n-2 



TilK CIVIL ENGINEER AND AltCIIl TECT'S .lOURNAl,. 



[.Tl-.NK, 



for sending in the designs. And wlien 1 point out to you this necessity 

 fur doing so, to;^cther with tlie benefit wliicli must be the result to the com- 

 mittee, I bopc it will not be considered an idle request. 



From the printed particulars furnished to architects by the coinmittec, it 

 is evident that the designs cannot bo completed ivitli fewer than from twelve 

 to Bfteen drawings, nearly all of which will require 1o be drawn on double 

 elephant paper (;! ft. -1 X -•-.), since the requisite subjects will probably be as 

 follows: — Ground plan, one pair plan, two pair plan, at least three or four 

 clcvalious, tliree or four sections, and one or Iwo perspective views. This 

 is the smallest number of drawings which will be necessary, in order fully 

 to explain each design. Now the actual lime for the mere labour of making 

 aich a scries would bo nt least from thirty to forty days ; while to picpaic 

 an estimate and descrijition would occupy at least five or si.\ days more — 

 so that from five to si.x whole days would be required for this purpose alone. The 

 most important part of the task, which I have not yet mentioned, is that 

 uf preparing the design itself, preparatory to making fair transcripts of the 

 several parts of it, the time requisite for which it is utterly impossible to 

 state, since it must depend entirely upon the study bestowed by each indi- 

 vidual in maturing his first ideas. In some eases, therefore, this prepara- 

 tory labour may bo very considerable — in others, exceedingly little : almost 

 ilie very first ideas that liappcn to present themselves being adopted and 

 proceeded upon at once, however stale and common-place they may be in 

 themselves. Consequently, if inadequate time be allowed for duly consider- 

 ing- the subject, little more pcrliaps than could, without inconvenience, bo 

 spared for merely making out fair copies of the original sketches, many 

 architects will, on that account alone, be deterred from entering into the 

 competition, feeling that unless tliey should happen to succeed entirely to 

 their own satisfaction in the very 'first instance, they would have no time 

 for reconsidering or correcting any of their sketches — probably be compelled 

 to let pass many imperfections they would afterwards detect. It is hardly 

 to be supposed that any member of the profession, who has any practice at 

 all, can devote the whole of his time to works where the chances are a liundrcd 

 to one against his success ; therefore, if the committee require designs from 

 men of experience as well as from the juniors, they v\ill at once sea the 

 necessity of an extension of time. 



I am aware that a single ajiplication of this nature will have but little 

 >veight ; but Irom the; conversations I have had with several members of thi> 

 profession, 1 am induced to think that the majority, if not all, would leel 

 benefited by being i.|lowed more tunc for preparing their designs. Vet if 

 none applied, there would be but little ho|)e of obtaining this boon. I 

 need hardly slate, that the committee would also be gainers in the like pro- 

 portion ; as a work of such magnitude requires the greatest deliberation, 

 not only on the part of the architect who produces the design, but al.so on 

 lliat of the judges who have to determine upon its inerils. 



1 therefore beg to suggest, and I do so with the greatest deference, that 

 immediately upon the receiiit of all the drawings by the committee, they 

 should bo thrown open to the public for exhibition, for at least one month 

 previously to any decision being formed by the eoiniuitteo. This is a re- 

 quest (and I put it most respectfully) the profession have some right to 

 expect would be acceded to, as they could then look with the greatest con- 

 fidence to the ultimate decision of tlio committee, and it would be an 

 evidence to the public of their disinterested motives ; it would be also an 

 honourable precedent for all future competitions in the kingdom : and, by 

 the confidence which it would be sure to establish, be the means of calling 

 together a greater number of the profession than any public competition 

 hitherto known. What has lately taken place with regard to the Nelson 

 Monument, is an examp:e that ought not to be thrown away ; and indeed the 

 eyes of the public are now beginning to be so opened by it, that, sooner or 

 later, I am convinced, not only a public exhibition of all the designs, but one 

 previous to any premiums being adjudged or selection made, will be established 

 as a matter of course in all arehiteclmal competitions of any importance. The 

 opportunity iiow presents itself to you of letting the town of Liverpool be the 

 first to originate so exceedingly salutary a system, — one fraught with numerous 

 benefits to all parties concerned, but to none more so than those whose interest 

 it may be presumed it is to obtain a design which shall have stood the test of 

 such public ordeal, and obtained the greater number of suffrages from persons 

 of experience and taste, and uninlluenced by other bias than the desire of 

 obtaining such a structure as shall reflect credit on their townsmen. Among 

 the minor advantages which would in this case attend such exhibition, would be, 

 that it would attract numerous members of the profession, both from the metro- 

 polis and from other parts of the kingdom. 



May 1 beg the favour of your laying this letter before the committee as 

 early as possible, and trusting' they willgivc some consideration to the obser- 

 vations which it contains, and waiting their decision, 



, . I am, Gentlemen, ic. 



Messrs. Deanc and Harvey. 



I agaiii wrp^e, the following :— 



. ,; ' . May 3, 1839. 



GjiNTJ.KMEN,— A short time back I wrote to you respecting the public com- 

 petiiion for the erection of St. George's Hall, Liverpool, and not having re- 

 ceived any reply to that letter, I am again obliged to trouble you with a request 

 that you will be kind enough to state whether the committee have deemed it of 

 sufficient importance to take into consideration the subjects therein contained. 

