The Sun.
London, England, 1837-10-05 00:00:00

PAVING OXFORD-STREET.

Yesterday a highly numerous and respectable Meeting of
,he Inhabitants of Oxford-street, was held at Clarke's Auc-

tion Rooms, Holles-street, respecting the proposed paving
of Oxford-street. Mr. Oxenham, the auctioneer of Oxford-
street, was called to the chair.
The CHAIRMAN said he understood that a Committee had
been appointed to present a memorial to the Vestry of Mary-
lebone against the paving of Oxford-street, and he proposed
that the first business transacted by the present meeting
should be to hear some member of that Committee make his
report of the proceedings of it.
Mr. DIETRICHSEN said the arguments of the Vestrymen
who opposed the memorial were flimsy in the extreme.
Some of them represented the inhabitants of Oxford-street
as desirous of the paving taking place, when it was notorious
to those present that the contrary was the case. No reply
was offered to the arguments of the Committee but invective,
and the Vestry appeared determined to pave the street,.
whether the people wished it or not. It was moved and

seconded that they should postpone the subject until there
should be a more numerous Vestry, but they said they
had the power to come to a resolution by the Vestry then
assembled, and they would come to it ; and, accordingly,
the resolution, that Oxford-street should be paved passed
by a majority of three, in a Vestry of forty persons out of
the 1.26 vestrymen that the parish contained. The resolu-
tion of such a Vestry could not be said to represent the
feelings of the parishioners. He felt confident, however,
that if they (the present meeting) did not exert themselves,
the resolution would take effect. He (Mr. D.) proceeded
to say, that many tradesmen of Oxford-street knew that
there would be a great falling off in their business if such,
a paving took place, and some would leave the street. He
showed that there was Wiginore-street and other streets
forming together a line parallel to Oxford-street., which
were very rising streets already, and that the proposed
paving would drive away the traffic into those streets. He
trusted the present meeting would take measures for the
purpose of sending about persons to invite the vestry-
men in the parish to attend in ntuuijers the next vestry.
Mr. UNDIUWOOD said every representation had been
made to the Vestry Pe constituted last Saturday, to the
effect that the peeeposed project would be the ruin of
Oelord-street, The question was, what was to be done
under the circumstances ? lie then said that the resolu-
tion. of the Vestry could not be carried into effect with-
out the confirmation of it by the next meeting in Vestry,
which would take place next Saturday. He proposed that,
in preparation for that day, there should be a canvassing of
the vestrymen of the parish, and that they should be pre-
vailed upon to go in numbers to the Vestry. He did not pro-
pose that they should be told how to vote, but only to attend
the Vestry, and that would be sufficient, for he was sure
the majority was against the proposed plan of paving Ox-
ford-street, if they could only be induced to attend and dis-
charge their duty by voting conscientiously. He proposed
also that a remonstrance should be presented to the
Vestry on Saturday next, to the effect that this meeting
beard with alarm that the Vestry had passed the reso-
lution in question, notwithstanding the memorial pre-
sented by the inhabitants against the report of the Com-
mittee which had been appointed to survey Oxford-street,
and which Committee had recommended that that street
should he paved. The remonstrance went on to sheer that
tech a resolution, carried into effect, would involve the in-
habitants of Oxford-street, in the ruin of their trade and:
property. The remonstrators were, further, at a loss to
conceive the motive of the Vestry in passing their resolu-
tion, which had only been passed in a small meeting of the
Vestrymen. They held that the assumption, that the ex-
pense would be annually an enormous one of keeping the
street in repair, in its Macadamised state, to be considerably
exaggerated. The remonstrators felt assured that the re-
port of the Committee appointed to survey Oxford-street
was erroneous, as the documents of other parishes, on being
searched, clearly showed. The remonstration went on to
say, that the necessity for the great outlay for repairs which
would arise for the present arose out of the annual neglect,
and improper mode of reparation adopted by those who
ought to have seen that the road was kept in repair upon the
Macadamized principle carried out on roads generally, in
which case Oxford-street, and the other streets in the parish,
could not have got into so bad a state as to require any extra
repairs at the, present time. The remonstrance concluded
by prayinz the Vestry to pause before it confirmed the reso-
lution iee question, which would occasion a large expendi-
ture. Mr. Underwood concluded, amidst cheers, by mov-
isig certain resolutions, embodying the principles of his
speech, which were all put seriatim, and carried unanimously.
A Committee was appointed to present and to support.
the remonstrance to the Vestry, consisting of Mr. Oxenham
and four other rate-payers, to be accompanied by as many
of the inhabitants as chose to attend.

-- Several gentlemen were then appointed, who were to em-
ploy themselves in canvassing the Vestrymen of the parish,
so as to secure a full attendance of them at the Vestry, on

the occasion.
A liberal subscription was then collected in the room,
to defray the expenses of the present proceedings. •
Mr. UNDER WOOD said, if the present precautions failed,
further steps would be taken.
Thanks were then voted to the Chairman, and the meet-
ing separated.