The Sun.
London, England, 1868-06-15 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

SIR, Mr. Edward M. Barry will feel greatly
obliged by the publication of the enclosed letter.
He considers that the Government entered into a
contract with the competitors in order to obtain
designs from them ; and that nothing that has
occurred since the designs were furnished, for which
the competitors are not responsible, can vitiate this
contract.

21, Abingdon-street, Westminster, S.W.,

June 13.

"21, Abingdon-street, June 8, 18G8.
" Sir,—l am informed that her Majesty's Go-
vernment propose to disregard the award of the
Judges of Designs for the new Law Courts, and to
appoint Mr. Street architect of that important
work, notwithstanding that they h tve been officially
informed by the Right Hon. W. F. Cowper, the
chairman of the Judges of Designs, that the judges
have decided that my design is the best in regard
to convenience of plan and internal arrangements,
and that of Mr. street in regard to elevation only.
" The conditions of the competition provide, in the
most stringent manner, that excellence of plan and
internal arrangement is to be preferred to all other
considerations. The conditions state, on psge 11,
that ' the chief points to be kept constantly in
view, and to be treated as superseding, so far as
they may conflict, all considerations of architectural
effect, are the accommodation to be provided and
the arrangements to be adopted, so as, in the greatcst
degree, to facilitate the despatch and the accurate
transaction of the law business of the country ;
and, in carrying out this design, the first ob-
ject should be to provide ample uninterrupted
communication and, accommodation for those
who have legitimate business in the new
building.' On page 7we read—' The arrangement
of the courts and offices is of vital moment ; on it
mainly depends the success or failure of their ccn-
centration, and its importance cannot be over-esti-
mated. For the interior of such a building, and in
such a locality, a requirement of the first magni-
tude, and one having an important beating on the
question of arrangement, is abundant window-light.
It will be impossible to, give too much to any of the
offices. Almost every room throughout the build-
ing being devoted to purposes of writing or reading
will necessarily require the fullest extent of light
which can be obtained.' Again, on pages 8 and
9—' But while the question of a sufficiency of
light is of very great importance, and must neces-
sarily have influence on the arrangement of the
rooms, a necessity of almost equal urgency is quiet.
In short, that the utmost precautions be taken, and
means provided, by which the quiet of the courts
may be secured. The comparative degrees of
quiet required for the different offices arc
meant to be indicated in the schedules thus, q 1,
q 2, q 3, signifying respectively quiet, quieter, and
quietest.' Again, on page 13_, The :conveuient
working of the whole arrangement depends on the
manner in which facilities of communication are
afforded.' •
66 The above extracts are but specimens of the
spirit which pervades the conditions throughout,
laying down the principle to be followed in the se-
lection of the architect, and their requirements are
summed up by the general beading in the index,
' Utility to be attended to before effect.'
~ Few piactical persons will fail to admit the good
sense of these instructions, or the difficulty of com-
plying Fewer still will be pre-
pared to find that the result of the competition is
to be onewith o f them,
strict in y
lrespectit. of ,a building which is
to disregard them, as if they had never been writ-
ti
ten, and to choose a design_ avowedly recommended
by a prefeience for its elevation alone.
" The Judges of Designs have twice officially re-
corded their jUdgment in their award that ' the de-
sign of Mr. Barry is the best in regard to plan and
distribution of the interior.' Two of their number,
Messrs. Shaw and Pownall, who were specially ap-
pointed to advise the Royal Commission on points
of professional detail,l have recorded' their opinion
seriatim on the several points contained in the in-
structions to the competing architects, and have re-
ported in my favour under the following hea is :
Light and air, quiet, relative position of d(par t -
,
meats, aceesse and stairc.lss, communication
between different sets of offices, intercommu-
nication, separation .of traffic ; private road,
Clement's-inn, Bell-yard and. Strand ; glen's
Bench Court and rooms, Common Pleas
Court and rooms, Exchequer Court an 1
rooms, , Exchequer Chamber, Spare Court,
Lords' Justices Courts and roo.ns, Vice-Chan-
cellor Kindersley's Court and rooms, Vice-Chan-
cellor Stuart's Court and rooms, Vice-Chancellor
Wood's Court and rooms, spare Court of Equity,
Registrars' offices, Enrolment office, Visitors in
Lunacy, Queen's Bench Judges' Chambers, Com-
mon Pleas Judges' Chambers, Exchquer Judges'
Chambers, Queen's Bench Master's office, Common
Pleas Master's office, Queen's Bench Associates,
Common Pleas Associates, Exchequer Associates,
Circuit Associates, Crown Officers' rooms, Royal
Commissions' offices, spare rooms, waterclosets and
urinals.

By this report my design is selected as the best,
for almost all the courts and most important offices,
-and is especially preferred in the all-important
matters of light and air, quiet, accesses, general
arrangements,
attended to, and for the neglect of which no
exterior, however attractive, will furnish com-
pensation. Br-C., Which are the vital points to be

Mr. Street's design is only specially
noticed four
times ; first, as to condition No. 5, as being incon-
sistent with the conditions, in the important mat-
ter of the size of the courts, which is stated to
be deficient ; secondly and thirdly, as to area of
site and tramways, on which points it is preferred ;
fourthly, it is put on an equality with the designs
of seven other competitors, in the provision nLLde
for the receiver of Wills Department.
" When the architects were invited to compete,
they were informed by a Treasury minute dated the
23d of December, 1865, that the notices, or invita-
tions to compete, should be issued by the Committee
of Judges,' and that their award should be final,
and though I have been willing, in deference to
their award, to waive my special claims, and to con-
sent to act jointly with Mr. Street, I must, in
justice to myself, maintain that by the award of the
judges my claims were made superior to those of
auy other single.competitor, and no other ought to
have been•preferred.to,me.

6, I write in no, spirit
.of hostility to my friend Mr.
the,important
best,
Street, but it is impossible not to see that my design
has been
es
for what I have done
in P
points which the
tof those
were
as
told were
of vital moment.
The solid grounds of the judgment in my
favour are plainly and intelligibly recorded,
competitorsr ees selected
tte
so that all the world may judg© 6 of their im-
portance; while Mr. Street is to be appointed, from
an easthetic preference for his elevation alone, in de-
fiance of the clearest statement that such preference
was not to determine the competition. Moreover,
as Mr. Street's elevation is inconsistent with the plan
approved, and cannot, therefore, be carried out, he
is selected, not for what be bas done, but for what
he may yet do, a ground upon which ho might
as well have been chosen without any competition
at all.

" I have every confidence in Mr. Street's ability
to design and carry into effect a building worthy of
the nation, but I regret to say that I cannot
acquiesce in the justice of the course proposed to
be adopted, as I consider it directly at variance with
the letter and spirit of the conditions on the Lab
of which I, in common with the other competitors,
agreed to devote my time and attention to this
work.

complied with the condi-
" Having conformed to the regulations of the
—aud having the decision
tCi
oonnsmoi
fs sitohneecrso—m
pheatviitni
ogn
of the judges in my favour, I have a right to ask,
very respectfully, but most urgently, that the
Government, on their part, should abide by their
engagement, formally recorded in a Treasury
minute, that the award of the judges should
be final. I therefore most earnestly appeal to
and injury by denying
my success in this
t h eir
competitionlordsh iipusto naosteritooustulorsns
to me, After long and trying suspense, my just