 1 shall feel obliged by your reply within next week, as I am about publishing 

 some observations of public competitions, and wish to name this amongst others 

 ill the course of those observations. I feel that it is necessary to apologize for 

 giving you so much trouble, but on a subject of so much interest to the pro. 



fession, and to the public at large, I am sure you will readily grant me an 

 excuse. I am, gentlemen, &:c. 



Messrs. Deane and Harvey. 



Ami, uftcr waiting witliout any reply, received tlie following : — 



Liverpool, May 4, 1839. 

 .SiK, — In rejily to yours of the 3d, we beg to state that we ausweied yours of 

 the !tth of March on the I4lh of the same mo.ith, and have not received any 

 cnmiiiunication from you since, excepting your letter of yesterday. 



If yiiu will refer to our letter to you, dated I itb March, we think you will 

 find that we there answered all your inquiries; but if you wish any other 

 inforniutiou which it is in our power to give, we shall be most happy to afford 

 it you. 



We remain. Sir, your very obedient servant, 



K. G. Dkane, I 



Sec. 



Tiios. Harvev, J 

 E. B. Lamb, Esq., Henrietta-street, Brunswick-square. 



I insert this letter as a link in the chain, and to show the remark- 

 able circumstance of mine not reaching its destination. The little 

 hopes I had entertained of having my request acceded to, were now 

 fled ; but as 1 still felt interested in the subject, 1 dctermiiieil to write 

 again, and send a copy of my letter of the Otii April. The letter ac- 

 conipanying that, is as follows : — 



7th May, 1839. 



Gi;nti.i'..mi:n, — I received your letter of the 4lh inst., and am greatly sur- 

 prised to find that you have not received mine of the loth of April. As this 

 appears to be caused by the neglect of the postman, or other person concerned 

 in the delivery of letters, I purpose making imiuiries at the General Post- 

 Ortlce on the subject, particularly as the letter has not been returned to me — 

 the course usually adopted when letters have not been delivered as directed. I 

 send you a copy of the letter, 



And am. Gentlemen, &c. 



Messrs. Deane and Harvey. 



This letter produced the following reply : — 



Liverpool, 8ih May, 1839. 



Sir, — In reply to }0ur letter of yesteiday, we beg to inform you that, upon 

 further search, we find your letter of the ftth of April was duly received, and 

 laid before the committee, who came to a resolution, after much deliberation, 

 tliat it was inexpedient to grant any extension of time. The other subject 

 mentioned in your hater (the public exhibition of plans) is a matter for the 

 future consideration of the cuinmittec. 



We beg that you will accept our apology for the unintentional neglect of 

 which we were guilty in not answering your letter of the 9tli April, and also 

 for the equally unintentional error which we committed in stating that it had 

 not been received. It reached us by the same post as one upon the same sub- 

 ject from Mr. Donaldson, the Secretary to the Royal Institute of British Archi- 

 tects, and they were both laid before the commiltcc without delay. Their 

 determination was communicated by us to Mr. Donaldson, and we were under 

 the impression that it had been communicated to you also ; but it seems wo 

 were in error. 



We trust you have had no further trouble about it ; and remain. Sir, respect- 

 fully, your most obedient servants, 



Edw. G. Deane, ) c 

 Tiios. Harvey, I ^'^' 



E. 13. Lamb, Esq., '25, Henrietta-street, Brunswick-square. 



It is certainly a singular coincidence that a letter which conld scarcely 

 be forgotten on an occasion of this nature, should happen to be so mis- 

 placed as to prevent its being answered, but I beg most distinctly to 

 state that I perfectly agree with the writers, that the neglect is uninten- 

 tional ; at the same time, I may with justice add, that this sort of ne- 

 glect is not an niifrciiiient occurrence with committees and their officers. 

 Otlier instances might be named where plans have been laid aside and 

 entirely _/()J'//o/<en by the committee. 



I have now laid before you tlie usual kind of corres|)ondence which 

 takes place between architects and committees, and I think, upon the 

 slightest consideration, it w ill appear who are the most benefited par- 

 ties. I do not mean to impugn the Liverpool committee, I merely 

 take them as a sample of the ajiparent openness and disinterestedness 

 of such bodies. Can persons so constituted reasonably e.xpect aiclii- 

 tects to enter into a competition, when they withhold that evidence of 

 their fair intention, which ought to appear, by not iniblisliing tlieir 

 names to their papers, so that architects should be as able to form 

 an u|iiniou of their being fully qualified for their duties, as it .should be 

 evident to them that architects are ({ualified for theirs. In the present 

 state of competition committees, it is of small importance whether the 

 architect wastes his time in bestowing deep study on his design, or 

 merely commits to paper the most coimnonplace ideas ; for the little 

 knowledge ol the subject usually shown by l\iti jikIl/cs, is insufficient to 

 discriminate between genius and mediocrity. If any one will take the 

 trouble to inquire, he will find this opinion fully borne out, with- 

 out depreciating the talents of the committee. An instance of 

 this nature occurred some time ago in tlie parish of Holloway : two 

 churches were to be built, and were duly advertised in the usual 



