art, the Club has
never looked behind it. It is now worth fully L1100, and last year the
number of visitors was upwards of 100,000.

Under the auspices of the Central Club, a Working Men's Industrial
Exhibition was held during the winter of 1865-66 in the Polytechnic
Buildings, Argyle Street. The preliminary outlay for this exhibition was
considerable. Mr. Corbett was appealed to, and he at once gave a cheque
for L500 to start the exhibition, intimating that he should not expect
to be recouped if it was a failure. Happily it turned out otherwise, for
a sum of L1200 was cleared by the exhibition, and it gave the Central
Club an impetus that it has never since lost. Why has the experiment not
been repeated? Has the Central Working Men's Club lost its cunning?

The latest, but not the least important exhibition of Mr. Corbett's
philanthropy to which we shall refer is his bequest of L2000 to Mr.
William Quarrier, for the founding of a Home for Destitute and Orphan
Children. To the results of Mr. Quarrier's scheme allusion has from time
to time been made in the local prints. We need only remark here that it
is calculated to supply one of the most pressing and important social
and moral wants of the city.

The part which Mr. Corbett has taken in connection with the
establishment of a Seaside Home at Saltcoats is so generally known that
to refer to it is enough. For the permanent support of these homes, he
has built a number of model working men's dwellings at Whiteinch. The
architectural and other arrangements of these homes were planned by Mr.
Corbett himself. There are altogether sixteen dwellings from each of
which a rent of L10 per annum is drawn. Altogether, Mr. Corbett has
expended about L1500 upon the Saltcoats Homes, in addition to what he
has provided by way of endowment.

With reference to Mr. Corbett's family history, we have left ourselves
little room to speak. His father was a doctor in the Gorbals, and
Thomas, after having been educated at the High School of Glasgow,
commenced business as a tea merchant. While trading in this capacity he
turned his attention to shipping, and in the course of time he went into
the Australian produce trade altogether, freighting vessels on a large
scale to and from Glasgow. His Australian business has been so
prosperous that he was induced a few years ago to remove altogether to
London, where it could have more scope. He still continues to reside in
the Metropolis, although he