1246 sixty years. At the expiration of that and the instruction of the students; among time it was found convenient to transfer others, a professor of sculpture, a prothe Royal Academy from the position they fessor of architecture, and a professor of then occupied, in order that other offices anatomy--all branches of art necessary should be established on that position; but for an artist, the importance of which is on that occasion a special engagement was duly recognized. These and certain other entered into between the Crown and Par- officers receive stipends on a very moderate liament, in which the Royal Academy scale for the discharge of the duties dejoined. By virtue of that agreement, and volving upon them. But the great object with the consent of the Crown, the Royal of the institution has reference to the Academy was transferred to the National schools. The schools are on a most libeGallery in Trafalgar Square. It was stipu- ral establishment. Any of Her Majesty's lated at the time as part of the arrange- subjects have a right to claim and to ment that they should hold those premises receive gratuitous instruction there; noprecisely on the same tenure and with the thing more is requisite for that purpose same rights and privileges as they formerly than the production of a certificate of held the premises in Somerset House. His good moral character and of a qualification Majesty consented to this arrangement, in drawing. With those qualifications they Sir Martin Archer Shee being at that are admitted to the schools and are intime President of the Academy. Thus the structed gratuitously during as long a period matter stands as to the right of the Royal as they think proper to remain. Many Academy to the apartments they now hundreds of students have been instructed occupy. They do not hold them of the in the schools connected with the society. nation, but of the Crown, and at the pleasure At this very moment the number of students of the Crown. I pass over that part of the is something like 400. Your Lordships. subject. I have stated that the Society is may ask what has been the result of this self-supporting; the source from which they instruction? The answer is most satishave derived their income is the annual factory. During the last fifty years by exhibition. The profits of that exhibition far the larger proportion of eminent artists have advanced by degrees to their present in this country have been taught in those amount. The average for the last ten schools. Two-thirds of the present Royal years has reached the sum of £7,000 a Academicans had their education in those year. From the very first the Academy schools. I have a list in my pocket of the has conducted itself in the management of names of those to whom I refer; but I that fund with great discretion. They have could not trouble your Lordships to read set apart a sum for accumulation with a them all, and to read a few would be inviview to the perpetuity of the establishment. dious; but I will repeat in distinct and I know, my Lords, some persons suppose precise terms that the most eminent men that the members of the Royal Academy that have figured in the arts of this country may apply this fund as they think proper. have been educated in those schools-that Some think they have distributed a por- two-thirds of the present Royal Academition of it among themselves. Nothing can cians were so trained and so educated. be more unfounded. They have no power There is another circumstance worthy of whatever over the fund. They cannot dis- mention. Not long ago it will be recolpose of any part of it without the consent lected that premiums were offered for of the Crown. Upon one or two occasions cartoons to be employed in the decoration they have advanced large sums towards the of the Houses of Parliament. Eleven preaid of the country in times of emergency. miums were so assigned, and more than In 1798 they voted £500 for that purpose two-thirds of them were awarded either to in aid of the Government. They voted students of the Royal Academy or to perafterwards a similar sum for a similar ob- sons who at some former time had been ject; but the Crown refused its consent, students of that society. I happened to and the money was not advanced. I have be in Paris at the time of the exhibition shown, therefore, that these funds are held there of works of industry and art. A not for the purposes of the members of the room was allotted there to the leading Society, but that they must be disbursed schools, including the English; and I have according to regulations provided for their reason to know that many foreign artists application. For what purpose is the fund of eminence expressed their admiration of then to be applied? There are certain offi- our native works of art there, and their cers appointed with the view to the schools surprise they had known so little of the English school. I think, then, that so far as relates to the duties of this society, and the mode of their performance of them, I have given most satisfactory evidence. My Lords, besides what I have stated as to the application of the society's funds, I must mention that there are medals and premiums awarded to students who attain a high degree of proficiency, and that there is also a fund appropriated to defraying the expenses of promising young men in travelling on the Continent for the purpose of visiting the Schools of the Ancient Masters, with the view to their improvement. My Lords, there is another application of their funds, which I am sure will meet with your Lordships' hearty concurrence. There is no profession which affords more immediate pleasure and delight than the profession of the arts; but, unfortunately, pecuniary reward to any extent does not always accompany exertion in that vocation. Occasionally from advancing life and its failing energies, sometimes from loss of sight, those who devote themselves to it are unfortunately reduced to poverty and distress. The Royal Academy also appropriates a portion of its funds to the relief of persons of that class, and of widows of