§ Order for Third Reading read.
§ MR. MELDONdesired to make a few observations which he thought were necessary before the Bill was read a third time. He must say that the 199 Attorney General for Ireland had, with great fairness, accepted a number of Amendments to the Bill; but the great weakness of the measure was the want of supervision for the sanitary system of Ireland. Without proper supervision it would be impossible to work these sanitary laws in Ireland. In England there was a complete net-work of Inspectors to see the laws properly carried out, and the same rule ought to apply to Ireland. At present the dispensary doctors were charged with seeing the law administered there, and no matter how anxious they were to do their duty properly, they were so hampered with local influences as to make it impossible for them so to act. Unless there was provision made for the appointment of special officers to see the law enforced the whole Act must fail. He knew that the state of Public Business was such as to prevent a proper discussion of the measure in that House. He had made the observations he had addressed to the House that night with the hope that when the Bill went to "another place," the point he had raised would be discussed, and such a clause inserted as would prevent the measure being a dead letter. He did not ask for a special system of supervision in Ireland, but that the practice which had worked so well in England might also be applied to Ireland. A large staff was not necessary to see that the sanitary affairs of Ireland were properly attended to. If the country were divided into four districts, with a Superintendent over each, that would be sufficient. He was quite sure that unless something of the kind was done, the whole Bill would prove a failure.
§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. GIBSON)said, the important question of supervision was fully discussed by a Select Committee of the House, which sat last year on the subject. No one underrated the matter; but it must be regarded from, a great many points of view. The Bill contained the necessary powers for providing supervision; but, of course, it remained to be seen whether that power was properly exercised. He did not think he would be able to get the sanction of the Treasury for appointing the Superintendents which the hon. and learned Member had spoken of, and hence he did not see his way clear to 200 adopt the suggestion which he had made.
§ Bill read the third time, and passed.