Mr. Tatem on the Management of the London Bridges. 125 



1823.J 



priety, be deemed private property. 

 Now, tliough this may be degrading to 

 the country, and a censure upon the 

 government, yet justice requires that 

 the claims of the individuals interested 

 in them should be rendered secure, 

 until they shall be fully satisfied by 

 redemption, and tlie bridges become 

 the property of the state. For the 

 purpose of eifecting this, all the said 

 bridges should be vested in trustees ; 

 to consist of the knights of the shire 

 for the counties of Middlesex and 

 Surrey, the representatives in Parlia- 

 ment for the cities of London and 

 Westminster, and the borough of 

 Southwark, the Lord Mayor of the 

 city of London for the time being, the 

 rectors or vicars of the several parishes 

 in which the bridges respectively 

 stand, together with four inhabitants 

 of each of those parishes, who should 

 be elected at a general meeting of the 

 parishioners, specially convened for 

 that purpose, and who should continue 

 trustees only so long as they shall re- 

 side or possess property in the pa- 

 rishes by which they have been elected. 



With a trust thus constituted, — 

 which would consist of upwards of 

 fifty persons of the highest respecta- 

 bility ; for, as those elected by the 

 different parishes would, most pro- 

 bably, be chosen on account of tiieir 

 talents, or the large property they 

 held in those parishes, there would be 

 \ery little to apprehend, lest the trust 

 should be guilty of any breach of 

 duty ; and the number of trustees 

 would be too great to be easily 

 brought under the influence of go- 

 vernment, — of all evils, that most to 

 be deprecated. 



The tolls to be taken on the bridges 

 should be on the lowest scale possible : 

 but which tolls should be paid weekly, 

 if the tolls are held by the commis- 

 sioners ; or, if let, — which, perhaps, 

 would be most advisable,~the rents 

 should be paid monthly into the cham- 

 ber of the city of London, to the ac- 

 count of the Chamberlain, who should 

 be the treasurer to the trustees, and 

 have a seat at the Board ; and, for the 

 performance of which duty, he might 

 bo allowed a small per centage, — 

 which allowance, together with the 

 salaries of a clerk and a surveyor, 

 would constitute all the permanent 

 expenses of the trust, and could not 

 amount to any large sum. The inte- 

 rest of the share-holders, of life-an- 

 nuitants, and ahso on bonds, having 



been paid, together with the amount 

 of any repairs which might have been 

 necessary, the balance to be invested 

 in government-securities, until a fund 

 of 10,000/. shall have been established ; 

 which fund should be constantly kept 

 up, to be applicable at any time to 

 extraordinary repairs; and the surplus 

 which shall be thereafter remaining, 

 at the close of every year, to be ap- 

 propriated to the redemption of the 

 interests of the persons having pro- 

 perty in any of the said bridges; such 

 persons to be paid off' in the same 

 manner, and the same rotation, in 

 which any of the companies, or other 

 public bodies, now having the ma- 

 nagement, shall have engaged to do. 

 The accounts to be made up at the 

 end of every year, and laid before 

 Parliament some time in the mouth of 

 March ; and, in order to give further 

 publicity, published in the London 

 Gazette, showing how much has been 

 redeemed, and the amount of the un- 

 redeemed debt. When the whole of 

 the claims of private individuals shall 

 have been satisfied, the tolls wholly to 

 cease, the commission to be dissolved, 

 and the bridges afterwards repaired 

 at the expense of the state, by vote of 

 Parliament. 



It must be obvious to every one, 

 that much convenience would result 

 to the public, by rendering all the 

 bridges equal with respect to the ex- 

 pense of passing over them. At pre- 

 sent the free bridges are crowded to 

 excess, and the loss of much time and 

 property is sustained by the public; 

 but, were the same tolls payable on all 

 the bridges, it would be immaterial 

 which bridge was passed over, and 

 that which led most directly to the 

 place to which carriages, &c. were 

 going, would consequently be used. 

 The loss in horses, either killed or 

 rendered unserviceable, on Black- 

 friars-bridge, annually, is said H be 

 very considerable : that this has been 

 increased, by the great number of 

 carriages constantly passing over it, 

 together with its declivity, cannot be 

 doubted. 



As it is not proposed to lay a toll 

 upon foot-passengers, only those would 

 have to pay who received benefit from 

 the ease, safety, and expedition, with 

 which the bridges could be passed ; and 

 even that expense would entirely 

 cease as soon as the bridges became 

 the property of the state. 



Harpendcn, Herts, J. G. Tatem. 



