§ MR. SHIRLEYasked the President of the Local Government Board, Whether his attention has been called to certain correspondence in The Times, and to three leading articles in The Times, which appeared on 25th September and 2nd and 3rd October 1885 respectively, in which it was stated:—That a most dangerous and over-crowded structure in London, without sanitary arrangements, is owned by a member of the Metropolitan Board of Works; that the said member refused to obey the order of the vestry to fill up cesspools, construct drains, lay on water supply, and otherwise cleanse the unwholesome habitation; that the said member refused to obey an order of his own Board to pull down or shore up the dangerous structure; that the said member conspired with certain of the Board's officials to set aside the above order, and to use the public money on the said structure; and further, that the conspiracy was extended to the office in which the official books are kept, and that the books were dealt with in accordance with the fraudulent arrangement; that the structure is still inhabited, notwithstanding that the dwelling was condemned as dangerous by the Board's own officials; and, as neither the Board nor the member concerned have taken the ordinary means of replying to these 890 grave charges, will he inquire into this matter?
THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT (Mr. CHILDERS)(who replied) said, he had no information at the present moment; but he was inquiring into the matter, and the hon. Member would be informed of the results of the inquiry.