The Sun.
London, England, 1862-05-26 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MOND kY EVENING, MAY 26, 1862.

interrupted by the failure of the contractors. A
further delay of about two years took place, in
which Parliament discussed over and over again
the question of proceeding with the bridge upon
the present site, and it was not till about the middle
of 1859 that Mr. Page was enabled to proceed
vigorously with the work. This is the fourth
bridge which that engineer has constructed over
the Thames, and the work is one which reflects the
highest credit upon his good taste as an artist and
his practical experience as an engineer.

TILE CIIAP2E.R-Ii OUSE OF IF ESTMIN-

S2ER ABBEY.

A meeting took place on Saturday afternoon at
the Chapter house of Westminster Abbey, called by
Dr. Trench, the Dean of Westminster, to take into
consideration the steps which are desirable to call
public attention to the ruinous condition of that
teautiful building, with a view to its restoration.
A number of influential noblemen and gentlemen
were present, including Lord Ashburton, Lord
Stratford de Redcliffe, Lord Taunton, the Bishop of
Oxford, the Bishop of St. Andrew's, the Bishop of
St. David's, Sir W. Page Wood, Lord Talbot, Lord
Stanhope, Sir D. Dundas, Mr. Monckton Manes,
Mr. Tite, Mr. Beresford Hope, Mr. Dasent, Mr.
Reeve, Mr. Sala, Mr. B. Cochrane, Mr. T. C. Lewis,
and others.