artists who may have been left destitute. These are charitable objects, but they are not confined to the members of the institution, the aid is distributed freely to the profession at large; and a much larger sum is given to those members of the profession who are not and never were connected with the Academy than to those who are so connected. I find that about £400 a year is subscribed for the relief of persons connected with the institution, and upwards of £900 for that of persons in the profession not so connected. I think your Lordships will feel that that application of the funds in the manner I have described has been a correct, beneficial, wise, and prudent application, and that the administrators are deserving of our thanks for the manner in which they have exercised their rights and performed their office. My Lords, there are one or two objections which have been made to which I wish to refer before I sit down. It is sometimes complained that the walls of the Academy and the Exhibition are too much confined to Royal Academicians, members of the society. Whether that be the case or not I cannot undertake to say, nor whether the exhibition would be better and more profitable if the works of Royal Academicians were reduced in number and those of other artists admitted in greater numbers. I will not enter upon that subject, because, as it is understood that more extensive buildings are about to be erected, that complaint, if well-founded, can be removed in future. Another point to which I wish to allude is an objection which is sometimes made that favouritism prevails in the selection of the members. Where election is not made by the public voice it is impossible to say that favouritism may not sometimes exist; but here it is held in check by the voice of the profession, who have always their eyes directed towards the proceedings of the Academy, when an election takes place, and it is still further controlled by the influence and authority of the Sovereign, who must be satisfied of the propriety of each nomination, for no person elected can hold office until his election has received the sanction of the Sovereign and a diploma of appointment. But this I will say, that during the last fifty years no artist of eminence has lived in this country willing to become a member of the society who has not in course of time been elected a member. There have been one or two exceptions, the reasons for which I will not enter upon, because they are of an unpleasant character; but I say generally in broad terms, that every artist of eminence who has existed in this country during the last half century has been a member of the Royal Academy. My Lords, I feel considerable satisfaction in being able to state these facts to your Lordships, and through you to the country. Now, one word before I sit down upon the proposed change of site. I believe that as far back as 1830 it was suggested that it would be proper to remove the Royal Academy from its present position in order to afford more room for the National Gallery, and I think in 1854 Lord John Russell proposed to advance £40,000 to enable the Academy to procure another residence. What was the result of that offer I do not know, except that it was never completed; but this I do know, that it was not very favourably received by the Royal Academy, and for a very obvious reason. They have always considered themselves to be under the immediate supervision of the Crown. If they consented to receive a sum of money from the public purse they considered, and properly so, that they might be called upon from time to time by the House of Commons to make returns, to be examined, and to assume a political character quite foreign to the tranquil state so necessary for the well-being of art. There- his usual clearness and precision the varifore I am sure the offer could not have ous arrangements which have been made been accepted by them. But other offers from time to time between the Crown and have since been made, and now it is pro- the Royal Academy. My noble and posed that a site should be granted in fee learned Friend has referred to the benefito the Royal Academy upon part of the cial influence exerted by the Royal Acaground occupied by what is known as Bur- demy; and, without entering into details. lington House. No situation can be better I think the principle is now recognized on for this purpose. They are grateful for all hands that, while the Royal Academy that offer; but still they fear what I have has no right to claim exclusive possession before suggested, that a grant from the of this or that particular building, yet it nation, unless an equivalent was offered by has a right to claim on the part of the themselves, would place them in the posi- public that they shall have some means tion I have just mentioned. Their object provided for carrying on their labours, from is, and always has been, to remain solely which I readily admit the public have for a under the control and supervision of the series of years derived the greatest benefit. Crown. Therefore what they now propose I believe my noble and learned Friend has is this-they will accept the grant upon only done justice to the zeal with which the condition that they on their part shall these labours have been undertaken, and to be allowed to expend an amount equal to the services which the society rendered to the value of the site in the construction of the fine arts in this country. I should not buildings necessary for the Academy, to have risen now, as there is no particular be permanently applied for the purposes of point involved in the remarks of my noble art. Thus the grant from the nation will and learned Friend, but that I think it is be paid for by that equivalent, because expedient your Lordships should be put in both the land and the buildings to be possession of what is the real position of erected upon it are to be devoted in per- the Government and the Royal Academy petuity to a great public object. I think towards each other. Your Lordships are that if this kind of arrangement can be aware that for a series