The Sun. — London, England, 1824-03-02 00:00:00

THE LONDON JOURNALS. DAILY Rxtructs.from the Morning Papers, March 2. [NEW -TIMES] A very unexpected and somewhat curious de bate sprang up last night in the House of Com mons, respecting the privileges of the House. — On a subject so delicate it may not be proper for us to enter into particular examination of the ar guments used on either side ; suffice it to say, that the debate arose out of a complaint made by Mr. Abercromby, of a Breach of Privilege, in consequence of some remarks attributed to the Lord Chancellor.—ln one respect discussions like those of yesterday evening may prove ulti mately beneficial : they may tend to place Par liamentary Privilege on the basis of clear and in telligible principle. At present no small confu sion and some inconsistency exist, both in theory and practice, as to the right which individuals out of the House possess to animadvert on what passes within its doors. The common and po- Ralar notion is, that the Debates in Parliament are meant to be public in the fullest sense of the word,and that individuals have the same right to animadvert on them as ,on any other public de bates. But this notion neither agrees in theory nor in practice with the Privileges of Parliament. In strict theory, we apprehend, the debates are private. No stranger is present at them but. by the indulgence of the House ; and neither Mem bers nor strangers have a right to report out of doors what passes in the house. While this theory was constantly acted upon, that freedom of debate, which was necessary for the public good, could do little or no private in jury ; but when the doors were practically thrown open to the public, and the House countenanced and encouraged the dispersion of its debates all over the kingdom by means of Newspaper Reports, various difficulties .and inconveniences presented themselves, at least as possibilities. It became possible for a Member to stir up disaffection in large classes of the people by violent and even seditious harangues, or to hold up to public hatred or con tempt the most harmless private individuals, or the most exalted and venerable Officers of State. On the other hand, occasion was given for per sons who thought themselves injured by speeches in Parliament, to call upon the Members for ex planation, apology, or satisfaction. And a third class of evils became almost unavoidable ; namely, that by errors, intentional or unconscious, in the reports of speeches, all the preceding inconve niences might be caused or aggravated. We con ceive that due freedom and publicity of the Parliamentary Debates are highly useful ; we concei►e that the maintenance of the just privi leges of Parliament is vitally important ; but we do really think, that some better system than that which now prevails is necessary for the attain went of these several and clashing objects. , . • [BRITISII: PR ESS.] 'Thee languor that • has hung as yet around the present.Sassion was last night completely dis pelled in the Lower House. Mr. Abercromby, earl-Lin' the evening, brought a most important , charge,., involving even a . breach of privilege, against no less a.4)ersonage than the Lord 'Chan cellOri for language said to have, been . .osed,:by that high - . personage in LincOln's Inn'Hall, on. last Saturday, when, from the Chanoroßench, he woi retorted to have charged the' Mo. Member f6r. Calve' . with direct •-faliabo6d,... A most ani mated discussion •succeeded•Xor several hours, at thb close of. which Mr. Abt4Cremby's motion, for calling the short-hand writer, Mr. Farquharson, who reported what the Chancellor said, be fore the House, was negatived on a division, but not by very large. majority. Minis ters, of course, threw . the broad shield of pro tection round their colleague, as fully as possible, and Mr. Abercromby lost: his • motion, not by ar-' gnment, but by numbers.. There can be no ques tion, if the Chancellor made use of the language imputed to him on Saturday, that it sills every way most unjustifiable. All freedom of .debate , must cease if allusions.of this sort can be made, and with impunity. If the Chancellor wished to refute or deny any of the charges made against him during the late debate in the Lower -House, he had other means and opportunities of doing so. The subject might have been introduced by any of his friends in the House of Lords.; and Lord Eldon could then quit the Woolsack, to offer any explanation of his judicial conduct he pleased. But the judgment seat of the high Court where he presides was the last place from whence coarse aspersions of this description should have issued. The hasty ebullitions of temper should there at least be restrained.