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12
The vacancies caused in the Vestry by the deaths of Messrs.
Emary and Cook were filled at a casual election on the 24th July,
when Mr. Edward Lowman was elected for St. Michael's (No. 1)
Ward and Mrs. E. Pritchard for St. George's (No. 3) Ward.
Mr. Emary being at the time of his death one of the Public
Library Commissioners, the Vestry, on the 27th June, 1899, elected
Mr. Frederick Redman (Vice-Chairman) to fill his place.
LONDON GOVERNMENT ACT, 1899.
The most important matter which has engaged the attention of
the Vestry has been the passing into law of the London Government
Act, 1899. At the end of the Vestry year 1898-9, the Bill had been
little more than introduced into the House of Commons, and the
Vestry had adopted a number of recommendations for its amendment.
Almost the whole of these recommendations were subsequently
accepted by the Government and embodied in the Bill.
One of the most important matters connected with the measure
was the question of the area in which this parish should be included,
and on the 2nd May, 1899, the Vestry expressed the opinion that the
area of the parliamentary borough of West Southwark would be a
suitable area for the constitution of a borough under the Bill.
This area, however, was not considered sufficiently large by the
Government, and they accordingly adopted the parliamentary areas,
of W est Southwark, Newington, and Walworth as the area of the
new borough. This proposal would have had the effect of transferring
Ward No. 3 of this parish into the borough in which Bermondsey is
included, and would have prevented the coming into operation of the
provision of the Bill "that where the whole of a Poor Law Union is
within one borough, the Assessment Committee shall be appointed by
the Borough Council instead of by the Board of Guardians." Under
these circumstances, the Vestry expressed the opinion that it was
desirable that the lines of the Poor Law Union of St. Saviour's should
be strictly followed as the boundary of the new borough.
The Chairman and the Clerk of the Vestry were directed to
communicate with Mr. R. K. Causton, M.P. for West Southwark, and
owing to his successful efforts Ward No. 3 was subsequently included
within the area of the Borough, which is described in the Act as "the