28.—Killed at the battle of Lang’s Nek, South Africa, aged 21, Lieut. Robert Hamond Elwes, Grenadier Guards, aide-de-camp to Sir G. Pomeroy Colley. He was the eldest son of Mr. Robert Elwes, of Congham House, near King’s Lynn.
FEBRUARY.
9.—A squadron of the 3rd Hussars arrived at Norwich Cavalry Barracks, from Colchester.
14.—The comic opera, “Les Cloches de Corneville,” was performed at Norwich Theatre for the first time by a company under the management of Mr. Charles Bernard. A company of children presented the same opera at the Theatre on March 28th.
28.—In accordance with a resolution adopted at a meeting of the Norfolk Chamber of Agriculture on the 26th, a deputation waited upon Earl Spencer, President of the Privy Council, when Mr. C. S. Read, as president of the Chamber and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the County, expressed, on behalf of Norfolk agriculturists, the desire that, in view of the prevalence of foot-and-mouth disease, greater restrictions should be observed in regard to store cattle, and that a certain relaxation should be made in the case of fat cattle, which, it was proposed, should be sent direct from licensed sales and markets to slaughter-houses, to be killed within four days. It was also suggested that the Privy Council should prohibit the importation of live animals from countries where they knew disease existed. A further deputation, headed by the Mayor of Norwich (Mr. S. Grimmer), interviewed Earl Spencer on March 25th, with the view of obtaining such relaxation of the Orders in Council as to permit the sale of store stock at Tombland Fair. A fresh outbreak of the disease occurred in the autumn, and on October 28th the county authority passed a resolution affirming that, notwithstanding its recurrence, the time had not arrived for the closing of the markets; that should the Privy Council consider it necessary to stop the spread of the disease by closing the store stock markets, such order should not take effect before the first week in December; that the existing regulations for preventing the importation of diseased cattle from foreign countries were entirely insufficient, and that until more stringent regulations were in force the system of closing markets was vexatious. (See January 7th, 1882.)
MARCH.
8.—The Spring Show of the Norfolk Agricultural Association was held at Lynn, but the change of venue resulted in a very small entry.
19.*—“Died, a few days ago, in a modest dwelling in Yarmouth, Charles Crawshay Wilkinson, the inventor of perforated sheet stamps. The Government offered a very handsome reward for a contrivance by which postage and other stamps might be most easily separated. Mr. Wilkinson, then only a working-man, in the service of a distinguished firm, exercised the considerable technical knowledge and natural cleverness he possessed, and constructed a perforating machine similar to those now in use. This success was made known to his employers, who presented him with a sum for the invention, but obtained the credit for it, and also the large reward offered. The inventor gained a competency by his industry, went to Yarmouth, and lived happily in retirement. With the exception of intimate friends, very few knew him as the real originator of a device which had benefited countless millions of people.”
APRIL.
2.*—“Mr. Edward Ebenezer Kay, Q.C., of Thorpe Abbots, near Scole, has accepted the Judgeship vacant by the retirement of Vice-Chancellor Sir Richard Malins. He does not become Vice-chancellor, but simply one of the Judges of the High Court of Justice.”