I was early placed on a deputation to London. I think there were six or seven deputations in London at one time, each attended by a deputy town clerk. We stayed at the Burlington Hotel, and had seats provided for us in the theatre and opera, and carriages to drive in the parks. It was said that the bill at the Burlington Hotel, at the end of that Parliamentary session, was "as thick as a family Bible." CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. In 1870 I was elected Vice-President of the Chamber of Commerce, becoming the President in 1871, and was also made a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society of London. My work at the chamber was very pleasant and congenial, and together with the late Mr. Lamport, Mr. Philip Rathbone, and Mr. John Patterson, we did a good deal in moulding the commercial legislation of that time, the Merchant Shipping Bill and the Bankruptcy Bill being drafted by our Commercial Law Committee. In 1878 the Liverpool Chamber of Commerce was reconstituted, the old chamber having got into bad repute through becoming too political. The election of the president of the re-organised chamber was left to the vote of the three thousand subscribers to the Exchange News Room. Eight names were submitted, and I was elected president for the second time. During the following three years excellent work was done by the chamber, it became very influential with the Government and took rank as the first chamber in the country. We declined all invitations to be associated with other chambers, deeming that Liverpool was sufficiently strong and powerful to stand alone, and in this I think we acted wisely. AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. The American Chamber of Commerce existed for the purpose of safeguarding the interests of the American trade, and was supported by dues levied on every bale of cotton imported into Liverpool. In its day it did great and useful work, and accumulated quite a large capital, which it spent in giving very gorgeous banquets to the American Ministers and distinguished strangers. I became president of this chamber in 1872, and during my term of office we entertained General Skenk, the new American Minister, and others. JOINT COMMITTEE ON RAILWAY RATES.