The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-01 00:00:00

NEWGATE AND LEADENHALL.

The supplies were tolerably good, and the trade was
less active, as follows :
Per 81bs by the carcass.
s. d. s. d. s. d. s. d.
Reef, interior 2 10 3 2 Mutten, Inferior 2 10 3 2
Do., middling 3 4 3 6 1 Do., middling ..... '3 4 3 8
Do. prime large 3 8 3 10 . Do., prime 3 10 4 4
De , de. 5nia11....4 0 4 2 Veal 4 0 5 8
Pork, large... . .. 3 4 4 0) Pork, small 4 2 5 0

WESTMINSTER IMPROVEMPNT

COMMISSION.

The following letters have been addressed to the
editor of the Times :

" Sir,--I read with great surprise in your city article
of the 24th some observations upon the affairs of the
Westminster Improvement Commission, in which my
name is introduced.

"It is apparent on the face of your statement that
the sources from which your information has been de-
rived are ex parte or unauthorised documents—viz., 14
hill in Chancery, which you are probably not aware is
at present unsupported by any proof ; a petition of two
bondholders to the Ilome of Lords, which was unsuc-
cessful ; and a report which you do not appear to • kno or
was prepared without any communication with the com-
missioners or myself, and was immediately rejected by the
makrity of the committee of investigation, and withdrawn
by the authors of it. It is not, therefore, surprising that
serious errors occur in the article of which I complain.
Among other things, it is stated that the law costs and
other charges have been set down at two sums of 100,0821.
and 148.8131. ; the fact, however, is that the total
amount of law costs ever received or claimed by me or
my firm for business transacted for the commission has
been 29,509/. 2s. 6d., and no more, of which sum a very
large proportion—about one-half—consists of moneY
disbursed, the remainder being the total amount of pro-
lessional charges for the law business transacted during
10 years, including the purchase and conveyance of the
Trpt)erty forming Victoria-street and the adjacent im-
in.OVements, and the obtaining of five acts of Parliament.
pTo.one at all acquainted with the nature and extent of
such business will doubt the reasonableness of that
amount, and from no other source connected with the
-commission have I derived any profit or+ advantage
whatever.

"The two sums of 100,0821. and 148,8131. referred to
in your article consist chiefly of interest on the mortgage
and. bond debts of the commission, and a variety of
ol,b.fir payments wholly unconnected with the law de-
partment ; the amount included therein for law costs
heal' to me or my firm is only 28,1681. Bs. 10d., portion
of the 29,5091. 2s. 6d. I have already mentioned.
`• I entirely deny that I have ever exercised a control
forbidden by the provisions of the acts ; this statement
is wholly without foundation, as I have never acted
otherwise than under the direc ion and authority of the
commissioners. With respect to the mortgages which
are improperly designated preferential, they were clearly
authorise -1 by the acts, and it will be a vain attempt to
impeach them. Upon the statements which relate to
the amount of bond debt and matters of account I beg
to refer to the report of Mr. Croysdill, the eminent
public accountant, who investigated the accounts, which
were presented to the committee of inquiry in the early
part of last year, and I think the suit now pending in:
the Court of Chancery will afford the commissioners a,
proper opportunity of explaining their proceedings and
the general management of the undertaking.
"The circumstances which have led to the present
position of the bondholders are obvious—via., a capital
inadequate to the magnitude of the undertaking, the an'
favourable state of the money market at the commence-
ment and during the progress of the works, and the high
value of the property in the line of Victoria-street.
"As the statements in the article referred to. if an-
contradicted, contradicted, are calculated to inflict serious injury,
trust you will do me the justice to allow this explanation
to appear in your columns without delay.--I am, sir,
y our obedient servant,

"NATHANIEL MASOI4.
" Red Lion-bquares Jan. 29."

" Sir,--My attention has been directed to a statement
contained in the Times of the 24th inst., in reference
to the affairs of the Wesminster Improvement Comm''
sion.

