An International Cotton Convention was held in Liverpool, also in 1877; it was composed of delegates from all the cotton exchanges of America and those on the Continent. I was appointed the president; our meetings extended over ten days and were interspersed with excursions and entertainments. The convention was productive of much advantage to the trade, in ensuring a better supervision of the packing, weighing and shipment of cotton from America, and I think the measures taken practically put an end to the system of false packing which had become so injurious to the cotton business.
Mayor of Liverpool.
In 1880 I was elected Mayor of Liverpool, an honour which I very greatly esteemed. It was an eventful year, for many distinguished strangers visited Liverpool. General Sir Frederick Roberts came as the hero of the hour after his wonderful march from Cabul to Candahar. He was entertained at a banquet, and an At Home at the Town Hall, and he with Lady Roberts stayed with us for three days at Blundellsands.
Among other visitors we entertained were Lord Lytton, then Governor-General of India; and King Kallikahua, the King of the Sandwich Islands. His Majesty was very dignified, and accepted quite as a matter of course the royal salutes fired by the guard ship in the river as we passed by in the Dock Board tender. At the banquet in the evening I was warned by his equerry that I must try and prevent His Majesty imbibing too freely. It was not an easy thing to do, but to the surprise of my guests I stopped the wine and ordered cigars; this had the desired effect. I believe this was the first time smoking was allowed at a Town Hall banquet.
The King had with him a big box full of Palais Royal decorations which he showed me, but with which, fortunately, he did not offer to decorate me.
Visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Our heaviest function at the Town Hall was the reception and entertainment of the Prince and Princess of Wales on the occasion of the opening of the new north docks.
The Prince and Princess stayed with Lord Sefton at Croxteth, and their children, the three Princesses, stayed at Knowsley, Lord Sefton's children having the measles.
The day of the Royal Visit was lovely. We met the Prince and Princess at the city boundary, Newsham Park, proceeding thither in the mayor's carriage, drawn by four horses with postillions and out-riders. After presenting the Princess with a bouquet we followed to the landing stage, where the royal party embarked on the river for the new docks. The course of the royal yacht was kept by our large Atlantic liners, and by several battleships. The Princess christened the new Alexandra dock and then we adjourned to a lunch in one of the large sheds, and after lunch the Prince and Princess entered the mayor's carriage and drove to the Town Hall, where an address was presented to them.
The Fenians had been very active in Liverpool, and during the evening at Croxteth I was told by the aide-de-camp that the Prince had received several threatening letters, to which his Royal Highness paid no attention, but he would be glad to know if every precaution had been taken for the Prince's safety. Although I was able to assure him that every precaution would be taken, this intimation made me feel anxious and I drove from Croxteth to the police station in Liverpool to consult with the superintendents as to what more could be done. We were compelled to drive the Prince and Princess for two miles through that portion of the town inhabited by the Irish; we therefore decided to quicken the pace of the carriage procession, and to instruct the out-riders to ride close in to the wheels of the royal carriage. These precautions were however fortunately not necessary, for right along Scotland Road the Prince and Princess had the heartiest reception, and when we turned out of Byrom Street into Dale Street it was with a sense of relief that I turned to the Prince and said, "Sir, you have passed through the portion of Liverpool in which 200,000 Irish people reside." He replied, "I have not heard a 'boo' or a groan; it has been simply splendid."