of years there has carried out it will not affect the position of been a growing feeling that the building the Royal Academy, and they will remain, constituting the National Gallery, occupied as before, under the immediate supervision, partly by the national collection of pictures control, and government of Her Majesty. and partly by the Royal Academy, was I was anxious, my Lords, to make this insufficient for both purposes, and that it explanation, because I was sure, as re- was desirable to separate one portion from garded the conduct and management of the other. For a long time the question the Academy, I could say nothing but has been agitated whether the National what would redound to the credit of that Collection should be removed and the Acabody. I think also your Lordships will demy left in possession of the original site; not object to the view they take as regards but the result of inquiries by Commissions the proposed change of site, that the ac- and Committees appears upon the whole to ceptance of a grant should be conditional be that there is no site better calculated upon the arrangement which I have men- than the existing National Gallery for tioned. What is the precise sum they will the exhibition of the pictures which belong expend I am not prepared to state at to the nation. That being the case, it was present; but I imagine it will be some thought that some other place should be £40,000 or £50,000, which will be a com- found for the Royal Academy, and the plete equivalent for the land to be granted society has had under consideration the to them. I am sorry to have troubled offer of other sites for a building. In that your Lordships at such length, but I was state of things the late Government purglad to have an opportunity of addressing chased the valuable property called Buryou upon a subject which, from the posi-lington House, with the gardens and courttion I now stand in, and in which from the earliest days of my life I have stood in relative to these matters, naturally possesses great interest for me. THE EARL OF DERBY: I am sure the House is indebted to my noble and learned Friend for the statement which he has addressed to us. He has explained with VOL. CLII. [THIRD SERIES.] yard attached. . In order to give some idea of the extent of space required, I may state that the superficial extent of the National Gallery is 13,000 square feet, while the superficial area of Burlington House and grounds is 143,000 feet, or nearly eleven times as much. It must not, however, be supposed that there are not 2 S numerous claims on this valuable site. | the entire frontage of the present building Engagements have been entered into with facing Piccadilly, and also a large portion various other societies for portions of that of one of its sides. Now, that application space. I have here a list of those societies for no less than half of the site occupying which have received promises of accommo- 143.000 square feet is one, I cannot help dation. They are the Royal Academy, the thinking, with all due respect for the London University, the Royal Society, the labours of the Royal Academy, of rather Linnean Society, and the Chymical So- an extensive character, considering that ciety. But, besides these, the Astronomical, there are six other societies to whom, as I the Geological, the Antiquarian, the Ethno- have already said, promises of accommodalogical, the Asiatic, and the Water Colours tion have been made, and seven or eight Societies, which are now located in Somer- whose claims have been strongly pressed set House, are claimants for accommoda- upon the attention of the Government Her tion in Burlington House, while strong Majesty's Ministers, however, have deemed recommendations have been made to the it right to ascertain, in the first instance, Government of allotting a portion of this what amount of space the Royal Academy site to the Geographical and Statistical may reasonably be supposed to want; and, Societies. Under these circumstances you in the next place, before they allot them will, I am sure, admit that it is a matter so large a portion of ground, to be assured of some difficulty to meet those various that the amount of their funds is such as conflicting claims; but the principle on would enable them to cover, either now or which the arrangement with the Royal at some future time, with buildings adapted Academy is to be carried out has been en- to the objects of the institution, the whole tirely agreed upon, the settlement of details of the site which they require. We have being left as a matter for future considera- taken this course because it appeared to tion between it and the Government. The us it would be extremely undesirable and principle of the arrangement is this-it impolitic to assign to the Royal Academy, appears to me to be a reasonable one,- or to any society, a considerable space of that, in order to secure the Royal Academy valuable land, part of which, while they from the inconveniences attendant upon did not need it themselves, they would prefrequent change of place, to afford them vent others from occupying. Of course, more ample accommodation than they so far as the advantages of securing to now possess, and, at the same time, to them a particular aspect and a sufficient provide for the public at large that amount amount of light are concerned matters of space which is necessary to the adequate so necessary for the purposes of the Acarealization of the specific objects which the demy--Her Majesty's Government are disAcademy has in view, they should, out of posed to deal with them with the utmost their own funds, obtain for themselves a favour and liberality in making their selecsite, to be conveyed to them in freehold, tion of a site. The price paid for the whereby they would be relieved from all entire site of Burlington House amounts apprehension of future removal, while the to no less a sum than £140,000; and, if, advantage would be secured to the country therefore, we should comply with the of having a building suited to the purposes wishes of the Royal Academy we