June 7, 1872. THE BUILDING NEWS. 471
Ou Office Table, — Tue Wesrminster Bracon.—Dr. Percy’s long- talked-of electric light was exhibited for the first time on Monday night, from the western side of the Clock Tower. Its object, as previously explained, is to advise members at a distance when the House is sitting. As soon as the chamber adjourns it is pro- posed to turn out the light, so that hon. gentlemen will on the occasion of (say) a ‘‘count out” not be put to the trouble of coming down to Westminster unnecessarily. The light as displayed on Monday night burned quite brilliantly, and was visible for a great distance. As yet the light is a mere experiment. AmERICcAN Woop Pavement.—The Streets Com- mittee of the Commission of Sewers have recom- mended the repaving of the carriage-way of Ludgate-hill with the American wood pavement, which has been tested in Bartholomew-lane. The cost of laying down Ludgate-hill on this system is estimated at £2,247, or between £200 and £300 less than the expenses of an asphalte or granite pavement. It is stated that the necessary repairs will be more frequent and costly, and Mr. Haywood, the city surveyor, says that the novelty is a luxury, and must be paid for as such. Parent Liriano Mrnerat Pavryc.—A new pave- ment, bearing the above name, is to be laid down at the south end of Gracechurch-street. The pavement is composed of wood blocks (preferably elm or beach), subjected to some process which, it is claimed, renders them impervious to wet or heat, cut into bevel-shaped blocks on a vertical angle of 60°. These blocks are laid on a concrete foundation, each row inclining in the opposite direction to the ad- joining one. _ The inventors claim that it will stand wear and tear at least as well as asphalte, and that it is less noisy and safer for horses than that material. “Tue Crry or Homes.”—The following statistics taken from the Philadelphia Ledger show what the building associations of that city have accom- plished: We find that the 942,292 inhabitants of New York City in 1870 had 63,960 dwelling-houses, or about one dwelling to every fifteen inhabitants ; that the 396,099 inhabitants of Brooklyn had 49,032 dwellings, or one dwelling to every eight persons; and that the 674,022 residents of Philadelphia in that year had 112,992 dwellings, or one dwelling for every six persons. In fact, the number of dwellings in Philadelphia in that year was just about equal to those of New York City and Brooklyn combined; and is now considerably in excess of both, as, Philadelphia has built 9,892 new dwellings since the beginning of 1870, and still keeps building at the same rate. But even these comparisons do not tell the whole story of the ‘‘ City of Homes.” Of the one hundred and twenty odd thousand dwellings now in Philadelphia, 55,000 are so rated on the tax-books as to show conclusively that they are the homes of the working people, each family with its own dwelling. These 55,000 comfortable houses, with their little parlours, dining-rooms, kitchens, chambers, and bath-rooms, contain 330,000 of the working people of the city, while the Health Officer’s report of the city of New York, developes the fact that 14,872 tenement houses in that great city con- tain 468,492 of its working people, or an average of more than thirty-one persons to each house. Tue Kerteyruorre Tumutus.—A final exami- nation of this noted tumulus, near Driffield, in East Yorkshire, has just been completed. Twenty-one years ago the late Lord Londesborough commenced the work, and then discovered the huge central stone cist, containing a skeleton and some very interesting relics, now included in the Londesborough collec- tions. In recent years, various examinations of the sides of the mound have brought to light over two dozen secondary burials, male and female, probably Anglo-Saxon. Mr. Burces ano rue Comprerion or S. Pavx’s.—The storm set in motion by the appoint- ment of Mr. Burges as joint architect for the com- pletion of S. Paul's Cathedral has not blown over. The attempt made by a minority of the Executive Committee to reconsider the appointment haying failed, a requisition, signed by thirty subscribers} to the fund (including the Lord Mayor, the Marquis of Westminster, and the Baroness Burdett Coutts), has been presented to the Dean, praying him to call a general meeting of the subscribers, in order to afford them an opportunity of expressing an opinion on the subject. The Dean has declined to comply with the request. Ue thinks that such a meeting, animated by party feeling. is not the fittest tribunal to discuss and decide on art matters, and he thinks it is best to wait and see what Mr. burges proposes to do before protesting against him.
