J James Marston Fitch's seminal "Historic Preservation:the curatorial management of the built world"(McGraw Hill.1982) at £26.SOp has an ambitious title but surprisingly comes close to succeeding.The former modern-movement architect"saw the light"to become the first Professor of a conservation course in the western world at Columbia University in New York. ( Turkey had the very first conservation course for planners and arc hi tee~. Fitch' s insight into the forces that make us conserve cultural property and his analysis of logistical problems in managing the "built world" make the book a must for those who wish to understand the "Why?" in our work. For those of a more practical bent in the "How?" school of conservation, there is Bernard Feilden's mammoth"Conservation of Historic Buildings". The ex architect of York Minster & S~-Pauls and Norwich cathedrals and recently retired director of ICCROM(international school for conservation in Rome) rambli?.s through international technical approaches to repairing old buildings in a patchy volume costing £SO.Most of the recipes and tricks of the trade are here but some are now out-dated and others are missed altogether. The index leaves much to be desired and generally,it is a difficult reference book to use. Still, for the conservation officer with the reinforced bo(k shelf, these two volumes are a must to join Powys,Caroe & InsaTI~ BAD LANDS GOOD LANDS Durham County Council has won a Diploma of Merit from Europa Nostra for its achievements in derelict land clearance. s. GLC' s POLICIES /\T WORK Its been a very busy six months in the Greater London Council's Historic Buildings Division.At the end of the 1982/3 financial year it doled out a windfall of £600,000 in grants to restore major redundant or underused historic buildings in the capital. In April it began the CPO of Kelmscott House in Hammersmith, the west London home of that noted victorian conservationist and more importantly socialist, William Morris ..... in order to prevent any alterations to the house and to provide some say, a left-wing shrine in London. Rut the GLC has not stopped the initiatives.Last month it bought by agreement a house in the earliest uniform terrace in all Britain: No.SS, Newington Green, Islington ... one of a terrace of four built in 16S8,listed Grade L A snip at £30,000t Meanwhi 1e, in the City of Lendon the GLC has b~en wielding the, big stick.The owner of Nos.8&10 Rrushfield St., started to take down the buildings without any consent.(No.8 is an unlisted building in a conservation area and No.10 is listed).Prompted by a local tip-off, so the story goes, gallant officers of the Historic Ruildings Division formed a posse with City police and scared the demolition crew off the site for a day or so. But demolition continued so the GLC served an injunction to stq::> further works, directed the City Corporation to refuse listed building consent for demolition and served a notice under S.101 of the 1971 Act for emerqencv repairs.(heady stufftEct.)The proverbial mystery fires,apµeal
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