— A lengthened possession of almost uncontrouled power, political and legal, for more than twenty years, seems to have persuaded Lord Eldon that he may now say or do almost any thing he thinks fit. But high as his elevation is, there is a power yet above him, to which even he must bend ; he cannot grossly wound either public or private feeling, and hope to pass enscathed. His con duct latterly has formed the subject of strong animadversion in Parliament and beyond its doors; if unjustly made, he should have adopted another mode of defence ; neither the language lie is said to have used, nor the place selected for its utterance, were suited to. his - cha racter or station. There can be • no question, that from any other individual the same expressions, thus • publicly vented would, on being brought before the House, be voted a direct breach of privilege, and a com mittal to Newgate be the almost certain conse quence. .We cannot this morning allude further to this important .subject. The debate. upon it will be read with great interest. The Chancellor, during the discussion, was, we understand, in the House, up stairs, and greatly agitated. We are not surprised •he should have felt strongly on. the occasion. It is now confidently said that his re-' tireMent i Certain, and• that he will select the firs`[` opportunity of resigning . his high employ niiontS into more popular hands. .111, fact, such is the „AI,IOIVII wish of the must influential ..of his colleagues. Lord Eldon adds nothing to the character or popular influence of the Ministry. r 'NORNING HERALD.] L' It is understood that the Leeward Island Packet was seen beating its way into Falmouth Harbour early on Sunday morning. It is there fore expected that the letter bag will be in town this day, and it is supposed that the packet will bring something important both from South Ame rica I! nd our West India Islands.—The British Money Market was yesterday in a state of great activity, and nearly all the Securities advanced, more or less, in. value. Consols for the April Ac count were once as high as 94k, but this very high quotation brought.so many realizing specu lators on the Market, that they subsequently de clined in value, wit.] closed at 931, Buyers, with a good Market.—We had considerable business doing in the Foreign Market, and almost every Foreign Security advanced upon Saturday's quo tations. The half year's dividend being taken from the value of Mr. Rothschild's Russian Loan makes that security appear nominally lower than on. Saturday, but in reality it had not declined in value. [THE TIMES.] The French Papers of Saturday contain the results of a great number more of the elections, the commencement of which in Paris we noticed yesterday. The telegraph has been put in mo tion on all the lines of telegraphic communication by which France is intersected, and the victories of the Ministers in the Electoral Colleges have been transmitted with the same zealous rapidity as their military triumphs in the Spanish cam paign. Nor is this the only point of resemblance between the two contests. In both, the Ministry have fought against constitutional rights, so lemnly guaranteed ; in both they have exerted the whole force of the Government in opposition to the laws which ought to have prevailed in the respective cases, in both they have practised a system of delusion, and laid the founda tion of ultimate success in a lavish employ ment of the means of seduction and violence. Un happily, too, in both cases they had to contend with antagonists undisciplined, acting without concert, and unprovided with the means of re sistance. The consequence has been, that out of 112 returns (nearly a third of the whole representation), only nine are in favour of the Li berals. Paris, whose deputation was nearly altogether Liberal at former elections, and where the most confident hope was enter tained of a similar result in this, returns five Ultras from the eight small or arron dissement Colleges of which it is composed. In the small Colleges of the Provinces, the result is still more striking in favour of the Ministry ; and there is almost no doubt that the great or departmental electoral bodies will send to the Chamber a very scanty portion of Opposition candidates. What will become of public dis cussion in the next session, when the members will be nearly all of one opinion ? The phrases formerly employed in speaking of the Chamb er must be disused ; for instead of having a right and left side, there will be only one side. The Liberal Opposition deputies will not be more numerous than the door-keepers, and equally inefficient for the purpose of resisting obnoxious measure, or controlling a violent majority. [MORNING eon.] An unexpected but interesting discussion arose last night •in the Commons on a question of breach of privilege alleged to have been committed - by. no less a personage than the Lord Chancellor of England. The facts appeared ,to be. these :—One- Ofeur.cotemporaries.gave on Wednesday :list an incorrect report of Mr..Abercromby's speech on the practice of the Court of Chancery.. It was not until-, Saturday morning, however, that the erroneous...report was sent and put into the hands of the Noble and Learned:Lord, who noticed it immediately in Court, and declared that the state , ment which it contained was " an utter false hood." • For this did Mr. Abercromby appeal to the House to defend its privileges, which he as serted to have been violated hi his person.