The Sun.
London, England, 1831-03-09 00:00:00

COMMITTEE ON THE ST. MARTIN'S, BIRMINGHAM,
BURIAL-GROUND IMPROVEMENT ;11-tl.
At the sitting of this Committee this morning Mr. FitSlcell, of
Birmingham, whci stated that he apoeared, together with Mr.
Edmonds, for the rate,payers, Applied Jim the adjournment of the,
Committee for a week, in conseqiiCuce of the indisposition of
Mr. Edmonds, on whose great talents hie Opposers of the Bill
mainly relied. In making the application Mr. Ittizaitli tlei occasion
to state, that on Friday last a meeting took place at the Astice
Room In Birmingham, for the purpose of taking into flirt/Wenn;
sideration the opposition to this Bill. Mr. Edmonds and himself
appeared as the formal parties at that meeting against the Bill.
Tile meeting was most numerottaly attended, he would not say
by the wealth of the town, tut by the flctteat and industrious
inhabitants of if. At that Meeting himself and lift% Dirrionds
were again instructed to persevere in opposing the Bill, arid tear:-
lotions were passed deelaring the ectermination of the meetingio
oppose the Bill to the utmost as being an improper measure, and
one that was calculated greatly to burthen the rate-payers of
Birmingham, and the resolutions also returned thanks to 3!essrs.
Russell and Edmonds, for the opposition' they had alreatik given
to the Bill, and authorised them to go on opposing it till fine Bill
was disposed Of.
Mr. WHATELEY, who appeared on behalf of the promoters
of the Bill, opposed the applicatidil, denying that either Mr. Ed-
monds or Mr. Russell appeared for the rate.paYers of Binning-
ham, and contending that before the Committee they could only
be considered as principals, the Committee allowing Itrl persona
to appear as agents except a Parliamentary agent or a .barrister,
at-law. He therefore trusted that the Committee would not
accede to the apPlicatiOn,' thereby putting his clients to a great
. , •
expense.
The Comstrervat decided that the pfottlofees of the Bili Were
entitled to proceed in order to frame its preamble. the 'object of
the Bill was to enable the trustees of St. Marlin 's btitylnttgfeknid
in Birmingham, to 'raise an additional sum of money, by in-
creasing the rates, inn order to pay off incumbrances which
had been created under the Afit for enlarging the church-yard
of St. Martin's. Those incumbrant'es originally amounted to
upwards of 11,0001. ; part had been paid oft, and there remained
at the present moment 7,0001., with interest, uniitifildated,. the
payment of which was the object of the present Bill. For the Wiz.-
pose of improving the church-yard of St. Martin's, "certain por-
tions of land were bought by the trustees. In order to make the
church-yard more complete and better adapted for its purposes,
an exchange of land took place between the trustees of the
burying ground, and the Commissioners of the! town of Bir.
mingham. At the last sitting of the Committee lith:ae discus-
sion took place as to the insufficiency of this exchange, and Wit.
nesses to clear up that point were to be brought forward to-day.
Mr. Kempson, a surveyor of Birmingham, proved that one
yard more of laud was given in exchange withl the Trustees of
the burial ground by the town Commissioners than was received.
Mr. Arnold, a solicitor of Birmingham, and vestry clerk, was
next examined, and gave evidence to a similar effect.
Mr. RUSSELL addressed the Committee. He submitted that
the preamble gad not been proved, inasmuch as the best evidence
as to the giving and taking of the land, had not been brought
forward, that the parties had acted contrary to the Act, and hail
exercised authorities which they had no power to do. The pre-
amble as altered would bear most grievously upon the lower
class of the rate-payers in the town of Birmingham, in his
opinion, and he conceived it to be the duty of the Legislators to
take into consideration the circumstances- of the industrious
poor much s more than those of the wealthy. Mr. Russell con-
cluded by earnestly entreating the Committee on behalf of the
rate-payers of Birmingham to declare that the preamble of the
Billwas not proved.
The parties were ordered to withdraw, and on their re-
admission were informed by
The CHAIRMAN—That the Committee had taind the
preamble of the Bill proved. The:Committee then adjourned to
to-morrow at one o'clock,'when it will proceed with the different
clauses of the Bill.

