The Sun.
London, England, 1855-01-18 00:00:00

CITY COURT OF SEWERS.

The Cornrniesioners assembled for the first time since
the holydays ; Deputy Peacock in the chair.
Mr. Daw the chief clerk) laid the following corre-
spondence before the Court :
" Whitehall, Nov. 24, 1854.

" Sir,—l am directed by Viscount Palmerston to
refer you to a letter from Mr. J. E. Fox, and to request
your report upon his complaint of a nuisance from the
furnace smoke at Messrs. Waterlow's premises within
tho city of London.
" I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
"H. WADDINGTON.
" D. W. Harvey, Esq., Commissioner of Police."
" JOHN ELLIOTT Fox, OF No. 40, FINSBURY CIRCUS,

•
TO THE RIGHT HON. VISCOUNT PALMERSTON.
" Nor. 16, 1854.

" My Lord,—As an old inhabitant of Finsbury
Circus, I beg to call your Lordship's attention to an in-
tolerable smoke nuisance, arising from the premises of
Messrs. Waterlow and Co., of London-wall, from which
the whole neighbourhood is rendered extremely uncom-
fortable, and the circus is generally filled with it. It is
obvious to the police, but I believe they do not like to
interfere, because Waterlow is one of the big men of
the council. I am personally unknown to him, and
have no prejudice or bias, but, having called your Lord-
ship's attention to the public grievance, I trust you will
direct the necessary measures to be taken for its speedy
abatement.

" I have the honour to remain,
" Your Lordship's obedient servant,
" JOHN ELLIOTT rod."'

'‘THE SECRETARY Or THE CITY POLICE TO MR. H.

WADDINGTON.
" Chief-office, Nov. 30.
" Sir,—l am directed by the Commissioner of the City
Police to inform you, in reply to the letter addressed to
him by desire of Viscount Palmerston, that upon its receipt
he immediately ordered inquiries to be made into the
subject of it, and I now forward to you the report made
to him thereon. The commissioner desires me to add,
that he has sent a copy of the correspondence and the
report of the constable to the Court of the City Sewers,
13orallapyi.
jlealo.tement of the nuisance complained of
" I am, sir, your obedient servant,
" F. W. SAUNDERS; Secretary."
[Here follows the report of the officer, which stated
that there was no doubt of the existence of the nuisance.]
"To ZEE CITY COMMISSIONERS OF SEWERS.

" Chief-office, Old Jewry, Nov. 30, 1854.
" Gentlemen,—l have the honour to bring under
your notice the correspondence whick has passed be-
tween the Treasury and myself, in reference to a
nuisance from the furnace-smoke at Messrs. Waterlow's
premises, within the city of London.
"I a oa, gentlemen, your obedient servant,
" D. W. HARVEY."
" Whitehall Deo. 14, 1854.

" Sir,—l bare laid before Viscount Palmerston your
report upom the smoke nuisance caused by Messrs.
Waterlow's furnace chimney at London-wall ; and, as
it appears that a clear case of nuisance may he estab-
lished, Lord Palmerston thinks it will be best to take
proceedings by police information, under the Smoke
Nuisance Aet of the last session of Parliament, and for
this purpose I enclose you his lordship's formal order.
" Lord Palmerston has instructed the Solicitor of the
Treasury to support the information, if you will have
the goodness to communicate with him.

"I am, sir, your obedient servant,
"H. WADDINOTON."
"' To Tlllg COMMISSIONER OF THE POLICE OF THE
CITY OP LONDON AND THE LIBERTIES THEREOF.
" Honee.oface, Whitehall.

" Viscount Palmerston, being one of her Majesty's
principal Secretaries of State, do hereby order and direct
you to lay information against James Wateriow, for the
recovery of -.penalty under the act of Parliament passed
in the 17th year of the reign of Queen Victoria, entitled
An act to abate the Nuisance arising from the Smoke
of Furnaces in the Metropolis and from Steam vessels
above London-bridge,' for using in certain premises in
his occupation in London-wall a furnace not constructed
so as to consume or burn its own smoke, without using
the best practicable means of preventing or counteract-
ing such sni&se, contrary to the provisions of the said
act.

" 'Given under my hand this 14th day of December,
1854. " ` PALMERSTON.' ''
"To TUE SECRETARY OF THE CITY POLICE, H. R.
REYNOLDS, ESQ., SOLICITOR TO THE TREASURY.
"Chief office, 26, Dec. 1854
•

