§ MR. HOWARD VINCENTI beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board if instructions can be given that the statistics obtained by the Registrar General relating to the numbers of foreigners in the East End of London, in Leeds, and Manchester, competing with 1763 the native population, shall be given in the Preliminary Report of the Census, instead of being delayed until the final Report is ready, having regard to the importance of the question from an industrial point of view? I also beg to put to my right hon. Friend this supplementary question on the same subject: Whether he will cause inquiry to be made into the statement in to-day's Times, that there are in the East End of London 25,000 Polish, German, and Russian Jews, who, besides holding on Sunday morning an immense market of the scrapings of the town, sell the labour of destitute arrivals at from 2s. to 3s. a week, depriving thereby other men of work, and especially English workmen?
§ MR. RITCHIEI have no knowledge of such a state of things existing in the East End of London as is described in the hon. Gentleman's question. I have had some experience of the East End of London; and if such a condition of things existed, I think I should know of it. But, further than that, the hon. Member knows a Committee which has sat to consider the subject has heard a considerable amount of evidence, and no statement so startling was made before them. I may say that in the same number of the Times it is stated that some organisation is being set up by Lord Rothschild and others with a view of relieving the congested condition of some parts of London caused by the influx of foreign Jews and other aliens who arrive in large numbers in London. I may also say that a Committee is sitting to consider a Bill with regard to public health, which will confer upon the Local Authorities of London additional powers of dealing with insanitary conditions such as those which are referred to in the hon. Member's question. In reply to the question upon the Paper, I have to say that I have communicated with the Registrar General, who informs me that it will be impossible to comply with the suggestion of my hon. Friend. The preliminary Report on the Census, which must be presented to Parliament within five months next after the Census, and which the Registrar General hopes will be presented at the end of June or in the beginning of July, is prepared from summaries made out by Local Registrars. Those summaries are now made 1764 out, and are being sent forward to the Census Office. The information referred to in the question could only be obtained by tabulating the birth-places in all the enumeration books, and to go through all these books for the purpose of extracting from them one particular item of information would involve great trouble and expense, and would most seriously delay the issue of the general Report.