RECOLLECTIONS
OF A BUSY LIFE
BEING THE
REMINISCENCES
OF A
LIVERPOOL MERCHANT
1840-1910.
BY
SIR WILLIAM B. FORWOOD
D.L. J.P.
ILLUSTRATED WITH SEVENTEEN PLATES
LIVERPOOL:
HENRY YOUNG & SONS
1910.
To my Children
and
Grandchildren.
PREFACE.
Many of the following pages were written for private circulation. Influential friends have, however, urged me to publish them, as they may appeal to a wider circle of readers. I have consented, with diffidence, but have availed myself of the opportunity to add some chapters upon local affairs, which I trust may be of public interest, and recall pleasing memories of bygone times.
W. B. F.
Bromborough Hall,
December 1st, 1910.
A FOREWORD.
There are but few men whose lives are worthy to be written for general publication, but there are many who have accumulated recollections and experiences which must be interesting and instructive to those of their own kith and kin, and it is for these I am about to jot down a few reminiscences of a life which has been largely spent in public work—in helping to build up the fortunes of a great seaport, in the local government of an important Municipality, and in the administration of Justice. Should these pages fall into the hands of friends I am sure they will be read with kindly and sympathetic feelings, and strangers will, I hope, accord to them the consideration and indulgence due to a narrative written only for private publication.
Life is said to be short, but when I look back upon the events which have crowded into mine I seem to have lived a long time, and one cannot but reflect that if the prospect had always looked as long as the retrospect, how much more patience and deliberation might have been thrown into the ordering of one's affairs, and how entirely this might have altered the course of events and changed the goal of one's endeavours. It is perhaps a merciful and wise ordinance that no man can reckon beyond the day that is before him, and therefore each day should be so lived as to be typical of our life; for it is the only portion of time of which we may truly say it is our own, and at our own disposal for good or for evil.
As each life, therefore, has its ambitions—small or great—its conquests, its trials, and its failures, so each day has to bear its own burden of trials and anxieties; and as the daily life is lived, and the daily task accomplished, so will our life's work be fulfilled; but how few there are who can look back and say their lives have been a success, and that they have accomplished all they should or all they might have done.
A great philosopher and thinker, who passed away only recently, stated, on the Jubilee of his Professorship, when his contemporaries were saying that future generations would proclaim him as having accomplished greater things than Sir Isaac Newton, that "his life had not been a success, that he had given his time and his mental powers to the solution of practical problems of everyday life rather than to the claims of the higher philosophy;" and so, in our more humble spheres each of us must feel that we have neglected opportunities, and perhaps the opportunities which we most regret having neglected are those by which we could have done good to our fellow-men, and not those which made for the satisfying of our ambition.
There can be no isolation more dreary than the isolation of an old age, cut off by the lack of training and habit from sympathy with humanity, alone in its selfishness, untouched by the joy of feeling and caring for others. But even short of this isolation of a selfish old age, there must come to all of us a feeling of disappointment that our part in helping forward the well-being of others has not been larger and more fruitful:
I will, however, cease to moralise, and will conclude with this thought which, I think, forms an appropriate preface to an autobiography.
How much greater would be the sum total of human happiness if men would accept as their guide the experience of those who had gone before! How many disasters might be avoided! How many successful careers might be shaped and built up! But I suppose as long as men are as they are they will refuse to accept the experience of others, but will make their own, and through blunders and mistakes a certain proportion will arrive at success, but a larger proportion will struggle on, on the ragged edge and under the cold shade of adversity until the end of their days.
W. B. F.
Bromborough Hall,
Cheshire,
January 21st, 1910.
CONTENTS.
A FOREWORD. PAGE. CHAPTER I.—EARLY YEARS 1 My Father 2 Edge Hill 4 Everton 5 Bootle 5 Seaforth 6 The "Great Britain," s.s.
