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Area, consisting of the Parishes of St. George the Martyr, Christchurch,
Southwark, St. Saviour's, Southwark, and Newington." On
the 13th June, 1899, the Vestry unanimously adopted a resolution
thanking Mr. R. K. Causton, M.P., and the Chairman and Clerk of
the Yestry for obtaining the inclusion of this portion of the parish in
the new Borough.
The Bill passed through the House of Lords and received the
Royal assent on the 13th July, 1899.
It is unnecessary here, owing to the number of treatises which
have already appeared on the subject, to give any detailed account of
the provisions contained in the Act. It may, however, be stated
that the first election of Councillors will take place on the 1st
November, 1900. No date has, however, been fixed for the coming
into operation of the Act.
With regard to the delimitation of the boundaries of the new
Borough and the allotment of Councillors and Aldermen to the
various parishes, these subjects are dealt with in the portion of this
report detailing the proceedings of the London Government Act
Committee.
CLEARANCE OF REMAINS FROM CRYPT OF ST. GEORGE'S CHURCH.
At the date to which the last Report of the Vestry was brought
up, the Vestry were awaiting a communication from the Home
Secretary with regard to their request that the removal of the human
remains from the crypt of St. George's Church might be delayed
until the Long Lane Improvement Scheme was carried out. The
Home Secretary on the 28th March pressed upon the \ estry the
necessity of obeying the Order in Council without delay, and requested
them to inform him when they proposed to commence operations.
All the inquiries he had made in the matter confirmed him in the
view that the removal of the bodies was necessary in the interests ot
public health, and the present instance did not appear to him to
present any feature which entitled it to exemption from the usual
practice, or which would justify the postponement of the removal.
In the same communication, however, it was stated that only those
coftins reposing on the floor of the crypt need be removed in the first
instance. Whether any further removals were necessary would