102
NOTES AND QUERIES. [ii s. xn. AUG. 7, 1915.
are any of the Rev. John Walker's descen-
dants living. In his will, which is to be
seen at Somerset House, as mentioned in the
Supplement of the ' Dictionary of National
Biography,' he repeatedly mentions his
eldest son Charles, who is to receive 500Z.
in addition to his share under the will. The
parish register, however, shows Henry to
h ave been the elder of the two brothers.
A. H. MACLEAN. 14, Dean Road, Willesden Green, N.W.
" MB. HANWELL," PROBABLY AN ARTIST. I shall be extremely grateful for any informa- tion concerning the above man. All that concerns him at present in my possession is the item in the Joiners' Company records under the date 1676, " Paid Mr. Hanwell for the panel, 305. ' ' The courteous Librarian of the Wandsworth Library informs me that a family of that name long resided in that district, but we cannot trace an artist in the family. The panel represents a sitting of the Court. J. A.
AMERICAN UNDERGROUND RAILWAY. Could any American reader name the stations of the " Underground Railway " from the Slave States to Canada, of which the Quaker Levi Coffin was the reputed President ?
M. N.
MECHANICS' INSTITUTES.
(11 S. xii. 49.)
GEORGE BIRKBECK, the pioneer of popular education (born 1776; died 1841), was appointed about the year 1 800 to be Professor of Natural Philosophy at the Andersoniaii Institution at Glasgow. John Anderson, who had died a year or so previously (1796), had left property to establish an Institution for Scientific Instruction. The lectures which George Birkbeck had to deliver upon natural philosophy required to' be illustrated by means of special apparatus, but, as the makers of the required articles in Glasgow were both scarce and unreliable, Birkbeck decided to superintend and direct the making of the instruments, and to this end he made use of a tinman's shop in Glasgow. This shop was at the corner of Glassford and Wilson Streets, and it was owned by a man named Drew. Birkbeck regularly visited the shop of this small mechanic, and he became the foreman and the friend of the workers. These humble sons of toil had
never before had a man of education to
assist them and direct their efforts. Their
ambitions were roused and their horizons
extended. Birkbeck therefore procured ad-
mission to the Andersonian Institution for the
most intelligent of the men, and in the end
tie devoted a certain number of his lectures
exclusively to the benefit of the mechanics.
This move of introducing mechanics was at
first not favourably regarded by the trustees
of the Institution, and Birkbeck encountered
much opposition. He at last succeeded in
starting what was called a Mechanics' Class
at the Andersonian Institution, and Saturday
evenings were suitably chossn for this.
Birkbeck left Glasgow in 1804, but his work there was ably continued by Dr. Ure, and in 1823, when the class had become successful, they addressed Birkbeck (then living in London) as follows :
" You judged that the apparent mental lethargy of the operatives towards science arose from no infirmity of their mental powers and you judged right .... You undertook the generous task of giving the first impulse and of directing their atten- tion to studies worthy; of their pursuit," &c.
In 1823 the Mechanics' Class decided to be " on its own," and the result was that the Glasgow Mechanics' Institute was formed, Birkbeck being their patron.
Birkbeck, meantime, was bent upon starting a Mechanics' Institute in London, and on 11 Nov., 1823, a meeting was held at "The Crown and Anchor Tavern " to discuss the project. Lord Brougham, could not attend, but he sent 20Z. The letter which he wrote to Birkbeck concluded :
" As you were the original author of this admirable scheme about twenty years ago, and then carried it on a large scale into execution, allow me to congratulate you on the prospect of its adoption in this great city, where its benefits and examples are likely to prove of such inestim- able value."
Cobbett spoke at the meeting, and eventually a committee was formed which included Francis Place, the Radical tailor of Charing Cross. On 20 Feb., 1824, an opening meeting was held at a chapel in Monkwell Street, London Wall, of which temporary use had been obtained. Birkbeck began a speech on that occasion by saying :
" With feelings of exultation umitterable, I rise to offer my warmest heartfelt congratulations on this momentous occasion. This hour is witness to hopes, long, ardently, and anxiously cherished by me, now rapidly realizing in the visible and effective existence of a Mechanics' Institution jn the emporium of the world." Offices were later secured in Furnival's Inn, and afterwards in Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane.
