The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1883-08-04 00:00:00

4.0ca1. nub pistrirt '4etrpi.

COMMI:SiONERS' MEETING.

'the t Buil monthly meeting of this body was held
in he Board Room, Corn Exchange, on Monday
last, Mr. W. J. Turney in the chair. There were
a so preFent Messrs. Stringer, Hughes, Billingham,
Dawes, Jones, Hicklin, leke, H. Turney, Bland,
Green, Grifii t, Edwards, Baker, Haskew, Under-
wood, Patch, and Perkin.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and
g o firmed
The Finance Committee reported that they had
examincd the various accounts and recommended
that the following be paid :—Flihway account,
,t 432 7s 10d; Improvement account, £4B 4s 2d;
Uri:an Sanitary Autholity, £54 19s Bd.
'1 hs c)mmittee recommended the Board to'in-
s•rt ct the ct, rk t give the present Market Hall
Bet d ho:de .s s t munths' notice, so as to pay them

off.
The report was adopted.
The Medieel Officer ofHalthr p rted that there
had been 34 births registered in the township dur-
ine the month, 17 males and 17 females. Birth-
ra e 41.1. Number of deaths regis ered in the same
period 13, 6 males and 7 females. Death-rate 15.1.
The report was adopted.
The Town Officer reported 25 nuisances during
the moalh; remove 1 11. The registered lodging.
houses and slaughterhouses were reported to be in
good sanitary condition. A circular letter was re-
cAved from the Local Government Boant against
the importation of choler!, and your committee
have requested the Medical Officer of Health to re-
port thereon. A memorandum from the Board in
reference to the Artizans and Labourers Dwellings
Act, 1868. which is in operation in the township,
came before the committee. •
The report of the Improvement Committee was
r 'ad and it contains', the following recommenda-
ions :—That the buildings in High Street and
Foster Street be advertised for sale, to be NBA
down, and the mat_ria.ls removed; and that steps be
taken with the view of obtaining a Charter of In-
cereoration for the old ecclesiasticd parish of Old-
swinford and others.
The first recommendation was a 7opted after very
little discussion.
In referring to the second, the Chairman said the
matter had been threshed out at a meeting of the
committee, and they were unanimous about the
desirability of having a Charter of Incorporation
granted for the town, It might be objected that
they were not yet ripe for the tiring, but he failed
to sae in what way they should be in a betrer
tion to deal with it five years hence than they were
that day. The credit of the town and of the Board
was quite as good now as it world be in five years'
time, and seeing the very impoei.aet stops recently
made in improving the town, he for one failed to
see what else there was to be done They should,
of course, have some sort of opposition from the
outlying towns, but unless they could show s ;me
stronger grounds why they should nut be included
iu the charter than the fear of increased rates, they
would scarcely be listened to, es they were so near
as to form part and parcel of the to-vrphip proper.
The next step would be to buy up . the gasworks.
Even if they had to pay the proprietors double the
amount of their present capital or supposed capital,
there would be a very handsome profit arising from
the management, He proposed" That in the opin-
ion of this meeting it is desirable that immediate
steps shall be taken for obtaining a charter of in-
co .poration for the following townships or paishes:
—Stourbridge, Wollaston, Mper Swinford, The
Lye, Wolle:,;cote, Pedmore (in the county of Wor-
cester) and Amblecote arid Wordsley in the county
of Btafforel and that a special committee be ap-
pointed to 'draw up a petition to her Majesty praying
for a grant of a charter of incorporation."
Mr. String( r secended the proposition, and Mr.
Edwards supported it. He asked how the expense
of getting the charter was to be borne. He had
heard talk of some gentlemen giving £3OO towards
it, He should have no objection to giving five
guineas.
The Chairman said the expense would be borne
by the ratepayers. He did not think the whole
thing would amount to more than 300 or £4OO.
If there were considerable oppositioa to the scheme
from the outlying townships the responsibilities
would rest with the opposers; and seeing that nine
out of ten charters applied for were granted, it
would make people think before they acted.
Mr. Haskew remarked that the Lye and other out-
lying townships had their own Be lad and School
Boards.
The Chairman said that ti ere were three or four
Boards where one would save if they were inc r-
porated.
Mr. H. Turney did not think there need be any
great hurry about it, as they would not be able to
get a charter during the present session of Parlia-
ment. The resolution proposed was of a very sweep-
ins character. He thought it &_ould be referred to
a committee, and for them to report upon it to the
Board.
After some further cliscussi6n, tie Cha'rman with-
drew his resolution, and the foll es leg was carried :
—.‘ that a special committee be appointed to con-
sider the whole question of ineoeparatien, and that
they have power to emeloy all legal assistance they
require in the matter, and repret at an early date.
After a few minor recommendations in the repart
had been considered and dealt with, it was adopted.
On the motion of Mr. Bland, it was resolved to
make the Corn Exchange and Wholesale Vegetable
Market toll free,
The Streets and Roads Committee reported th at
Hagley Street had been made by the steam roller,
at a cost of .£145, ea- about 7d per square yard. The
total number of days occupied in making the road
was 10. The whole costs of repairs of the main
roaCs in the township for the year ending March
25th last had been paid to the treasurer by the
county authority, and a further sum of one-fourth
had been paid by the Government. The committee
had engaged Richard Kitchen, of Kidderminster, as
engine driver, at 243 per week, They had agreed
to the following price for hiring out the steam
roller, viz :—For not less than t•ix coviecutive days
20s per day, including the driver. Flag-man, oil,
and fuel 5s per day extra.
Mr. H Turney remarked that since the Board
hal done their own scavenging and cleaning they
had saved £l6O.
The Telephone Committee reported that they had
met the coestruetive superintendent and agent of
the Tele'phone Company, with regard to Mr. Marten's
wire, and arranged that the required consent be
given, provided that the lnwest wire shall not be
lower than 35 feet from the ground, the poles to be
painted thocelete six feet from the groued and stone
colour aficrwaids.
Oa the motion of Mr. Bland the report was ad-
opted.
An application was made by Mr. H. Turney fOr
permission to held a eyries of lectures by the :St
John's Ambulance Association, for the benefit of the
firemen and policemen, in the Commissioners' room
The application was eranted.

