§ MR. HARRINGTONasked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant, of Ireland, Whether it is true that any warders in local prisons in Ireland have complained of the hardship of compelling them to provide bed and furniture out of their slender salaries; whether any of them requested the Prisons Board to purchase the articles in question, and keep it out of their pay, by monthly instalments; whether the Prisons Board refused; and, whether it has come to their knowledge that, in consequence of the taking away of prison furniture from their apartments, the warders in any prison were compelled to sleep on the boards, and without any covering?
§ MR. TREVELYAN, in reply, said, that such complaints and such applications as those mentioned in the Question had been made; but the Board had stated they had no power to comply with the requests. He had before explained that warders, while on probation, were allowed the use of public furniture, and that when their appointments were made permanent, by being confirmed, they were required to find their own furniture. It would, of course, be unreasonable to suppose that probationary warders, who might not be permanently appointed, should be compelled to provide themselves with furniture. It had not come to the knowledge of the Board that this regulation had caused warders to sleep without bedding or covering. The case of prison warders generally was before the Prison Commission.