The Sun.
London, England, 1836-11-05 00:00:00

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

Yesterday a number of experiments were tried with a
view of testing the alterations made in the interior of the
present temporary House of Commons, under the super-
intendence of Dr. Reid, of Edinburgh, with a view
of improving it as regards ventilation, but more espe-
cially as regards the transmission of sound. It is well
known that constant complaints were made during the
last as well as the preceding Session of Parliament of the
difficulty of hearinr, in the House of Commons, in conse-
quence of which a'Committee was appointed to investigate
the subject, with a view of providing a remedy. After ex-
amining a number of scientific witnesses, and amongst
others Mr. Faraday, Mr. Brande, Sir Robert Smirke, Dr.
Birkbeck, and Dr. Reid, the Committee recommended that
the alterations suggested by the latter gentleman should
be submitted to the test of actual experiment, as the only
means of ascertaining with accuracy, the soundness of the
principles laid down in the evidence, and also their useful
application to the future House of Commons. Dr. Reid is
Professor of Chemistry at Edinburgh, and has paid consi-
derable attention to the subject of ventilating and warming
large public buildings, as well as to the practical application
of acoustics to the construction of large buildings. Imme-
diately at the close of the last Session the proposed altera-
tions were commenced, and, having now been nearly com-
pleted, the result was yesterday exhibited to a number of
Members of Parliament, and other persons connected with
the House, and, for the purpose of givint, effect to the
experiments in a " full House," a detachment of the
Grenadier Guards, 420 in number, occupied the seats
in the back-rows in the body of the House, and the
Members' Galleries. Since the days of Cromwell so im-
posing an array of military men has not been witnessed
within the walls of the House of Commons. In the pre-
sent case, however, the soldiers were without their arms,
and obeyed the orders of the Radical Member for Lam-
beth, Mr. Hawes, who took the Chair, with a precision and
decorum which would have shamed the ordinary occupants.

