§ MR. BIGGARasked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether on 14th July last Local Government Board Auditor attended at Bangor to audit the town accounts for 1882; did auditor postpone visit at the request of the town clerk, and in the meantime did the clerk replace a portion 333 of the rates for 1882 by his collections on account of 1883; did auditor discover that upwards of £200 of the rates for 1883 had been embezzled; also upwards of £14 of arrears for 1881, which latter should have been credited in 1882 account; did auditor again visit Bangor on 3rd August in consequence of reports forwarded to the Local Government Board by Mr. Atkinson, and had auditor any communications, verbal or written, with the Town Commissioners or their clerk with reference to their defalcations, and was it at auditor's suggestion that certain books were destroyed, and that the clerk asked to be relieved of the duties of collector; what report did auditor forward to his department, seeing that the deficiency in 1883 rates was only made good the day before his visit, and that the arrears had not been returned; and, did auditor ascertain if any part of the loans obtained for sanitary or other purposes had been used to defray current expenditure, seeing that it was not till 30th August that any part of the ordinary town rate for 1883 was lodged?
§ MR. TREVELYANSir, the Auditor attended at Bangor, on the 14th of July, to audit the township accounts, but had to postpone his auditing owing to an outbreak of scarlatina in the clerk's family. He did attend for the same purpose on the 12th of last month. His visit on the 3rd of August was for a different purpose. He had no conversation with either the Town Commissioners or the clerk with regard to defalcations; and he suggested the appointment of a rate collector, because he thought the position of clerk and rate collector incompatible. As he has not yet commenced his audit, the statement that he discovered irregularities and defalcations is without foundation.