New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-03-11
WESTMINSTER ABBEY.
MR. YATES THOMPSONS OFFER-TWO
ALTERNATIVE PLANS FOR NEW
CHAPEI-A THIRD SUGGESTION
MR.. THOMPSON'S CAREER.

The frs; and most natural impulse on hearing
Of Mr. Yates ThompsOn's offer TO give f3S.OOo Tor
an annex to Westminster Abbey is one OF grau-
tude or at least OF recognition Of his munlh-
cence. That is fully expressed by Mr. ShaW-
Lefevre and by the newspapers Inc second Is
one of concern for the Abbey. The third. most
doubtful of all and perhaps even danger
Gus, is one Of inquiry into the givers motives.
II this last to be pressed. II would DE
necessary to quote Mr.. Yates Thompsons Suppl
lation that the name Of the donor De iegioy
inscribed on stone somewhere near and insice o'
the main entrance" Perhaps never before did
would-be benefactor attach such condition TO
his gift There is sufficient comment in The
standard: "The gratitude Of the nation might
he trusted TO commemorate considerable a
gift" Mr. Yates Thompson may or may not
perceive the intention of that sentence or uhueI-
stand the rebuke 1t implies.
That however, is a personal matter; question
of good taste and comparatively unimportahl'
What is important is the intent whlch uhue'hes
the offer There can be no doubt what IL Is
1t comes out clearly in the letter which MI
Yates Thompson has written to the FIRST COM
missioner OF Works. Mr. Shaw-LefeVie WHO mas
hv virtue of his Office a kind of jurisdiction over
the Abbey There are two distinct plans 1or en-
larsfne the Abbey. and Mr.. Thompson is so
ing to give nearly 100000 toward carrying 1t Out
His offer is conditional upon the adoption of the
scheme which he approves. and the rejection OF
the other No wonder 1t is not accepted onhahu'
Mr. Shaw-Iefevre may not be the most Judclous
of men or an ideal First Commissioner OF WORKS
But he has, luckily. the timidity OF MS OPINIONS
He submitted as he was bound to, Mr. Iho'hp-
sons proposal to the Government ana the an
su,er of the Government is that circumstances
imnose upon them the necessity of very full con-
sderation in dealing with the matter
What are the circumstances! Inc hrs' Vi
them is the admitted fact that there Is no more
room In the Abbey itself for monuments OF even
for modest memorials to the great dead On
this point the Royal Commission or 1871 was
unanimous. They were unanimous, Also IN
accommodating that some addition be made 10
IN Abbev in order to provide the space when
,s noy wanting They could not agree as TO
what the addition ought to be, but divided Ia
oouoi numbers on the two schemes laid before
,hsp, The result Of course was that nothlhg
was done and the matter has since IAN uoi-
mant. II was the business of the Mihisiy u
determine which of the two plans II ei'nei'
sbould be undertaken. and how could you en-
meet Ministry with Home Rule on mana 10 give
,ts mind to Westminster Abbey? Neither 'ne
late nor the present Ministry had time 10 spare
for such matters.
rrha two rival schemes cannot be clearly ex-
plained without plans, but the essenuai poih'S
IN which they differ may perhaps be made IN
tellieible to those who know the buiidlhg anu
the ground. Both Of them contemplate puihhs
down four houses in Old Palace Yard, which not
onlv obstr,,ct the view of Henry Sevenths ChapeI
hut are a constant source of danger 10 the Ap-
hev from fire. Why these dangerous houses
have not been levelled long since nobody without
q Ministerial mind would be able TO explain, I'M
Lace an what may be called the American ground
that there are no politics in It," This sort OF
s,ugpishness and this indifference to the posi-
bility of an rreparable public calamity are not
REGULAR TO England. The National Library of
France, incomparably the noblest collection OF
books in the world, and certainly the one most
impossible to replace If destroyed has been left
exposed to far more serious risks than West
minister Abbey The Library is housed in build
fngs which are not fireproof, surrounded by other
buildings not much better than matchwood
Something Is now being done, thanks, believe
mainly to NJ Lockroy and when 1t is done the
risk will be diminished but not removed
OF the two schemes for providing monument
space in connection with the Abbey, one proposed
that the new chapel should be built where the
Abbey Refractory once stood south OF the Great
Closter and on a line with the Nave ms
scheme has. admittedly. many merits. The new
chapel would be, as the Commissioners remarked
gin the very core" Of the Abbey precincts. and
some Of its Oldest masonry would make part of
the new structure. There many other con-
alterations of convenience and OF sentiment as
we'll as Of architecture. but the one which to most
people is decisive is the fact that the chapel
thus situated would be hardly If at all visible
from the outside" know Of no argument which
he hod
consider the havoc that has been wrought in the
so-called restoration Of ancient fabrcs-at St
AIbans for example,-and the horrors which have
been perpetrated in the form OF new buildings,
of which the Law Courts are perhaps the most
signal instance. or, at any rate, the largest.
There are no doubt many accomplished arch-
tects and Mr.. Pearson, who has advised on the
Abbey, Is one Of them but neither he nor any
one else ought to be allowed to touch the Abbey
save upon clear proof of absolute necessity and
then to do as little as possible, and that little to
be as unobtrusive as possible
These axioms, however did not seem axioms
to that one-half of the Royal Commission which
preferred the alternative plan. They would have
Mr.. Pearson erect a chapel on the site OF the
houss to be demolished. close to Henry Seventies
Chapel, and in full view from the street. This
edifce is to be connected with the Abbey by
a cloister leading from Poets Corner round the
northeast side OF the Chapter House." and Is to
be considerable building" 1t would cost
great deal than the sum Mr.. Thompson
offers, but only the first part would be erected
now. and this could be done for something less
than 100000. II seems probable that. in Mr..
Thompson's view. the very visibility which con-
dems 1t in the opinion Of the judlcious, Is
recommendation. The man who could stpulate
IN writing that his own name should be 'legibly
inscribed on stone somewhere near and inside Of
the main entrance would be pretty certain TO
desire that the building which Is to perpetuate
the patronymic OF Thompson should be Itself
also conspicuous.