Monday, May 23, 1892. 
Ixxvii 
and was sorry the Council had decided 
to discontinue it. He trusted, in any 
event, tliat the grant withdrawn by 
the Society would be replaced by an 
augmented grant by the Government. 
The Duke of AVestjiinster said 
there was no doubt the exertions of 
the Society had been most valuable 
with regard to the suppression of 
disease. He thought some special 
reference ought to be made to the 
exertions, and to the zeal and capacity 
which had distinguished the head of 
the Board of Agriculture in this direc- 
tion. He thought it must be admitted 
that it was that zeal and energy, and 
the effectual me.usures carried out, 
which had contributed very materially 
to the satisfactory prevention of the 
spread of disease. The country owed 
a great deal to the Department of 
State which had to deal with the con- 
tagious diseases of animals. 
The motion for the adoption of the 
Report was then put, and carried 
unatimously. 
In response to the usual inquiry 
from the Chair as to whether any 
Governor or Member had any remark 
to make, or suggestion to otter, that 
might be referred to the Council for 
consideration, 
Mr. Geokue Barham suggested 
that the Society should subscribe to 
the Mansion House Association on 
Railway and Canal Traffic. As a 
member of the Association he could 
testify to the great labour and amount 
of work which it had performed, and 
to the heavy e.xpenses incurred. The 
railway companies had expended over 
100,000f. before the inquiry of the 
Board of Trade and Joint Parliamen- 
tary Committee, whilst the Mansion 
House Association had spent some- 
thing like 10,0001. in combating their 
rates. The great and important agri- 
cultural intere.st had contributed, over 
a period of about three years, the 
large sum of 200f. ! He thought, 
therefore, that they had had more 
than value for their money. With 
regard to one industry alone — that of 
milk sent from the country into the 
large towns — he might tell them that, 
if the terms proposed by the Board of 
Trade had been accepted, they would 
have had to pay 100,000Z. a year more 
than under the present rat es secured by 
the Mansion House Association. After 
relating the number of Acts which 
formerly were in existence for each 
railway company, but which were now 
reduced to one Act for each company, 
he referred to what was to him the 
most painful part of the matter. He 
believed that the Society’s representa- 
tives upon the Mansion House Com- 
mittee had proposed that the sum of 
lOi. 10s. per annum should be voted to 
the Mansion House Association. That 
resolution was opposed in the Council 
by his Grace the Duke of Richmond. 
He thought it exceedingly unfortunate 
that his Grace, occupying the position 
of Chairman of the Joint Committee 
on Railway Rates, but representing 
on the Council the agriculturists of 
the Kingdom, should have come to 
the Council and opposed the granting 
of the very paltry sum of lOZ. 10s. per 
annum. 
Sir Nigel Kingscote interposed, 
saying that of his certain knowledge 
the Duke was not Chairman of the 
Joint Committee at the time of the 
Council’s resolution on the subject of 
the annual grant. 
Mr. Barham, continuing, said he 
did not think he was subject to cor- 
rection when he said that the Joint 
Committee had not yet concluded its 
labours ; there was still a very impor- 
tant matter to come before it in 
connection with Canal Trafiic. He 
was told that, by the great majority 
of the Acts, manures were carried 
free of toll. In many of the Acts, 
road materials also were carried free 
of toll. 'This was a veiy important 
matter when farms were so highly 
rated for keeping roads in repair. 
'J'hesc were things as to -which agri- 
culturists should be represented 
before the Joint Committee now sit- 
ting, or how would they get fair 
play ? After alluding to the con- 
nection of the railway companies 
with the Canals, Mr. Barham con- 
cluded by citing some of the objects 
of the Mansion House Association as 
bearing upon agricultural interests, 
and by insisting upon the impor- 
tance of the Royal Agricultural 
Society’s co-operation therein by an 
annual subscription to the funds of 
the Association. 
The Earl of Ravensworth, refer- 
ring to the laborious services of the 
Duke of Richmond as Chairman for 