FRACAS at the COLLEGE of SURGEONS.

(FROM OUR OWN REPORTER.)
The most extraordinary scene took place yesterday in the
Royal College of Surgeons that ever occurred there, anti
probably one of the most violent measures adopted, and a
greater stretch of authority resorted to by the President
and Council of the College against the respectable Members of
their body, than was ever recorded of the ruling authorities of
any corporate body whatever. The circumstances were these :
A short time ago an order was issued by the Lords of the Ad-
miralty, excluding from attendance at the Levees the Surgeons
and Assistant-Surgeons of his Majesty's Navy, which has
given very great offence to the members of the profession
at large, more particularly as it has subsequently been
intimated that at no very distant period the army surgeons
are to meet with the same fate. On the 14th of last month, just
before the annual Hunterian Oration was delivered in the
theatre of the Royal College of Surgeons, the members met
and passed unanimously two resoltktions ; one to the effect of
deeply deploring that such an order had been issued, and the
other that the President and Council should. be requested to
petition the Lords of the Admiralty that the order might be
wholly and immediately rescinded. The latter resolution was
delivered to the President in the theatre, who pledged him-
self to lay it before the Council at their first formal meeting for
the disposal of business. A few days ago an answer was re-
turned to the Members that the Council could not act upon the
resolution, "on the ground of irregularity." This answer
greatly incensed the Members. At this season of the
year a course of lectures is delivered in the theatre.—
The tickets of admission to the Members state that the
doors shall be opened at three o'clock, and that the lectures are
to be delivered on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, at four
o'clock. Mr. Wakley announced in the Lancet of last week the
answer returned to the Members by the Council, and invited
the Members to meet in the Theatre yesterday as soon as the
doors should be opened, to discuss the propriety (before the time
for the lecture to begin) of petitioning either the Lords of the
Admiralty or the Lord Chamberlain for a redress of the griev-
ance of which they complained. The Council, on learning this,
published circulars and sent them to the Members, saying that on
Tuesday the doors should not be opened till a quarter before four,
and that they were determined to use every possible effort for the
purpose of preventing the Members publicly discussing the sub-
ject they complained of, or indeed discussing any other subject
in the Theatre. In furtherance of this determination, the
Council procured a party of the most powerful bodied Bow-
street police, and had them in attendance. As soon as the
doors were opened, the Theatre was crowded to the utmost
excess in every corner instantaneously. Immediately cries
for a Chairman were raised, and that as the Council had
insulted the members by attempting to prefent the discussion,
the discussion should take place, and that there should be no
lecture. In the midst of the confusion, the President,
followed by the Lecturer, many of the Council, and their
solicitor, took their stand upon the floor of the theatre.
The Members called out from every part of the theatre that no
lecture should take place, nor should any of the Council be heard
until they had concluded their discussions. The Bow-street
officers were then called in, which doubly infuriated the mem.
bers. They were directed to take Mr. Wakley out of the
theatre by the President. They advanced to him, and he was
immediately clung to by scores of the Members, who unani-
mously declared with himself that he should not go out,
neither should one of the Members be removed from
their own theatre until the utmost violence was resorted to.
The officers on this refused to lay their hands on any of the
members and withdrew. Efforts were again made by the Presi-
dent and the Council to obtain a hearing for the Lecture, but all
proved ineffectual. They then left amidst groans and cheers.
Silence having now been obtained, one of the members was
elected chairman, and Mr. Wakley addressed the meeting on the
subject of the order of exclusion already alluded to.—
One or two other gentlemen spoke; and a resolution having
been passed unanimously that a petition should be presented
by them to the proper quarter, praying for the abolition of
the order, the Secretary of the Council was sent to
Mr. Wakley, who put a paper into his hand, re-
quiring him, by order of the Council, to leave the
theatre. Mr. Wakley refused to go. The Secretary imme-
diately afterwards exhibited a placard, calling upon the members
to quit the theatre, which only added fuel to the fire. The Bow-
street officers having got and indemnity from the Council and
their solicitor, for any consequences that might fellow their inter-
ference (without which they refused to act) rushed towards Mr.
Wak!ey and some others brandishing their staves, and seizing
those gentlemen in the most violent and outrageous manner.
Having refused to go out a general scuffle followed, when
the officers and an immense number of gentlemen tumbled
headlong from the body to the floor of the theatre. Mr.
Wakley's clothes were literally torn to ribbons; his
coat, waistcoat and shirt were reduced to actual rags. As soon
as he was conveyed to the outside of the door he was released,
the officers saying they had no charge against him, and
he at once gave the last who had hold of bins into
the custody of a new police man who happened to be
passing near the College at the time. Soon afterwards
all the members left the Theatre but subsequently Mr.
AVakley appeared at the public office at Bow-street,
to prefer his charge against the officers for assaulting
him. In the end "(the Magistratessill three being on the bench)
refused to hold the officers to bail, but left Mr. Wakley to indict
them at the next Sessions, undertaking that the officers should
be then forthcoming to meet the charge. The officers stated to
the Magistrates .that during the time the examinations were
going on, there were from•2oo to 300 surgeons surrounding the
office door, and that there could not have been less than from
500 to 700 in the Theatre. This will, of course, bring to issue
a legal decision on the question whether the theatre belongs to
the Members or to the Council, exclusively of the College.

