The Sun.
London, England, 1865-10-14 00:00:00

Metropolitan Board of Works.

The usual meeting of the Metropolitan Board of Works
was held yesterdayat the office in Spring-gardens ; Sir John
Thwaites in the chair.

FINANCE.

The financial statement showed the following cash
balances in the hands of the treasurer :—Current accounts,
£316,063 Os. ld. ; deposit accounts, £lol,soo.—total,
£t17,60 Os. ld.

QUESTION OF PRIVILEGE.

Mr. H. L. TAYLOR rose and said he wished to call the at-
tention GI the Board to a matter of considerable importance
in reference to his position as a member of the Board. It
would be in the recollection of the members that at their
last meeting, on the question of raising the salary of their
engineer, he had felt it his duty to make certain observa-
tions upon the proposition that was then made, but in the
course of those observations he was sure that he said no-
thing that could give offence to any member, and the Board
eventually took the view which he propounded, and many
of the members gave up their own views and voted for his
motion. Among them Mr. Peckett, who originally intro-
duced the question, as a matter of policy voted for his mo-
tion, and the whole question was referred to a committee
by a large majority. Accordingly, on Tuesday last, he (Mr
Taylor) attended the committee for the purpose of perform-
ing his duty, but the question was introduced by Mr.
Peckett, although he (Mr. Taylor) considered that, as Mr.
Peckett's motion had been superseded by his amendment,
such duty should have devolved upon him as the mover of
it, and that he was the proper person to take up the ques-
tion. After one or two speeches had been delivered he (Mr
Taylor) got up to say a few words on the question, when,
finding that there was a loud discussion going on at the
other end of the room, and finding that his address was not
thought to be worth listening to, he said he would reserve
what he had to say upon it until the meeting of the Board
on the following Friday. He got up from his place when
he was immediately followed by an hon. member who
said that his conduct was " most dishonourable." Now,
he thought such a term was so strong as applied to his
conduct and, not being well at the time, he at once walked
out of the room. Now, that having taken place in a com-
mittee of the Board, he wanted to know if such a term
ought to be applied to any member, for it was his opinion
that if such a term could be borne out and sustained that
he ought to be a member of the Metropolitan Board of
Works no longer. The honour of every member was in the
hands of the chairman, and he could not expect to be sup-
ported unless he defended the honour of the members com-
mitted to his charge ; and if such a term could be applied
to a member who had devoted a great deal of his time to
the public service—if such a term applied to his conduct
could in any way be justified—he felt that he ought not a
moment longer to be a member of the board. (Hear.) Mr.
Doulton was the member who made the observation, and,
unless he was prepared to justify such a term, he ought no
longer to be a member of the board.
The CHAIRIKAN said he was sorry that the matter had
been raised in the board, and when Mr. Taylor had taken
exception to the objectionable expression he had called upon
Mr. Doulton to withdraw it ; but Mr. Taylor did not remain
to hear the withdrawal which had taken place. He would
have neglected his duty unless he had called upon the hon.
member to withdraw such an expression, as, to his know-
ledge, there was no member of the board to whom the im-
putation of acting dishonourably could apply. Had Mr.
Taylor remained a few minutes longer the matter would
have been set right on the spot in regard to his character,
which had been most unjustly attacked.

Mr. DouLToN, M.P., agreed with the chairman that it
was not convenient to discuss such matters in the public
board. He had expressed himself strongly in the com-
mittee, and he continued to feel -very strongly upon this
matter. The hon. member (Mr. H. L. Taylor) said, as the
author of the motion for referring the question to a com-
mittee, he had the right to bring it forward; and that when
he rose to express his opinions upon it he observed a disin-
clination at one end of the room to listen to him, but he
(Mr. Doulton) did not hear it. The hon. member imme-
diately rose and quitted the room, and the words he (Mr.
Doulton) used were that his conduct was most extraordi-
nary, and he had almost said dishonourable, for no member
of a public body had ever treated his colleagues as the hon.
member (Mr. Taylor) had treated them upon that occasion.
He would take the practice of the House of Commons
whore members were in the habit of speaking to each other;
but in this case there were only two members exchanging
words, upon which the hon. member rose from his seat
and said he would not remain.
TheCllA
mini:A.llr saidT aythl
Taylor
facton twashat that there ththhearto
if was
theane in-
terruption,mtmhiettoebesweremnioontsthheenhparedptaoremdatkoebnencaotrinhl iFnrideashould reserve
duct Friday.
the part of
Mr. DOULTON resumed—Such
for, although they were
Mr. Taylor was trifling with them,
then in committee,the
give them informationhe coolly
untilto ld
ib
e them elh
0. m
coolly,ahthi
dasanptmedhre
refuse
ed.
fsutlhots oesauetnl
oedome,
henotved
re,
mhoewmeboverr,htehwatasastosoterenaat
them any information unstlhoeesnsebhomaeercmdhose. He (Mr. Doulton)
protested against such trifling conduct on that as well as on
other occasions, and although he represented the City of
London, he was no more than any other member of the
board.