" Sir—The Commissioner of the City Police having
received directions from Lord Palmerston to take pro-
ceedings by police information, under the Smoke Nui-
sance Act of last session of Parliament, against James
Waterlow, of London-wall, for using a furnace on his
premises not constructed so as to consume smoke, &c.,
against the statute, I am desired to inform you that the
constable who can give evidence in the matter shall be
in attendance at your office at any time you may be
pleased to appoint. —I am, sir, your obedient servant,
" F. SAUNDERS, Secretary."
"Treasury, Dec. 28, 1854.
" Sir—l +1) knovrlge..thie receipt of Mr.,
oa Un d ...Tit, letter, daeepeco..
you have received instructions from Lord Palnie'raOn;;C;
lay an information against James Waterlow for using a
furnace not constructed to consume its own smoke, &c.
" On the 14th of December a letter from the Home-
office informed me that you would communicate with
me, and desired me to support your information.
" Up to the present stage I take for granted that you
have pursued the same course that has been adopted in
the very numerous cases in which informations have been
laid by the commissioners of police of the metropolis—
that is to say, that you first satisfied yourself as a matter
of fact that the furnace was used at the place in ques-
tion, not constructed, &c., without using, &c. (u in the
act) ; that you then reported to Lord Palmerston your
recommendation that an information should lee laid, and
furnished his lordship with the evidence upon which you
proposed to support it ; that Lord Palmerston adopted
your recommendation, and forwarded to you an order,
under hie hand, to lay the information.
"The next step is to lay the information and to take
out a summons fixing the day for hearing.
" For this purpose I enclose a draught form of infor-
mation that has been adopted in the metropolitan dis-
trict, which will require to be filled up with names, dates,
places, &c., altering also the formal description of the
justice, commissioner, constable, &c.
" It will be convenient to keep a copy of the informa-
tion for the use of counsel, and to forward it to me when
the day for hearing is fixed, with Lord Palmerston's
order and the full written evidence of the witness pro-
posed to be called.
" I presume that some scientific witness has examined
the premises (without whose evidence it is sometimes
difficult to negative the use of the best practicable
means of counteracting the smoke,' mentioned in the
act).

"And, as a matter of convenience, I may add that,
as a great number of thew cases are now going on in
various courts, it would be worth while to ascertain at
the chambers of Mr. Bodkin (who attends oa the part of
the Treasury) upon what days he will be able to attend
the hearing of Mr. Waterlow's case.
"I am your most obedient servant,

"JOHN GREENWOOD."
"THE SECRETARY OF THE CITY POLICE TO MR. JOHN

GREENWOOD.

"City Police-office, Dec. 30.

" Sir,—l am directed by the Commissioners of the
City Police Force to acknowledge the receipt of your
communication of the 28th inst , enclosing a draught
form of information. Beofre any further step is taken
the commissioner desires me to forward for your perusal
a copy of the correspondence which has taken place re-
lative to this matter, and to inform you that nothing
more has been done than is therein disclosed.

" I am, Sir, your obedient servant,
"F. SAUNDERS, Secretary."
" Treasury, Dec. 80.

"Sir,--I have to acknowledge the receipt of a letter
of this day's date from Mr. Saunders, forwarding to me
by your desire a copy of a correspondence which has
taken place relative to the smoke at Messrs. Waterlow's,
"The bearer (Mr. Duddy) iTas also good euvugt,
show me a copy of the City of London Sewers Act, 1851
(mentioned in section 7 of the Smoke Nuisance Abate-
ment Act of 1853), in which powers are given to the
Commissioners of Sewers to take certain proceedings in
case of nuisance by smoke.

" I have, of course, no authority to interfere in any
such proceedings. The only instructions I have received
from the Home-office are to support your information
against Messrs. Waterlow, to be laid under the Smoke
Nuisance Abatement Act of 1853, under the order and
direction of Lord Palmerston.
"I am, &c.'
"JOHN GREENWOOD."
"City Police-office, Jan. 8.
" Gentlemen,—l have the honour to transmit for
your consideration the further communications which
have been made to me by Lord Palmerston upon the
alleged smoke nuisance caused by Messrs. Waterlow's
furnace, as also a copy of the letter I received from the
Solicitor of the Treasury, to whom I represented the
provisions of the law touching similar occurrences within
the city.

"It would seem it belongs to the Commissioners of
Sewers to deal with this and similar decarrences.
" I am, gentlemen, &c..
" D. W. HARVEY.
_ _

" To the Commissioners 3f Sewers."

Mr. WATERLOW ( a member of the Court) said that an
error ran through the documents read by the clerk, his
name being used instead of that of his son, who, how-
ever, did not wish to raise any technical difficulty with a
view of getting rid of the complaint. He himself had
nothing whatever to de with the premises. Ever since
the complaint was made they had been endeavouring to
abate the nuisance, and had been in communication with
the engineer of the commission for this purpose. Expe-
riments had been tried for the last six weeks to consume
the smoke,
The engineer which,va hhsootrpnerw2csue
ledm endeavouringe
entirelyd occasionallyto
tion which, wined
canoe compl of.
Mr. Deputy ITAußisoN—We have effecta btea nt
htaeol t fnearui ali
only onp course
to puisue— namely, to proceed under the reference ;
and I hope that this commission will not depart from
their ordinary course, and that they will order the
necessary proceedings to be taken. (Hear, hear.) I
move " that Messrs. Waterlow be summoned to the
court."

Mr. WATERLOW—I second the proposition.
The motion was carried unanimously.
Mr. Daw was then directed by the Court to inform
Lord Palmerston, by letter, that Messrs. Watorlow
would be summoned to the court forthwith.
The inspector, in answer to questions put by the