— Mr. Secretary Canning fully admitted that he did not understand thedliOn. and Learned Gentleman to speak personally of the Lord Chancellor in any one respect ; and that if he had .been called upon elsewhere to give - his opinion upon that 'speech, he should do the Hon. and Learned Gen tleman no more than justice in saying that there was nothing in it beyond the fair licence of dis cussion. He also justly stated, that. he wished most sincerely that in the interval which had passed between the publicatian of the speech and the end of the week, some other and more authen tic sources • of information had been consulted, before the uttering by the Noble. Lord of the ex pressions now complained of; and he trusted that the lion. and ' Learned Gentleman having most ably and satisfactorily ,cleared himself in the eyes of the House and the country, would not-press his motion, and thus preclude himself from the substantial satisfaction of knowing, that what be did say would . not have excited those feelings in the Lord Chancellor, which were ex cited merely, by • a statement of what he had not said. M r. Brougham, Mr. Scarlett, M r, Tierney, aad Sir James - Mackintosh, contended that the question no longer rested. between the Lord Chancellor • and. Mr. Abercromby, and that the privileges of the House must be vindi cated. The Solicitor and the Attorney General. Maintained . that the Noble. and Learned Lord had not spoken against the Hon. Member, .but against the erroneous statement published in. the I.).per, and. Mr, Se:retary'Peel strongly urged that the passage complained of in his NOble Friend7S.speechi,proceeded from the spurof the moment i whilst under irritated feelings, and that in the expression. then, used there was no preme ditated intention of violating the privileges of the House, and above all, no intention. of cOnveying•a threat to any. professional Gentleman.. Affer a short reply. from Mr. Abercromby, the House divided, - and the motion for inquiry was nega , tived by . a majority. of 151 to• 102. The •Miscel-• laneous Estimates underwent considerable- dis. cussion ; in the course. of 'which it • was men tioned that Sir • George umont • hod'giiien his valuable collection of Pictures to serve as a foundation for the intended National Gallery. This noble and magnificent donation was the subject of just praise. It was mentioned by the . Chancellor of the. Exchequer that Mr. Smirke has furnished a plan for the New Post-Office, which has been much admired. It is to be a structure of great magnitude, with an lonic por tico, and windows of a large size, with mould ings in bold relief. EMORNING. CHRONICLEd The circumstance which gage rise. to a very warm debate last night in the House of Commons, forms a singular contrast with a subject of klate motion in that House, the delays in the Court of Chancery. It is notorious that from these de lays thousands and thousands have been involved in ruin,during Lord Eldon'sChancellorship,and as the evil,which has at length become insupportable, the. delay in. obtaining justice, extends over the whole of the time his Lordship has held the Seals, he must either have been unequal , to the dispatch of the business which came before him, or he must be chargeable with want of due dili gence. Whichever of these causes his Lordship may assign for the delay, it will be difficult for him to shake himself clear of a heavy responsi bility. If we take the most favourable alternative, that which has been put forward by his friends, and say that the increase of business in the Court of Chancery is the cause of the calamitous delay, what are we to think of the man who could wit ness day after day for nearly a quarter of a century, the spectacle of one individual after another—one family after another, sinking into the gulph of ruin from the impossibility of ob taining justice, without stating his inability to remedy the evil, in order that other Means might have been adopted with a view to that object ? It was for him, and for him alone, to say, either that he was or was not equal to the due discharge of the business of the various offices which he filled, and having hitherto re mained passive, he is justly chargeable with the unspeakable mischief which the long endurance of the evil has occasioned. So long, however, as the Chancery suitors only were concerned, the Lord Chancellor was all patience ; and if the commiserating their fate had not somehow or other led all persons in the least capable of connecting causes with their consequences, to the irresistible conclusion, that on any supposition his Lordship had to answer for the delay of jus tice, so notorious in his Court, his patience would, perhaps, have been as signal as ev er . B u t as the evil could not be