SECOND READING. (Hansard, 8 June 1868)

§ MR. STEPHEN CAVE,

in rising to move that this Bill be now read a second time, said, the Alkali Act had now been in force for four years and a half. It was passed in 1863 in order to restrain the escape of muriatic or hydrochloric acid gas during the process of manufacture of alkali—or sulphate of soda or potash by the decomposition of common salt. To show how valuable had been its results, he need only say that, before the passing of the Act, in some cases the escape of that most deleterious gas amounted to 50 percent; that doubts were expressed by manufacturers whether that quantity could be reduced lower than 10 per cent; that by the Act it was obligatory to reduce it to 5 per cent, and that practically last year, owing to improvements which had been made, chiefly in consequence of the suggestions of the inspector, the average quantity of escaping gas was less than 1 per cent—namely, 0.88—and this year he understood it was still further lessened. He need hardly say that this result had proved profitable to the manufacturers as well as advantageous to the public. No complaints of hardship had been made by manufacturers; indeed, only one prosecution had been necessary. There had, therefore, been abundant proof of the salutary nature of the Act, which, unless renewed, would expire during the present year. It was proposed to re-enact it without alteration, but to request the inspector—who had performed his duty with intelligence, industry, and judgment, as 1297 the Reports presented to Parliament proved—to report on many other gases produced by various manufactures, some of which were represented to be even more dangerous than those which occasioned the passing of that Act.