The Sun.
London, England, 1864-01-23 00:00:00

The Metropolitan Board of Works.

The usual weekly meeting of this board was held yester-
day, at the offices in Spring-gardens, Mr. J. Thwaites, the
chairman, presiding.

THE SALARY OP THE CHAIRMAN.
After the usual routine business of the Board had been
disposed of, a special meeting was held on the requisition

of 21 members, who, being of opinion that the time had
"arrived when an addition should be made to the salary of

John Thwaites, Esq., chairman of the Board"," had called
that meeting "for the purpose of considering the propriety
of making such addition, and of varying the resolution of
the Blvd of the 19th of December, 1855, whereby £1,500"

had been fixed as the amount of salary to be paid to the

chairman. The requisition Was signed by Mr. W. Tite,
M.P., Mr. T. J. Miller, M.P., Mr. Phillips, Mr. Dalton,
Mr. Le Breton, Mr, Alderman Finnis, Mr. R. Taylor, Mr.
Jndkins, Mr. Long, Mr. Pew, Mr. Moreland, Mr, Hall, Mr.
Shepherd, Mr. RVDonnell, Mr. Collinson, Mr. Newton, Mr.

Lei& Mr. Tanner, Mr. Brooker, Mr. Wallis, and Mr.

Harris.

On the subject being brought forward,

The CHAIRMAN requested the Board to elect anumber

to preside, in order that he might retire, and Mr. Lowman
Taylor was unanimously eleoted to fill this position.
Mr.TTTE,M.P., said that, in proposing a motion to embody
the wishes of the gentlemen who had signed the requisition,

he felt placed in a position of some difficulty, for he knew
that the people of the metropolis paid heavy rates, and he
did not like recommending anything which would have the
effect of inereasinz their burdens. The Board wnnlti, he
was sure, entirely agree with him in thinking that it was
a fortunate circumstance Mr. Thwaites had been chosen to
hold the position of head of that establishment, for the
Beard had found him a gentleman of great business habits,
of inimitable patience and temper, and of courteous and
urbane manners, and he had been the means of keeping the
Board together in a manner whioh reflected the highest
honour upon him. It was unnecessary to eulogise the
chairman, who filled the position of Speaker to the Metro-
politan Board, for alt knew the extraordinary skill and
ability with which he conducted the Board's business since
1856. Mr. Thwaites was elected in the latter part of 1855,

but it was not until the following year that he commenced
his duties, and since that time his duties had increased two-
fold at the very least. (Hear.) There were two points I
which the Board would have to remember, and they were
that Mr. Thwaites, on being elected as chairman, gave up
his own pursuit, a most lucrative one, and surrendered all
business connections and gave to the affairs of the Board
the whole of his time. The Legislature, in fixing the
salary of the chairman of that Board, made a minimum of
£1,500 and a maximum of £2,000, and the Board adopted
the minimum. The time had now arrived when the Board,
in regard to the services of the chairman and in personal
respect, ought to give the head officer the full amount fixed
by the Act of Parliament, and he (Mr. Tite) therefore
moved that the salary of the chairman should be increased
to the full amount allowed by the Act of Parliament, and
that the previous decision of the board of the Nth Decem-
ber be varied accordingly.
Mr. MILLER, M.P., seconded the motion, and said that
much of the success which had attended the board was
owing to the chairman, who had discharged with impartia-
lity, integrity, and unwearied zeal his many and arduous
duties. The board had increased the salaries of all the other
officers bat that of the chairmau, who for eight years had
been without any increase to his salary, though his duties
had largely increased. In his (Mr. Miller's) opinion, if the
Act of Parliament had been made at a later date, the salary
would have been fixed much higher, for Mr. Thwaites, be-
sides being chairman, was head of every department, and
was the board's engineer, its solicitor, and its architect, and
had to be consulted on numerous questions to which he had
to give the greatest attention, The Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer during the last session was waited upon, and asked
to bring in the bill concerning the main drainage, and he
refused ; but afterwards, on Mr. Thwaites waiting upon
him and explaining matters,the Chancellor not only brought
in the bill, but made a most excellent speech upon the data
furnished to him by tha chairman of the board. Mr.
Thwaites had been called the Speaker, and so he was, and
without any disparagement being intended for the Speaker
of the House of Commons, it must be allowed that Mr.
Thwaites had the more arduous task; for, whereas the
Speaker had to hold his tongue and listen, the board was
dependent upon Mr. Thwaites for information on all impor-
tant subjects. The seconder concluded by expressing the
hope that the board would be unanimous on this vote,
which he said would only have the effect of raising the
chairman's salary to an equality with the salaries received
by a chairman of a railway company.
Mr. COLLINSON supported the motion, and remarked that
when, in 1858, an outcry was raised in the Houses of Parlia-
ment that the Board did nothing to allay the nuisances
under which the metropolis suffered, it was through the un-
tiring energy of Mr. Thwaites that the Government of the
day was shown the Board had no power to do all that war;
needed. The Government, Nvhich was a Tory one—(a laugh)
—brought in a bill, and this state of things was remedied
when that bill became law. The Board was raised to im-
portance, and had been enabled to carry out its duties to the
satisfaction of the public, and this mainly through the good
management of the chairman.
Mr. DEWIER considered that the speeches which had
been made would lead to the opinion that the chairman was
the Board and the members junior clerks, but what had
been done had been carried out with the full cognizance of
the Board. There was no question as to the ability and
efficiency of the chairman, belt the sum of £1,500 a year was
a handsome salary, and he (Mr. Dormer) should oppose any
addition being made to it.
Mr. SAVAGE said that in two years the Board 1\ ouid see
the end of the Thames En tbankment, and that time, he
thought, would be the prop er one to raise the chairman's
salary to the maximum. II e proposed, as an amendment,
that the salary should be r reised to £1,750.
The amendment was not seconded,
Mr CRELLIN said it was N very true the Act of Parliament
fixed the maximum and min imum of the chairman's salary,
but the origin of that was t D be found in the fact that the
position was thought to be a -nice one for a friend of those
who made the law. (Oh, oh 1 hear, and laughter.) This
was a fact, or the salary wof Id not have been fixed at a
minimum of £1,500, and if it had been less, with a gradual
rise to £1,500, the chairman, o f whose abilities there could
be no question, would have be an amply satisfied.
The discussion was prolong( d for some time, and Messrs.
Peckett, Pew, Legg, Bennett, Phillips, Freeman, Bidgood,
Harris, Brooker, Long, and Ni, :holey took part in it. On
the vote being taken five hands were held up against the
motion. A division then took place, and the numbers were
for, 27; against, 4. Several met gibers retired below the
Board, and did not vote.
The CHAIRMAN declared the moth s carried, there being
more than the required two-thirds me jority.
Mr, Thwaites was sent fpr, and en %king his appearance