ALFRED BINYON RECOUNTS HIS VISIT TO THE PARIS EXHIBITION OF 1839

I very much regret that I could not give thee a viva voce narration of my wanderings in France, but owing to several cross occurrences which will appear in the sequel, that pleasure was impracticable. It was fully my intention to have been in London three days sooner than I was.

I left Mayfield[1], taking Agnes[2] with me and shutting up house on 6th day the ult., stayed at Leamington[3] until half past twelve on 2nd day when I took a coach that took me to Weedon on the L & B Railway[4] through a very beautiful part of Warwickshire and Northamptonshire, reminding me most strongly in smell, sight and sound of Lincolnshire. The villagers came out of their houses to look at the coach only just put on, as the good folks of Navenby and Wellingore[5] did some years ago. It is quite a cross country road.

I arrived in the great city at 8 and drove up in a cab to Professor Graham's [6] in Torrington

Square [7] where I spent that night and the next. My travelling companion Adam Baumgartner who is a partner with John Dugdale [8] and carries on Turkey red dyeing at our old works at Middleton met me at dinner on 3rd day evening at 6 and we agreed to meet next morning on board the "Britannia" at 10 which was the advertised time. William Stark [9] of Norwick [sic], being in town also, met us and we spent a very pleasant evening.

I rose the next morning at 7 and whilst shaving heard a loud rap at the front door by a cab man who speedily sent me up a note from old Baum (so he calls himself and we him) stating that the vessel sailed at 8 and I must instantly depart which I did very grudgingly quarrelling with the fellow about his fare which he left to me and by which he got 5/- and was dissatisfied. Then two harpies overcharging me one as porter and the other as waterman, landed me on board in a very bad humour to start with, which was also not a little increased by finding we should not sail for 2 hours -- the steward only just awake, no fire and very cold, and I had requested Mr Pattinson's [10] boy to bring me a letter which only arrived at the last moment, giving me however a better account of our dear boy [11]. The Times of that day gave a full & particular account of the recent riots [12]. Judge of my state of mind, and knowing that Lucy [13] would be frightened out of her wits, made it still worse.

At a quarter past we heaved the anchor and set sail for Havre de Grace. The weather was very cold, stormy and rain came on as we left the Thames about 7pm. I went to my berth and stayed there till noon next day and whilst in bed was not sick, but had service on rising. I got on deck about 1 when sight of the French coast, which was very picturesque and beautifully green. We entered the Seine at 2 and landed on the quay at Havre at ½ past - here was the same scene that so indelibly impressed my fancy twenty years at Dieppe. The novelty had ceased, and I was quite prepared to see and hear all I did, but my eye was constantly on the rack to see what changes that period of time had produced in France and on the French. There has been a decided progress for the better and Havre has greatly partook of the general prosperity - it is said to be the most thriving of the French ports - and I believe it, for merchants' houses are springing up very rapidly on a delightful hill side, most strongly resembling what Everton [14] was twenty years ago, nice gardens in front of the houses in the English fashion, and the whole town one of the cleanest and neatest and most prosperous looking I saw in France. Almost all the cotton used in France comes to this port. I was quite pleased with it and my companion also who had never seen it before - he expected to find it a poor paltry place like Dieppe or Boulogne. We located at the Hotel de l'Amirante on the quay just opposite the steam packet that took us next day up the Seine to Rouen. We dined at the table d'hote and had broiled mackerel fresh from the sea a la Normandie, that is with nice herbs - capital. The rest as usual quite in the French style which have no synonyms in English, but all excellent. In fact I met with nothing I did not enjoy and my companion took especial care I should try something new every day. The coffee always making all right and one's head as clear and vapourless as you could desire. After dinner we took a long walk and got as high as we could and had an excellent and glorious view of the ocean and town and the opposite coast of the Seine, with the pretty town of Harfleur in the distance. In returning home, we were caught in a heavy shower and notwithstanding sundry shelterings in the cottages of the peasantry in the faubourgs, were wet through. We had good fires lighted in our chambers, dried our clothes and I wrote to Lucy.

