The Sun.
London, England, 1837-12-26 00:00:00

THE BOARD OF ORDNANCE.

" Walmer Castle, Sept. 25, 1837.
" Sir,--I have had the honour of receiving Mr. Butler's
letter of the 13th inst., No. 1,381, and have perused with at-
tention the enclosures in relation to the admission of the public
to the Tower of London.
" It must be observed that the Tower is a fortress, con.
taining a Royal palace and arsenal, and some of the most im-
portant records of the kingdom, Parliament having up to
these times, considered that fortress as exclusively under the
direction of the Sovereign.
" I have not here the Journals of the Howe of Commons of
1818, but I believe that there is an entry in that year of a
decision founded on that principle.
" However, I'll suppose the question open for consideration,
upon which the Master-General and Board have thought pro-
per to refer for my opinion.
" There can be no doubt, indeed the principle is laid down
in these ppers, that an unrestrained and unlimited resort to
the Tower cannot be permitted. There is but little unoccu-
pied space in the fortress, indeed scarcely sufficient for the
transaction of the business which must be transacted there,
particularly now that the Ordnance store-houses in Tooley-
street have been sold.
" The arsenal contains not only the curious armoury of
ancient times, but some hundred thousand stands of arms of
all descriptions, made up ammunition for small arms, cannon
of all calibre, with all the equipments thereof for immediate
use, including fixed ammunition.
" My experience in the Councils of the country, and as
Constable of the Tower, have impressed upon my mind a con-
viction that articles of this description must be strictly guarded.
The records of the Secretary of States's Office will show how
this matter stands.
" If my memory does not fail me, the Secretary of State
has, since the year 1830, warned the Constable of the Tower
of reports received of conspiracies to take possession of that
fortress. The principle of restraint on admission to the
Tower is admitted ; and I advert to these facts only in cdiro,-
boration of the foundation on which it stands.

There is certainly no restraint upon the resort to a
place which contains any thing which is an object of curio-
sity, which is so easily applied, and of which the application
contains so little irritation, as the price of admission. If
fixed so high as that but few can afford to pay it, these few
only will resort to the place. If circumstances, such as I
have adverted to, should render necessary a -temporary total
exclusion of visitors, persons of that class of society would
submit quietly to the disappointment. I have never heard
of any difficulty attending the execution of the measures
which the safety of the fortress might render necessary.
" It is obvious, that if persons are to be admitted upon
payment of a shilling, they will be more numerous, and of a
different class of society. The regulations which now govern
the resort to the Tower will not answer their purpose ; others
must be framed more precise and strict in their provisions.
These must be carried into execution by the military autho-
rities in the Tower ; soldiers must be the persons to carry
them into execution, unless indeed it should be thought ne-
cessary to place a body of police in the Tower under the
orders of the Constable Of Hia. The resort to the Tower
must be strictly regulated. These regulations must have for
their object, first, the limitation of numbers occasioning a
constant dispute at the gate of entrance ; and, next, the in-
spection and control of the conduct of the visitor from
the period of his entrance into the Tower till his departure.
" These regulations would be very difficult to carry into
execution, and after all there eould be no punishment for a
breach of them, or for contempt or riot, excepting expulsion
from the Tower by force.
" I really think that if the Government will be pleased to
consider of this matter, and if the great importance of the
safety of the stores, and other valuable property, which the
Tower contains, they will refrain from impo:ing upon the
officers in charge of that fortress the responsibility of taking
care thereof, when they will allow of the resort of the people
to the Tower upon the payment only of a shilling.
'6 Upon looking over the accounts of the receipts I observe
that nearly one-half of the amount is carried to the account of
the Treasurer of the Ordnance.
" It does not appear that any officer of the Ordnance of
the Tower receives more than the fair remuneration for the
trouble imposed upon him by these vhitings. There is na
abuse that I know of, and I earnestly recommend that no
alteration may be made in the existing system.
" I am, &c., &c ,
" WELLINGTON."

A letter from the Dean of Westminster, on behalf of himself
and Charter, declining to accede to the demand for throwing
open Westminster Abbey for the free and promiscuous inspec-
tion of the monuments, stating substantially the reasons which
had influenced them in this decision, and their regret that his
_ _

Ltrdship should have recomqended to her Majesty a propot!i-
:ion of such a nature, " withAtt first communicating with the
legal guardians of the property proposed to be surrendered to
public use," was then read, as was also the following excellent
reply of his Lordship :
" Whitehall, Sept. 20, 1837.

