§ Sir J. JARDINEI beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board whether he is aware that a person named Robert Ridley, being apprehended in the parish of Cavers, in the county of Roxburgh, on a charge of attempted rape, and found by the sheriff to be insane and committed to the Melrose asylum, is a native of Bellingham, in Northumberland, born there and having a settlement there and no settlement in Scotland; whether he is aware that the guardians of the poor of Bellingham parish agreed to pay the parish of Cavers for his keep in Melrose asylum and asked for an account, which was rendered to them and amounted to £23 12s. 2d.; whether the Local Government Board has since informed the guardians of Bellingham that they have no power to pay this sum, and, if so, on what grounds the guardians were overruled by the Local Government Board; and whether the future charges incurred for keep in the Melrose asylum will be paid by the guardians of Bellingham in the first instance direct.
§ MR. JOHN BURNSI am aware of the facts of this case. I may say that the Local Government Board have not overruled the decision of the guardians in the matter. They were asked by the guardians if it was legal for them to refund the cost of the maintenance of the man in the Scottish asylum, and it was in answer to this inquiry that they informed the guardians to the effect stated in the Question. I have since received further communications on the subject, and I am taking steps which I hope may bring about a satisfactory settlement of the matter.