William Benjamin Owen

“ A staunch liberal in politics, he supported John Bright in every election at Birmingham but refused many invitations to stand for parliament himself. He was a firm free trader, and remained loyal to Gladstone after the home rule split of 1886, keeping alive the principles of liberalism in the 'Daily Argus,' which he founded in association with Sir Hugh Gilzean Reid in 1891. He was knighted in 1894 on Lord Rosebery's recommendation. A member of the Birmingham town council from 1878 to 1882 and of the Smethwick school board, Tangye and his brothers were generous benefactors to the town. ”

“ At the request of the civil service commissioners, Stoney soon after became superintendent of civil service examinations in Ireland, a post which he held till he left Dublin in 1893. He did much for Irish education. He was a member of the royal commission on the Queen's Colleges, 1885. He was an able advocate of higher education for women, and mainly through his exertions women obtained legal medical qualifications in Ireland before they were available in England or Scotland. ”

“ Vyell Walker's eldest brother, John, founded in 1858, on his own land, the Southgate club, which became a chief centre of local cricket and a notable scene of activity for Walker and his brothers up to July 1877, when the club ceased to be their private property. There in 1859 John Walker invited the Kent eleven to play a Middlesex eleven which included five members of his family. John Walker and his brothers were mainly responsible for the creation of the Middlesex cricket club, which was definitely formed in 1864, and after many wanderings found a permanent home at Lord's in 1877. ”

“ After five years' work in Galway he returned to Dublin in 1857 as secretary of the Queen's University, with an office in Dublin Castle, and till the dissolution of the university in 1882 he devoted himself wholeheartedly to his duties, which involved the organisation of the scattered colleges constituting the imiversity. The excellence of Stoney's report and minutes on educational matters led the Irish under-secretary. ”

“ At Kennington Oval in Sept. 1880, in the match in which Australia met for the first time the full strength of England, Murdoch showed his calibre by carrying his bat in an uphill game through the second innings for 153 (Dr. W. G. Grace scored 152 for England in the first innings) . The teams of 1882 and 1884 were the strongest ever sent to England, and as a batsman Murdoch was at that period surpassed only by Dr. Grace. His outstanding innings of 1882 was that of 286 not out v. Sussex at Brighton, a score which was until 1899 unbeaten by an Australian in England. ”

“ In 1853 George and John Sanger inaugurated on a very modest scale a travelling show and circus, which first appeared at King's Lynn in February 1854. Their equipment steadily increased, and Sanger's circus gradually outstripped its American and English competitors. In 1860 a 'world's fair' was established at the Hoe, Plymouth, with about one hundred separate shows — waxworks, monstrosities, balloon ascents, circuses, and the like. ”

“ Murdoch first came to England as a member of the first Australian eleven (captained by D. W. Gregory) which visited England in 1878. He owed his selection to his capacity as a wicket-keeper. During this tour he learned much in the art of batting, and became one of the leading batsmen of the world. He captained the Australian teams which visited England in 1880, 1882, 1884, and 1890, heading the Australian batting averages on each of these tours. ”

“ At Birmingham Tangye soon obtained a complete grasp of the commercial details of the engineering business, and he proved his interest in the welfare of the workmen by obtaining the firm's assent to a half-holiday on Saturdays, a concession to labour which was subsequently adopted in England universally. ”

“ Rogers was a member of the council from 1882 to 1885. Although painstaking and cautious in psychical research, Rogers, to whom spiritualism was of vital importance, had little sympathy with what he considered the anti-spiritualistic bias of the Psychical Research Society, and resigned his membership in its early years, although he subsequently became an honorary member in 1894. In 1884 he was a founder of the London Spiritualist Alliance, of which he was president from 1892 to death. ”

“ The disastrous' harvest in Ireland in 1879, combined with Irish political turmoil, led to much emigration to America. At Queenstown, the port of embarkation, female emigrants suffered much from overcrowded lodgings and robbery (see article by Miss O'Brien in Pall Mall Gazette, 6 May 1881) . Miss O'Brien not only induced the board of trade to exercise greater vigilance but also founded in 1881 a large boarding-house at Queenstown for the reception and protection of girls on the point of emigrating. ”