Rose next morning at 5 and again mounted a high hill more inland which gave us a more extended view of the town. Our first impressions were confirmed and are correct - it is a delightful spot. We then went to the Mayor's office and got new passports. This detained us an hour. We took a hasty cup of coffee and went on board the Seine steam packet, a French built boat with English engines and engineer. The sail was delightful - the banks of the Seine are steep chalk cliffs on one side, and fine rich meadow land with abundance of cattle on the other. Baum said it was superior to the Rhine in many parts. We arrived at Rouen [15] at ½ past 2 - found a very comfortable hotel, dined at 5 at table d'hote and then took an omnibus to Darnetal about 2 miles in the suburbs to see a calico printer who embraced old Baum and he in turn Madame and several young ladies. We had coffee and liqueurs and I saw the interior of French society. I must observe however that all the persons I saw of Mr Baumgartner's acquaintance were Alsatians --

½ German ½ French, good jolly folks much more resembling the English in person and habits than French people. We returned by the omnibus at ½ past 9 and then three young designers called upon us at our hotel and we had a bottle of champagne with them, heard the news of Rouen, particulars of the riots at Paris and then retired heartily tired to bed.

The next morning after breakfast took a cab and went through print works about 5 miles in the country, which pleased me much. I was astonished at the progress they are making - I expected old antique looking places, with superfluity of labour and circuitous methods. No such thing. Modern erections with the newest arrangements in bleaching and dyeing, but a decided deficiency in their printing machines still remains. They have however a block printing machine which prints three colours at once, which is very extensively used and answers their purpose and which is not known in England. I was most politely received and shown everything - patterns, prices and general arrangements. Intelligent colour mixers and good colour shops with laboratories attached are universal. In this and in taste they decidedly excel us - what I saw has given me a good insight into their capabilities, and has strongly confirmed my views about the corn laws. Depend upon it, foreigners are profiting largely by our blindness on this subject. In 10 years, France, if at peace, will rival us in our export trade, and then where will English prosperity be? They all told me that was the secret of English supremacy. Now they could produce twice their present quantity of goods if they had only foreign markets. They will never cease trying to obtain them.

Three pattern designers spent the evening with us at our hotel and we set off the next morning at 8 in the "Rotonde" of the diligence[16] for Paris where we arrived at ½ past 6. My companion is a great oddity. He has so much benevolent feeling that he will not ride where he can see the horses, because they flog them. This is an amiable feeling but it only led us to the unpleasantest part of this cumbrous and monstrous machine. It holds 8 persons and was quite full, and the roads very dusty. We dined on the road but it was a very tiresome journey. We took up our quarters at the Hotel de Tours, the same place I went to in 1820. Madame Allais, the then landlady is dead, but it is kept by two of her sons. It is the same sort of place, thoroughly French, but now looks upon their noble Exchange, one of the handsomest buildings of the kind in Europe. We had a cup of coffee and an ice in the evening and went early to bed, quite fatigued.

Next morning made many calls before breakfast, which is always taken at 11, and consists of a coutlette of mutton or veal, a beef steak, or what you like, a bottle of ordinary wine, asparagus or peas or artichoke, salad and then coffee without cream but a thimble full of cognac. This is repetition of my daily breakfast, the dinners I will not attempt to describe, it would be fruitless. Went to the Exhibition of Manufactures [17] and were fortunate in meeting with a member of the Chamber of Deputies who knew old Baum and who gave us a perpetual ticket of admission and we made a point of visiting it from 8 to 11 when it was open only to those admitted by contributors or members. At 11 the public was admitted until 4, of course gratis. At 1 the King,[18] Queen and all the Royal Family came and stayed for several hours inspecting all very minutely. I was much surprised to find they were received most coldly - the "vive le roi" was faint and far from hearty, a perfect contrast to what would have hailed our little Queen under similar circumstances. Royalty is at a discount in France, and the people are coerced into obedience by the presence of 40,000 troops in France. The sound of the drum grated upon my ear daily and hourly.

The exhibition contained contributions from 3349 persons, and every species of manufacture from a spun tie to a locomotive steam engine was exposed to view. It was a most interesting employment, but at first very bewildering. It is an immense temporary building of wood erected by the King and cost £20,000 and will all be taken down again in a month. Paris was and is still full of foreigners and persons from the provinces, all attracted by this immense collection. It is 204 yards long and 90 yards broad and is the most superb affair I ever saw. I would willingly go double the distance to see such a collection, and my own business had a room apart from the rest, being a most important branch of commerce. I have brought a very ample collection of patterns, which are much admired both on cotton and mouselline de laine in which they especially excel. From the excellence of my introduced and the respect paid to Baumgartner by all ranks from a colour mixer to members of the Chamber of Deputies, I believe no Englishman saw more select society, and had more attention paid as a printer than I had. I was invited to dinner to meet three members and the first calico printer in the world. I saw their warehouses, their prints, their works, and domestic arrangements. I had business of course in view in going, and I am quite convinced that my object has been answered. I have made many valuable acquaintances, from various parts, and shall go to Muhlhausen [19] some day. I hope to see more work and many of those persons who were only on a visit to Paris at their own homes. They gave me most pressing invitations.