re-constituted Chamber by the votes of the
subscribers to the Exchange News Room 80 1870—Fellow Royal Statistical Society 80 1872—President of the American Chamber of Commerce 81 1873—Chairman of the Joint Committee of the Northern
Towns on Railway Rates 81 1877—President United Cotton Association, the precursor
of the Cotton Association 82 1877—President of the International Cotton Convention 83 1880—Mayor of Liverpool 83 Visit of General Sir Frederick Roberts 83 Visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales 84 The Opening of the North Docks 84 Fenian Scare 85 1903—Lord Mayor 87 CHAPTER VI.—THE FENIAN TROUBLES 88 1882—Attempt to blow up the Town Hall 88 Infernal Machines 90 The Pensioner's cork leg 91 Thanks of the Home Secretary 92 CHAPTER VII.—THE TOWN COUNCIL
Committee to enquire into 109 Report 110 1908—Estate Committee: Chairman 110 CHAPTER VIII.—LIBRARY, MUSEUM AND ARTS COMMITTEE 112 1889—Chairman 114 1908—Extension of Free Libraries 114 Mr. Carnegie 115 The Museum Extended 116 The Art Galleries 117 Among the Studios 118 Lord Leighton 118 Mr. Greiffenhagen 119 Sir John Millais 120 Sir Hubert Herkomer 121 Sir John Gilbert 122 Mr. Whistler 123 1908—Retired from the Committee 123 Mr. R. D. Holt 128 CHAPTER IX.—KNIGHTHOOD AND FREEDOM OF LIVERPOOL 130 1883—Knighthood: At Windsor Castle 130 Honorary Freedom of City of Liverpool
and Mr. R. A. Cross 145 1869—Chairman Waterloo Polling District 146 1880—Chairman of the Southport Division 146 1886 { The Hon. George A. Curzon 146 to { 1899 { Mr. Curzon Member for Southport 147 Lord Curzon's work as the Viceroy of India 149 Duties of a Chairman of a Division 151 Free Trade and Protection 152 CHAPTER XI.—JUDICIAL WORK 154 1873—Placed on Liverpool Bench 154 1882—Placed on Lancashire County Bench 154 1900—Placed on Cheshire County Bench 154 1890—Deputy-Chairman of Quarter Sessions, West Derby Hundred 154 1894—Chairman of Quarter Sessions 154 1894—Chairman of the County Bench 155 1894—Chairman of the Licensing Justices 155 Chairman of the Visiting Justices, Walton Jail 157 1902—Appointed a Deputy-Lieutenant for Lancashire 154 1909—High Sheriff for Lancashire 159 Interesting Ceremony at Lancaster Castle 161 The King and Queen at Knowsley 162 CHAPTER XII.—BLUNDELLSANDS, BROMBOROUGH & CROSBY Blundellsands 164 Crosby Grammar School 166 Bromborough
Prime Minister 173 1898—Chairman of the Bank of Liverpool 176 1888—Director of the Cunard Company 177 Some incidents 179 Castle Wemyss 181 Making of the Cunard Company 181 Liverpool and Mediterranean Trade 182 White Star Line 184 Mr. T. H. Ismay 185 Sir Alfred Jones, K.C.M.G. 186 1888—Director Employers' Liability Assurance Company. 176 CHAPTER XIV.—THE CHURCHES 188 The Church, 1860-1870 188 Dr. McNeile 189 Dr. Ryle, first Bishop of Liverpool 190 Nonconformists 192 The Building of a Cathedral 194 Early History 194 Chairman of Executive Committee 198 Foundation-stone laid by the King 199 Consecration of the Lady Chapel 201 Convocation 203 Church Congress 204 New York Cathedral 204 CHAPTER XV.—PHILANTHROPY, CHARITABLE AND SOCIAL WORK 206 Crusade against intemperance 207 Workmen's dwellings 208 Local workers 209 CHAPTER XVI.—THE SEAMEN'S ORPHANAGE, Etc. 211 1905—Royal Commission on Motors
Master Mariner 255 Windermere: Happy Days 256 History of the Royal Windermere Yacht Club 257 Yacht Racing Association 258 One of the Founders 258 Member of the Council 258 Chairman of the Committee of Measurement 258 Royal Canoe Club 258 1879—Rear-Commodore Royal Mersey Yacht Club 257 Gardening 259 Orchids 260 CHAPTER XX.—OBITER DICTA 261 Success in Life
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
Liverpool, 1836 Frontispiece. Shaw's Brow Facing page 34 Dock Offices 37 The Old Liverpool Exchange 42 The Town Hall 93 Laying Foundation Stone, Vyrnwy 102 Free Libraries 112 "Ramleh," East Front 162 Bromborough Hall, Garden Front 168 The Old Dutch Garden 170 The Lady Chapel, Liverpool Cathedral 201 Fatehpur Sikri 244 Benares 245 The Himalayas 248 The Taj Mahal 249 Yachting on Windermere 256 Portrait 261
CHAPTER I. EARLY YEARS.
A Great City—its people and its institutions, as seen by a contemporary presents incidents that do not specially appeal to the historian, who is more concerned with the larger features and events which mark its growth; but those incidents may serve as sidelights upon the movements and the spirit of the times, and woven round the outlines of a life which has been threaded in the weft of its activities, may afford a background to bring into more prominent relief and give juster proportion to the characters and the actions of the men who have built up its prosperity.
My story will therefore be of the men and the incidents of my time, which I think may perhaps possess more than a passing interest, and I hope serve to awaken pleasant memories.
