§ MR. FIELDTo ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether he can arrange that the members of the Ordnance Survey working in Ireland shall consult with the local branches of the Gaelic League respecting the correct spelling of the Irish names; and whether a bi-lingual system will in future be adopted on the Ordnance Survey maps.
(Answered by Sir Edward Strachey.) The names on the original 6-inch maps of Ireland were submitted to and very carefully investigated by three Irish scholars, all members of the Royal Irish Academy, who paid special attention to the correct rendering of names of Irish origin; and such names remain unaltered on the new 25-inch plans so far as they still apply. As regards the comparatively few new names of Irish origin, the council of the Royal Irish Academy have recently supplied us with the names of competent authorities to whom reference may be made in various counties. This arrangement will be supplemented where necessary by reference to a branch of the Gaelic League. A bi-lingual system on the Ordnance Survey maps would be cumbersome; and as it does not appear to have any solid advantages over the present practice the Board cannot recommend its adoption.