§ SIR CHARLES CAMERON (Glasgow, Bridgeton)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board whether his attention has been called to the statement that the remains of between 1,000 and 2,000 bodies have been found lying unburied in the crypt of St. George the Martyr, Southwark, the coffins in which they had been placed having been burst open by dishonest persons who had managed to break into the crypt and stolen the lead; whether he has seen a report by Professor Wanklyn and Mr. W. Cooper, analytical chemists, to the effect that the atmosphere of the church was contaminated by the passage of air from the crypt to such an extent as to render it dangerously impure; whether he is aware that the vestry refuse to incur the expense of removing the remains, and are in favour of waiting until the noxious fumes exhaust themselves; and whether the Local Government Board proposes to take any steps in the matter?
THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT (Sir M. WHITE-RIDLEY,) Lancashire, BlackpoolMy attention has been called to this statement. The Inspector of Burial Grounds will thoroughly investigate the matter this week, and his report shall receive immediate consideration.