The Express.
London, England, 1851-12-24 00:00:00

This ialiensat of torture was a belL At five o'clock
every Mr. Somitt, his three daughters, his
dues hters, his son, and his servants had
their rest broken by the tolling of this bell for ten
minutes. At by no means long intervals during the
whole of each day the ringing was repeated.
' The principal sufferer expostulated •he wrote to
the officiating priest, he wrote to Dr. 'WtsesuN he
saw Dr. WISEMA.N'S solicitor. What was the result?
As an uncommon indulgence, wrung from a rigid
sense of bell-tolling duty, one hour's more sleep was
vouchsafed to the household; and the bell was not
sounded until six o'clock each morning ; but, as a
set-off to this liberal concession, by May last a
regular church, calculated to hold 400 sitters, had
been built; with—only 20 yards from Mr. SOLTAU'B
bedroom—a very tall steeple containing a full peal of
half-a-dozen bells. The martyr had now to endure the
noise of these church bells, and of the chapel bell
besides (seven bells in all), five times daily,six times on
Saturday, and Sunday; and, during festivals, all day
long. On these occasions reading, writing, and
conversing in Mr. SOLTAOI house were impos-
sible. Iho wretched family were constantly
stunned by noises percussed, according to the affi-
davits, from upwards of two tons of bell-metal. Such
an incubus of sound could render existence only
tolerable to Morose in BEN JONSON'S " Eviciner
with his ears stuffed with cotton; or, with his
" turband of nightcaps" budded over them.
The ordinary intercourse and transactions of life
must have been continually suspended. A morn-
ing visit to Mr. SOLTAU must have been an affair of
dumb motion; pantomimic gesture the ordinary
mode of family communication. Private con-
versation must have been only attainable by
leaving home and taking a walk—perhaps for
' a couple of miles—out of car-shot. The very inter-
vals of silence on the non-ringing-all-day days must

have served to increase rather' than to mitigate the
agonies of the sufferers. Imagine the tantalising
effect of an interesting discussion, between the chimes,
at breakfast, interrupted by the beginning vibrations
of a "bob minor;" or an exciting interview with
your solicitor broken in upon by a " bob maximus ;"
or the captivating prattle of your youngest grand-
daughter cut short by the leading off of a thundering
" triple grandsire bob." or a difficult calculation
contused and falsified by a sudden crash of caters"
or of " twe!ves-in!" Life would be worthless under
such unceasing calamities; the best a man could
do would be to copy Mutton's other expedients "by
reason of the perpetuity of the ringing," and devise
"a room with double walls and treble ceilings; the
windows close shut and caulked; and there to
live by candlelight ?" The wretch who was tied
to a Great Tom, rung mad, and then bob-majored
to death, was, compared with Mr. SOLTAtt, merci-
fully dealt with: his agony was short.
L n fortunately, the only remedy open to the Clapham
martyr was of a nature to prolong rather than to cur-
tail Ins anguish. He went to law; and, notwit hstand int;
that the tintinabulating church was dedicated toj
" Our Immaculate Lade of Victories," a jury, in the
Court of Exchequer, defeated the bell-ringers by
their verdict; and, for a time, silenced the belfry.
Again their victim enjoyed a quiet home: again he
was placed in a condition to receive morning calls,
to chat, to cypher, and to breakfast in unmolested
peace. But the calm was deceitful : the truce was
short. In November the bells began again. Here arc'
the statistics of the renewed (bat now modified) nuis-
ance :—" One bell was rung at a quarter to 0 for six
minutes ;at 20 minutes past 10, three bells; ate quar-
ter to 11, one bell :at half-past 6, three bells ;at 10 mi-
nutes to 7, three bells; and on Sunday all the bells were
rung as formerly." The " Redemptorist Fathers" hay-
ing set at nought, after a 'anise, the verdict of a
common law court, it remains to be seen whether
they will defy a judgment of the Court of Chan-
cery. They claimed the privilege of ringing their
bells as frequently pa- diem as heretofore on each
Sunday and Saints' day, which, considering the
fullness of the Saints' calendar, may mean three
hundred days per three hundred and sixtyffive
Vice-Chancellor KINDEASLEY has done his best to
abate the noisy nuisance. It is yet to be seen with
what grace the " Redemptorist Fathers" will
accept the decision.
SotrAn's was neither a private nor a special
martyrdom. Doubtless a goodly circumfere nee of his
neighbours shored it ; the bewildered of Albany-street
will rejoice in his victory ; the parishioners of Pim-
lico sympathise with it, the bell-worried of Wells-
street will clap their hands for joy, and the vic-
tims of campanihan zeal in all densely-populated
and busy localities rill, no doubt, if the decree of
the court take general eftbet, immediately subscribe
to crown this three years' martyrdom with a piece
of plate.
While the fitting use of church chimes cannot be
objected to, their abuse, whether perpetrated by
Protestant or Papist ropes, is a very annoying
nuisance. Amidst the busy hum of men in a
dense city, or even in a populous suburb, they are
simply a distraction. Their use—and indeed their
beauty—is only manifest in country parishes; for
which alone they were originally designed : for 1
when introduced into churches by PArtisics, bishop
of Rola, in Campassnia, in the year 400, there were
very few town churches in existence, nor were there j
for centuries afterwards. When pleasantly rung'
oat from a country steeple, they serve to call
in the distant and outlying members of the flock, to
the fold; and, softened by the clear response of
hill and dale, field and meadow, their music is agree-
sble to the ear, and grateful to the feelings.
In the midst of a rural landscape, they may
Speak the genius of the hour,
And bid the sons of mirth be glad,
And tell of sorrow to the sal,
Reflection to the wise ;
But, vibrating against the dense walls of a crowded
town, or crashing twenty yards from a gentleman's
bed-chamber, they destroy in the mind every sen-
timent of devotion which is essential to the earnest
performance of those rites to which they are the