50

THE PALACE OE WESTMINSTER.

been caused by the overheating of some flues, accounted for by the fact that, for some days previously,certain subordinate officers in the Exchequer had been engaged in burning, in the buildings adjacent tothe House of Lords , a collection of old documents and letters which had become useless, in consequenceof the recent alterations in conducting the business of the Exchequer Office. It is supposed that, in theexecution of this duty, the men grew too impatient, and burned a great number together, by whichthe flues were choked, and thus the fire broke out in several places at once.*

* Mr. Braidwood, superintendent of the London Fire Office, who made a report to his establishment, attributes the devastating progress of the flames to thefollowing causes:—1. “ The total want of party walls.—2. The passages which intersected the buildings, in every direction, acted as funnels to convey the“ fire.—3. The repeated alterations in the buildings, which had been made with more regard to expedition than security.—4. The immense quantity of timber“ used in the interior.—5. The great depth and extent of the buildings.—6. A smart breeze of wind.—7. An indifferent supply of water, which, though amply“ sufficient for any ordinary occasion, was inadequate for such an immense conflagration.—8. My own and the fireman’s total ignorance of the localities of the“ place. In fires in private dwellings, warehouses, or manufactories, some idea may generally be formed of the division of the inside of the premises, from observ-“ ing the appearance of the outside ; but in the present case that rule was useless.”

“ After all it must not be suppressed,” says Topham in his little volume, “ that many suspicious circumstances have been put together, so as to excite an“ impression that the fire might be the work of incendiarism. The coincidence of the uncertainty where it began; its rapidity ; its suddenness and simultaneousness“ in several places ; and that a bundle of matches are said to have been found under one of the trees in the Speaker’s garden, are statements to give countenance to“ such a belief; but notwithstanding their spaciousness, no evidence has been brought to light, under the official investigation, to render it credible that it was the“ contrivance of any Guy Vaux conspirators; and indeed, the final report made by the Privy Council , after giving in detail the evidence of the different individuals“ who were examined, concludes by stating, ‘ That there does not exist, in the minds of the Members of the Privy Council , the slightest doubt that the calamity“ ‘ was purely the result of accidental causes.’ ’’

THE FOLLOWING WAS THE OFFICIAL REPORT OF DAMAGE.

Report upon the damage done to the Buildings, Furniture, &c. of the Two Houses of Parliament, the Speaker ’s Official Residence , Official Residence of the Clerk of the House of Commons , and to the Courts of Law at Westminster Hall, (occasioned by the fire, on the 16thday of October, 1834,) as far as at present the same can be ascertained.

House of Peers.—T he House , Robing Rooms, Committee Rooms, in the West Front, and the rooms of the resident officers, as far as the octagon Towerat the South end of the building, totally destroyed. The Painted Chamber totally destroyed; the north end of the Royal Gallery abutting on the Painted Chamberdestroyed from the door leading into the Painted Chamber, as far as the first compartment of columns. The Library and the adjoining rooms, which are nowundergoing alterations, as well as the Parliament Offices, and the Offices of the Lord Great Chamberlain, together with the Committee Rooms, Housekeeper'sApartments, &c., in this part of the building, are saved.

House of Commons.—T he House , Libraries, Committee Rooms, Housekeeper’s Apartments, &c., are totally destroyed, excepting the Committee Rooms,Nos. 11, 12, 13, and 14, which are capable of being repaired.

The Official Residence of Mr. Ley, Clerk of the House . This building is totally destroyed.

The Official Residence of the Speaker. The State Dining Room under the House of Commons is much damaged, but capable of restoration. All the rooms,from the oriel window to the south side of the House of Commons , are destroyed; the Levee Rooms, and other parts of the building, together with the PublicGalleries, and part of the Cloisters, very much damaged.

The Courts of Law.—T hese buildings will require some restoration.

Westminster Hale. —No damage has been done to this building.

Furniture— The Furniture, Fittings, and Fixtures, to both the Houses of Lords and Commons, with the Committee Rooms belonging thereto, are, withfew exceptions, destroyed; the public furniture, at the Speaker ’s House , is in great part destroyed; the furniture generally of the Courts of Law has sustainedconsiderable damage. The strictest inquiry is in progress as to the cause of this calamity, but there is not the slightest reason to suppose that it has arisen fromany other than accidental causes.

Office of Woods, &c., Oct. 17, 1834.