The alterations which have taken place in the House
since last Session are most extensive. The roof has been
considerably lowered, or rather a skylight framework has
been made a short distance below the base of the upper
windows, and after slanting at an angle of from 20 to 25
degrees for about one-third of the breadth of the house on
each side, it becomes horizontal for the remaining portion.
This framework is glazed throughout with windows of a
variety of shapes, which was done with the view of prevent-
ing the sound collecting in various foci. The reporters'
gallery has been lowered about two feet, and been brought
forward into the body of the House, and the front of it is
now nearly on a level with the back of the Speaker's chair.
It is not of greater depth than it was before, as the back
part has also been brought forward ; of course the slanting
roof extends over it as over the body of the House. The
wooden screen at the back of the Speaker's chair has also
been considerable lowered, and has a very modest appear-
ance in comparison with what it formerly had. The screen
is hollow, and covered with canvass braced tightly like a
drum for the purpose of strengthening and reflecting back the
Speaker's voice. The strangers' gallery has also been lowered,
and the ceiling above it is now but a short distance over the
heads of those sitting in it. There has been no material al-
terial in the arrangement of the seats in the body of the
House. The floor of the House, as well as the floors
of the galleries, have a most singular appearance, having
been pierced throughout with small holes of about the third
of an inch in diameter, and about an inch and a half apart.
We were told that the number of these vent-holes was not
less than three hundred and eighty thousand. The canvass
which formerly covered the walls of the House has been
removed, and thin boards of wood been substituted in
the place thereof ; by this means more body is given to the
voice, and at the same time less effort is required to sustain
the voice at a proper pitch in a long speech. At the ex-
terior, on one side of the House, a lofty chimney has been
erected, for the purpose of aiding in the proper ventilation of
the House. This is to be effected by taking advantage of a
current, which is determined by means of a column of
heated air. Dr. Reid described at length the nature of the
process which he had adopted for the ventilation of the
House. It was known to most persons that every indivi-
dual respired about 1,000 times within the hour, and it was
also asserted that the surface of the lungs was equal to 15
times the surface of the body. The importance of proper
and abundant ventilation was thus manifest from the vast
preparations which nature had made for ventilating the
human frame ; and in order that those in the galleries of
the House might not respire the air which had been pre-
viously used by the Members below, an apparatus was
continued by which air was conducted from beneath the
floor to the galleries, of the same temperature as that sup-
plied to the body of the House. In the first place, the
air is taken from one great aperture, and after being pre-
pared to the required temperature, it is broken in its
impetus by means of plates termed distributors, and is sent
into the body of the House through the numerous minute
holes we have just alluded to. The great advantage of
introducing the fresh air at a regulated temperature is
that the air already once respired is at once carried
away, and the atmosphere is never of that oppres-
sive character which is often met with in some build-
ings where there are large assemblages of persons, and
where the respired air is not really carried off. By
means of the great number of small holes a more regular
temperature is diffused throughout the House, and the in-
convenience arising from currents of air is altogether got
rid of. Dr. Reid also alluded to the advantage of lowering
the roof of the House ; a lofty room is generally preferred,
because from the mass of air present a long time is neces-
sarily required to contaminate it ; but when prolonged de-
bates are carried on, the cause which prevents its being
contaminated at first renders it extremely difficult to
ventilate the room when the air is vitiated. In less
elevated apartments, however, a stream of air of a proper
temperature may be made to rise slowly but continually
from the floor to the top of the inclined roof, to be
removed thence by the ventilator. The whole of the
ventilating apparatus is under precise control, so as to
adapt the currents to the varying circumstances of the
place—in short, any change from hot to cold can be
effected upon the currents at a momentary notice. The
regulation is effected in the most simple manner by one
person, who, at a moment's warning, can open or close the
valves. The effect of the ventilating apparatus was then
tried, first upon a small scale in a glass model of the build-
ing, and afterwards in the House itself, to show the man-
ner in which the air was supplied and carried off by the
ventilators. Dr. Reid sent a quantity of smoke through
the pipes below the flooring, with which every part of the
House, including the reporters' and strangers' gallery was
almost simultaneously filled. The smoke rose gradually to
the roof, and was carried off by means of the ventilators
through the chimney. The House was afterwards filled in
a similar manner with the fumes of mtller and various per-
fumes, and it was ascertained that the average time occu-
pied in diffusing the odorous matter through every part of
the House was one minute and a half. The effect was most
satisfactory, and we have no doubt that even during the
most prolonged debates, and when the House is crowded to
the utmost, there will be no complaints made as to the ven-
tilation. The only evil that probably will arise will be that
on such occasions the House may sit to a much later hour
than it would otherwise do, in consequence of its agreeable
temperature. In such cases it was suggested that the smoke
might be applied very judiciously, and that it would
empty the House as effectually as one of Colonel Sib-
thorpe's speeches. Dr. Reid then proceeded to allude to
the alterations that had made with a view of improving the
transmission of sound throughout the House. We have
not space to go into this part of the subject, further than
to observe that the voice of Dr. Reid was distinctly heard
at every part of the building when speaking in a conver-
sational tone. He spoke from various parts of the House,
but his observations were distinctly audible. On one occa-
sion, however, while making some observations at the back
end under the gallery, it was remarked by the persons at
the back seat of the gallery immediately above him that
they could not distinctly hear, which induced him to re-
mark that he had been led to fear that this would he the
case : it was one reason why he strongly objected to the
erection of galleries in buildings of the kind. Mr. Hawes,
Mr. Sergeant Andrews, Sir G. Clerk, and several other
gentlemen, read at different parts of the House extracts
from the debates, which were distinctly heard at all parts
of the House. The effect of cheering was then tried, and
the soldiers—who seemed to be very much amused with the
whole of the proceedings—gave a number of hearty and
prolonged cheers. There were 540 persons present while
Dr. Reid was speaking and the extracts being read, and

they were requested not to be particular in keeping silence.
In some cases more noise was made than is generally the
case when the House is full and anxious for a division, not-

withstanding which any person who spoke in a tone but
slightly greater than that used in conversation could be
beard. All parties present appeared to be perfectly satis-
fied with the result of Dr. Reid's experiments. The tem-
perature of the House during the experiments, which lasted
nearly two hours, ranged between 60 and 62 Fahrenheit.

Lord Henry Seymour is actively engaged in com-
pleting a new company, for establishing a cheap and expe-
ditious line of stage-coach and other conveyance between
the French coast and Paris. It is expected to commence
operations at Boulogne early next spring, with superior
Euglish horses, &c. A. number of carriages are already
built, and the plan is patronised by the French Government.
The Duchess of Kent and the Princess Victoria
have resumed their promenades on the pier at Ramsgate.
Their Royal Highnesses were joined on Tuesday by the
Earl of Roden and Lord and Lady Barham, and appeared
much interested in the numerous ships with which the har-
bour was crowded.

The Lord Bishop of Winchester will hold an ordi
nation on the 11th of December.