Sarisracrory.—The following is a copy of all Woopen Water Marns.—The Chartered Gas letter from Mr. R. Foskett, Clerk to the Managers of the Peplar and Stepney Poor Law Sick Asylum District, to Messrs. Arthur and C, Harston, architects of the new Asylum building :—‘Poplar and Stepney Sick Asylum District, Devons-road, Bromley, Mid- dlesex, E., June 1, 1872. Gentlemen,—I have much pleasure in informing you that the Board of Management of this District have directed me to state, now that the new Asylum has been opened, and at work for several months, and the buildings have been tested in the most practical manner by the occupation, at times, of upwards of 570 beds, that the arrangements have been found to be very satis- factory, and have received the approbation of the Medical Inspector of the Local Government Board. I am further directed to convey to you the thanks of the Board for the care and attention which you have devoted to the work, both in the design of the building and superintendence of the works, and in the preparation of the accounts of the various con- tracts.—Yours truly, Roperr Foskurt, Clerk.” A letter has also been written to the builder, Mr. Robert Mann, expressing the pleasure of the Board at the satisfactory manner in which he has carried out his work, Gas Purtricatron.—The report on gas purifica- tion by the gas referees, which some time since was sent by them to the Corporation and Metropolitan Board of Works, has been published. It announces that the gas referees have devised a new method of purification, by which the gas can be almost entirely freed from the sulphur-impurity at every gas-work (as at Bow-common and Beckton) where lime can be used. But, although the report is dated in January, and the referees state that they had informed the engineers of the Chartered Gas Company of their new method of using lime-purifiers, the official testings for the quarter ending with March show no improyve- ment whatever in the purity of the gas supplied to the City, either from Beckton or from Bow-common. The monthly averages of sulphur in the Beckton gas since the year began have been as follows :—January, 45 grains per 100ft.; February, 44; March, 38; while in those months respectively the impurity has been as high as 53, 51, and 53. In the gas supplied from Bow-common, the average of sulphur in January was 23 grains per 100ft; February, 22; March, 21; while in those months respectively the sulphur has been as high as 35, 30, and 36 grains. “RESTORATION.” —If anything were wanting, says the Guardian, to condemn the “ restoration”? mania which has for some years devastated our country, it might be found in the following passage, which is not meant for more than the announcement of an approaching literary sale. Among the itemsis “a collection of 213 coloured tracings from ancient glass windows, many of which are now restored, and therefore cease to be authorities of ancient art.” BirmincHamM AND Mipranp — Insrirutre.— ArcH£oLocicaL Srcrion.—The first excursion of the season takes place on Wednesday next, when it is proposed to visit the celebrated Abbeys of Buildwas and Wenlock, inShropshire. The ruins of the priory of Wenlock consist of the south transept, a portion of the south aisle, and a fragment of the north transept, all of Early Pointed work, and a Chapter House, Late Norman. The Prior’s House is of the fifteenth century, and being in a perfect state of preservation is a most interesting example of the domestic buildings which formed part of a large abbey. The Town Hall and Parish Church of Wenlock also contain much that is of interest. The ruins of Buildwas Abbey consist of the nave, chan- cel, north transept, portion of south transept, a massive central tower, and avery fine Chapter House, the groined roof of which is in fair preservation. The Abbot’s House has lately undergone considerable restoration. The greater portion of the ruins are transitional from the Norman to the Early English style of about the middle of the twelfth century, and present many curious and unusual features. Durapinity oF FRAMED Towerrs.—The dura- bility of the framed timbers of buildings is very con- siderable. The trusses of the old part of the roof of the Basilica of S. Paul, at Rome, were framed in 816, and were sound and good in 1814, a space of nearly a thousand years. ‘These trusses are of fir. The timber work of the external domes of the Church of S. Mark, at Venice, is more than 840 years old, and is still in a good state. And Alberti observed the gates of cypress to the Church of S. Peter, at Rome, to be whole and sound after being up nearly 600 years. The inner roof of the Chapel of 8. Nicholas, King’s Lynn, Norfolk, is of oak, and was constructed ‘about 500 years ago. Daviller states, as an instance of the durability of fir, that the large dormitory of the Jacobins’ Convent, at Paris, had been executed in fir, and lasted 400 years.
