The Sun.
London, England, 1861-05-20 00:00:00

YEW FRIENDLY SOCIETIES' BILL.

-
Last year the large Friendly Societies were
caused much trouble in having to procure and pre-
sent petitions against a bill then in progress in the
Commons, which contained many objectionable
clauses, and the Act as passed was considerably
modified. On the Bth inst. another new bill was
ordered to be printed, which seeks to provide for
the delivery to every subscribing member of a copy
of the balance-sheet or statement of his society once
every twelvemonth, or in default a penalty of £5
may be inflicted upon the secretary, treasurer, or
other officers. The bill specifies the particulars to
be contained in the balance-sheet, viz., the amount
of receipts, gross and net amount of expenditure,
distinguishing the sums paid to officers or for
management, gross and net, the date of the estab-
lishment of the society, the total sums received and
expended since that date, the assets and liabilities,
and the number of members.
There can be no doubt that it is very desirable
such an account should be issued by every society,
but this mode of enforcing it will fail. It is well
known that many isolated local clubs do not make
any return because their position will not bear
scrutiny, and they must be left to die out, as they
assuredly will. On the other hand, the reliable
societies, and especially the large affiliated orders,
do not furnish the desired accounts to members in
the separate branches, but if this bill passes the
statements of each district of the chief officer of the
society must also be given each member at an enor-
mous expense, and for no useful purpose, as at pre-
sent a copy of each is circulated and read in eachlodge. Another consequence of the bill passing
will be that respectable and responsible members
who now act as trustees, will no longer do so when
any member may maliciously drag them to the
police-court,
if he has not received, perhaps by acci-
dent, an account which he may have by asking.
Experience has proved that whenever pressure is
put upon the secretaries of working men's societies
no good results, for to escape a fine any figures are
hurriedly put together, and the members and
public thus lose the benefit of a true return.
The bill has caused much agitation in Friendly
Society meetings, and petitions are in active pro-
gress against its becoming law. The members
naturally ask when and where legislative inter-
ference with them is to cease ; instead of aiding
their efforts to put the clubs upon a right footing,
this frequent law-making retards them, for, in-
cluding that of last 'session, no less than 28 acts
have been passed in 70 years, said to have been
for the encouragement of Friendly Societies, but
which have only caused confusion. The members
also claim to know best how to manage their own
affairs, and urge that if a society is not safe accounts
will not prove it so, any more than the last
balance-sheet of the Royal British Bank proved its
solvency.

TWO PERSONS BURIED ALIVE. .

CHATHAM, SUNDAY.

A deplorable circumstance occurred at some ex-
cavations in progress in this town yesterday, by
which two lives were sacrificed, both the unfortu-
nateear that
where
earth,
a r workmen
r ka ms
in-
steade upll b
y the
persons being buried alive, by the falling in of
an immense body of chalk and earth upon them, at
a spot at the foot of Chatham-hill,
e destruction. si tnrue t
negligenceoa nv .a t
excavating
would Ohuel
observedd a
have been employed for some time past in the re-
moval of a mass of chalk from a small cliff Which
of
thewa s
workmenimostn
culpableeng af
removalnenlnentthleedto the un-
followed
osite course, by excavatingtheydue
at the
tt hh ee
directly
fre
oro
me; exercising
fortunate sacrifice of two lives.
base, and this negligent arran
The
the foot of the ascent know chalk hill at
purchased a short time nas Chatham-bill was
Forrester, who at once Since by a person named
commenced the removal of
the cliff, with, it is stated
on the spot. A , the intention of building
tons, of the block large quantity, several hundred
and carted chalk and earth had been exca-
vatedaway, but a considerable quantity
.ill remained to be removed. Yesterday thfi k wor --
men were still engaged in excavating the chalk
from a portion of the hill w hich had not been worked,
and had dug out a quantity of block ch 1
alk, when
the su •
permcumbent mass being deprived of th
sup-
port at its base gave way, and aq Y uantit of e
earth
and chalk, calculated at about 300 tons.,ell in,
burying one of the Nrurkmen named Wi
f
sc om, and
also a boy .aied Marsden. As so
on as intelligence
had been conveyed to Mr. Forrester of the accident,
a number of workmen were employed to remove
the earth, in order to reach the unfortunate man
and boy, who were buried several feet below the
surface. Owing, however, to the great q
earth necessary to be removed, it was folly of
before the two persons were reached,whenwo hours
the lad
Marsden was discovered in an upright
position,.
quite dead, and the unfortunate man Wisdom lying
on his Bide, life also being quite •
(Du extinct.