Upon the motion of the Dean of WESTMINSTER,
the chair was taken by

Lord ASHBURTONwho stated that he had re-
ceived a letter from the Duke of Buccleuch, express-
ing his warm approval of the object of the meet-
ing, but regretting his inability to be present at it.
His lordship said the meeting had every reason
to be thankful to the Dean of Westminster, who,
in his pious zeal for the monuments under his
charge, had called them together upon this occasion.
This most elegant structure, which was justly re-
garded as one of the finest examples of early Eng-
lish architecture, was built by King Henry 111. in
the year 1253. It was earlier than the Charter-
house of Salisbury, but it had suffered from more
than five centuries of neglect and barbarous adap-
tation to everyday uses, and had been reduced to
a mere wreck. The main features had, however,
been diligently traced by Mr. G. G, Scott. The
Chapter-house was made over by the Convent for
the use of the House of Commons earlyin the reign
of Edward 111. with the express condition that the
Crown should keep it in repair. In the time of Ed-
ward VI., the Commons having removed to St.
Stephen's Chapel, the Chapter-house came into the
hands of the Government. It had been ever since
employed as a record office, and it was in adapting
it to this purpose that it had been reduced to its
present unsightly state. It was an octagon of 80 feet
in diameter, and had a vaulted roof which was sup-
ported by an elegant clustered shaft of Purbeck
marble. The windows were of great beauty, and
the walls beneath were occupied by arcaded stalls,
the backs of which were filled with paintings.
Groups of statuary adorned the door-ways, and the
flooring was of encaustic tiles of the most rich and
varied designs. The building suffered only from
negleet until the beginning of the 18th century, but
it was then wantonly reduced to its present state in
order to fit it for a record repository. The vaulted
roof, being considered dangerous, was destroyed,
and cheaply replaced by a flat ceiling. The walls,
rich in most tasteful statuary and paintings, were
concealed by presses and a gallery; the pavement
was boarded over, and thus fortunately preserved.
The windows were blocked up, partly with brick
and partly with their own tracery. Nothing, in fact,
was left visible of its original beauty, except its
central shaft, and even that was partially concealed
by a rough bulkhead round its base. In consequence
of the erection of the new general repository for re-
cords the public documents had now been removed
from the Chapter-house, and nothing was wanted
but funds to enable its restoration to be accom-
plished. If it were in France there could be very
little doubt but that the Emperor would, of his
own will, order that the restoration should take
place. But, living as we did under a constitutional
Government, the Queen and Government were
powerless to aot without the sanction of Parlia-
ment. Their only course, and perhaps:the most re-
gular one, was to appeal to public opinion, and so
to act upon the public mind as to induce the Go-
vernment to make proposals for the restoration of
the building. He would call upon Mr. Scott, the
architect, who had taken great pains to ascertain
the condition of the Chapter-house, to state what
means would be necessary for carry ing out the
object they had in view.
Mr. SCOTT said it would astonish many persons,
unaccustomed to examine the works of medi-
aeval architecture, to be told that this place, in
which they were now assembled, which had the
appearance of ,being something Yetween a Metho-
dist chapel and a warehouse, had been, and might
still be one of the most beautiful specimens of
mediaeval art. The period at which the Chapter-
house was built corresponded with that of the Saint
Chapel in Paris, and was as good as that in every
respect. He had made the most minute examina-
tion of the building, and had spent much time
over it during the last four months, and he was able
to state that the whole of the interior, and the
greater part of the exterior, might be restored to
exactly the same state in which it was at the time
when it was finished, in the year 1253. There were
guides apparent in different places, which would
render it possible to ascertain the exact design of
every portion with certainty. Some of the win-
dows had been blocked up, but there were two or
or three that were built in solid masonry, and they
would serve as a guide for the rest. Of the painted
glass of course they could form no idea, but of the
decorations covering the wall there still remained
specimens which were in good preservation. One
of the pictures which had come to light repre-
suited our Lord, after His resurrection, showing
the wound in his feet and hands, and surrounded
with angels on the feathers of whose wings
were the names of the principal virtues. The floor
remained quite perfect, and the finest specimen of
encaustic tiles. It was merely covered over with
wood, and only required to be exposed to view, and
perhaps a few broken pieces replaced. There was
also an exact specimen of the moulding, and the
vaulting could be made complete without difficulty.
The next question was as to the stability of the`
building. It was evident that the vault had been
taken down because it was considered unsafe; but
he was satisfied that after rebuilding the buttresses,
the walls would be quite capable of carrying the
vaulting. The exterior was different. The
mnTfhrestothnee
m age n
had suffered very materially fro
climate, but happily it was riot quitesoboatdheras
might have been expected, for there was an
house against one side, and that had in some
measure preserved it. From what was now to
be
seen it was evident that the outside moulding
of the windows was
purposeprec o renewing precisely
yfar to the
the
outside mouldings he should apply the new
similar
inside. For the
method of hardening by cement, and then proceed
to replace the Parts that were quite destroyed. In
his opinion, however, it would be desirable that
every part that could be preserved should be left
fully restored he thought
i
one
Whenneasof the most exquisitely beautiful
etxawcotulyld as
be it
specimens of mediaeval architecture that had ever
been brought to light.
Lord STRATFORD DE REDCLIFFE then moved the
first resolution,—"That this meeting views With
regret the ruinous condition of a building so rich
in historical interest and in architectural bietEtiudtoyinet;
the Chapter-house at Westminster," and
so his lordship expressed his conviction that it
would be a shame and disgrace to the country if
this building were not restored.
Mr. COCHRANE seconded the resolution. •

Mr. TITS, the architect, also spoke in support of
tho resolution, and said that, as far as he could
judge, the Chapter-house of Westminster was larger-
than that of York or Salisbury, both of which had
been renewed most effectively. It would be a re-
proach to the country if this were not also brought
back to its original appearance.
The resolution was then carried.
Lord TAUNTON moved the second resolution
" That this meeting
is impressed with the desira-
bleness of bringing the restoration of the Chapter-
house under the consideration of her Majesty's Go-
veniment, ad well as of Parliament and the public!

generally." His Lordship said he was not very
sanguine about the probability of obtaining furkds
from Government for the restoration of the build-
ing, and he did not think that Parliament would be
very ready to second their views. He thought, on
the contrary, that it should be done by private sub-
scription, in the same way that the Salisbury Chap-
ter-house was renewed.