exposed withoutdrawing attention forcibly to the cause of it, the Lora Chancellor's temper at last forsook him. The debate on the motion of Mr. Williams seems tQ have not only ruffled his Lordship, .but fairly overturned in an instant the system of his life. An incorrect statement of what fell from Mr. Abercrombie in the course of that de bate relating to his Lordship, by some accident was the one which he chanced to read ; and it i s curious that in this case, ; where lie was himself concerned, he should neither have examined any of the contemporary versions, which all differed from it, nor inquired of any of his friends or of the author, with a view to ascertain how the matter actually stood, but at once proceed to qualify the statement as an utter falsehood, and to make it the subject of a severe attack from the Bench on a Member of the House who e practised at his own Bar. " We have, said Mr. a great deal, Sir, of the de licacyAbercrombie, oLord r Eldon,heard d d of his anxious desire of justice, of that amiable weakness of mind too sensible to the fear of possible wrong to others, and too cautious to decide lest . he should decide erroneously. If this had been a case in which the right of private parties had been concerned, there would have been, no doubt, argument after argument, affidavit and supplemental affidavit, months and years would have passed, and the too sensitive mind of Lord Eldon would have abstained from settling those claims which it is his duty to decide on. But what, Sir, was his mode of proceeding when there was no occasion to pronounce from the seat of justice an anathema founded on a false statement of facts to destroy the character of an individual whom he supposed to have censured himself. Then, indeed, to the just mind of the just Lord Eldon, 'there seemed no room for caution—no time for inquiry. He at once proceeded to de cide, to pronounce, and to execute his sentence." Des•rnucTioN of ''goon-Mtw.—On Tues day morning, about two o'clock, Mr. IRVINE, who carries on the business of cutting wood into veneers, at - IVood-Mill, on the river lichen, about three miles from. .L;Juthampton, was awakened by the loud barking of his dog, and on getting out of bed to ascertain the cause, dis covered that the premises, containing his machinery were on fire, and that not a moment was to be loft in seeking, his safety. He was so much alarmed, that he ran with his wife down stairs, almost in a state of 'nudity. He afterwards recollected .that he • had some •money, about forty pounds, and some other property,. in a chest, in his bed-room, which he was desirous of saving, but on reaching the room, theLflames had made such - progress, that he was obliged to make a hasty retreat. From the. combustible nature of the buildings, princi pally wood, tarred, the progress of the fire was very rapid. Messengers were dispatched to Southampton for the engines, but ere they could arrive, not only were the premises of Mr. InerNE destroyed, but also the corn-mills in the oc cupation . of Messrs. Lomett, . which imme diately adjoined. From the latter, however, much flour was saved. Fortunately no lives were lost. The effect produced by the flames on the horizon .and: the surrounding country was very grand. The fire .is•supposed to have been caused by the: friction of the .saw, which was ground some time the evening. before, when sparks were emitted from it in the same manner as from a-razor when applied to the grinder's stone. The premises were insured in the Norwich Union•, and the•machinern with the stock of mahogany, .&c. in .the County Fire-Office. The flour, &c. was 4.0 t insured.. WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL OBSERVATIONS and CORRESPONDENCE occasioned by the FAILURE and RENOVATION of a PRINCI PAL PIER in WINCHESTER CATHEDRAL. [Concluded from Yesterday's Surr.] The Author does not consider it necessary to use, in this ap peal, copies of the o ffi cial Reports presented to th e Dean and Chapter by himself, or by the Surveyor Extraordinary con sulted upon the occasion ; but it is essential to his purpose to extract from the latter the passage which produced the ru mours so injurious to his reputation, and which, he has reason to believe, has proved prejudicial to his interests. EXTRACT FROM THE REPORT OF THE SURVEYOR EX7 TRAORDINARY. " I accordingly consulted 111 r. and examined with him the state of the two piers, (called columns in the resolu tions) and inspected the securities he had provided, preparatory to taking down, and re-building them. If it were necessary to take down the piers, the means which Mr. Garbett has adopted to secure the building could not be more judicious; but it is not, in my opinion, necessary to take them down, or advisable to attempt it; the masonry above the springing of the arches does not appear to have given way, but continues to be sup ported by those stones of the pier which are yet sound, assisted by the core of rubble work within. I therefore recommend