§ MR. VINCENT KENNEDYTo ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland if he will state whether there is a horse attached to the police force quartered in Dowra; if so, where is the animal stabled and at what cost; to whom is the rent paid; who pays for the fodder, and what is the cost of the same per annum; what is the annual cost of the man in charge of this horse; what is the usual work this horse is used for, and how often does this arise; how long has this horse been in Dowra; what was the original cost and what is it worth now; have any of the men at this station bicycles; is there a telegraph office in the village; and will he say if this stud can be profitably dispensed with, and, if so, how soon.
(Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The Inspector-General of the Royal Irish Constabulary informs me that there is a transport horse and car attached to the Dowra Police Station. The horse and car are put up at the house of Mr. Stuart Flaherty, local postmaster and clerk of petty sessions, to whom the sum of 1s. 9d. a day is paid for stabling, harness-room, and coach-house. The fodder is paid for by the police authorities at the rate of 2s. per day. The man in charge is a mounted constable, with the pay of his rank, but without the usual allowances for arms and saddlery. He draws in addition 6d. a day transport allowane, and 4s. 6d. per month for stable requisites. The horse is used for trans port purposes and for conveying coals and provisions to an outlying station. These duties are continually arising. The horse in question has been at Dowra for fourteen months. It is presumed to have cost originally about £40. Having regard to its age it is not now worth more than about £20. Several of the police at Dowra have bicycles and there is a telegraph office in the village. The horse and car cannot at present be withdrawn from Dowra.