‘llt will be apparent to all business men that the
object of the commission was analogous to that of
railway company, which can only prove remunerative
when its work has made considerable progress. At
first all must be outlay—viz., in the purchase of land
and property, rents, and taxes in respect of property se
purchased; Parliamentary and surveyors' fees, payments
to Commissioners of Sewers ; law, arbitration, and con-
veyancing expenses ; salaries, wages, assurances, corn'
rnissioners' fees, interest on bonds, loans, &c. So far
the comparison with a railway holds good ; but then
comes a material difference, for, whereas ordinal
shares pay no interest till a profitable traffic has arisen,
the bones and loans of the commission bore interest
within a very short period of its outset, although up to
this time no profit l-.as arisen.
"The first tangible date given in the statements yott
refer to is 1852. Of tho bonds issued prior to the let of
April in that year, 200,6001. were then a charge on the
commisson, all others of anterior date having been paid
off. On the 31st of December. 1854, the total of bonds
chargeable had increased to 686,9701., being an augmen-
tation of 486,3701. A further isoie to the amount of
290,0801. bad, indeed, been made, but moat of these
bonds were lodged as collateral security only with mort-
gagees, who took them as well as priperty, so that when
the property is realised the bonds are returnable to the

contrniisiom. This last item (290,0801.) must clearly be
deducted from the 977,0501. quoted in your statement as
the amount of bonds on the 31st December, 1854, inas-
much as th e commissioners had received no consideration
for it, and no part of it had been publicly negotiated.
Thus, ag;jost your item of 1,030,5701., the net increase
between 1.852 and 1854 was 486,370/.; and the amount
in actual ,circulation, instead of being 977,0501., was
686,980/.

" The balance-sheet laid before the bondholders at the
mooting wf thu 26th of January, 1855 (quoted the
limes of the following day), showed that it means could
have been raised to get the ground covered the assets
would have more than sufficed to meet all demands.
The real cause of the. deplorable stoppage was the int-
posaility of raising capital sufficient to proceed with
the undertaking to the point at which profit could be
realised.

" The statements you quote also refer to the extraor-
dinary issue of bonds to Mr. Mackenzie, the builder,
without peroper security. It is not for me to defend the
act of the. commissioners in this respect, further than to
exnress ray own conviction that it arose from an anxiety
—I might say over anxiety—to get the property built
upon, and from a misplaced confidence in the value of
the secu:rities.

"I now come to the question of expenses. Your
items are, 100,0821. from 1845 to 1852, and 148,8131.
thence to December, 1854—in all 248,895/.
"The .real figures as shown by my balance-sheet are
as follows :

£ is. d•
From 1845 to Ist of April, 1852
From April, 1852, to December, 1854 148,991 16 1

Total 241,52615 7
" The empenses are thus distributed :
Bond stain7A
Ground re:at, rent, rates, and taxes in re-

spect of
.properties purchased 14,877 2 4
Comrnissiolners' attendance fees 8,204 17 0
Interest OA bonds and loans, commissions,
and discounts
... 127,679 9 11*
Law costs,, J?arliamentary fees,
surveyors' fees, compensa-
tion, &c.. P 27,435 9 11
Solicitors to the commission
(Bridges„ Mason, and
Bridges), debit for the whole
period 28,168 8 10
55.603 18 9
Assurances.
Wages &lA. .salaries 14,857 4 5
Rent of commissioners' offices, fittings, and
fmniture . 2,847 5 2
Payments to Sewers Commissioners, re-
pairs,
Printing, stationery, and miscellanies__ 9,516 3 0

249,757 7 10
Daduct, siuount realised on sale of old
budding ;materials
5,230 12 3

244,526 15 T
* Of this le zm 60,000. consists of commission credited Mr.
Mackenzie, th e builder, on bonds handed him in lieu of cash,
conditionally, on his paying the amount standing to his debit
in cash.
" I leave ti e above statement to speak for itself, con-
fining my rer . tilts to the single item of the charges pre-
ferred by th solicitors, Messrs. Bridges, Mason, and
Bridges, for the whole 10 years during which the' firm
bad to trans Let the legal business connected with ob-
taining five ; tc-ts of Parliament, to manage numerous con-
veyancing transactions, arid generally to attend to the
whole legal rti fairs of the commission. Their costs were
28,188/. 88. 1.0 d., of which, it will be self-evident to the
profession, full one moiety consisted of fees, &0., out of
packet.. Mu reover, a great deal of the business was
transacted by agency, absorbing a still further propor-
tion of the ap parent remuneration.

" I have i3igidly confined myself to facts and figures
brought out by my own investigation, the results of
which were fully laid before the committee of bond-
holders ininto diately on their appintment in 1855. My
balance-sheet; , with a very detailed cash account, also
drawn up by me, was placed by them in the hands of
Quilter, Bala.. and Co., the eminent accountants, who
repeatedly a.l tended at my offices to examine the books.
Thus, inste;i4 l of being ' altogether confused, and with-
out verification of any kind,' as alleged by the Com-
t lie accounts were fully set forth, and every
plainants,
facility was ii,fforded for the most rigid investigation.
"H. CROYSDILL, Accountant.
" 84, Basil ighall-street."