Winslow History | Vestry, 1892

Vestry, 1892

Buckingham Advertiser, 26 March 1892

The annual vestry was held on Tuesday at the Yeates’ Schoolroom, but was only poorly attended. Mr. Jas. King was chosen chairman, and there were also present- Mr. T. P. Willis, Mr. T. F. Vaisey, Mr. H. Monk, Mr. G. D. E. Wigley, Mr. East, Messrs. Coxhill and Dancer (overseers), Messrs. Neal, Curtis, Hathaway, George, &c., &c.
Mr. H. Monk was nominated as guardian by Mr. King, and Mr. East was nominated by Mr. R. Coxhill …
The Winslow surveyors’ accounts were also produced, and a lengthy discussion took place as to the state of the roads.
The Chairman said he could not congratulate the surveyors on having good roads.
Mr. Monk said they had some stones on order for nearly three months.
Mr. Neal said that two years ago they had two flash surveyors put on, and the old surveyors were very much maligned, but surely the roads were worse now than then; they had done nothing except put a piece of pavement down in Horn Street, where nobody walked on it, and this spent £50 which would have been much better put on the roads.
Mr. Monk (the senior surveyor) said they must not pitch into him about that, he was not for it, but there were two to one against him.
Mr. Neal said the Market Square was not in a proper state, there were holes in it, and it was lumpy all over. The Grandborough road, too, was a disgrace in his opinion, and he was told the road between Curtis’ and Mr. Geo. Ingram’s field was very bad. He wanted to know why the other surveyors were not present, and asked why they did not put the stones down in October, instead of waiting till now (hear, hear). And he was strongly of the opinion that they ought to ask the opinion of the parish about the pavement in Sheep Street and Horn Street. He thought they ought to pass a strong resolution, and so force the hands of the County Council, or failing that, to get a circular printed and sent to every Councillor in the county. He suggested that the meeting pass a resolution that the County Council has not done its duty by Winslow roads and footpaths, and consequently deserves censuring.
Mr. Wigley (surveyor) said he had part of Mr. Neal’s impeachment of the surveyors, and he must say no doubt they could have better roads and good roads; but they must remember at the same time that they would have to pay a good price for them, and his friend Mr. Monk, being the largest ratepayer in the parish, naturally took a rather different view of things to what Mr. Neal did.
Mr. Monk- I don’t mind a 4d. rate, but I think that ought to do for our parish.
Mr. Wigley (continuing) said with regard to the stones, Mr. Monk having been surveyor for 40 years, the ordering was left to him. But as a practical man, he was in favour of ordering stones as early as possible- say September- and the more expense they went to at first the cheaper it would be in the end. As for the Market Square, that belonged to the Lord of the Manor, and he did not consider it right to ask the ratepayers to repair it as long as the Lord of the Manor took the tolls (hear, hear). The correspondence with regard to the pavements was all laid on the table last year, and he did not know where it went to. But having lately seen Mr. Thomas, the County Surveyor, he told him that Winslow people were getting indignant at not being attended to. Mr. Thomas replied that they were not bound to put paved footpaths, but only ordinary ones (gravel for all that); but still they would abide by their original offer of paying half the cost if the parish would pay the other half. Of course they could pass a resolution calling upon the County Council to put them in good order; but he failed to see that they could compel the Council to make them ornamental footpaths.
A discussion then took place which ended in a resolution being passed embodying Mr. Neal’s suggestion, with a rider regretting that the Council had not sent one of the recently-purchased steam rollers to Winslow, seeing that it came as far as the Neptune.
It was agreed to send copies of the resolution to the Chairman of the Council, and to Mr. Higgens of Buckingham, as a member of the Highways Committee.
Mr. Curtis asked if the parish would be prepared to bear half the expense if the council bore the other half?
Mr. Willis produced the letter from the County Surveyor, dated March, 1891, stating the Council would bear half the cost of restoring the footpaths to a maximum of 6 ft., and estimating the cost at £300. A 6d. rate would do it.
Mr. Walker said they need not spend £300.
Mr. Wigley said had not they better call a special vestry when they got the reply from the Council.
Mr. Hathaway pointed out that the letter only promised to put the footpaths in their original order; they must not expect a pavement.
Mr. Wigley said this was so.
The resolution was then amended to read, “That the Council be called upon to properly pave the whole of the footpaths over which they had control.”
Mr. George pointed out that in several instances the planks which led up to the stiles in the footway leading to Addington were broken, and asked if the surveyors were not bound to see to them.
Mr. Willis said that was a private matter, resting with the owners of the property.
The next matter was the election of surveyors.- Mr. Neal said they never had such good roads as when Mr. King was in office. He never agreed with Mr. Hillyer in shoving himself in as it were, and doing no good when he was in. He proposed Mr. King as surveyor, and Mr. Monk seconded. Messrs. East, and Vaisey proposed Mr. Wigley, and Messrs. Hathaway and East proposed Mr. Monk.
Messrs. Alfred Clear, W. H. Stevens, H. J. Russell, H. A. Hurlstone, E. A. Illing, and T. W. Saunders were nominated overseers.
Mr. T. F. Vaisey said at the last Vestry the question of taking over Avenue Road was postponed. Since then the road has been put in very good order, the parish had lighted it, and had rated it a good sum, and he thought it was now time they took it over.
Mr. Walker seconded, and it was agreed to (Mr. Wigley promising to have the road made good in one place where a drain had been put in), that the parish take over the road from the Workhouse garden to Mr. Willis’ gate.