'Mr. DASENT seconded the resolution, and sug-
gested that the Ecclesiastical Commissioners might
be applied to for funds. He thought it desirable
that Mr. Scott should give them some idea of the
cost of this undertaking.

Mr. SCOTT said he should suppose it might be
done for about £20,000.

The Bishop of OxFoßbi in supporting the resolu-
tion, said he supposed the object of this meeting was
to feel the pulse of the public as to whether the
object they had in view was likely to be approved.
At present the ownership of the building was in
the Government, and it would be necessary in the
first place to get an Act of Parliament, conveying
the fee to the Dean and Chapter, before any outlay
could be decided upon. With respect to the Ecclesi-
astical Commissioners, they seemed to be looked
upon in the light of a mulch cow, who was to be
squeezed upon all occasions, but it really was not an
object for which the Commissioners had any power
to advance funds. He wished this to be known,
because it would be wrong to hold out a
paying fund from which it was not likely
that any money could be obtained. This build-
ing, from long use, had become the property of
the nation, and he could not doubt, when he
looked upon the enormous sums that had been
squandered upon the new Houses of Parliament,
and the feeling which existed so generally of link-
ing the old with the modern times, that if the pub-
lic would come forward and show a readiness to
contribute by private subscriptions the Government
would then assist in carrying- out this very de-
sirable undertaking. It should be distinctly under-
stood that by this meeting there was no intention of
laying claim to the building, but only to suggest to
Government what would be the best course to adopt
respecting it. The place was evidently unfit for
the custody of public documents, and in its present
state it could contain nothing but rubbish, therefore
something should be done to make it worthy of the
country. He could not help recurring to the death
of the lamented Prince Consort. If he had been
alive, he would have given force to the spirit of the
public, and would have led them on to carry out the
object they had to view.
Mr. HUBBARD asked the meeting to pause before
it sanctioned an appeal to Parliament, and suggested
an alteration in the wording of the resolution, by
striking out the words following " Her Majesty's
Government."

The sense of the meeting was taken upon this
proposal, and the resolution was altered in the man-
ner suggested, and it was then passed.

Mr. B. HOPE moved " the appointment of a
committee for the purpose of forming a deputation
to wait upon the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and
otherwise to promote the objects of the meeting,"
and in doing so he said it was immaterial to him
whether the Dean and Chapter got the building, or
the public, so long as it was restored to its original
beauty. He thought it might be converted very
advantageously into a receptacle for some of the
great and unique historical records of the country,
where they might be exhibited to the public, who
would at the same time have the opportunity of
inspecting the renovated Chapter•house. It was
the Government who had originally mutilated and
destroyed the building, and he did not see any
reason why they should not be called upon to put
the place in good tenantable repair. There had
been large sums of money spent upon objects of
much less beauty and importance.
Mr. SALA seconded the appointment of a com-
mittee, and the motion was carried.
Mr. REEVE suggested, as a fit purpose to which
the- building might be devoted, that it should be
occupied by the statues of some of their great men
or by some of the monuments from Westminster
Abbey.

The Dean of WESTMINSTER then read a memorial
which had been drawn up, embodying the resolu-
tions already passed at the meeting, and which he
said would be ready for signature by those who felt
an interest in the proposed restoration at Mr.
Vacher's, in Parliament-street, Messrs. Colnaghi's,
in Pall-mall, and Mr. J. H. Parker's, in the Strand.
Lord TALBOT of MALAHIDE proposed a vote of
thanks to the chairman, which was carried unani-
mously, and the meeting separated.
The committee comprised the following names:—
The Duke of Buceleuch, Lord Ashburton, Lord
Stanhope, Mr. Cockerell, Mr. Tite, Lord Taunton,
Mr. Dasent, Mr. Hubbard, Mr. Beresford Hope, Mr.
Sala, Mr. Reeve, Mr. M. Manes, Mr, Akroyd, Mr.
Cochrane, and the Dean of Westminster.

SOCIETY FOR _RELIEF OF DISTRESS.