“ Pollen devoted his energies to the South Kensington collections, and besides issuing official catalogues gave lectures on historical ornament and kindred subjects. He served on the jury for art at the international exhibition at South Kensington in 1862, at the Dublin exhibition in 1865, and at Paris in 1867. At the Society of Arts he lectured frequently on decorative art, delivering the Cantor lectures in 1885 on 'Carving and Furniture,' and winning the society's silver medal for a paper on 'Renaissance Woodwork' in 1898. ”

“ From 1860 onwards Pollen was busily engaged on private and public commissions. Chief among his works were the decoration of Blickling Hall, Aylsham, for the Marquis of Lothian in 1860, and the fresco decoration at Alton Towers, the seat of the Earl of Shrewsbury (1874–7) . At Alton Towers he produced the effect of tapestry by skilfully and with archaeological accuracy painting in oil on rough canvas incidents in the hundred years' war. A design in water-colours for one of the canvases, 'The Landing of Henry V at Harfleur,' was purchased after Pollen's death for South Kensington Museum. ”

“ A cousin, Henry Robinson, soon joined him with a capital of 100l., but died in 1859. In 1855 his 'Panoptic Stereoscope,' a simplified and cheapened form of stereoscope, brought financial profit, and he started a metal drawing instrument branch, taking an additional shop at Holborn Bars and a skilled assistant. In December 1861 he patented the application of aluminium to the manufacture of mathematical instruments, and next year made a straight line dividing machine for which he was awarded the only medal for mathematical instrument work at the International Exhibition of 1862. ”

“ His family was of intensely Orange and anti-nationalist sympathies. After education at a private school, Thompson was for a time clerk in the office of James Hayden, solicitor. At the age of sixteen he contributed verses to the 'Derry Journal' and developed an aptitude for journalism. He found employment on the 'Belfast Morning News,' and then in 1877, at the age of twenty, through the influence of Sir Charles Lewis, baronet, M.P. for Derry, he joined the staff of the conservative 'Standard' in London, writing chiefly on non-political themes. ”

“ A further benefaction was a technical school, which was opened in 1907, for the education of boys as skilled scientific mechanics. The school met with instant success, and Stanley subsequently presented the buildings to the public with an endowment valued at 50,000Z. In 1907 Stanley was made an honorary freeman of Croydon, and a clock tower was unveiled in South Norwood to commemorate his golden wedding. ”

“ RHODES, FRANCIS WILLIAM (1851–1905) , colonel, elder brother of Cecil John Rhodes [see above] , born on 9 April 1851 at Bishop Stortford, entered Eton in 1865, where he was in the army class and in the cricket elevens of 1869 and 1870. After passing through Sandhurst he was gazetted lieutenant of the 1st royal dragoons in April 1873. He saw service in the Sudan as a member of the staff in 1884, and was present at the battles of El Teb and Tamai. ”

“ In 1855, owing to a difference with his employer, Richard left the firm. Soon he and three brothers, including Joseph, who had made himself an expert lathemaker, began to manufacture tools and machinery on their own account, renting a room at 40 Mount Street, Birmingham, for 4s. a week. The brothers prospered, and took a large workshop for 10s. a week, bought an engine and boiler to supply their own motive power, and took one workman into their employ. ”

“ WARD, HENRY SNOWDEN (1865–1911) , photographer and author, born at Great Horton, Bradford, on 27 Feb. 1865, was eldest of five sons of William Ward, stuff manufacturer, by his wife Mary, only daughter of Henry Snowden, manufacturer.
After education at Great Horton national school, at Bradford grammar school (1876–9) , and at Bradford Technical College, Ward entered in 1880 his father's business. He then with Herbert James Riley established the periodical ‘The Practical Naturalist’ (afterwards amalgamated with ‘The Naturalist's World’) , and founded the Practical Naturalists' Society. ”

“ John Walker, of Amos Grove, Southgate, was his grandfather. An uncle, Henry Walker, twice played for the Gentlemen of England v. Players. All Vyell's brothers John, the eldest (1826-1885) , Alfred (1827-1870) , Frederick (1829-1880) , Arthur Henry (1833-1878) , Isaac Donnithorne (1844-1898) , and Russell Donnithorne (b. 1842) , who alone survives — distinguished themselves in the cricket field. Of these Isaac Donnithorne and Russell Donnithorne proved themselves, like Vyell, cricketers of the first class. ”

