§ MR. SHEEHY (Galway, S.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether his attention has been called to the condition of the burial grounds in the Arran Islands, Galway; is he aware that the caretaker on one of the burial grounds instead of protecting it actually lets the grass for grazing purposes, and allows the wire fences put up at considerable expense by the local authority to be destroyed; can he state whether there is a caretaker for the second burial ground; whether it is the duty of the Local Government Board Inspector to visit these burial grounds from time to time and see that the public health is not endangered by their unsanitary condition; and how often the inspector has visited these islands during the last twelve months.
§ MR. G. W. BALFOURRepresentations have been made to the Local Government Board by the Rev. Mr. Farragher, P.P., respecting the condition of these burial grounds, and the Board are in communication with the Galway Rural District Council on the subject. The matters to which the rev. gentleman has drawn attention relate rather to defects in connection with the caretaking, such as the failure to paint the gates and to prevent injury to the wire fences, etc., and it has not been alleged that any danger to the public health is involved such as is suggested in the question. The matter is entirely one for the local authority to deal with, and the Board's inspectors do not visit local graveyards unless their attention is specially directed to their condition. I am unable to say how often the inspector visited the islands during the past year at such short notice.