(FROM A CORRESPONDENT.)
It being announced that a lecture was to be given yesterday at
the College, and an advertisement having also mentioned that the
doors were to be opened at three, and the lecture to commence
at four o'cl.-ck, Mr. Wakley, in a number of his Lancet, MU.
mated that it would be a good opportunity to discuss the griev-
ances of the army surgeons, previous to the commencement of
the lecture. In consequence of this intimation, the Council of
the College issued an order, which Mr. Wakley facetiously ob-
sarved must have been the composition, not of the Council of the
College, but of the Secretary's cook. The crder wa• to the effect
that the doors were not to be opened till a quarter before four, in
consequence of which an immense concourse assembled on the
outside, and the rush resembled that at the pit of a theatre when
the doors are opened. The Council and Lecturer having taken
their seats, a call was made by one party for Mr. Wakley, and by
the pupils for the Lecturer. A great tumult consequently arose
between the two parties, which lasted upwards of half an hour, at
the expiration of which time the Lecturer withdrew, unable to be
heard. Mr.Wakley then began (a ch airman having been appointed)
to discuss the grievances of naval assistant-surgeons being refused
admission to his Majesty's levee, and pi:xeeded at great length on
this topic, together with that respecting the insult offered to the
members. At this juncture Mr. Balfour, the Secretary, entered
with a large placard, desiring the theatre to be cleared. This
order not being complied with, but hissed and hooted; six or eight
officers entered, to enforce. the order, and Mr. Wakley, accom.
panied by a large body of gentlemen, were turned out of the
theatre.

Lord JOHN RUSSELL and Mr. STANLEY
are to be (if they are not already) appointed Cabinet Mi-
nisters—a handsome but by no means disproportioned tai•
hute to the abilities which they have displayed on this
momentous question of Reform ; and, in the case Of the
Right Hon. Gentleman, an acknowledgment of the discre-
tion and the energy wain which the administration of
the affairs of Ireland has been carried on since his acces-
sion to office. It is not long since we expressed our opi-
nion that the Chief Secretary and Lord Lieutenant of
Ireland ought, at all times, to be Cabinet Ministers, and
this new appointment of Mr. STANLEY is perhaps the first
step to such a valuable improvement in the fraine of the
Administration.— Times.