As I do not intend to write a record of my family life, which with its abounding happiness—some great sorrows—successes and disappointments—must be a sacred thing, I shall only make such references to my family, or to those friends still happily with us, as may be necessary to my narrative.
My great-grandfather, who was born at Plymouth, was a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy and served on board the "Foudroyant." He was killed in action, and his widow, in recognition of his courage, was awarded a Post Captain's pension. She had one son, my grandfather, George Forwood, who came to Liverpool, where in 1812 he joined Mr. John Moss as partner in the Otterspool Oil Works (Mr. Moss was the father of the late Sir Thomas Moss, Bart.). My grandfather appears to have been a man of considerable ability. Mr. Hughes, in his History of Liverpool Bankers, describes him as "an exceedingly able man, possessing some public spirit." His published letters and pamphlets on economic subjects show that he took much interest in the pressing questions of the day, and was very active in promoting the repeal of the Corn Laws and in the amendment of the Poor Laws.
My father, the late Thomas Brittain Forwood, was born in Russell Street in 1810, and was educated at Dr. Prior's school in Pembroke Place; he received what was known as a good classical education, and up to the close of his life his knowledge of Latin was fresh and accurate, and he could quote freely and aptly from Latin authors.
He was gifted with a love for mechanics, and he claimed to have made a locomotive when a boy, using as cylinders two surgical syringes.
He entered the office of Leech, Harrison and Co. in 1824, when he was 14 years of age, became a partner at the age of 27, and retired in 1862, when he purchased the estate of Thornton Manor, in Cheshire; here he resided for the remainder of his life. My father was endowed with a quick and bright intelligence, and was a most excellent correspondent in days when letter writing was a fine art. He had a love and capacity for hard work.
He was too much absorbed in his own business to take an active part in public life, but he was for a time a vice-president of the Chamber of Commerce, and took a leading part in the effort to obtain a reduction in the railway charges levied upon Liverpool traffic. He was for twenty-two years a member of the Mersey Dock Board, and chairman of the
He died at his London house, in Regent's Park, December 18th, 1884, and was buried at Thornton Hough, Cheshire. My mother was a daughter of William Bower, the founder of the firm of William Bower and Sons, cotton brokers. My grandmother, Mrs. Bower, was left a widow when quite young, but must have been a woman of much ability, for during the minority of her eldest son, for several years she carried on the business, going down to the office every day. In this she was actively assisted by the late Mr. Geo. Holt, the founder of the firm of Geo. Holt and Co., with the result that when her son came of age the business was one of the largest and most prosperous on the Cotton Exchange. I often heard her speak with gratitude of the noble self-sacrifice of Mr. Holt during all these years.
I was born at Edge Hill, Liverpool, in 1840—it gives some perspective to this date when we remember that the year 1839 witnessed the first publication of Bradshaw's Railway Guide, and the inauguration of the penny post. It was the year after the accession and marriage of Queen Victoria, and one of the last of the dark years of the fiscal policy of Protection in England; so that I may claim that my seventy years have witnessed a material progress on every side, which has been simply marvellous, and has eclipsed in the brilliancy of achievement any former period in the history of our country. The use of the steam-engine has been increased and extended until it has become the handmaiden of every industrial occupation; and following in its train we have seen the development of the spinning jenny, and the blast furnace. And to-day we see that steam is being dethroned from its high position by the electrical dynamo and the hydraulic ram, and the turbine is taking the place of the reciprocating engine. The internal combustion engine has been invented, and the motor-car is rapidly superseding the horse-drawn vehicle; while the biplane and monoplane have given a reality to aviation which never entered the most visionary dreams of a few years ago.
My father's house at Edge Hill overlooked the grounds of Mount Vernon Hall and the gardens of the vicarage; to the east were open fields, with a few large villas dotted about. Fashionable Liverpool still dwelt in the large Georgian houses fringing Everton Hill, which looked down upon one of the loveliest views imaginable. In the foreground were the trees and woods which ran along what is now Netherfield Road; beyond these the river flowed; in the distance the Wirral peninsula stretched out, backed by the Welsh hills. But the town of Liverpool was pushing its way up to Everton, and San Domingo Road was ceasing to be fashionable; while Aigburth, Prince's Park, and Edge Lane were rapidly becoming the most popular suburbs of the fast-rising seaport.
Soon after I was born my father removed to Marsh Lane, Bootle, and there were few more charming spots at that time. I remember the grand trees which encircled Bootle Hall and overarched Marsh Lane; here dwelt in sylvan retreats the Mathers, the Birches, and the Tyrers. The trees extended down to the sea-shore, where Miller's Castle stood sentinel—a modern building remarkable for its keep and battlemented walls. About half a mile nearer Liverpool there was a row of large houses, known as Fort Terrace; here one of my uncles lived. The garden ran down to the sea-shore, and we as boys passed out of the garden to bathe. The Canada dock is built on the site of Fort Terrace.
