§ MR. THOMAS O'DONNELL (Kerry, W.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord- Lieutenant of Ireland whether the Kerry County Council have notified Sir C. Cameron that they do not require his services further as public analyst; that they did so only after they had been put to considerable inconvenience and expense by inaccurate analyses made by him; whether similar complaints have been made in Waterford and Wexford; and whether, under those circumstances, the Local Government Board will refuse the request of the council; and, if so, will they (the Local Government Board) pay the cost of all prosecutions which fail because of incorrect analysis.
(Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The reply to the first part of the Question is in the affirmative. The complaint made by the county council against Sir Charles Cameron had reference to an unsuccessful prosecution for depriving milk of its fats. It appears that Sir Charles Cameron's certificate differed from those of Somerset House and of the Cork analyst. Sir Charles Cameron states that the milk was analysed twice with great care, that it was partially decomposed when he received it, and that as there was an excess of fat in the sample sent to Somerset House there may have been separation of the milk constituents when the sample was taken. A somewhat similar case arose last year in county Wexford. The Local Government Board have no record 1392 of a similar case in county Waterford. A public analyst cannot be removed without the approval of the Local Government Board; and the Board have informed the county council that no sufficient grounds have been advanced to warrant the dismissal of Sir Charles Cameron from his position as public analyst for the county. The reply to the concluding portion of the Question is in the negative.