§ MR. SMALLasked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether it is intended to take any steps to improve the position of the officers and attendants in public lunatic asylums in Ireland in respect to salaries and pensions, so as to make these more in correspondence with the scale in English asylums, as recommended in the Inspector's Report for 1881?
§ MR. TREVELYANRecommendations are from time to time made to the Government in favour of increase of salary to individual officers and attendants in lunatic asylums by the respective Boards of Governors, and such recommendations always receive the most careful consideration; but no representation has been made to the Government, nor, so far as the Government are aware, to the Inspectors, which would establish the contention that the salaries in these institutions are generally inadequate; nor are the Government aware that there is such a difficulty in obtaining suitable persons to fill vacancies therein as would require them to make inquiries on the subject. As regards pensions, they are awarded according to the Regulations in force for the Civil Service, which receive a liberal construction in their application to the 1305 cases of officers and attendants in lunatic asylums.