§ Mr. MacVEAGHasked the President of the Board of Agriculture whether he has received a complaint as to sixteen cows, newly calved and in full milk, which were shipped from Dublin to Manchester on the 15th ultimo and were prevented from being milked when under quarantine at Manchester for twenty-four hours; whether, as the shipper did not wish to sell the milk, and as the refusal to give facilities entailed suffering to the animals and also depreciated their market value, he will state on what grounds the permission was refused; whether he is aware that one of the cows when in agony knocked out an eye; and whether steps have been or will be taken to prevent a repetition of such occurrences?
§ Mr. RUNCIMANI have investigated thoroughly the complaint to which the hon. Member refers, and I am satisfied that there is not the slightest foundation for it. The cows in question were landed about mid-day on Sunday, the 16th March, they were all milked by 7 p.m., and the period of detention ended at midnight. Fifty minutes after midnight the owner's representative signed the Manchester Ship Canal Company's book acknowledging to have received the cows. Whenever the owner of cows or his representative makes abonâ-fide request for permission to milk cows the request is immediately granted; in other cases the cows are milked by men employed at the lairages. 1964W The allegation that one of the sixteen cows referred to knocked out her eye in agony through not being milked is untrue. One of the cows was observed by the Board's inspector soon after landing to have a damaged eye; there is no evidence to show how the accident occurred, but the most probable explanation is that it happened on board ship.