The Sun.
London, England, 1866-10-20 00:00:00

Metropolitan Boa- d of Works.

The usual meeting of the Metropolitan Board of
Works was held yesterday, at the office in Spring-
gardens ; Sir John Thwaites in the chair. The
financial statement showed the cash balances in the
hands of the treasurer to be £709,654 55. 3d. ;
checks issued but not presented, £49,543 14s. 7d.
A report was presented from the Works and Gene-
ral Purposes Committee, stating, with reference to
the resolutions of the Board of the 13th April last
and 13th July last, referring it to the Thames Em-
bankment Committee to report to the Board on the
present state of the works under the contracts for the
Thames Embankment north, that, having regard to
the altered conditions of the contracts, and the man-
ner in which the works are now progressing, the
committee do not think it advisable to make any
special report upon the reference. They recom-
mended the Board to proceed in the next Session of
Parliament with the bills of last Session to effect the
Chelsea Embankment, the Improvement of Park-
lane, and the Northern Embankment Approaches,
the clause having reference to the proposed approach
through Northumberland House property being
omitted in the latter bill. That the chairman of the
Board be requested to communicate with her
Majesty's Government in relation to the financial
arrangements to be made for carrying out such im-
provements. On it being moved by Mr. Freeman
that these recommendations be adopted, the chair-
man said that he had read some of the discussions
which had taken place in the vestries on this sub-
ject, and there appeared to be a misapprehension
that it was intended by this Board to levy au addi-
tional rate for the purpose of public improvements.
NoW that was an entire mistake ; it ,vas not in-
tended to levy an additional rate, but to readjust
the present payment out of the sewer rates for pub-
lic improvements. Mr. Healey opposed any payment
whatever out of the sewer rates for purposes of
improvement, and Mr. Richardson took a similar
view. Mr. Carpmael supported the recommenda-
tions, and said it would be a disgrace to London if
it did not carry out public improvements in the same
spirit as was done in Paris. In Paris upwards of ls.
in the pound was raised over the whole of the in-
habitants there for public improvements, and was it
to be said in this wealthy metropolis they could not
raise one-tenth part of that amount for the same
object? Mr. Le Breton said it was the duty of
the Board to march with the times, and not be
niggardly with these improvements. A. rate of 2d.
in the pound would meet the expense of all that
would be required for some time to come, and he
felt sure that no one would grudge that sum to effect
such important objects. Dr. Evans said if all im-
provements were to be done by the local authorities
they would never be done at all. Had the Board in
the case of the main drainage taken the sewage of
the metropolis to Greenwich, would the local autho-
rities have taken the refuse of London from there to
the point of discharge? The thing would have been
utterly impracticable, and great works must be done
by a united action of some central and responsible
body. Mr. H. L. Taylor supported the report of
the committee. Mr. Roche,wanted to know, before
the Board was committed to any bill to give effect
to these recommendations for public improvements,
upon what principle they were to be carried out. If
they attempted to rate the owners of the property for
these improvements he felt sure that any clause for
that purpose would be struck out by the Hollses1:)f
d
Lords, as had been done before. Mr. Freeman
if public improvements were to go on,
abso-
lutely necessary that more money s it was lhould be raised.
The The motion was agreed to, an
I
for the
and aafntedrwards it was
also agreed that all correspondc:incbee
referred to the
widening of Park-lane . I
irnfehieltCinhair
Committee for considerat.isohn°o:rnt
man made the following report. The
re-
ference to the proposed new from Blackfriars-
He said there were 161
bridge to the Mansi
claimants, and all those claims, with
original freehold
the exception of 13, had been settled ; therefore very
little remained to be dealt with. Of the les.se.
leaving
aes and sub-
lessees' claims about 86 had been dealt with,
105 cases to be disposed of. As far as they were at
present able to judge, he thought by January next
year they would be in a condition to take down
the houses and make an opening in that direction.
In answer to a question, the chairman said it must
be a matter of consideration as to which end of the
line the pulling down of houses should commence,
but the arrangements were the most advanced at
the Earl-street end. It was agreed to. Mr. Tite,
M.P., drew the attention of the Board to the pre-
sent state of Leicester-square, and asked the soli-
citor whether, with the consent of the freeholder,
that excrescence and blot in the
middle of it could
not be removed, for at present it was extremely
ridiculous, and was an offence to public decency.
The solicitor said a legal question as to this square
would be settled in November next, but as regarded
I an application to the freeholder for the removal of
the statue, he thought there could be no objection
to that course. After some other business had been
disposed of the Board adjourned.

The Indian chiefs on the Powder River, Dakotah
Territory, have sent the followingproposition to the whites
who wish to trade on that road : " You can make the
road on there for 100 waggons loaded with Indian goods,
1,000 Amerietin horses, 1,000 rifles, 500 head of cattle, 500
head of cows, 2,1:199 head of sheep, 1,000 head of bogs, 500
roosters, 1,000 chickens, 200 coloured mon to raise corn."
A RICH EDITOR.--The local editor of the Hannibal
Daily Courier is the, wealthiest nowspapr man in the
west. ' He sums up hig worldly possessions in this wise—
Mrs. Local (par value), $1,000,000 ; one five years old
Local, $500,000 ; one seven week's old Local, $250,000 ;
cash on hand, 43 cents due on
do account,oi sslnescuafneecdthriieeisin,6
12 cents. Total, $1,705,000,155.
The old " Council tree of the Senecas," nearly
five centuries old, at Mount Morris, New York, was
n.ltwa
councils
s twenty-three
circumference.
yeretwll
e. Thew solemn
were held beneath it from most ancient times,