We came away the first day about 4, dined, and I then went to call upon my old friend Milicent Hack, who resides at the West End, and has 4 grown up daughters and one son, three of the girls taller than herself and very intelligent. William Hack is coming to see us in about a fortnight on business. I paid several visits to them during the twelve days I remained and enjoyed a cup of tea with them much. They have an English female servant and a French valet. The youngest daughter has sent Fanny [20] a little book of tales of her own composition with illustrations which is a great treasure.

My time was amply occupied with the Exhibition all the time I remained, and sightseeing being quite secondary. I only visited ...

[1] The Mayfield printworks in Buxton Street, off London Road, Manchester, had been established by Thomas Hoyle in 1782. He took his son Thomas in as partner and carried on business principally as dyers under the name of Thomas Hoyle & Son up to about 1828. Thomas Hoyle junior made over the business to his three sons-in-law William Neild, Joseph Compton and Alfred Binyon. Mayfield became sufficiently important to be included in the itineraries of foreign dignitaries who visited Manchester, and Hoyles' machine-printed calicoes won several awards at the Great Exhibition of 1851.

[2] Agnes Mitchell was one of the Binyons' house servants, still with them, aged 32, at the time of the 1841 census.

[3] Leamington had saline springs, pump-rooms and baths. Were Alfred's wife and family staying there for health reasons?

[4] The London & Birmingham Railway was opened throughout on 17 September 1838. Manchester was not linked to London until 1842.

[5] Villages nine and ten miles respectively south of Lincoln.

[6] Professor Thomas Graham, professor of chemistry at University College London 1837-1855, brother of John Graham, who became a partner in the firm of Thomas Hoyle and Son in 1839.

[7] Torrington Square was close to University College, in Gower Street.

[8] John Dugdale was a calico printer with works near Burnley and a warehouse (?) in Cannon Street, Manchester.

[9] William Stark was a chemist with a dyeworks in Duke Street, Norwich, specialising in Turkey red dyeing, to which manufacturers in the North sent large quantities of goods for dyeing. He devoted much of his time to scientific studies, and became a Fellow of the Geological Society. His brother, James Stark, was one of the Norwich School of artists.

[10] William Pattinson of London had been taken in as a partner in the firm of Thomas Hoyle and Son about 1833. Died 1844.

[11] Either Alfred, born 1832, or Frederick, born 1838.

[12] A group of Chartists had seized the town of Llanidloes, mid-Wales.

[13] Alfred Binyon had married Lucy, daughter of Thomas Hoyle of Mayfield, at the Friends Meeting House, Manchester on 17 July 1828. They remained Quakers until 1837 when a secession took place, led by Isaac Crewdson, and Alfred and his family joined the Church of England. One of his sons and three of his sons-in-law became C of E clergymen.

[14] The merchants of Liverpool had occupied houses on the slopes of Everton before they were engulfed by working-class terraces from mid nineteenth century onwards.

[15] According to the 1894 Baedeker Guide to Northern France, Rouen used to be called the "Manchester of France", by way of tribute to the city's thriving cotton manufacturing industry, notably the production of rouenneries (cotton fabric woven with dyed yarn), the printing and dyeing of the manufactured material and the spinning of other fibres.

[16] public stage-coach.

[17] The idea of exhibitions had emerged in France in the eighteenth century. The first, held in 1797, principally consisted of ceramics, tapestries and carpets, and was intended to help dispose of produce which had proven difficult to sell in the aftermath of 1789. By 1839 the French national exhibitions had acquired an atmosphere of cultural pageantry exceeded only by the international exhibitions of which they were forerunners.

[18] Louis Philippe was monarch from 1830-1848 ("The July monarchy").

[19] The chief industries of Muhlhausen, West Germany, were the spinning and weaving of wool and cotton.

[20] Frances, Alfred and Lucy's eldest daughter, born 1829.