that they be not disturbed. The piers do not seem to have sunk, which implies that the foundations are sound." The Report, from which the foregoing is extracted, having been put into the hands of the Dean and Chapter's Surveyor, together with the plan to which it referred, he found that he must have been much mistaken in what he understood to have been the Extraordinary Surveyor's observations respecting the preparation made in the Cathedral on the 22d of October, as he had not, before the Report was read, the slightest idea that the significant iv was impending, and ready to crush him with a weight equal to that from which he had relieved the disabled pillars. Ile did not, however, feel inclined to question the con sistency of the Surveyor Extraordinary, and much less was he ' disposed to be flattered into passive compliance, by a compli ment rendered worse than nugatory, by the succeeding sentence in the notable Report of the Surveyor Extraordinary. It will be easily conceived that the Chapter Surveyor could not have read the Report of the Surveyor Extraordinary without a considerable degree of surprise, and that he must have felt it incumbent on himself to refute the injurious, and, in his opi nion, illiberal insinuations it contained. In accordance with such a feeling, and as the first step towards the accomplishment of so desirable an object, he presented to the Dean, and Chap ter a paper, describing " the circumstances and considerations which induced " him to form, and still induce him to adhere to, an opinion not quite in unison with that of the respecta ble and high authority with which it would have been so de sirable to him to have concurred."—He also conceived it pro per to state, that when, from deference to the suggestions of the Dean and Chapter, as well as from an earnest desire that the work intrusted to his care should lie proceeded upon with every possible precaution, he recommended a reference to other professional advice, he was most fully persuaded, that the opi nion he had formed upon the important object would have been confirmed ; but although lie had been disappointed in that expectation, he trusted that the Rev. Body would have believed, that he would not have persisted in his former opi nion, if any light had been thrown upon the subject to con vince him that he had formed that opinion upon erroneous grounds, and he could not but lament the necessity which im posed upon him the unpleasant task of controverting a different opinion. In stating his reasons for persisting in his former opi nion of the state of the interior part of the failing pier, he found it necessary to observe, that although the masonry of the arches, and what was immediately supported by them, did not appear fractured or displaced, yet that circumstance, while the base did not appear to have sunk, and while the space between the base and capital was absolutely diminished, had strongly operated upon his mind in producing the conviction, that the had well dclolfor if the n a t s in th u e casing edtor c o s f i s t t h e t pier,he pressure had gi imposedwa y; upon it, while the masonry surrounding it yielded in every di rect i on , l ie c co or r e e, conceived there would have been good reason to believe, that some defect must have appeared in the arches ; and he was quite satisfied that a sinking of the core, sufficient to account for the bulging of the casing, might have happened without producing any perceptible effect upon the arches. The Surveyor to the Dear. and Chapter having discover ed that' the precaution he used in securing the outward wall of the fabric, was particularly censured as useless and ex travagant, he found it necessary to state, in hit explanatory Report, that the outer face of that wall had an inclination of six inches from the perpendicular, in the height of twelve feet, while it was found that the inner face.. inclined only half an inch in the same directidri ;* by : which. it appeared, that the ac cient part of the wall had an inclination of five inches, and half from the perpendicular, at the time when Bishop Wyke ham made - his addition upon it, in.,thefourtedith century—a circumstance which-the Surveyor to the Dean and Chapter trust ed would justify the precaution he , need to. fortify-that wall against the effects of any additional pressure.or concussion to which it might have Been' expilsed during the.progreu of the repairs within. The Surveyor to the Dean ;rid - Chapter also conceived it his I duty (considering the circumstance under-which he was placed) to express, in writing, his opinion -of the inefficapy of-the plan of repair recommended by the Surveyor-Extraordinary ; and he did not hesitate to predict verbally, that 'a certain part of that plan ,would be found - impracticable if - attempted to be carried into execution.