§ MR. E. COLLINSasked Mr. Attorney General for Ireland, Whether he will take into consideration a memorial addressed by one hundred and fifty ratepayers of the baronies of Kinsale and Courcies, on the 7th May, to the Lord Lieutenant, praying that he may direct such measures to be taken as the Grand Jury Laws admit of to expedite the completion of the bridge across the Bandon River near Kinsale, the construction of which has been delayed long beyond the period allowed to the contractor by the original terms of his contract; whether the Act 6 and 7 Will. 4, c. 116, does not provide that, in a case of urgent public necessity, the Commissioners of Public Works may, on application of the Postmaster General, and with the consent of the Lord Lieutenant, cause the bridge in question to be made available for traffic; whether, in view of the loss of one-half the trade of Kinsale, as alleged 117 by the memorialists, caused by delay in construction of the bridge, this is a case for the intervention of His Excellency the Lord Lieutenant, under the stipulations of the Act 6 and 7 Will. 4, c. 116; and, whether he will cause inquiry to be made into the circumstances, to remedy, if it be practicable, the mischief complained of?
§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. LAW)The Memorial referred to in the Question of the hon. Member has already received full consideration at the hands of His Excellency the Lord Lieutenant, and a reply has been sent to the Memorialists informing them that the matter was not one in which His Excellency could properly interfere. I may add. with regard to the work generally that I have seen a Report from the County Surveyor, from which it appears that the time allowed by the contract for the completion of the work only expired on the 1st of April last; and that the work was delayed by the extreme severity of the last two winters, coupled with the fact that several of the screw piles upon which the bridge is to rest were carried away by a passing schooner. The Grand Jury, taking these circumstances into consideration, have not considered it fair or expedient to prosecute the contractor; but have directed him to use every effort to complete the bridge as soon as possible. This he is doing, employing as many men as can be usefully employed upon the work, and I am informed that it is progressing rapidly. Meanwhile there is no delay in the transmission of the mails, as they are carried across the river by another route.