“ Becoming a member of the Royal Photographic Society in 1892 and a fellow in 1895, he did good service on the council. He was one of the first members in 1897 of the Röntgen Society, and was president in July 1909 of the Canterbury meeting of the photographic convention founded in 1886 to promote photographic research. ”

“ From 1868 to 1874 'The "Walker Combination," formed of these three brothers (when V. E. was bowling and fielding his own bowling at short mid-on, with I. D. and R. D., like two terriers watching a rat-hole, in the field) , was nearly, if not quite, as fatal as the three Graces very often; . . . there is no instance within the memory of living cricketers when the strategy of the game was better displayed than when three Graces or three Walkers were on the out side' (F. Gale in Lillywhite, 1880) . ”

“ NEIL, SAMUEL (1825–1901) , author, born at Edinburgh on 4 August 1825, was second of three sons of James Neil, an Edinburgh bookseller, by his wife Sarah Lindsay, a connection of the Lindsays, earls of Crawford. On the death of the father from cholera in 1832, the family went to live at Glasgow. After education at the old grammar school at Glasgow, Neil entered the university ”

“ Chad's Cathedral Church, canon theologian of the diocese of Birmingham in 1862, and on 2 March 1884 he was installed provost of the cathedral chapter of Birmingham. In January 1861 he received from Pope Pius IX the degree of D.D.
Meanwhile in January 1860 Northcote was appointed vice-president of St. Mary's College, Oscott, becoming president in July following. Through the early years of his presidency Oscott College prospered. Imbued with Oxford culture, and holding wise views of education, he remodelled the studies and the life on the lines of the chief English pubhc schools. ”

“ On leaving Trinity College, he was in 1848 appointed by Lord Rosse the first astronomical assistant at the Parsonstown Observatory, a post which he held till 1852. His interest in astronomy continued through life, and he contributed occasional papers on astronomical subjects to the scientific societies' journals, several of them being instigated by the expected appearance of a profuse shower of Leonid meteors in 1899 (Proc. Roy. Soc. lxiv. 403; Monthly Notices, vols. lvi.–lix) . ”

“ Neil took a leading part in educational and philanthropic affairs in Edinburgh, where he was on intimate terms with Professors John Stuart Blackie, Henry Calderwood, John Veitch, and David Masson. He helped to found the Educational Institute of Scotland for granting fellowships to teachers. ”

“ From 1881-2 he was special commissioner of the 'New York World ' in Utah, and later in 1882 went to Egypt as war correspondent of the 'Daily Chronicle.' Subsequently he made lecturing tours through the United States and Australia, and in 1898 was correspondent at first of the 'Pall Mall Gazette' and then of the Associated Press in Cuba during the Spanish-American war. ”

“ Sanger disposed of his circus in October 1905, and retired to Park Farm, East End Road, Finchley. He published his autobiography, 'Seventy Years a Showman,' in 1910. He was shot dead at Park Farm by one of his employees, to whom he had shown much kindness, on 28 Nov. 1911. The murderer committed suicide. Sanger was buried with municipal honours by the side of his wife at Margate. ”

“ The Agricultural Hall at Islington was soon leased for winter exhibitions ; circuses were built in many of the chief towns of Great Britain, a hall was purchased at Ramsgate, and the headquarters of the enterprise was fixed at the Hall by the Sea at Margate. ”

“ Showing early aptitude for cricket, he was a member of the Albert cricket club at Sydney, and at the age of twenty be began to play for New South Wales, and from 1875 to 1884, in eleven inter-colonial matches, he had the fine average of 47 runs for 20 innings. ”

“ Northcote retired through ill-health in 1877, and from 1889 the institution was used as an ecclesiastical seminary. Northcote went back on leaving Oscott to his first mission at Stone, removing in 1881 to the mission at Stoke-on-Trent. After 1887 creeping paralysis withdrew him from active work, and he died at the Presbytery, Stoke-on-Trent, on 3 March 1907, being buried at Oscott cemetery, which he had opened in 1863. Northcote married on 10 Dec. ”