(l,4 •-., While the Surveyor of the Dean and Chapter was thus en. deavouring to prove that his , proceedings were indispensably necessary, a rumour was circulated beyond the immediate vici nity of Winchester, that an unnecessary expenee had been in curred, of several hundred pounds, in erecting scaffolding for the repair of defects in the Cathedral, which a more able archi tect had pronounced to be of an unimportant nature ; from this it was inferred, that the expence had been incurred upon a mere scaffolding ofyoles and planks, for facilitating the ordinary ope rations of workmen, instead of an effective frame of substan tial timber, calculated to sustain the weight which had abso lutely crushed the massive pillars originally destined for its support, and also to counteract the complicated pressure of the arches composing the ponderous vaulting of the nave and aisles. At this period some curiosity was excited in the neigh bourhood, to ascertain whether it was the intention of the Sur veyor Extraordinary to remove the preparation which he had considered unnecessary, but such a measure was prudently avoided, except in a very slight degree, which will be hereafter noticed ; and at this period, also, it was intimated to the Dean and Chapter Surveyor, by persons whose rank in society entitle their opinion to consideration and respect, that his reputation must be affected by the issue of the question upon which lie was so decidedly at variance with higher pro fessional authority; in consequence of this, it was his inten tion, at his own expence, to have referred the point to the de cision of another Architect, which he proposed to have done in the following terms : Winchester, 31st Jan. 1022. SIR—In consequence of a difference in opiniortbetween my self, as Surveyor to the Dean and Chapter of Winchester Ca. thedral, and a gentleman who has been consulted professionally, respecting an important repair necessary to he undertaken in that fabric, I am anxious, on my own account, to obtain some further and competent professional opinion upon the same sub ject : if, therefore, you can conveniently undertake a journey to Winchester, the earliest day you could name would be most agreeable to me. The question at issue arises from the failure of two principal piers between the nave and south aisle of the Cathedral.; and the points upon whi c h I a m desirous of b e ing f avoure d with your opinion are, first, whether any repair of such a nature ought to be proceeded upon, without previously taking more than ordinary precaution to support and preserve the equili brium of the superincumbent parts of the structure : secondly; whether the precautions that have been adopted are proper and sufficient for those purposes : and, thirdly, which would be the most efficient of two different plans proposed, for the restora tion of the failing piers. I shall feel much obliged by an early line, if you can appoint a day to be here, that I may keep clear of any other engage ment on that day. I am, Sir, your most obedient humble servant, WM. GARBETT. This was intended to have been addressed to an architect of first-rate eminence in London ; but the measure was aban doned, after consultation with friends, who urged its inutility, with the just observation, that a judgment could not then be formed upon fair grounds, because the pier had been probed, by direction of the Surveyor Extraordinary, to an extent that the most daring hand would not have hazarded, before the se curities were erected. The real fact is, that, under this opera tion, a great quantity of loose materials, and perished mortar, amounting to more than a cart load, fell from the pier, and dis closed what afterwards proved to be a fallacious appearance of interior solidity. This experiment fortunately was not made before all danger was prevented of the consequences that might have ensued, in the absence of proper precaution ; but a discovery was thereby supposed to be made, which was hailed as a confirmation of the opinion of the Su•rveyor.Extra ordinary, that a large portion of the pier still remained unin jured ; and this supposition furnished a plausible sort of ground for re-asserting, in opposition to the opinion of the Chapter Surveyor, that the defects in the outer masonry or casing of the pier were only occasioned by the intermediate' loose rubble pressing against it, and that the central portion remained sound,,,anttadequate to the support of the•immense weight of the superstructure. 