The second annual meeting of this society took
place on Friday last at Willis's Rooms. The chair
was taken by the Bishop of London at three o'clock,
at which hour about 300 ladies and gentlemen, in-
cluding a large number of the metropolitan clergy,
were assembled. The chairman first called upon
one of the honorary secretaries to read the report,
by which it appeared that the most satisfactory
results had attended the operations of the society
since last year. The only doubt that had ever in-
truded itself on the minds of the committee—whe-
ther the almoners would not find their duties too
irksome and relax in their exertions—had passed
away and given place to a firm.conviction that the
movement has taken deep root and that its success
will be permanent. The number of these almoners
(each of whom has charge of a district) has been
nearly doubled since last year, and now amounts to
68, exclusive of a large number of ladies and gen-
tlemen who investigate special cases when required.
The great object of the society—to make the
wealthier classes more personally acquainted with
the real condition of the poor—is therefore rapidly
becoming more attainable. Although the contribu-
tions of the public in the year 1861-62 have, in con-
sequence of the mildness of the winter and other
causes, only amounted to £2,862, whereas in 1860-
61 they amounted to £4,306, being a decrease of
nearly £1,500; yet during the year 1861-62 the
grants to the poor have been £3,600, while the
same grants in 1860.61 only reached the sum of
£3,109, being an luerelse in osp•ancliturn of nearly
£5OO. This result shows the increased machinery
for relief which the society now possesses. The
balance in the hands of the society was £496 7s 73,
and the total expenses of management for the year
(defrayed by the guarantee committee) amounted to
£290 8s 3d. To account for the increased expen•
diture during the milder winter it should be observed
that every variety of fever, and especially typhus,
was rife in the poorer districts. When the" bread
winner" of the family was attacked great distress
followed. Many families also had never quite re-
covered the severe pinching of the previous winter.
In an indirect and collateral manner much good
had been effected. The " East London Weavers'
Association" or " Emigration to Queensland," and
the Needlewomen's Society had received most im-
portant help, both personally and pecuniarly. The
committee especially tendered their thanks to the
Mendicity Society, whose assistance in detecting
cases of imposition had been of the greatest service.
The report concluded with the expression of a hope
that the number of almoners would be greatly in-
creased next winter. The right rev. chairman then
stated that he had felt bound, as president of an
older institution, entitled the "Metropolitan Dis-
trict Visiting Association," which had been for some
time established, and had done good service for the
relief of the poor in the metropolis, to wait and
see how the new society worked, and whether
it injured the elder institution, before ho took any
step_ towards a public recognition of its services.
He was happy to
say that from all quarters, and es-
pecially from the
clergy in the poorest districts in the
East of London, he had received accounts highly
praising its operations. There was plenty of room
in London for both -
bocieties. The new society had
in one respect succeedsd h
w ere the old had failed.
It had certainly contrived, by what means he knew
not, to interest and employ a class whose attention
a short time ago had never been drawn to such
matters. In the list of the Society's almoners were

