Page 598 - Reading Mercury

Recently, the Wokingham Town Council approved a
scheme to renovate and decorate the clock tower,
weather vane, and roof of the Town Hall. The lowest
tender, by Messrs. Lowe and Son, of Wellington
Road, was accepted, and operations commenced on
the morning of Thursday last week. As the clock
tower with vane reaches a height of 80 feet, the
question of scaffolding, both with regard to stability
and construction, became an important one. The local
firm sub-let the scaffolding for the work to an expert
London firm, Messrs. F. Parker and Co., of West End
Lane, Kilburn, who specialises in tubular steel
scaffolding. By this method, scaffold poles, and the
necessary cording by which they are secured are
entirely dispensed with, the material used being lengths of tubular steel, which
combine great strength with economy of space. These are stamped and bolted
together, as the form of the framework requires, the various portions slipping one into
the other. The method is very expeditious. The whole of the scaffolding required was
fitted up by a foreman and four men, between 11 a.m. on the Thursday and 5.30 p.m.
on the next day. A few planks only were used for footings, and the three platforms.
This is the first occasion on which the method has been seen in Wokingham, and great
public interest was aroused in it.
Messrs Lowe and Son have been praised for the provision of this scaffolding, which
reduces risk of collapse to a negligible quantity.

th
Sat 6 Oct
BLACKSHIRTS BUSY
Blackshirt protagonists were busy on Friday evening last week, in open air and other
methods of propaganda.

th
Sat 13 Oct
ST. PAUL’S RENOVATED ORGAN
The renovation of St. Paul’s organ, necessary on account of the severe ravages of
woodworm, has been successfully accomplished by the contractors, Messrs. P.G.
Phipps and Sons, organ builders of Oxford. An electrical blower has been installed.
The instrument has been brought several feet forward, and is now adjacent to the stalls
of the choirmen. This has remedied certain acoustic disadvantages in the church, by
closing the arched opening of the one-time organ chamber which absorbed much of
the tone. While a considerable quantity of the wood and metal has been retained, the
parts affected have been removed and replaced. The registration has not been greatly
interfered with, but a few of the original sets have been taken out, viz., the trumpet on
the swell organ, replaced by a beautiful horn, and the mixed sesquialters on the great
organ. Further new stops include the tromulant, vox celeste, and sulcional on the swell
organ; clarinet, claribella, and twelfth on the great. The pedals are enriched with bass
flute, while additional couplers, and six (instead of four) combination pistons give
scope for fuller tone, range, and greater variety of expression. Mr. F.A. Burgess, the
organist, shows a fine command of the organ, and its added resources. During Sunday,
owing to atmospheric conditions, including marked variations of temperature and
moisture, eccentricities became apparent, which the mellowing effect of time will
eradicate.

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