years old and had held the situation 22 years, be pensioned at two-thirds the amount of his salary; that a man and his wife be engaged as gaoler and matron at £55 a year, with coals, candles, &c.; that a Chaplain be appointed at £20 a year, a surgeon at £10 a year; and that prisoners be employed in 'picking oakum'. These recommendations were agreed to except the appointment of surgeon and chaplain.
Assault and Battery on the Battery and Parades by the Sea
At the same meeting the fire-engine Committee reported that they had found accommodation for the engines under the Town Hall.
Also at the same meeting, it was reported that Mrs. Camac had encroached on the stone-beach in repairing her stables, but that the encroachment might remain on payment of 5/ a year. This was rather sharp practice, seeing that Mr. Camac had already paid a large sum for his piece of waste beach, and that the alleged encroachment was a small piece of cemented stonework to protect the stables from further damage by the sea.
This leads me to notice another sought-for means of protection from further ravages of the sea, the discussion on which by the Hastings Commissioners may not be altogether wanting in interest to students of local history, and especially to such as imagine that the, difficulty recently experienced in protecting the parade walls from the ravages of the sea is entirely without a parallel. On the 3rd. of September in the preceding year, there was a burly sea, doing damage to some vessels which were ashore, and causing two serious breaches in the Battery adjoining the Marine parade. Most of our old townsmen know that the said Battery was strongly built, and was strengthened by piles, cement and additional stonework at the base; yet the fabric was so undermined on this occasion of a high sea as to excite the fears of the Commissioners for its safety. By the next spring-tides It was further damaged, and appeared likely to fall into entire ruin, the Board of Ordnance taking no steps to repair the breaches. Government had ceased to use the structure, and when appealed to, made an offer of it to the town on certain conditions; also intimating, in consonance with the asseverations of the fishermen and others, that the damage to the battery and a portion of the parade had been caused by the construction of groynes to the westward of the spot. It was a St. Leonards writer who, at the time, published some vaticinations upon the subject, and then declared that ”as regards the harbour, it appears the agitation of that question is buried with the years beyond the flood, never again to raise contentions nor to draw forth plans and estimates; but the groynes, just now, area more serious matter, and unless some steps are taken to counteract their bad effect, these predictions will not prove to be fallacious.”
At the Commissioners’ meeting on the 7th of November a plan was presented for a new parade wall in place of the battery, the same to be 3 feet thick at the base, and to be raised 20 feet from the same. Tenders for the work were also received, that of John Akehurst, £118, being accepted, The ot”her tenders were James Putland’s, £1375 Hughes and Hunter's, £465; Jonathan Reed’s, £488; and Sinden and Phillips's £597. The work was to be completed by the 6th of January, and Richard Cramp was to be employed to superintend the same at 30/— per week. Easier said than done, as we shall presently see. Another special meeting was held on the 18th of November, when the parade and battery question — that fruitful source of contention — was again discussed.
Motions, counter-motions and amendments were proposed, and the whole of the previous proceedings were revoked, A long discussion ensued as to whether Akehurst conjointly with Jamnes Putland, should hold the contract, Mr.Stephen Putland being surety for the due execution of the work, It was ultimately decided, on the motion of Mr. Langham, that the work to done by subscription, and that £80 be expended in securing the battery for the present. Five new Commissioners had been elected—two carpenters (Lock and B. Tree), 1 cabinet-maker (C. J. Womersley), 1 publican (John Tree), and one musician (Jas. Ryall). These all took part in the discussion in favouring or opposing the decision ultimately arrived at. Then followed another special meeting during the Christmas holidays, when the committee’s report stated that at least 50 feet of the wall must be underpinned, and that even that process would be no absolute security against further inroads. No more effectual way, the report stated, could be found than to build a strong wall strictly in accordance with the original specification. After a stormy discussion the recomendation(sic) was agreed to, and £70 more added to the £80 previously voted. Even that did not settle the matter; for, at another meeting, a few days later, the committee appointed to collect subscriptions reported that £137 10s had already been obtained, and that £20 more was expected. Mr. Shadwell and Mr. Lord had promised the handsome sums of £50 and £20, respectively.
As these sums were still insufficient to meet the estimated cost of the new parade wall, it was resolved to borrow £360 additional for that purpose.
At the same meeting it was resolved, on the motion of Mr. Harvey, that the eastern-most groyne at the parade be reduced one plank, and be extended further seawards to prevent the washing away of the stade, The committee were also instructed to report on the expediency of building a more substantial groyne. This report recommended the construction of a stone groyne, 360 feet in length, at an estimated cost of £2,150, which it was believed would render the existing smaller groynes unnecessary, and would much improve the condition of the Fishmarket, West street, &c. Mr. Thwaites reminded the board that it was no new project, for it had been suggested nine years before. He remembered being on a committee when several plans were submitted, one of them being by Mr. White, of Brighton, which, it it had been adopted, would have saved much subsequent expense. He believed it would cost £250 a year to maintain a wooden groyne in repair. The one at Rock-a-Nore, built 9 years ago, cost £900, and considerable sums had already been spent on it. Neighboring towns, he contended, were devoting large sums to improvements, and we must also assist Nature a little if we desired to attract visitors to our delightful walks and romantic scenery. It needed but the expenditure of a moderate amount of money to make Hastings one of the most favourite watering places in the kingdom. It had been said that they would bring the town to beggary, but a halfpenny in the £ would be enough to discharge the interest on the parade wall and the stone groyne as well, whilst about 280 feet of new ground would be made, which might be let out in plots at £10 a year. Although such sums would go to the Town Council, they would help to relieve the rates. There was a life-boat in Hastings [the Ariel], but it could not be used in times of danger for want of launching facilities, but a stone groyne would help to obviate that. The Clerk was of opinion that such a groyne could not be built, and he read the opinion of Sir W, Follett, that no jetty or pier could be erected under present Parliamentary provisions except for the accumulation of beach or protection of the town. Mr. Richardson expressed disapproval of the report, and said it was the most unfounded one he ever heard of; whereupon a warm discussion ensued, in which Messrs. Catley, Langham, George Wingfield and Thwaites took part. Mr, Harvey remarked that suck a scheme would cripple their funds They were only empowered to borrow £12,000, and their debt already was £9,500. Mr. Catley thought the present groyne could be repaired and lengthened at a small expense. A scene of great confusion and contention then followed, ending in Mr. Harvey's motion being carried "That the Surveyor inspect the groyne and estimate the lengthening of it 70 feet."
The absorbing interest manifested in our groynes and other sea-defences at the time of writing has led me to give more details of the Commissioners’ contentions on a similar theme forty years ago than I might have otherwise deemed necessary. And now, as a fitting terminal to this subject I may say that within a month of the meeting here referred to the parade wall was completed at a cost of about {{Hw|£607{, or £189 above the contract figure, but from which the sum of £29 10s. was deducted as the sale price of the old rails.
Apropos of the tide which on the 7th of September, so extensively undermined the Battery, it may noticed that there were three sloops at the time on the beach, unloading cargoes. Two of these were Hastings vessels, and were wound up as the sea rolled in without sustaining any damage, but the third one, laden with malt, from Lynn, whose captain refused to pay a guinea for the use of a hawser, was washed broadside on to the full of the beach, and was afterwards floated with difficulty and delay, as well as at considerable expense. Here was another instance of a "penny wise and pound foolish" expense.
