St. Paul's.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13490, 11 January 1908, Page 2 (Supplement)

St. Paul's.

THE DOMJi HAS SUNK.' " Xltc present condition of Si. Paul's Cathcderaf was the subject of a paper lead before the Royal Institute of British Architects, by Jlr Mervyn Macartney, surveyor to the frabic oi St. Paul s. Dealing with tire report recently published bp the committee of architects appointed by the committee of architects appointaitney commented on the danger which would threaten the cathedral if the City Council sewer were constructed near to it, and urged the adoption of another route in order to guard the building from all possible risk. '[lie main points of weakness, he saul. are the dome, the south transept, :md the western tower and portico. The settlement of the dome, which has largely occurred during the. progress of the building, shows that, in spite of the care with which .Wren spread the weight, the centre of the great mass has sunk, and is now severed from the surrounding masses'. The dome is carried on eight piers about thirty feet long: those at the crypt arc connected iwth the bastion-like masses at the angles of transept with nave and choir by long barrel vaults ; these are in evcrv tase cracked through. The weight of the super-structure rests much more <m the inner ends of these eight piers than on the outer ends, and t.he sinking of these piers lias set up movements overhead. Moreover, these great piers have not sunk •■'jnallv. thnse on file- south side connecting with the Mnith transept, being lower than the others; and of these the western mo-t has descended bodily over six inches. The south transept has suffered in adoiition to the dislocation of the parts abutting on the dome by the tendency of the .-•outli front of it, to move outwards, and had sunk slightly to the east and west; t'r' . shows itself in the *ouTi window arch and in the upper part of the transept. Coming to the west front two tendencies are found at work, the one arising fiom the other: the two towers are out of tin; perpendicular, the one to the noith ?.nd I lie other ,r > the -onih : am! the portico

which has been said to be Ihe only Hin'.sy | piece of construction in the cathedral, has followed the. direction of the lowers, and. in addition has moved westwards. The movement of the south tower has affected; that part of the building cast of it. and in the library, over the southwest chapel, the indications of the movement- are very clearly seen. A further proof of the movement of the towers is the curved line of llie granite steps, which was found necessary in order to avoul partly burying tin* bases of the columns of the portico. _ . Those inclinations are sufficient, in themselves to jeopardise the safety of the two wide arches of the portico between the towers. The towers actually formed the abutment- of those arched ceilings, which have a span of forty-eight feet, while they do not rise to ten feet-.