HC Deb 30 July 1858 vol 151 cc2367-8
SIR DENHAM NORREYS

said, he wished to ask the noble Lord the President of the Board of Control, in the absence of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether, before final determination on the scale to be adopted in future, the Chancellor of the Exchequer will cause inquiry to be made, firstly as to the expense, and secondly, as to the correctness of the system of reduction by photography now practised by the Ordnance Department for forming the six-inch and one-inch maps. He must complain that a Commission had been issued upon a Motion in the House of Lords, in order to upset a decision of the House of Commons upon this subject. He did not wish to say a word against the gentlemen composing the Commission, except that they were known to entertain decided opinions as to the scale of survey. The Government had taken it upon themselves to act contrary to the opinion of the House of Commons, and the responsibility now rested upon them. He was greatly afraid that the reduction of these maps by photography would not realize the expectations entertained of it.

LORD STANLEY

said, he could not pretend to have any information of his own upon that subject; but he had been informed, on the authority of those who had conducted that survey, that the reduction by photography was perfectly and minutely accurate, and that a saving of 650 per cent. was effected by that process, the actual cost being only 16d. per sheet. In reply to the question whether any further inquiry was to be made into that subject he had to state that the Government did not believe any inquiry would be necessary after the report of the present Commissioners should have been received. Another question had been put to him some time before, to which he regretted that he could not return a very definite answer. He had been asked whether anything would be done in the way of proposing the grant of a pension to Major General Inglis. Perhaps in the present state of the case it would be enough for him to say that the distinguished services of General Inglis were as fully appreciated by the Government as they were by the hon. Members who had spoken on the subject and, as he believed, they were by the public.