should for which the Royal Academy is designed. be allowing them a space of ground of The proposition made to them, therefore, the value of £70,000, which is a very was that a considerable portion of the site considerable sum to dispose of to any of Burlington House should be appro- one society. I think it right to make priated to their use, and should remain this explanation to your Lordships, and over to them in fee simple, upon condition to inform you that the site to be set that upon that site they should erect a apart for the Royal Academy, and the building adapted to the purposes of the principle on which we propose to act in Academy, and not in its style and cha- dealing with it, have been agreed upon. racter incongruous with those other build- As to the amount of land to be alloted to ings which were now or might hereafter be them, and the particular position which erected in the same locality. Neither the they are to occupy at Burlington House, precise site nor the exact extent of space to I can only say that these are questions the be allotted at Burlington House to the Aca- solution of which must, to a certain extent, demy has as yet been decided upon. Those depend upon the claims of those other points are under negotiation; but I un- societies to whom promises have been made, derstand that they desire to have half of and also upon the sufficiency of the funds of the Royal Academy to enable them adequately to occupy the ground which may be assigned for their use. LORD MONTEAGLE wished to call the attention of their Lordships to one fact, and that was that neither the Royal Academy nor any other of the learned societies having apartments at Somerset House could have any Crown right derived from the original occupation of their official residences, the fact being that Somerset House was public property, and had been erected at the public expense. What right they had had been inferred from usage, and an occupation during pleasure and had never been confirmed by Act of Parliament, which would have been indispensably necessary to give them the vested interest which the noble and learned Lord had argued they possessed. In respect to the future, the noble Earl at the head of the Government proposed, however, most properly, in consideration of the erection of the new Gallery at the expense of the Academy, to solve the question by granting them by statute a site in fee, so that now for the first time the Royal Academy would possess an indefeasible right in the land upon which the building they occupied stood. Any title to the building in Trafalgar Square, derived from the delivery of the keys to Sir M. Shee, the President of the Royal Academy, was wholly untenable. The Crown had no power of creating such a title in that or any other way but by Act of Parliament. The building neither was nor ever could be the property of the Crown. He was glad to hear the explanation which had just been given by his noble Friend opposite, and in no portion of his statement did he more cordially concur than that from which it appeared that the Goverument were prepared to pay due regard to the claims of other societies, and not to allow a site of such immense value as Burlington House, situated as it was in the centre of the metropolis, to be monopolized by any one single body. The services rendered to the public by the Royal Academy were such, he was prepared to admit, as entitled them to the utmost consideration; but he regretted to hear any claim advanced of exemption from the power of Parliament. He was not desirous that Parliament should intermeddle officially in the management of the Academy, nothing could in his opinion tend more strongly to defeat the success of the negotiations now in progress or of their successful termination, than that the friends of the Academy should endea vour to place that institution beyond the scope of Parliamentary examination and inquiry. It was contrary to our Constitution, and to their own interests that they should endeavour to do so. EARL STANHOPE, after expressing his gratification at the statement of the noble Earl at the head of the Government, wished to observe that as far as the Antiquarian Society was concerned, they made no claim whatever upon the Government for a portion of the site of Burlington House. That society had held apartments at Somerset House, but a short time ago a new arrangement had been made with the Government, which was perfectly satisfactory to the council, and they had no intention to make any claim upon the ground at Burlington House. SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH FROM NAPLES TO MALTA. — GUARANTEES TO TELEGRAPH COMPANIES. QUESTION. LORD WODEHOUSE said, he had lately seen a statement in the newspapers that a company which had extended its telegraphic communication as far as Sicily were disposed to carry it to Malta, but that the authorities would not permit them to land the cable upon that island. Now, he knew nothing of the merits of the company which had made this proposal, and possibly there were good reasons for refusing it; but at first sight it certainly appeared as if some monopoly were set up in favour of the existing line, that line being connected with the Submarine Company, which at present enjoyed a monopoly of the communication with France; whereas the company which sought to extend the cable to Malta was in connection with a rival line, the International and Electric Telegraph Company. The question was of some importance as a matter of principle, because it involved the mode in which the Government were to deal with the whole telegraphic system in the Mediterranean. His own opinion was that we should have done well to have Malta the centre of our telegraphic communications in the Mediterranean; and obvious reasons existed in favour of such a course. In all probability we should then have had four lines touching at this island -one from Cagliari to Malta, another from Ragusa to Malta, a third by Naples and Sicily, and eventually a fourth, which would be of still greater importancenamely, a direct line from England, pass |