0)3 the other hand, the Chapter Surveyor could not be in duced to adopt such a proposition, because, in doinkso,. •raustliave admitted that a body infe'zioriti magnitude,. as well as in specific gravity, possessed power to displace a body supe nor in both thos e qua lities, w ith ou t impulsive agency; wk lch appeared to him absurd. The Chapter Surveyor , therefore per sisted in his former opinion, that the bulging of the regular masonry forming the casing of the pier, could not h a ve been occasioned merely by the tendency of a comparativelY small portion of loose or imperfectly cemented rubble to expand laterally from the simple effect of gravity, unless that tendency had been accompanied by some defect in the . central part or core of the pier. (2) The Chapter Surveyor having thus stated the conflicting oPi' nions, and the reasons by which he, was, influenced, and having consented to pledge his professional reputation upon the re sult of ulterior proceedings over which he relinquished all fur ther controul, is now anxious to redeem that pledge by stating the facts developed during the progress of the partial restore' tion of the piers, and the proofs by which these facts are esta blish ed. The result has shewn, he trusts most clearly, that the inner core of the pier, which. was so decidedly asserted to be sound, was so much ruptured and crushed, that many considerable flakes were removed from it, and what remained in a similarly ruptured state was not retained in its situation without consi derable difficulty and expence ; and it must have appeared eli" dent to every reflecting observer, that such difficulty and ex: pence would have been greatly increased, but for the powerful assistance derived from the preparation which had been pre viously derided. It is also an undeniable fact, that during the progress of the work, such a settlement or compression of the ruptured core occurred, that several fissures appeared, and continued to in' crease in the superincumbent masonry, till the iron columns were completed ; a circumstance which no one can regret more than the Author of this Appeal, although the occurrence affords the most decisive proof that the measuers he adopted were nel only not improper, but justifiable by the most imperious nej cessity ; while he conceives he has a right to assume, that un' der his own superintendence they would have been more effec tual : for in the first place it is to be observed that the weight ;cal suffered to remain upon the timber frame longer than he contemplated, and much lon ge r th an it would have been , 1 ,1; fered to have remained, if his system had been adopted ; condly, he must regret that anv part of the frame he IJA", constructed was removed, for though the quantity of timber displaced was very small in proportion to what, was retained, yet its situation rendered its office important, and it may be fairly assumed, that besides the effect to be derived front simple numbers, and even from relative situation, other causes may he assigned why a greater number of props may be expected to effect a purpose for which a less num.' her may prove insufficient; for it might have happened that those which were removed stood upo,fl a more solid foundation than others which remained, or the equalization of weight, upon a given surface of foundation, may have been disarranged. But what must be considered still more import ant, and actually did occur, was the diminution of the surface of foundation, provided not only for the supports that were re moved, but also conjointlyfor those which remained ; and this was done for an alleged purpose, which was not ultimately made available, namely, to give space for extending the foundations' of the pier, which was not done. In conclusion, the Chapter Surveyor feels it incumbent upon him to chew, that what he has stated as facts, does not rest open his own assertion, hut is established by the following proofs. First, that the interior of the pillar was ruptured, and in a worse state than it was expected by the Surveyor Extraordinary to have been found, was admitted in the presence of several gentlemen of the first respectability, by the person deputed by the Surveyor Extraordinary to superintend the work. If that admission had attained the same publicity as the imputed error of, the Chapter Surveyor, this appeal would not have been necessary ; but such a promulgation was not to be expected , because it must obviously have led to an inquiry in every re flecting mind, of what would have been the consequence of s° late a discovery of such an important fact, if the measures so unequivocally condemned had not been adopted. (3) Secondly. that fissures of considerable extent did appear in the super structure during the progress of the work, and can still be traced, is known to many respectable persons, inhabitants' of Winchester and others ; and that the same did nut exist before its commencement, is most satisfactorily proved by the Surveyor Extraordinary himself, both by his Report to the Dean and Chapter, (4) dated 24th Novemberf 1821, and by his letter to the Chapter. Surveyor of the same date, (5) Thirdly, beside these admissions, it was. desirable that the Chapter Surveyor should know what the Master .3 13 " son, who was employed upon the work, would state uPon the subject. In the presence, therefore, of several gentlemen of the highest respectability, the Chapter Surveyor (having.Pur' posely avoided any previous conversation with that person upon the subject) explained to him, and to the gentlemen present, that it was not hi s intention to require any opfuir! from him, bat only to request him