Buckingham Advertiser, 26 Nov 1892

The Vestry meeting for passing the Lighting Inspector’s accounts, &c., was held at the Yeates Schoolroom on Wednesday evening when there were present- Messrs. T. P. Willis, H. Monk, H. Ingram, W. N. Midgley, A. J. Clear, J. Keys, T. Walker, E. Illing, C. Clare, F. W. Dancer, T. D. Curtis, W. Monk, G. George, J. Varney, and Dr. Kennish.
Mr. Monk was chosen Chairman, on the proposition Dr. Kennish, seconded by Mr. Dancer.
On the copy of the notice convening the meeting being read, Mr. Willis took objection to the wording that the meeting would be held in the Vestry Room. He said Winslow did not possess a vestry room like they had at Leighton and other towns, and the notice should have read, “In the Vestry at the Church,” then they could have adjourned the meeting to the Schoolroom.
Mr. Curtis, assistant overseer, said the notice was worded exactly as Mr. George had worded them for years.
The Chairman said, as he and most of them present had met in the Church porch previous to coming to the Schoolroom, he thought that would be near enough.
Mr. Illing then produced the lighting accounts, shewing a balance in hand of £21/13/-, the receipts being balance from last year, £5/12/5¾; received from overseers, £108/0/9; total £113/13/3; and the expenditure being gas and lighting, £75/14/-, and a few accounts for sundries.
Mr. T. Walker proposed, and Mr. Willis seconded, the passing of these accounts.
As three of the Lighting Inspectors (Messrs. Illing, W. Ingram, and J. Sear) retired, and one (Mr. Saving) was dead, there were four vacancies to be filled. Mr. Illing was re-elected; Mr. W. Monk was proposed by Mr. Clare, seconded by Dr. Kennish; Mr. T. Walker was proposed by Mr. Illing, seconded by Mr. J. Keys; and Mr. W. H. Stevens was proposed by Mr. Varney, and seconded by Mr. George.
The amount for lighting for the ensuing year was then discussed, the Chairman saying they had gone through the matter, and thought that about £135 would be required.
Mr. A. J. Clear (overseer) asked if any less sum would be sufficient, as the poor rate was so much heavier this half-year than usual- 9d. in the £, instead of 5d.
Mr. Geo. George proposed a sum of £120.
Mr. Willis thought it would not be wise to ask for less than £135, as it appeared very much as if there would be an extra expense to meet in regard to the Fire Brigade. He then read a letter from Mr. Hathaway, secretary to that body, stating that he could not stay to the meeting, and enclosing the balance sheet, which shewed a balance in hand of £7/19/6, at the same time resigning his office, and suggesting the desirability of handing over the whole affair to the Lighting Inspectors, and letting them have the entire management.
Mr. George then amended his proposal to £135, which Mr. Monk seconded.
Mr. Hathaway’s suggestion stoked considerable discussion, the Chairman expressing the feeling of the meeting, when he said it seemed best for the Brigade to remain a voluntary one, as it was quite as much protection for adjoining landowners- such as Lord Cottesloe, Lord Addington, Sir Harry Verney, and Mr. Lambton- as it was for them, and those gentlemen probably would not subscribe a farthing if the Brigade was managed by the Lighting Committee, so it was agreed that the matter should rest till Mr. Willis and Superintendent Keys could get the men together and see what was best to be done.
The Chairman asked if anyone would propose that the usual sum of £10 be voted for the Brigade.
Mr. H. Ingram proposed, and Mr. Clear seconded and it was carried.
Mr. George said there were only two amounts down as being collected this year.
Mr. Willis said they had not wanted any money, because there was a good balance in hand, but the men had each got a pocket-collecting-book, and would go out in the country and collect, the same as they had done before, if it were wanted; but the fact of the matter was that Mr. George was all the while opposed to the Fire Brigade Committee, and all the while finding fault.
Mr. George denied this, but said as a ratepayer he thought he ought not to be asked to pay twice over- once to the rates, and once to the Brigade, and it was not a very pleasant thing for the man to have to go from house to house begging for the Brigade.
Mr. Willis said he supposed if Mr. Chinnery, Mr. Greaves, Mr. Lambton, and himself, chose to support the Brigade, they were at liberty to do so; but Mr. George need not give anything if he did not like…
Mr. Illing read a letter from the Rev. P. H. Eliot, Vicar of Winslow, asking that a lamp be placed at the corner of the road leading to the gymnasium, and, being private property, it was found this could not be complied with.
A vote of thanks to the Chairman concluded the meeting.

There was also a vestry meeting on 13 Oct about painting the chancel of the church.