The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1824-03-31 00:00:00

THE NEW DOCK.

The Bill for establishing a !dew Dock at St. Catherine's, near
the Tower, is now printed, and is such • nsorerar, that we are
tempted to make our readers acquainted with some of its provi-
, Mons. The present reign will probably be far more conspicuous in
history fur buikling churches than that of Queen Anne we cut
therefore surely afford, without tarnishing the glory of our " Most
Gracious and Religious King," to pull a few down.
• Provision Is made in the New Dock Bill for the total demolition
of a church-yard, d,c. ; but, anticipating the tender regard which
the Legislature always shows for the feelings of the relations and
friends of the dead, the projectors have voluntarily prescribed to
• themselves the mixed duties of resurrection men and undertakers.
Execution Dock is not far off, and we may confidently predict that,
' if that now projected is ever completed, it will, not unjustly, ac-
. quire the appellation of Resurrection Dock.
A large portion of the property required belongs to the " Mu-
ter, Brothers, and Sisters of St. Catherine's Hospital;" among
the rest, the " Collegiate Cittinh or Free Chapel," which, u de-
clared in the Bill, " it is necessary should be taken down, and the
site thereof, and the burial-grouud belonging thereto, used and ap-
plied for the purposes of the Act."
Passing over the provisions for erecting a new " Church or
Chapel, and some burial place suitable to the Masters, Brothers,
and Sisters of St. Catherine's Hospital," and all the charge of the
job, which the Court of Chancery is required to take, we shall pro-
ceed at once to the resurrection clauses.
The first is as to the nomuments, and declares it to be "
for the heirs, executors. administrators, relations, or friends of any
person or persons whose monuments or tomb-stones &rein the said
Church or Chapel, or in the burial ground belonging thereto, to
remove or carry the 'sole away at his her or their own expense !
and to put or place the same in any Church or consecrated ground,
at his, her, ot their own free will and pleasure." Our readers will
hardly believe that we quote literally, but we assure them that we
do; and, although they may Lc staggered at the injustice of re-
latives or friends being compelled to pay the expert of the removal,
we must remind them of as advantage which is given as an
equivalent, leis that the monuments may be placed either in St.
Paul's or Westminster Abbey, and that without any for to the
Chapters—at least so we read the bill.
In the margin of the following clause we find the words, "Graves
to be disturbed as little as possible I" (that is, as little as reavatine
the whole of the earth above, and some ten or fifteen feet below the
said graves will admit); but now again due consideration is shown
for relatives and friends, " whenever it shall be necessary, in pur-
suance and in execution of this Act, to open or disturb any grave
9r graves, or any burial vault or vaults in the said church or chapel,
or burial-ground of St. Katharint's Hospital aforesaid, it shall be
lawful for the heirs, tke. to remove or carry away the remains, and
place the same in any church or consecrated ground, the expert:,
of such removing, Ste- (not exceeding, in any one case, the sum of
), to be paidby the said Company," de. ,
With respect to the removal of the remains of their relatives,
therefore, while the parties hare the same power as is given them
in respect to monuments, viz, depositing them wherever they
please, they hare the additional advantage of being allowed
certain sum by the undertakers—the blank is yet to be filledup ;
but we understand that Mr. William Cobbett is to be called before
the Committee, and that, aided by his experience as to the expense.
of removing the bones of the dead, they will have little difficulty
in filling up the hiatus.
We are abort afraid of being accused of levity upon a subject
which, we acknowledge, is a grave one; but speaking seriously,
we are neither disposed to trifle with our readers, nor to see
Parliament trifled with by projectors. The Bill upon which
we are commenting is ond, among numerous others, which, during
the:present Session, has been brought in without due notice;
the Standing Orders of the House have been dispensed with,
as we believe (in the use of an opposed Bill) unprecedentedly ;
is, therefore, not from the country at large that we call for atten-
tion to its provisions, so much as front those Members of both
Houses of eprliament, who may deem it of importance to maintain
that ripest for legislative measures, which can only be preserved
by some little regard to private interests and private feelings, and
can in no way be better upheld than by a rigid adherence to the
Standing Orders.

An additional proof of the increasing prosperity of the
country may be found in tha fact, that the number of
writs which passed the office of the Under Sheriff fbr
Somerset, in the last Term, was upwards of ona hundred
less than in the corresponding Term of the preceding
year.

0.
.1

I

°I
_
kr)
'

1