't Sir,—l have had the honour of receiving your letter,
dated September 15th, enclosing a memorandum on the
subject of opening Westminster Abbey to the public, at
stated times. The ill effects of such a liberty are stated in
the memorandum to have been found by experience, and to
consist in indecorous behaviour and constant noise, the

filthy state of the Church (especially in bad weather), the
cccasioual injury done to the monuments, and the disturbance
at the daily prayers.' It appears to me, I must confess, that
these evils might nearly, if not altogether be obviated tithout
a continuance of the entire prohibition which you state to
have been adopted only ten years ago. It does not follow
that because persons are admitted gratuitously to view' the
monuments they would feel Its' respect for the Abbey, as a
place of worship, than those who obtain admission upon the
payment of money. Indeed, it might he contended that the
payment of a shilling or half-a-crown for liberty to enter a
church or cathedral, tends more to confound it with a common
exhibition-room than the free permission to enter midi the
single condition, that no indecorous behaviour should be
tolerated.

" Among other means which might be taken to prevent
such an evil, an order that only one door should be open at
the same time would, I should humbly think, by preventing a
thoroughfare, keep out many whose numbers or conversation
might create noise, and disturb the daily prayer. Another pre-
caution which I should be ready to adopt would be to station
two police constables, free of all expense to the Dean and
Chapter, to assist the officers of the Abbey so long as it should
be required, in preserving order and decency. Ido not wish
to enter into the question of right. The Dean and Chapter
are doubtless the legal guardians of the property ; but it is
not proposed to surrender that property to ' public use.'
Neither do I accuse the Dean and Chapter of an interested
view ; but they cannot expect that Westminster Abbey, which
has been in great part raised and adorned by the munificence
of former Sovereigns, and which contains the monuments of
so many illustrious men, can be kept closed by a rule of only
a few years old, without exciting the attention of her Majes-
ty's advisers and of the public.
" I have the honour to be, &c.,
" J. RUSSELL.

" The Very Reverend the Dean of Westminster."
When the Secretary had concluded reading the corre-
spondence, a desultory conversation ensued between Mr.
Crawford, Mr. Wyse, Mr. Rennie, and others, regarding the
practice on the Continent of admission into places of divine
worship, in the midst of which Mr. Hume arrived, and shortly
after proceeded to address the meeting.
Mr. HUME said that, besides the letters which had been
read, a great deal of correspondence had taken place with
different individuals, which might be arranged under three
different heads, viz.—the Royal Academy, the Cathedrals, and
the Museums. As to the Royal Academy, they had rejected
every proposition made to them, notwithstanding that Lord
John Russell had expressed his anxiety to promote the desire
of the Committee and the wishes of the Queen. His Lard
ship had also stated that when he was a boy there was free
admission, and that therefore the claim should be urged now,
not as a matter of favour, but as a matter of right.—( Hear,
hear.) The present system of exclusion had grown up
within the last ten years. He (Mr. Hume) had moved
that the whole of the correspondence which had taken place
between Lord John Russell and the parties connected with
the several institutions should be laid before Parliament, as he
thought it was the fairest way of bringing the question before
the public.—( Hear, hear.) An intemperate letter which had
been received from Sir Martin Shee, the President of the
Royal Academy, would prove that there was no hope at the
present from that quarter. That letter was neither more nor
less than an violent attack upon them, and it was alleged
against them that they were actuated only by a desire to inter-
fere with what did not concern them, and not to benefit the
public. Great difficulties indeed had been experienced, both
with respect to the Royal Academy, and the British Artists'
Institution. These Establishments were alike competing for
public favour, and he was lcd to entertain a hope that the
British Academy would be induced to throw its doors open
to the public gratuitously, at least two days in the week. If
this could once be accomplished, the Royal Academy must
jor shame adopt the sense course. They should, however,
recollect that the British Academy was obliged to
provide not only its own exhibition-rooms, but the whole of
the expenses incidental to the establishment ; while exhibi-
tion-rooms, and a portion of the expenses for maintaining
them, were supplied to the Royal Academy by the public.
Should his proposal be acceded to by the British Academy,