanguinary encounter, or at least what ought 

 to have been a sanguinary encounter, for they rushed off in hot haste to 

 the D'Urban Race Course, each thirsting for the other's blood ; but 

 fortunately for the community they turned out to be better colonists than 

 they were pistol shots and after firing for a considerable time and not 

 being able to hit each other, they thought it best to shake hands and 

 come back and have a sangaree. 



Time did not permit him following the Society's early history, but 

 those interested in the colony would derive much enjoyment if they read 

 the very able article on " Clubs and Societies in Georgetowu prior to 

 1844"' by Mr. J. Rodway which appeared in " Timehri " of 1892. With 

 their permission he proposed to skip forty-two years of the Society's 

 history. In forty-two years the colony had changed and so had the 

 Society. It had been burnt out and disintegrated, for societies dealing 

 with matters hitherto essentially its own had been formed. Agriculture 

 was now no longer occupied by this Society but was dealt with by the 

 Planters' Association and at present by the Board of Agriculture. 



Commerce found protection in a special Chamber, and in 1886 

 the Society centred itself upon the Assembly Rooms ami the George- 

 town Club, which was founded, they would remember, fourteen years 

 later, and back from the shade of long ago comes the echo of the 



