The proportion of the above with which this parish is debited by the precept of 1861 is £106 16s. 5d., but that proportion is based upon the amount of the accounts as sent in; as reduced by taxation it will only be £81 12s. 8d. But as the vestry has already contributed two hundred pounds to Mr. Beal in answer to his various appeals, and expended upwards of twenty pounds in making experiments as suggested by him, they will have a large sum to receive back In November, 1860, a proposal was made by the vestry of St. James’, Westminster, to recognize the services of Messrs. Beal and Hughes throughout the enquiry into the supply of gas to the metropolis, and the passing of the recent measure by raising some fitting testimonial, and a committee of that vestry having been appointed to carry it out, Messrs. Hall and Perry were deputed to confer with them as to the best mode of doing so. The Bill to amend the Metropolis Gas Act, {11} introduced by the government into parliament for transferring to the metropolitan board of works, so far as regards the metropolis, the powers conferred by the acts for regulating measures used in the sale of gas (22 & 23 Vic., cap. 66, and 23 & 24 Vic., cap. 146) upon the justices of the peace, of appointing inspectors of meters, having received the royal assent (24 & 25 Vict., cap. 79), it will be the duty of that board to take the necessary steps for carrying it into execution. To aid in accomplishing this transfer, the vestry on the tenth July, 1860, expressed their opinion that the appointment of inspectors of meters in the metropolis would be best placed in the hands of the metropolitan board of works, and petitioned parliament and memorialised the justices of the peace upon the subject. See Appendix No. 10 (page 56). The number of public lamps in the parish on the 25th March, 1861, was as follows— Lighted by the London Gas Company 696 ,, Western ditto at Kensal Town 30 726 WATERING AND SCAVENGERS. The following tabular statement shows the cost of these two services for the last five years:— From March to March. Watering. Cleansing. Total. 1856–7 £1109 5 10 £1977 19 4 £3087 5 2 1857–8 709 13 8 1563 9 3 2273 2 11 1858–9 941 4 0 1143 15 0 2084 19 0 1859–60 1192 1 2 1218 18 5 2410 19 7 1860–1 1126 0 7 1145 12 6 2271 13 1 The contractors were fined £40 10s. for neglect during the year. IMPROVING. The principal charges under this head are for works over the Ranelagh sewer at Sloane Square in rebuilding the south wall; and in fencing the enclosure opposite Royal Avenue Terrace. REMOVING NUISANCES.