The CHAIRMAN said he understood after the hon mem-
ber (Mr. Taylor) left that the offensive expression would bo
withdrawn as one that could not be justified. He under-
stood that Mr. Doulton had withdrawn the expression, but
that now appeared to be a mistake.

mr. mnulm, M.P., said he understood Mr. Doulton had

Mr. H. L. TAYLOR said he had no right to be exposed to
such an unmeasured attack, and especially from one who
was so unscrupulous in his observations.
The matter then dropped.
THE BLACKMAN-STREET SEWER ACCIDENT.
The chief engineer to the board (Mr. J. W. Bazalgette)
brought up the following report on the state of the Black-
man-street (Borough) sewer:—
bthoearmd aiben sewerinstr "Engineer's Department, Oct. 12, 1865.
"I submit herewith Dr. Henry Let heby's report of the re-
sult of his examination of the sample of sewage taken from.
instructed
to Blackman-street,
a treent,etßieoe upon the
tshheorAtlyeraaftedter
the late accident, and I recommend that the solicitor to the
Bread Company, requiring them at once to desist from:dis-
charging their manufacturing refuso into the sewer.
"J. W. BAZALGETTE, Engineer."
" DR. LETIIEBY'S REPORT.
" " College Laboratory, London Hospital, Oct. 9.
Dear Sir,—ln accordance with your request I have to
report to you, for the information of the Metropolitan
Board of Works, the result of the examination of the sample
of the sewage taken from the main sewer in Blackman-
street, Borough,where an accident occurred on the 14th ult.
to three of the men engaged in flushing the sewer. The
material was sent to me on the 2d inst., and it was contained
in a quart wine bottle. It was giving off abundance of
mixedid,
in ette'tahnewd on
formit with at
nboaefl3c'hs usualiasi
chalk
befs sulphuretted
aul penwkhdhu rdii
tteei
np
oct
st
aihsonyonthdirs
eoowgf
sulphateaec
agnerab
0. n carbonicdna
oThetof
o flimelim
composition of it was the
same as that which I examined in June last from a sewer
in Beech-lane, Barbican, into which the refuse from one of
the establishments of the A&ated Bread Company was dis-
charged. I may state also that in that case, as in the pre-
sent, the quantity of foul air evolved into the atmosphere of
the sewer was so great as to be dangerous to human life—
in fact, the workmen were afraid to enter the sewer, audit
was a subject of complaint by the engineer of the Commis-
sioners of Sewers. I was requested to inquire into it. I
found that the Aerated Bread Company were in the habit
of employing a mixture of whiting and oil of vitriol for the
generation of carbonic acid, used in the vesiculation of the
bread, and that when this mixture had ceased to evolve the
gas in sufficientquantity for their purpose, it was discharged
into the sewer, where it continued to give off carbonic acid
in such volume as to render the atmosphere unwholesome.
About half a ton of this refuse was let into the sewer at a
time, and I have reason to believe that it was not only
evolving carbonic acid, but it was also, from its acid na-
ture, uee causingsewer mud.
g tjbhuaekdege escape an
Judging, therefore,
of
tohf
the Aerated
tefrredottemßdrt
hehaiysdd
Company,
rn,oylm,haatnvhdee
no doubt that the material found in the main sewer in
Blackman-street has had a similar origin—namely, in the
that foul air which was so nearly fatal to the workmen
was the carbonic acid evolved from the material. As to
the remedy for the danger which arises from the discharge
of such matters into the sowers, I am not able to offer
much advice, except by pointing out the necessity for tho
adoption of some means whereby the discharge of noxious
matters into the public sewers may be regulated, if not en-
tirely stopped. The records of the fatal accidents in the
sewers of this metropolis show how, under ordinary cir-
cumstances, by the natural processes of decomposition, the
sewage may evolve sufficient carbonic acid and sulphu-
rotted hydrogen to be dangerous to human life, but when,
as in the present instance, the proportions of these gases
are largely increased by the chymical action of manufac-
turing refuse:the danger may be serious. Experiment has
proved that the air with less than 10 per cent. of carbonic
acid, or withonly from 1 to 2 cent. of sulphuretted hydrogen
may be immediately fatal to animal life ; and although these
proportions do not often exist in the atmosphere of the metro-
politan sewers, yet they may be easily generated by the
ac-
tion
rtid blreeifnussetanuceponoftlitheisseinwearnmacculidenTt
whehriechis,occinuteed,
d
in the Fleet-lane sower in the month of February, 1861,
when four men were instantly killed. The gas which de-
stroyed them was sulphuretted hydrogen, and I have no
doubt it was produced by the chemical action of acid re-
fuse from a neighbouring factory upon the mud of the
sewer in which they were working. Other cases have also
come under my notice where more or less mischief has
arisen from like causes, and considering the importance of
the subject I am of opinion that certain restrictions should
be placed on the discharge of manufacturing refuse into
the public sewers.—l remain, dear sir, yours truly,
"J. W. Bazalgette, Esq." " Hy. LETIIBEY.
The report was received and adopted, and ordered to bo
entered on the minutes of the Board.

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