§ MR. DALY (Monaghan, S.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that great inconvenience to road contractors and expense to ratepayers has been caused owing to road contractors having to attend before a meeting of the county council with two sureties to perfect their bonds for the smallest job; whether he is aware that Carrickmacross is 22 Irish miles from where the county council hold their meetings, and that it would take under the new rule £1 8s. to take a contractor and his two sureties to perfect his bond before the county council for building a gullet which the county surveyor allows £2 for completing; and whether he will direct in future that the district council have power to perfect contractors' bonds as the magistrates did at road sessions under the grand jury.
§ MR. G. W. BALFOURUnder the provisions of the Procedure Order the bonds of the contractor must be entered into with the county council, but there is nothing in the Order as to the place at which these bonds must be signed. The Local Government Board are of opinion that the contractors should be allowed to enter into their bonds at the office of the rural district council, and it is only necessary that some accredited officer of the county council should attend for the purpose upon a date named to enable this to be done.