4 
Sir Jacob Wilson. 
at other towns. In 1878, owing to increasing business and 
other ties, Mr. Wilson found himself compelled to resign the 
secretaryship of the Northumberland Agricultural Society, and 
Mr. Henry Wallace, of Trench Hall, was appointed his 
successor. Both he and the succeeding secretaries, Mr. Robert 
Donkin and Mr. W. J. Bolam, the present holder of the 
office, have conducted the affairs of the Society upon the 
lines instituted by Mr. Wilson, and have been instrumental 
in keeping it in the high position to which it attained under 
his administration. 
In 1874 Mr. Wilson married Margaret, daughter of 
Mr. Thomas Hedley, J.P., of Cox Lodge Hall, Newcastle- 
upon-Tyne, and the members of the Northumberland 
Agricultural Society made his marriage the occasion of 
presenting him with a magnificent service of silver plate to the 
value of 500Z. in recognition of his many and important 
services to the Society. 
Having adopted land agency as a profession, in 1866 
Mr. Wilson was appointed by the Earl of Tankerville as agent 
for his extensive Chillingham estates. About the same time he 
undertook the management of the Barmoor estate, the property 
of the trustees of the late Major Sitwell. Subsequently he 
was appointed agent for the Marchioness of Waterford’s Ford 
property, the Dunstan Borough Castle estate, and other proper- 
ties in different parts of England. Under his enlightened 
direction many improvements were effected on these estates, and 
it was his ambition to secure the best possible class of tenants, 
a strong tribute to his success in this direction being the fact 
that for many years he did not find it necessary to advertise 
any farms which he had to let, having always a sufficient 
number of private applications of the most satisfactory 
description to fill any vacancies that might occur. 
He also took pupils for instruction in farming and land- 
agency ; amongst those who gained their first experience at his 
hands were the Lords Arthur and Lionel Cecil, afterwards so 
well known in connection with their stud of Clvdesdale horses, 
while more recently the former has given much attention to 
the breeding of ponies in the New Forest. 
In addition to other work Mr. Wilson was frequently 
called upon to give evidence on matters relating to valuation 
and arbitration, and he often acted as arbitrator and umpire 
in such cases. For some years, too, he was one of the official 
umpires for the Board of Trade. His wide experience and 
great practical knowledge caused him to be regarded as one 
of the leading agricultural authorities of the day. 
At Chillingham he had the opportunity of exercising his 
well-known skill as a breeder of cattle, and it was mainly at 