to be seen many names which nobody would have
expected to find there. It was a good, a happy
s!gn for a country, when steh then and women, with
all the means of this world's enjoyment at their
disposal, turned their attention personally to, and
gave up, perhaps, some of their pleasures for the
sake of, their poorer and suffering fellow creatures.
Lord Wharncliffe, in moving the adoption of the
report, regretted that his share in the society's work
had been restricted to paying his subscription. He
had, however, practically proved the efficiency of
its operation by referring cases to the office, which
had always been promptly and closely investigated,
He pointed to the smallness of the expenses of
management, and to the fact that even that small
sum was not taken from the subscriptions of the
public, but was defrayed by the managers of the
society themselves. He considered the principle a
sound and good one. Mary men and women in
London had nothing to do ; they could not do bet-
ter than to join this society, which would give them
a day's occupation and a comfortable feeling after
it—that, unlike Titus, they had not " lost a day."—
The Rev. W. H. Brookfield seconded the motion,
and pointed out by humorous descriptions of his
personal experience how the distress that appears
before the public eye is almost invariably false, and
and that true suffering hides unseen, and must be
sought out in its wretched home. The Hon. A.
Egerton, M.P., in moving the second resolution,
pointed out that the almoners were not merely dis-
trict visitors, but heads of districts, superintending in
conjunction with the clergy the local visitors of the
poor, and accountable to the central committee for
proper distribution of the grants allotted to their
districts. From his experience of the pre-
sent Lancashire distress he was convinced
that the society's mode of supplethenting the
Poor Law was a good one, by which cases were
reached which it was not advisable that the Poor
Law should touch.—Major Wm. Lyon, in second-
ing the resolution, said he must do penance before
the meeting, for he had, though wishing well to the
society, predicted its failure. He owned that he
was surprised at its success, and thought its inde-
fatigable promoters entitled to every credit.—The
Rev. G. H. M'Gill and the Rev. A. B. Suter moved
and seconded a vote of thanks to the rev, chairman,
and called attention to the excellent working of
the "East London Weavers' Aid Association," or
Queensland emigration, which had owed so much
of its success to the powerful support of the Society
for the Relief of Distress. The proceedings then
terminated.

Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough; second prize, £B, Mr, T,
Page, gardener to Mr. W. Leaf, Park-hill, Streatham.
Class 10-6 Greenhouse Azaleas—first prize, £7, Mr. C.
Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough; second prize, £5, Mr.
John Green, gardener to Sir E. Antrobus, Lower Cheam ;
third prize, £4, Mr. Page, gardener to Mr. W. Leaf, Park-
hill, Streatham,
Class 11-8 Greenhouse Azaleas, new kinds—first prize.
£4, Mr. C. Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough; second prize,
£3, Messrs. J. Ivory and Son, nurserymen, Dorking and
Reigate.
Class 12—G Cape Heaths—first prize, £B, Mr, B. Peed,
gardener to Mrs. Tredwell, St. John's-lodge, Lower Nor-
wood ; second prize, £5, Mr. T. Page, gardener to Mr. W.
Leaf, Park-hill, Streatham.
Class 13-6 Tall Cacti, species or varieties of, in flower,
large plants—first prize, £4, Mr. John Green, gardener to
Sir E. Antrobus, Lower Cheam.
Class 14-10 Roses, distinct kinds, in pots—first prize,
£l3, Messrs. Lane and Son, nurserymen, Great Berkhamp-
stead.

Class 15-10 Roses, distinct kinds, in pots not exceeding
8 inches in diameter—first prize withheld.
Class 16-10 Pelargoniums, distinct varieties, in pots not
exceeding 8 inches in diameter—first prize, £lO, Mr. C.
Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough.
Class 17-6 Pelargoniums, distinct varieties, in pots not
exceeding 8 inches in diameter (amateurs only)—first prize,
£5, Mr. T. Bailey, gardener to Mr. T. T. Drake, Sharde-
loes, Amersham.
Class 18-6 Fancy Pelargoniums, distinct varieties, in
pots not exceeding 8 inches in diameter—first prize, £b,
Mr. C. Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough.

Class 19—Seedling Pelargoniums, 1861—first prize, £l,
Mr. C. Turner, Royal Nurseries, Slough, Royal Albert.
Class 20—Single Specimens of newly-introduced, ex-
tremely rare, or beautiful Plants, in or out of flower, hardy
or exotic—first prize, £5, Mr. B. S. Williams, Paradise
Nurseries, Holloway.
Class 21-6 Plants of Cinerarias, in pots not exceeding
11 inches in diameter—first prize, £3, Messrs. J. Dobson
and Son, Woodlands Nursery, Isleworth.
Class 22-6 Plants of Calceolarias, in pots not exceeding
11 inches in diameter—first prize, £2 10s., Mr. J. Burley)
nurseryman, Limpsfield, Surrey.
Class 23—Miscellaneous—first prize, £2, Mr. B. S.
Williams, Paradise Nursery, Holloway (ferns).