§ MR. FENWICK (Northumberland, Wansbeck)asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether a man named George A. Arnold was tried at Wolverhampton, on the 28th of March last, for breaches of the Coal Mines Regulation Act; whether the prosecution was ordered by the Home Office; whether the following charges were proved against the defendant:—that there were not two means of egress from the mine; that no proper Reports of examination of the shaft had been made; that the top of the shaft was unfenced; if so, what was the total amount of penalties to which the defendant rendered himself liable; and, what was the amount of the fine imposed?
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE (Mr. MATTHEWS) (Birmingham, E.),, in reply, said, the answer to the first three paragraphs was in the affirmative. As to the fourth paragraph, there were in all 12 charges proved against the defendant, who was liable to a maximum fine of £20 for each offence. As these were the first informations under the Coal Mines Regulation Act of last year, the stipendiary magistrate decided to impose small fines of 2s. 6d. in half the cases, and to dismiss the other half on payment of costs. The total fines paid, therefore, amounted to 15s.