and thankful to His Royal Highness for
having come among us this evening."

Other toasts having been disposed of, the Prince rose and said:--

"It is now my duty, as your Chairman, to call upon you to drink
the toast of 'Prosperity to the British Orphan Asylum.' I am
satisfied you will do so most heartily, when I see around me so
numerous an assembly prepared to do honour to the occasion, and
to assist us in our work. I feel some diffidence in proposing
this toast in the presence of so many who know far better than I
do the excellence of this institution, and understand its
working. At the same time it gives me the greatest pleasure to
propose the toast, and to be here this evening advocating so
excellent a cause. It is always a pleasure to advocate the cause
of charity, and there is no other appeal that comes so home to
the hearts of all classes of the community.

"I have a special interest in this Asylum. It is now nearly
eleven years since the Princess and myself visited and
inaugurated the present building near Slough; and when I pass by
Slough, as I frequently have to do in the course of the year, it
always gives me pleasure to look at that building, and to think
how many children are here provided for and educated. It is now
very nearly half a century since this institution was founded,
and it is different from all others in this respect, that
children of parents who were once in prosperous circumstances
are there educated. In it there are children of officers of the
Army, of the legal, medical, and naval professions, and the
proof of its usefulness is that after they have grown up they
frequently write letters to the managers of the Asylum
expressing their gratitude for the excellence of the practical
education they have received, and which has been so profitable
to them in their different avocations.

"To show how prosperous this Asylum is, I may state that in
January last it contained within four of 200 children. You will
perhaps ask, if this institution is in so prosperous a
condition, why have this dinner? Why call so many people
together? And why am I to ask you, in as civil a manner as I
possibly can, to subscribe towards its support? My answer is,
that the net income of the Asylum is L3000 a year, but that the
increase in prices of all the necessaries of life