§ MR. TUITE (Westmeath, N.)asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, If he is aware that representations were made early in August last, and again on the 14th instant, to the Local Government Board, by the Mullingar Board of Guardians, as to the delay of the Engineering Inspector of the Local Government Board in inspecting 85 cottages built under the Labourers (Ireland) Act in that union; whether all of those cottages have been finished for the past eight months, but remain untenanted in consequence of the Guardians declining to undertake the responsibility of taking over the cottages without their being previously passed by the Engineering Inspector; and, whether, having regard to the large number of cottages awaiting inspection in the union, and the loss and inconvenience which the delay is causing 1654 to all parties concerned, he will cause an immediate inspection of the cottages to be made?
§ THE SOLICITOR GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. MADDEN) (Dublin University)(who replied) said, that representations had been made by the Board of Guardians asking for an inspection of the cottages; but there had been no avoidable delay. The cottages were not completed eight months ago, because, when the Guardians made their application for the first time in August last, some of the cottages were not fully completed. He believed that an inspection of the cottages would be made next week.
§ MR. TUITEasked, if it was not a fact that there were only two Engineering Inspectors in the whole of Ireland?
§ MR. MADDENasked for Notice of the Question.