§ MR. SHEEHAN (Cork County, Mid)To ask the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture (Ireland) by whom was Mr. Carroll appointed as creamery instructor for the Cookstown district, and on whose recommendation; whether he underwent an examination for the position, and, if so, who were the examiners; whether, notwithstanding the dissatisfaction created among creamery owners and managers by this appointment, as evidenced by the fact that over three-fourths of the creameries withdrew from the 1907 summer surprise competitions, the Department has renewed the appointment in 1908; and whether, with a view to restoring the confidence of the trade in this portion of the Department's work, he will consider the advisability of having such appointments made in the future from among qualified creamery managers and by competitive examination.
(Answered by Mr. T. W. Russell.) Mr. Carroll, after having been examined and recommended by the responsible officers of the Department, was appointed by Sir Horace Plunkett as instructor in dairying and was assigned by the Department to a northern district, with head-quarters at Cookstown, a position which he still holds. In reply to the concluding portion of the Question, I have merely to repeat the statement which I made in response to previous Questions of a like character, viz., that the Department are not prepared to confine the appointment of instructor in dairying to creamery managers, nor are they of opinion that appointment by competitive examination would secure the best men.