Page:The Building News and Engineering Journal, Volume 22, 1872.djvu/50

 34 THE BUILDING NEWS. Jan. 12, 1872. MR. STREET ON THE NEW COURTS OF JUSTICE. R. STREET has published a reply to those a who have attacked his designs for the New Courts of Justice, principally referring to Mr. James Fergusson, who has, throughout the controversy, been his most persistent adversary. We reproduce the concluding portion of the reply because it em- bodies Mr. Street’s reasons for his design for the Strand front, which has provoked so much discussion. “The position and surroundings of the New Law Courts, in great degree, as it seems to me,” remarks Mr. Street, “‘settle what the treatment of the design ought to be. Three out of the four fronts d am unable to realise what is meant by ‘the’ front of such a pile) are to be built in comparatively narrow thoroughfares, where neither at present nor in future will any distant view befpossible. In th» Strand, the most far-off possible point of view is from the south side of S. Clement’s Church. Here the view of the eastern portion of the building will be cut off by intervening houses, the western portion will be partly hidden by S. Clement’s Church, and the only visible portion will be the entrance to the Central Hall, and the portion of the building on each side of it. Soagain, coming from the east, the view will be fore-shortened in the most extreme way, and a long regular front would lose its only charm or claim to be erected—viz., visibility in its completeness. The river front of Somerset House can be taken in at one glance, because you can stand at any distance you like from it, and therefore its regular front (which Mr. Fergusson would like to see cut to pieces!) is a reasonable mode of treatment. But I repeat it— the elevation of the Law Courts in the Strand will have always to be seen bit by bit, or in a very fore- shortened perspective, and if it were uniform and re- gular, would be at the same time utterly tame and un- interesting. The elevations of my building in Carey- street and Bell-yard are erected under the same con- ditions, facing streets which will not be more than some 60 feet in average width. But on the west side, my building will have a much better chance of being seen in its entirety, and accordingly my de- sign for this is treated in a very regular and uniform fashion. Mr. Fergusson, being an architect, knows very well that this west elevation and the southern elevation are closely connected. Even whilst S. Clement’s Church stands, they may be seen together, and if it is ever removed they must be so seen. Why, then, has he never troubled himself to see what I pro- posed to do with this western elevation, and why should he assume that the Strand front is ‘the’ front? For my own part, it seems to me it would be more reasonable to affix this distinctive article to the west front, because it will be possible to take it in at one view. I should like to ask whether the front of the Tuileries towards the garden, or towards the Rue de Rivoli, is ‘the’ front of that building. And the position of the New Courts of Justice makes the answerin one case suitable to the other. The important front of the Tuileries is towards the open garden, and the important frontage of the Law Courts is naturally towards Clement's Inn for the same reason. “The treatment of the two fronts in combination must be seen in order that the case may be properly understood. One cannot and ought not to be dis- cussed, without knowledge of the other; and the architect who is criticising his brother architect's work ought to be careful to see what is proposed before he condemnsit root and branch. My com- Plaint is not only that Mr. Fergusson has not done this, but that he has not made even the faintest at- tempt to do it. He says that he is ‘proud to call me his friend,’ and that ‘personally he has the greatest possible esteem for me!’ What more or what worse he could have done for me if he had been my enemy, and had the greatest possible contempt for me, I knownot! For six months, I have held my tongue under great provocation; and if I now speak, it is only because when one who is ‘ proud to call me his friend’ circulates persistently statements about my work and my intentions as to which he has no knowledge whatever, and which are, in point of fact, in almost every particnlar contrary to the facts, it is necessary for my own credit’s sake, and out of deference to those real friends who concern themselves for me, that I should at last tear away the cobwebs in which my critic is attempting—I | hope in vain—to entangle me.” CONGREGATIONAL MEMORIAL HALL. NE of our illustration this week represents the Congregational Memorial Hall about to be erected in Farringdon-street, London. The design is in the Gothic style. The fact that the hall will be used for public worship, and the offices occupied by various religious societies connected with the de- nomination, has guided the committee in the selection of the style of architecture generally applied to semi-ecclesiastical builaings. It is also well fitted to be a monument commemorative {of the event it is desired to perpetuate. The building will contain twenty-seven offices, including board-room and committee-room to be used by the various societies in connection with the de- nomination ; a large library, 58ft. by 45ft., and a hall for meetings, &c., 87ft. by 45ft., which will also be used for public worship, and with galleries will accommodate from 1,200 to 1,500 persons. A spacious hall and staircase, with entrance lobbies from Farringdon-street, occupy a space of about 36ft. by 36ft. There is also a commodious entrance and staircase at the back from Fleet-lane. Ample provi- sion is made for lavatories and other conveniences. There are also apartments for hall-keeper. The library will be constructed on fire-proof principles, and the whole of the basement will be vaulted with brick arches, and form extensive ware-rooms and cellarage, with entrance entirely separate from the other entrances of the premises. The architects are Messrs. J. Tarring & Son, 69, Basinghall-street, London. ——— LEUCHARS CHURCH, N.B. HIS very ancient church, built in the latter part of the twelfth century, is the subject of one of our illustrations this week. It was described on page 20 last week by Mr. J. Russell Walker, the gentleman to whom we are indebted for the spirited sketch, —__—__@——_—— THE NEW LAW COURTS. HE Law Journal says:—‘‘The foundations of the New Law Courts are being laid; but when Parliament meets there will be a determined effort to set aside the contract with Mr. Street, and to have another competition. Those who find fault with Mr. Street’s design because it is not grand enough seem to forget that the architect has not had a carte blanche. Mr. Street