June 19th, 1872.
The loyal people of King's Lynn and its neighbourhood retained pleasant remembrance of the festival time when, in 1869, the Prince and Princess of Wales came to open the new Alexandra Dock. In 1872 they were gladdened by the announcement that the Royal visitors were again coming from Sandringham, on the 19th June, to visit their ancient town, at the annual exhibition of the Norfolk Agricultural Society. At the east gate of Lynn the Royal carriage was met by the Mayor, who, with the Town Clerk, and two leading citizens, asked permission to conduct the Prince and Princess through the town. The Earl of Leicester and Lord Sondes were in the Royal carriage, a third carriage containing Lord Sheffield and Lady Anne Coke. At the entrance of the Show, an address was read, from the Norfolk Agricultural Association, to which the Prince made the following reply:—
"Gentlemen,—I thank you sincerely for this address. It has been a source of the greatest gratification to have had it in my power to contribute in any degree to the success of your association and to promote the interests of agriculture in Norfolk. It is with these feelings that I have endeavoured to make myself acquainted with some of the operations of farming, and to acquire some knowledge of stock, and if I have not always been successful in the path of competition, I have at least obtained prizes sufficient to encourage me to persevere, and to indulge in the hope that I shall obtain more. The Princess is always willing to come among you,—and to be present on occasions like the present. We both desire to take this opportunity of expressing the deep sense we entertain of the sympathy and interest which were manifested towards us in our late trials by yourselves and by every class in the county of Norfolk."
Then followed the inspection of the Show, and the parade of the prize animals before the Grand Stand. The Prince was a successful exhibitor, having taken a second prize in Shorthorn heifers, a second prize in the class of ponies not above thirteen hands high, a first prize for the best Southdown ram, the second prize in Southdown ewe lambs, a second prize for ten wether lambs, two prizes (second and third) in the class of Norfolk and Suffolk red-polled cattle.
In the afternoon at a banquet attended by a large number of guests, the Prince took the chair, with the Princess of Wales on his right. Grace having been said by the Bishop of Norwich, the toast of "The Queen" was received with enthusiasm, and the Earl of Leicester then gave "The Health of the Prince and Princess of Wales, and the rest of the Royal Family." He tendered the thanks of the society to the Prince of Wales for the aid which he had extended to agriculture, for his liberal assistance to the local charities, for the interest which he had displayed in county affairs, and, last but not least, for his support to the fox-hounds. The society was also still more indebted to Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales for her gracious presence that evening. Ladies ought always to interest themselves in their husbands' pursuits, and he believed that agriculture came quite within their province. The Earl next alluded to the illness of the Prince of Wales in December last, and expressed his hope that His Royal Highness's life might long be spared, as it would be devoted to the welfare of the people of England, and the promotion of all that was good and noble. The toast was drunk with rounds of cheering, renewed when the Prince rose to reply.
His Royal Highness said that "he and the Princess were deeply thankful for the reception which they had experienced during the day. He was very glad that it had been in his power to fulfil the promise which he gave some time since that he would preside over the meeting. It had been a success, and he should ever esteem it a high compliment to have been associated with it. During the ten years in which he had lived in Norfolk, he had endeavoured not to lag behind those other county landlords who so ably fulfilled their duties. It would always be his earnest endeavour to promote the welfare of the county, in which he was much interested. He had to thank the meeting for the kind reception which the Princess of Wales always experienced whenever she appeared in public. It was most desirable that ladies should associate themselves in their husbands' pursuits, and when the Princess did not accompany him he always felt that there was something wanting. With regard to his illness, he should never forget the sympathy which had been extended towards him. He accepted that sympathy as a token of the feeling of this great and enlightened country towards himself and the Princess, the Queen, his mother, and the Monarchical system which we had adopted."
After acknowledgment had been made by Lord Leicester, for the toast of the Lord-Lieutenant of the county, and the Bishop had responded for the Clergy, the Prince rose to give what he called the toast of the evening: "Prosperity to the Norfolk Agricultural Association."
His Royal Highness traced "the progress of the society and especially the rapid advance which it had made since it adopted the principle of holding its Shows periodically in all the towns of the county, instead of limiting its meetings to Norwich and Swaffham only. At the present Show there were sixty more stock entries and one hundred more implements. Norfolk had always been held up as a great agricultural county, and was the home of the great nobleman, better known as 'Coke of Norfolk.' The fame of Coke of Norfolk had not been forgotten by his son, the present Earl of Leicester. The county was a great cattle-breeding county, the home of such men as Lord Sondes, Mr. Brown, Mr. Aylmer, and Mr. Overman. One other great Norfolk breeder, the late Lord Walsingham, had passed away, but he trusted that the present Lord Walsingham would continue to maintain the reputation of the Merton flock.
"His Royal Highness expressed his own great personal interest in the Society and in the cause of agriculture generally. His late father, the Prince Consort, always felt the greatest interest in agriculture, and used to take his children to inspect his prize animals. It might be desirable to increase the area of the Society on the model of the Bath and West of England Society, by bringing in Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, and Essex. For his own part, he supported such an extension of the Society. A landlord ought to feel a pride in having the working classes properly housed on his estate. Those who worked from morning to night should find a comfortable house, which would promote their moral and social wellbeing. He had endeavoured to improve the cottages on his own estate, and he felt pride and satisfaction in having his workmen properly housed. In conclusion, His Royal Highness strongly supported the idea of having a great county school for Norfolk, and said it would give him the greatest pleasure to support the enterprise."
After various other toasts, the last being "The Ladies," proposed by the Royal chairman, the Prince and Princess returned to Sandringham.