Wednesday , June 21, 1905. 
lvii 
Show at Park Royal two years ago, 
honoured them with a visit yesterday 
afternoon, and was pleased to express 
his entire satisfaction with the arrange- 
ments. This afternoon they were look- 
ing forward with loyal and pleasurable 
anticipation to the visit of their 
illustrious Patron, His Majesty the 
King, whose interest in the Society’s 
welfare was so well known, and who, 
as they were proud to remember, had 
himself been three times President 
of the Society. It was a source of 
additional gratification to know that 
His Majesty would be accompanied 
by Her Majesty the Queen. Agri- 
culturists had always prided them- 
selves on their loyalty to the Crown, 
and he had no doubt at all as to the 
enthusiastic reception which Their 
Majesties would receive when they 
came amongst them that afternoon. 
(Cheers.) 
Not only was His Majesty visiting 
the Show himself, but he had recom- 
mended our illustrious visitors from 
the Far East to pay it a visit also ; so 
that on Thursday afternoon they 
hoped to receive the representatives 
of that great and remarkable nation 
whose wonderful achievements in the 
art of war had lately won the admira- 
tion of the whole world. They would 
hope to show Their Imperial High- 
nesses the Prince and the Princess 
Arisugawa of Japan the achievements 
of their friends and allies in the arts of 
peace, and they trusted that they 
would carry away agreeable recollec- 
tions of their visit to rural England 
gathered at Park Royal. 
All that remained for him was to 
thank them for their attendance that 
day, and for their never failing con- 
sideration to him during the period of 
his office as President of the Society. 
He could hardly describe this period 
as having been altogether a bed of 
roses, as they had had times of great 
anxiety and uncertainty as to the 
future. He could only claim for 
himself and his colleagues of the old 
Council that they had tried to do 
their best for the true interests of the 
Society under exceptionally difficult 
and somewhat disappointing con- 
ditions. It would have been too 
much to expect that their various 
decisions (which were not arrived at 
without careful deliberation) should 
have escaped criticism ; but with 
certain exceptions to which he did 
not think it necessary further to 
allude, that criticism had been of a 
kindly character, and he thought was 
becoming more kindly now that the 
difficulties which beset them had 
come to be more generally recognised. 
In an assembly like that he hardly 
thought it necessary to argue the 
national importance to the country at 
large of the continued existence and 
prosperity of a national agricultural 
Society such as theirs, and they all 
hoped that under the new Council 
which would set to work in a month’s 
time it might renew its youth and 
carry out with redoubled vigour the 
national work which it was established 
two generations ago to perform, and 
for which it had deserved and ought 
to receive the grateful thanks and 
unstinted support of the entire com- 
munity. (Cheers.) 
The Earl of Feversham, in moving 
a vote of thanks to Lord Middleton 
for his services as President during 
the past year, said they knew that 
his Lordship had undertaken that 
great and important duty at a time 
when they could not say that the 
Society was in the most flourishing 
condition ; but his noble friend, with 
that public spirit which belonged to 
him, had undertaken it, and he was 
sure the meeting would agree with 
him that he had performed the duties 
of his office with ability, energy, and 
success. (Cheers.) Lord Middleton 
had distinguished himself as a British 
farmer in Yorkshire. He had one of 
the best herds of cattle to be found any- 
where ; he had some splendid horses 
— Shires, Hunters, and Hackneys ; 
and he ventured to say that there was 
no place in England where they could 
find better breeds of cattle and horses 
than at Birdsall. In that respect, he 
seta valuable example to every land- 
lord in this country. Lord Middleton 
had worked for the Society most 
laboriously and had been most assi- 
duous in attendance at their various 
Council meetings. The arrangements 
for the new governing body had 
thrown a great deal of extra work 
upon the President, and he deserved 
and would receive their hearty thanks. 
Y 2 