has had to pro- vide a certain amount of accommodetion, and so far as the internal arrangements are concerned, there can be no question as to the success of the plans. Further, Mr. Street has had to cut down his design to meet reduced estimates. Give him another half million, and he will give a more imposing building. Our impression is that Parliament will not be dis- posed to interfere with the contract, and that the building of the New Law Courts will not be post- poned. We have examined the plans, and are com- pletely satisfied as to their excellence so far as utility is concerned. On the question of architec- tural beauty no two critics agree, and we decline to express any opinion, save that the adverse criti- cisms are, beyond doubt, absurdly censorious.” een “A GRAND CENTRAL STATION FOR DUBLIN.” ONDON has not a central station, and what London can do without (says the Railway News) can scarcely be an absolute necessity in Dub- lin; nevertheless, we find it is proposed to erect one over the Liffey, for want of a better site, some place about where the Mital Bridge spans that stream. The projector does not propose to imitate the van- dalism of the man who lately proposed to carry a line from King’s Bridge down the northern line of quays, for he would kaye his central station con- nected with the existing termini by means of sub- terranean lines; but then a huge gazabo, like that whichjhe recommends, planted squat upon the river, would as effectually destroy the whole sthetical effect of the quays. Standing upon Carlisle Bridge it would no longer be possible to enjoy the charming vista which ends with the view of the river just emerging from green fields to make its way through the crowded haunts of men. Correct taste rises in anger to oppose such a scheme, even if it were re- quired, or even if the advantages to be derived from it were commensurate with the cost of its erection, which would be indeed far from the case. The cen- tral station would be seen to share the fate of some other very ambitious buildings in Dublin—as, for instance, the Royal Exchange, where the little boys used to assemble to shoot marbles before the Cor- poration made it their house of assembly. LIVING AND DEAD ART. NA HAWTHORNE, in the diary which he kept during his stay at Rome, relates how overpowered he was by the beauty of the Venus de Medici. He went day after day to admire: it, and every day was more transported at the grace and spiritualness which seem to pervade it. Calling,, however, on the American sculptor, Hiram Powers, the latter soon showed him how totally his admira- tion was misplaced. The Greek Venus was incor- rect from beginning to end. The muscles were wrong, the eyes were wrong, everything was wrong. As an attempt to imitate Nature, it was faulty in the extreme; and Mr. Powers turned with relief from this ancient failure to his own bran-new suc- cesses. There, indeed, was modelling which defied criticism. There Nature was copied in a way which Praxiteles could never reach, and every line and curve, as the author complacently observed, would be found right, not only by the unassisted eye, but even under microscopical scrutiny. We have heard an old tale like this about a painter, but he was either more candid or else more deserving than his marble-polishing brother. He had painted a scene in which a horse was a prominent object, and when finished, hung it up beside one of the same class, by a great master. Then he criticised the two precisely in the manner of Mr. Hiram Powers, showing his own work to be perfect and his rival’s absurd. As. far as logic went, he too, gained a perfect victory ;, but it did not satisfy him, for, as he said, “though that brute of a horse has not a correct line about him, yet, after all, he is alive, and mine is dead.’” There was more hope for that man than for Haw- thorne’s complacent friend. SEI “cane THE PRICE OF PITCH PINE. E now and then hear much of random tender- ing, but the random assertions often made with regard to individual prices are not at all less remarkable. A curious example has just come to our knowledge, relating to the price of pitch pine. An architect was about to commence some schools, in which that wood was specified for the roof. The contract had been taken, but it was desired to make some deductions before starting, and one deduction was to substitute Baltic timber here. The builder, however, stated that nothing would be saved by it, and that, in fact, he was at that moment using, for his own convenience, pitch pine instead of fir, in some stables and out-buildings for which his tender had been accepted. A week or two afterwards, the same architect invited tenders for another work where pitch pine was required. One of the builders concerned on this occasion assured the committee that it was as dear as mahogany, and showed himself to be in earnest by tendering accordingly. Another ‘“ did not think it could be got in London;” and a third “was sure that he could not get it at any price!” The accepted tender, which was not the lowest, did not bear out these startling anticipations, but gave, what is probably not far from the truth, a difference of 6 or 7 per cent. between the cost of joiner’s work in pitch pine and in yellow deal. 634 —— COMPETITIONS. Tue Sournrorr TownuaLtt ComPrrrrron.— The second premium in this was awarded to Messrs. Mellor & Sutton, Southport, and W. H. Littlewood, Manchester, instead of Mellor & Sutton, as intimated last week. Tue Prorosep Mopet DwELtines AT SUNDER- LAND.—The competition for the Sunderland Cor- poration’s prize for the best designs for model dwellings for the working classes haying closed, the plans were exhibited on Wednesday in the Hall School. The designs number fifty or sixty. The proposed model dwellings are to be erected on the cleared spaces in the parish of Sunderland. We shall give a detailed notice in an early number. BinMinGHaM.—Thke work begun some years ago by the restoration of the tower and spire of 5. Martin’s Church, Birmingham, is about to be resumed, with the intention of completing the re- storation of the fabric, and the addition of a chancel, Recently the rector and the churchwar- dens invited competing designs from architects, and offered three premiums for the best designs—one of £100, one of £50, and one of £25. In answer to this invitation, eight architects sent in plans and designs; five of them from Birmingham, and three from London andelswhere. The rector aud wardens requested Mr. Street to adjudicate upon the merits of the competitors ; and Mr. Street has just been to Birmingham for that purpose. He has made his award as follows:—£100 premium, Mr. Chatwin, Temple-street; £50 premium, Mr. Hale, Temple- row; and £25 premium, Mr. Edge, Bennett’s-hill —all of Birmingham.