4 Company, during the process of laying down some mains in Bishopsgate-street lately, have come across several old wooden ones—pipes formerly used for conducting water through the streets. Some of these must have been laid by the Old London Bridge Waterworks Company, which were established by one Peter Morrys, an ingenious and enterprising Dutchman, in 1581, who erected a water-wheel under one of the arches of the bridge, which, working force- pumps, drove the water through thestreets, and thence through branch pipes into the houses, a windmill being also used to assist in the work. In 1613 the New River water was brought into the metropolis by Sir Hugh Myddelton, and the works at London Bridge superseded. Though some of the old pipes were utilised, it is probable that none made of wood have been laid down within the last hundred years, or perhaps within a much longer period. We under- stand that, though our streets are constantly being taken up for various purposes, none of these old wooden pipes have come to light for the last seven years or so, till on the occasion we have mentioned. They vary in length from 6ft. to12ft., their diameter being 2ft., and the bore from Qin. to 12in, The means of connecting these tubes appears to. haye been by simply paring down one end to within about 2in, or 3in. of the bore, and enlarging the bore at the other, and they were thus jointed together after the fashion of a fishing rod. The most interesting fact connected with these tubes is that they are made of elm wood, and many of them are in a perfect state of preservation,even the rough bark of some seeming as sound as when they were first buried. It is well-known that no wood endures so long under- water as elm, and from the state of these tubes it seems the best adapted of all wood for lying under ground. The tubes haye been found about 4ft. below the level of the street. eerie MEETINGS FOR THE ENSUING WEEE. Monpay.—Royat Instirute or BRITISH ARCHI- TECTS.—General Conference of Archi- tects. Opening remarks by the President, Mr. T. H. Wyatt. Presentation of the Royal Gold Medal and Institute Prizes. 8. p.m. TuESDAY.—RoyaL INSTITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHI TECTS.—General Conference of Archi- tects. Professional Practice. 1.30 p.m. (Private.) WEDNESDAY. — Roya INSTITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHITECTS. — General Conference of Architects. Architectural Art. 8 p.m. ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATION. — Meeting of Elementary Class of Design; subject: Details of framing of front door, to lin. scale, and full-size mouldings, &c. 8 p.m. THURSDAY. — RoyaL INSTITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHITECTS.—General Conference of Architects. Construction and Materials. 2 p.m. FRIDAY.—ROYAL InstITUTE OF BRITISH ARCHI- TECTS.—Conference Dinner at Willis’s Rooms, 8. James’s. 6.30 p.m. Grade Aetvs. WAGES MOVEMENT. Attoa.—On Monday the operative joiners of Alloa, Tillicoultry, Alva, and Clackmannan came out on strike, their employers haying refused to reduce the working hours from 57 to 54 per week. Ayr.—About a month ago the operative masons of Ayr gave notice that fromthe 3rd June they would ask areduction of their hours from 56 to 51 per week, and also an adyance on their wages from 6d. to 64d. per hour. The men struck work on Saturday, and the employers haye since acceded to their demands, and work has been resumed, Boutron.—The bricklayers of Bolton are on strike for an advance of wages. Bristou.—A large meeting of master builders was held last week to discuss a notice received from the Secretary of the Carpenters’ Society respecting a proposed alteration in the working rules. It was ultimately resolved that the proposal of the men, as far as arbitration is concerned, be acceded to; and eight gentlemen were chosen as a sub-committee, to meet a committee of men. The men ask for a reduction of 100 working hours per annum, and an increase of 7d. per hour in their wages. The masters are willing to concede the reduction in the number of hours, and to advance the wages 4d. per hour. GLAsGcow.—A conference between a deputation from the employers and workmen in the mason trade was held on Friday last. The employés demand was that their wages be raised from 64d, to 7d. per hour, paid weekly