AC I)N UNDER THE EKPLOYERS'
LIABILITY ACT.

At the County Court, on Wednesday, before Sir
ipert KetUe, jadge. This Wes an action brought
plaintiff to recover frctu defendant £lOO compen—
s :ton under the a'iore Act f perso;_vd injuries.

Mr. Homfray apNared for plaintiff, and" Mr. Col-
b rck (Birmingham) defended.
Mr. Homfray said the plaintiff was an apprentiCe
to Mr. Miilward, spade and shovel maker, at Hales.
Owen, and had served-three years of hi apprentice-
ship on the 23rd Februa y, when he mot with an
accident as to which the action was brought.
11,,rry Carpenter, the plaintiff, said he was em-
ployed as a plater at defendant's works, and was
cmloye.l in the mill forge on the 23rd February.
Witntsa's duty was to work at a hammer; acid John
Harris, who worked with him, had to beat the plates
and halt I them to him. The hammer lia,d to be
stopped while the tools were set, and this was done
by :hutting off the water and propping the hammer.
When the hammer was propped it ought not to
t Aich the cogs of the water-wheel. After propping
the hammer on the day in question, he was 'setting'
the hammer, when, owing to the cogs not being
regular, and the prop under the hammer too short,
it came down on his right hand. He was wiping
the auvit with his hand when the blow struck.
His Honour: You were doing that in the regular
con an of your work?
Plaintiff: Yes, sir. The prop was too short,
from having worn down. He had told defendant
before the accident that it wanttcl a new prop. He
said he would turn t round, and he did so. The
prop was used to kccp the tail of the hammer clear
of the cog. The third and fourth fingers of the
right hand were ciE off, and the middle finger
smashed. He was attended by Dr. Ker for a month.
His wages were 12s a week (under indentura 'agree.
merit).
11 is Honour: If there had been a good prop, a
proper prop, would the cogs have caused the ham-
mer to fall?

Plaintiff: No, sir.
In cross-examination, plaintiff said he complained
of the prop a foil tnight before the accident, and also
on previous occasions. It was a good prop at first,
but worn down in a short time. Witness said he
had worked at the hammer agairt since the accident.
but denied that 4 was with the same prop. His
master had not frequently warned him not to wet
his fingers to mark the block with, but to use chalk.
Witness chilled that he ever said the ae...;ident arose
from his own negligence in misplacing the prop.
The prop was not long enough, place it when,' they
would. The prop alleged to have been in use a. the
time of the accident was produced. Plaintiff said
it was not the same, and that the one (v•ed. on 23r1
rolnuary was 14i iaciato 11441 it wat3 500CIVAOY