to explain the fact as to We' state of the interior part of the pier after th e remova l of the outer casing of masonry ?: To this he replied " The core %ea° spit open at the four angles so wide that I could lay mg arn i tifito it." He was then asked, whether.all the reputed parts!: had described were removed?. His answer was, " , A r v' , were afraid to do that." (6) A drawing was then sheen " 4 1 , him, and he was asked, wh e th er i t was a true representat i o n the parts of the Cathedral he had repaired, and of the defec ts ' he had described ? To whichhe answered, "Itis a true rePre' serration, except that the c rac k s i n th e core went farther thaw appear by this drawing," He was then asked by one of the gentlemen present, what was his opinion respecting the Wet whether any part of it .would have remained, if all that Ws! fractured had been removed ? To this he answered, " No, I ' do not think it would." has been the intention of the- Author, in the foregoing pages, to abstain from declamation or invective, because his nbd. tect is not to shew that the opinions or practice of others were wrong, any farther than as he conceives it necessary to prone that his own were right. In this (which is to him the most tin' portant consideration) he is inclined to indulge the hoJ that he has succeeded; and he begs leave to express bi' 4- most grateful acknowledgment for the honour done him bif those who may have been pleased to peruse his statement. (Signed) IV DI. GA RBETT. (1) The part, of the plan alluded to, teas found Impractioa' ble ; and if it had ever been intended to have been carried into execution, the intention was very soon abandoned. (2) It may not be deemed irrelevant to state, that it had been proposed to the Chapter-Surveyor to remove some . part of the casing of the Pier, in order to ascertain the real stateof the in' terior ; to which he replied, that. such an examination migllC prove deceptious, as it was not expected that the core would be" found defective throughout , its entire height, and the.experi" ment probably might not happen to be made upon the most un' sound part ; added to which, he (lid not consider it prudent: o disturb any part of the pier, before the iron columns, which he had recommended, were prepared and ready to set up with the least possible delay ; . because there would be found a grey difference whether the weight of the superstructure might be left entirely to the support of the timber frame a few days or $ month ; for it was to be recollected, that this frame was n" cessarily constructed in parts, with timber laid horizontally-I' position in which it was. liable to compression by continued weight, as well as to shrinking by the action of the air.. (3) That these measures would not have been adopted by the Surveyor Extraordinary is manifest, bec ause h e h as i n timate d that they were altogether unnecessary ; and that this censure admits of no qualification is equally manifest, because. he gall if they had been necessary, they could not have beertizore in' dicious. (4) See page 9. (5) See page 8. (6) The Chapter Surveyor, having pledged himself not to ask any opinion of the Master Mason, felt it necessary to ab" stain from an inquiry as to the grounds of the fear thus express" ed. It certainly occurred to his mind, that such fear mus t have resulted from an apprehension that the predictions of the Chapter Surveyor would have been verified more palpably than they had already been ; which made it desirable, to those who had maintained an opposite opinion, to conceal, .as much as possible, the extent of the existing defects. It is difficult te' conceive that fear could have arisen from any other cause, sine' it had been repeatedly asserted and echoed that the precaution s ' adopted were superabundant in quantity ; and it will be lected that it was admitted, that if" such precautions “ / 4 (D ° been necessary" they " could not have been more judicious i 3 quality. BIRTHS. On Saturday, the 28th of February, at Thorney, Bucke; Lady of Captain G. Tyler, R.N. of a son. Yesterday, in Wardour-street, Soho, the Lady of Mr. Jo ll9 ' Orton Harrison, of a son. On the 29th ult.., at Wateringbury, Kent, the Lady of CaP t ' . Adamson, Hon- East India Company's service, of a daughter• MARRIED. Yesterday, Robert .Nelson, Esq., of the Madras Civil Service', son of the-late R. A. Nelson, Esq., Secretary of th e Navy', 1 - Margaret, eldest daughter of Jonathan Harrison, Esq., ° Gower-street, Bedford-square. DIED. Yersterday morning, at Halliford, Sarah, widow of the Ist e Robert Douglas, Esq., of Mains. On Friday last, at her house in Park-street, Windsor, M rfi ft . Annabella Macnab, widow of the late Lieut.-C o lo ne l Robe ,Macnab. On Thursday last, the 26th ult., at his house in Charlotte:: street, Fitzroy-square, George W. IL P ar k er , E s q., of L b ' Army Pay-office, aged 41. Printed and Published for the PROPRIEWORS, at the SU 3i ' r • ClErxcr, 112 Strand,.by . J. li. CARST.A.III6. •