My father removed again, further out, to Seaforth, to a large house on the Crosby Road, facing an open space known as "Potter's Field," which was bounded on the further side by the shore. I was sent to school at Mrs. Carter's, a celebrated dame's school, where many young Liverpool boys were educated. Mr. Arthur Earle was one of my classmates. Seaforth was a very prettily wooded village, fine elm trees margining the highway right up to the canal at Litherland. The village at that time contained two other important schools, Miss Davenport's and the Rev. Mr. Rawson's. Mr. Rawson was Vicar of the Parish. Mr. Gladstone, Lord Cross, and Dean Stanley were educated at Mr. Rawson's. Mr. Rawson was very fond of telling the story of Mr. Gladstone, when a boy, spending his holiday afternoons lying before the fire reading Virgil; even in those days he had formed great expectations of his pupil's future career. Seaforth vicarage stood between the church and the railway, and was surrounded by large gardens. Litherland was also a charming rural village, containing many grand old elm trees, and several large houses. Waterloo was a rising seaside place, very fashionable in the summer; here Liverpool merchants occupied cottages, for in those times a cottage at the seaside was the usual method of spending the summer: fishings in Norway, moors in Scotland, and tours all over the world not then being in vogue.
Our home at Seaforth commanded a very beautiful marine view. I remember seeing the "Great Britain" sail, and the same night she was stranded on the coast of Ireland. For years the "Great Britain" was regarded as one of the wonders of the world. She was considered to be such a leviathan that people said she would never pay, and I believe she never did; her tonnage was under 4,000 tons. She remained the largest ship afloat for many years. The "Great Britain" went ashore in Dundrum Bay on the 22nd September, 1846, and was refloated and towed to Liverpool, August 25th, 1847. She remained for some time in the North Atlantic trade, was afterwards engaged in the Australian trade, and subsequently was converted into a four-masted sailing ship. Her final use was as a coal hulk at the Falkland Islands.
I also saw the Glasgow steamer "Orion" sail on her fatal voyage. She was stranded on the Mull of Galloway, and many lives were lost; this was in 1850.
Very frequently after the prevalence of easterly winds, the entire channel between the Rock Light and the Crosby Lightship was crowded with ships, large and small, working their way out to sea—a lovely sight. I have frequently counted over 300 sail in sight at one time.
On the Bootle shore, somewhere about where the Hornby dock is situated, there stood two high landmarks—very conspicuous objects marking the fairway through the Rock Channel, then very much used; they linger in my memory, associated with many pleasant donkey rides around them. Bootle church in those days had two towers, and the old church was quite as ugly as the one now existing. The Dock Committee built the sea wall of the Canada dock some time before the docks were constructed. I remember about the year 1848 seeing seven ships wrecked against this sea wall; they had dragged their anchors and were driven ashore by a north-west gale. Wrecks on the Bootle and Seaforth shores were quite common occurrences. The farmers in the district fenced their fields with timber from ships stranded on the shore, and the villagers were not above pilfering their cargoes. The barque "Dickey Sam" with a cargo of tobacco from Virginia was stranded on the Seaforth sands in 1848, and an onslaught was made on her cargo by the villagers; and to protect it, my father organised a body of young men to stand guard over it—not an easy matter, as the hogsheads of tobacco were strewn along the beach for several miles. His efforts were rewarded by the underwriters presenting to him a silver salver with an appropriate inscription.
Access to Seaforth and Waterloo from Liverpool was afforded by a four-horse 'bus, which ran in the morning and evening; express boats also sailed along the canal in summer, starting from the bridge at
Riding on horseback on the sea-shore was a very favourite pastime. Many business men rode into town, keeping to the shore as far as Sandhills Station.
On the road to Liverpool, and midway between Bootle and Liverpool, surrounded by fields, were the ruined walls of Bank Hall, which for 500 years had been the residence of the Moores, one of the most celebrated Liverpool families; they were large owners of property, and for that long period were closely identified with the public life of the little town.
The Hall had been pulled down and the materials used for the erection of the large stone farm buildings and an important farm-house. In my boyhood days the barns and farm-house still remained, and also the ancient garden wall, flanked with high stone gate-posts and surmounted by large carved stone urns, such as were common in the early Georgian period. A deep and wide ditch ran along the front of the wall, which was part of the old moat. The Ashcrofts were the tenants of the farm, and I can remember making hay in a field which would be about the site of the present Bankhall railway station. Further along again, in Great Howard Street, stood the jail, commonly called the French prison, many French prisoners of war having been confined there during the Peninsular war.