§ MR. W. H. SMITHasked the Secretary to the Local Government Board, If he will state to the House the extent to which the Boards of Guardians of the Metropolitan District have availed themselves of the authority given by the General Order of the 25th of November, 1870, for boarding out pauper children, and the general tenor of the Reports of the Inspectors who have visited the children?
§ MR. HIBBERTreplied that there were 41 boarding-out committees formed; that of those 10 were in Lancashire, seven in Surrey, and six in Westmoreland, the remaining 18 being in 15 other counties. Of the 134 populous Unions to which the Order was addressed, only 10 had availed themselves of its privileges and had boarded-out 132 children. Four of the 10 were metropolitan Unions—namely, Poplar, St. George's, Kensington, and Bethnal Green, and they had sent out 57 children. The Reports of the Inspectors were, so far, of a very satisfactory and encouraging nature with respect to the working of the system. Mr. Hedley reported on the children in Westmoreland—
I have personally visited all the children, 12 in number, and am able to report most satisfactorily on the condition of the whole of them as to health, cleanliness, and general appearance. The homes are all of a superior character. To orphans 1415 or deserted children, coming up as they do all from either London or Liverpool, there can be no doubt that to them individually the boarding-out system is an immense boon.