The Sun.
London, England, 1866-12-25 00:00:00

years, with one exception, where the term is 50 years.
The aggregate rental received for these plots is
£2,481 per annum. The board would have proceeded
to sell these ground rents, but they deemed it
inexpedient, owing to the state of the money market,
to do so as yet. The cost of the properties required
for the formation of this street was £102,881 Os. Bd.,
which, with other expenses, including professional
and law charges, gave a total of £121,353 13s. 11d.
In Southwark-street, which has been open for nearly
three years, out of 206 plots, into which the surplus
land in the line of the street had been divided, 177
have been let on lease, and the income derived from
the ground rents, including the rent of some ware-
houses purchased by the board, but not pulled down,
is £6,904 per annum. The cost of the properties and
interests purchased by the board was £476,222115.
2d., and the professional and other charges swelled
the total to £582,630 lls. 4d. The cost of the re-
moval of Middle-row, Holborn, is estimated at
£61,152. The compensation claims for freeholds
and leaseholds amount to £17,566 10s., and the set-
tlements thereof to £15,950. The net cost of the
Whitechapel improvement is estimated at £115,364,
and the board have been engaged in purchasing the
properties required up to March 31. The board
agreed to settle claims for three freeholds and four
copyholds, &c. The sum claimed was £47,708 ; set-
tled for, £42,818. The quantity of land purchased
for Finsbury-park was 120 acres, which cost £56,650,
or about £472 per acre. Memorials from St. Luke's,
Islington, and Finsbury deprecated the use of any
portion of that area for building purposes, but the
board felt that the interests of other portions of the
metropolis should not be lost sight of, and they have
approved of a plan for letting a portion of the pro-
perty for building purposes, and to apply the funds
to recouping the board to some extent for their out-
lay, and afterwards to other itnportant improve-
ments. Southwark-park will embrace an area of 60
acres, and the architect has been instructed to pre-
pare plans for laying out the grounds. The report
also details the proceedings taken last session for the
introduction of bills by the board, and for watching
bills introduced by railways or other companies, the
provisions of which might affect the interests of the
metropolitan districts. Since this board has under-
taken the duties formerly performed by the fire
brigade the number of engines has been nearly
doubled and the land force and steam-engines has
been materially increased. In the employment of
firemen preference is given to young and active
sailors, as being a class of persons well suited to the
requirements of the service. Complaint is made of
the Petroleum Act as being so defective in its pro-
visions as to have become a dead letter ; as is like-
wise the case with the legal provisions for prevent-
ng the carrying on of dangerous businesses in
certain localities. Oa the subject of the Metropoli-
tan Gas Acts the report expresses the belief of the
board that the said acts " have been evaded by
meter makers, gas companies, and others, who were
in the habit of sending meters manufactured within
the metropolitan area to be tested at testing houses
beyond the jurisdiction of the board." One person
was summoned before a magistrate for such an
offence, and fined £5 ; and the person for whom the
meter had been so tested was also summoned, but
the magistrate dismissed the summons, considering
such case not to come within the statute. The
matter now remains to be referred to a superior
court. Reference is then made to various other
matters subjected to their jurisdiction under divers
recent Acts of Parliament, and to the industry dis-
played by the members of the board in the perform-
ance of their duties, they having held 47 meetings
during the year, at which an average of 33 mem-
bers attended. The board consists of 46 members,
and in addition to the ordinary meetings there have
been 189 of their committees on drainage, embank-
ment, &c. The report concludes by referring to the
increased duties imposed upon them by acts of Par-
liament passed since the board was first constituted,
including the extensive improvements by forming
public thoroughfares, embankment; new parks, the
preservation of commons, the licensing of stores for
dangerous goods, the raising of funds to shelter the
houseless poor, the prevention of the spread of fires,
and other matters which occupy the almost daily
sittings of their committees. Looking at the highly
important and varied work recorded in the volume
under notice, all tending to the_ improvement of our
vast metropolis, there is every reason to feel the
greatest satisfaction with the members of the
Metropolitan Board of Works and their officials for
the efficient manner in which they have performed
their duties.—Observer.

Extraordinary and Distressing Suicide of a

Girl.

Yesterday Dr. Lankester held an inquest at the
Elephant and Castle, Camden-town, on the body of
Mary Ann Frier, who committed suicide under very
distressing circumstances.
Charles Frier, father of the deceased, living at 2,
William-street, Regent's-park, said—The deceased
was my daughter. She was 19 years of age. I
saw her last on the 29th September. She had been
induced to leave her situation on the Monday pre-
vious. She said she went to live with the sister of
a man named Saunders. She said Saunders kept
her out till it was too late to go home, and then ho
took her home with him. My wife went to inquire
about it the next day, and my daughter, finding we
were determined to inquire into it, ran away and
drowned herself. The next morning we found 4his
note in her workbox
"My dear mother,—As you are determined that
me and Harry shall not come together, I will give
him up, but it will be with my life. I cannot live,
mother, without him. I have written to say good-
bye to him, and now I will say the same to you.—
Your daughter."
I and my wife wished to break off the engagement
after we knew that he took her from her situation.
Sarah Frier, the mother of deceased, said—l saw
my daughter after she left her situation talking to
Saunders. She said she slept with his sister, but I
found out afterwards from the sister that this was
untrue.

Henry George Saunders, of 19, Castle-street
East—l was acquainted with deceased. I had
promised to marry her, and would have done so.
I saw her last alive on the 27th November. I had
seen her on the previous Monday. I left her between
ten and eleven in the evening. She said she would
go to my sister's, but she did not. I work at
Harrison and Son's, Sackville-street. I saw her
on Tuesday, and I advised her to go with her
mother, and die did. When I went home to dinner
she was in my room. She said her father and
mother had ordered her to give me up, and
she could not do it. I persuaded her to
go home. I did not see her again, but I received
these letters from her, which will show you whose
fault this is. (The following letter was read :—" My
darling Harry,—By the time you have received this
I shall be no more. I need not tell you whose fault
it is. They will not let me see you any more—so
good bye.") We loved each other, and wanted to
marry, but her parents wanted somebody better off
than me.

John Lay, turncock to the West Middlesex
Waterworks Company—I found this body about 30
yards from the bridge near St. Mark's church, Prim-
rose-hill. I handed it over to the police. I should
just like to say, sir, that there are no drags by this
bridge, so that it would be impossible to save any-
body who might fall in.
The lowness of the parapet on the bridge was com-
mented upon by the coroner. The vestry of St.
Marylebone had raised the parapets of their bridges,
and since then he had not had a single case of acci-

dent or suicide in connection with them.
The jury returned a verdict of suicide whilst of
unsound mind.

The witness Saunders asked for the protection of
,e Court, as he said the father of deceased had al-

ready bitten him so severely in the head and on the

ar•_n and hand that he was obliged to wear bandages.
Ile feared further violence as he left the court.

The police-constable present undertook to protect

witness

THE BELGIAN PUBLIC WORKS COMPANY.—We
are requested to contradict the statement that Lord Bury
has joinod tho Board of Directors of this company as an-
nounced in their advertisements.