The Sun.
London, England, 1864-11-16 00:00:00

Metropolitan Board of Works.

A special meeting of this board was convened for
yesterday. The President (J. Thwaites, Esq.) took

the chair at twelve o'clock.

THE SEWAGE OF THE METROPOLIS.

The board met for the purpose of further consi-
dering the several tenders sent in for taking the
sewage of the metropolis., and to receive a report
from the Main Drainage Committee on inspection
of the works for the utilisation of sewage at Rugby,
Croydon, Carlisle, and Edinburgh.
The report has been printed for circulation.
A report was also brought up from the Main
Drainage Committee, stating that in the opinion of
the committee the tender of Messrs. Hope and
Napier, for dealing with the sewage on the north
side of the Thames, so far as their general scheme
was concerned, off red the greatest advantages, and
recommending the board to refer the subject back to
the Alain Drainage Committee to negoeiate the pre-
cise terms upon which the concession might be
granted to those parties.
Mr SAVAGE said that in his opinion this was by
far too important a subject to be decided hastily.
The committee had only arrived at their determinae
tion yesterday in private, and he thought that their
report ought to be printed and circulated among
the members of the board, some of whom wore not
acquainted with the reasons of the committee. The
various vestries should also be given an opportunity
of considering the subject. After some further ob-
servations he made a motion to that effect, and that
the subject should be discussed that day fortnight.
The motion was seconded, but was negatived by
a large majority.

Mr FREEMAN then brought up the report, and
in doing so commented at considerable length upon
the importance of immediate action in the matter.
He said that the committee had only three courses
open to them, viz., Ist, to postpone the matter
indefinitely ; 2d, to reject all the tenders
which had been sent in ; and idly, to select for
further consideration the most feasible scheme which
had been laid before them. They had preferred the
last alternative: The board had now obtained all
the information which was necessary to enable them
to come to an opinion upon the subject. They had
waited for the opinion of a parliamentary committee
upon the subject, and the report was now before
them. The only two schemes were those of Mr
Ellis and Messrs Hope and Napier, They had been
carefully discussed, and the committee decidedly
preferred the scheme of the latter parties, as being
the most practicable. In fact it was looked upon
that Mr Ellis's proposal to bring the sewage back
from the outfalls, where the board intended to place
it, to Hampstead, fir agricultural purposes, would
lead to enormous expense, and that the ratepayers
never would receive any benefit from the scheme.
Now the scheme of Messrs Hope and Napier:proposed
to deal with the sewage at the points where the board
meant to place it, which they could do at a much
less expense and in much lcee time. Mr Freeman,
after discussing the matter in detail, moved that
the report be received and the recommendation of
the committee adopted.
Mr Dom:roil, M.P., seconded the motion,
Mr COLLINSOII, pursuant tc notice, move d,
way of amendment, " that it be referred to the
Main D►ainage Committee to consider the best
means of utilising a portion of the sewage of the
metropolis, for the purpose of ascertaining its com-
mercial value, and to report their recommendations
to the board, in order that application may be made
in the ensuing session of Parliament for the neces-
sary powers to carry them into effect." In making
this motion, he (Mr Collinson) felt bound to say
that he considered the scheme sanctioned by the
committee as a visionary one—none of the parties