The Sun.
London, England, 1847-01-21 00:00:00

„.,----
------ ee.'
tts,sao.cia.ted with a Committee for the relief of distress, but in
met time they had never accepted Is. of the Government
"eY, becau c they could not set up to the Government in-
-I,4structions. N 0 one who had not attended these relief com-
-1 tees could understand the anxieties under
,hich these gen-
ti,c_tmen laboured, or the difficulties they had overcome, hot
"use who had filled similar situations in other places. and
under similar eirce t' e He felt convinced that the best
malethe
of meeting rhessaenicliffis.eulties would have been to sus cod
_ae poor-law for the time being; in fac, he was sure that this
” s far better than the Labour Act, which had turned out
thsu_eh„ 4 complete- failure. It was very true that wt
, e nee. Member for Strouul had asserted was correct, that
In some cases relief ws . The fact w as, that the price
Of
ti food
was so enormous refuse,
thatd in sorne cases it was impossible
tihstt.PPlY it. For his own part, he thought that many hard
hen had been brought against those Members who were
,ed with Ireland on the subject of the poor-law of that
17; but Hon. Members should recollect that it was the
Doe"-, min, istry which now existed that had introdueed that very
holi ,ate• They were told of many measures for the good of
biii-1,--. Emigration was pointed out, public works were est:.-i
etiZrris and other measures had been stated as a panacea for l
.. e evils. There could be no doubt that some one enact support
Tao destitute poor but if no one could do so, the Government
°f the country were bound to provide some funds for the pur-
tl)°l,", He had, with great pleasure, heard the statement of
th"ee Noble Lord, thrt he had anticipated the subject, and that
ate of Ireland would be shortly brought before the
house, and the means explained by which Government hoped
to avert the evil. The workhouses in Ireland were in an
s",iol State. Few of them could accommodate more inmates,
in the workhouse of Skibbereen, of which mention had
bee made once or twice that night; the deaths had exceeded
7 2%, the amount of mortality in the corresponding period
of last year.—(Hear hear.) Numbers of the inmates were
cafflicted with fever, and even in the workhouse of which he was
airman, the daughter of the master and the schoolmaster,
ere also afflicted with fever. But it had been asserted that
the u cl.
1 gar tans of the workhouses neglected their duty. He had
Stated that two of the guardians of the workhouse in his locality
Were lying ill with typhus fever, caught whilst in the discharge
of
their daities. In the western part of the county with which
he was connected, the state of the poor was most alarming; but
at be did not wish to say anything that might create
a difference of opinion in this debate, he was willing to give
every credit to the Government for their intentions with respect
to Ireland, but they committed a fatal error when they decided
upon doing away with depsits in Ireland. The Hon. Member
for Stroud had stated that a large amount of corn yet re-
Malted unthrashed in the farmers' possession. He (Lord
Bernard) wished that he could confirm that statement. No
kdoubt the farmers had some corn for their own consumption,
ut as a proof tat at the pesent moment it was no means
Plentiful ;he mihght informr the House that by
in the corn market
of Cork (the second market of the kingdom), the supply did
not exceed the general average of July. As they
Would soon have an opportunity of discussing this question,
When they had the information promised them by Government,_
he would not farther trespass upon the attention of the House,
bet before sitting down he might express a hope that some
change might be made in the unfortunate Labour Act, under
which a vast sum of money had been expended for no possible
Wle, and that some measures would be adopted instead, which
Would have the effect of inducing the peasantry to attend to
the cultivation of the land, and they mght then expect that
auether year would exhibit Irelandmore i
prosperous than the
present, awl her sons more contented and happy.
Sir GEORGE GREY admitted the fearful extent
Of famine under which the people of Irelandwe
rethen
wsuffoeoldr-
ing, but which he hoped, that tt.e presence of Parliament
He knew that no effort
anitigate in some degree that calamity.
feltuman prudence could create abundance, where their was
scarcity. He admitted it was. the. duty. of Ireland .
itself of all and every means within its reach, byd (whovicehrni_t
could arrest the progress of disease and death, •an
.7,
"lA, as had been already stated by his Right Hon. Friend the
tehAncellor of the Exchequer had. given instructions that soup
Vrehens should be established where distress was most preva-
the
reach the object being to bring food within
of that class who were incapacitated from
itii'b.c,o.r,- He would inform
dth. e Hon. Member for Stroud,
be.,,, the papers relative to thedistress in Ireland would shortly
foielaid upon the table of the House, and he would then per}
titent the reasons which had induced her Majesty's Govern-
ent to advance money to the poor-law unions ir. Ireland.
:re was sorry to say that there was a general disposition on the
Lits.t of the board of guardians to shrink from the most onerous
e-,`Y,imposed upon them, via.—that of collecting the out-
-cuing debts ; and when they found that pal ties who were
tarveolildaitiblge to do so proffered the plea of inability as a reason for
Payment of the rates demanded for the sup- i
3,P)011_, of the
blame's he was sure that Honourable M. mbers
u'd not he Government fur having exercised due i
cautionse would
before advancing money for this purpose to the unions.
Vet' would instance the Castlabar workhouse, because it had not
tiarolleS:lnported out of the public funds, where the people were
s
fenne', away from the doors without relief, and numerous
Yet ets were held on those who had died from starvation. el: that workhouse could accommolate 600 persons, and the
i•r;uoirretleof Guardians had so neglected their duties, that not
retern.c,n, 130 were admitted into the house. No answer was
1,„ returned ny. them to the repeated remonstrances of the Poor-
provisiouTTissioners, and as they had refused to make due
It ~,,,
a. tor the support of the poor in their neighbourhood.
?lice
wit to dismiss them altogether, and supply their
"vett 'tit a paid board. Before sitting down he would merely lend. ;the state of distress in the West Highlands of Scot-
s:4n_
rtlo had been more immediately in correspondence with
R„, tiny prietors in the West Highlands, the Lord Advocate of
fatth'''lt, 1 and Sir John M'Neil,- and it was due to. the House
it should know that the distress in the' West Highlands was
e most see '44 made were kind
Pleise. The
eeergeabl hut the sacrifice; which the landlords
h of 'nature to entitle them to the very highest
4 . e
in
ad almost in every case rendered their estates
:eeo created, and onl • sum of nioney for works which they
ne%
tats
to this _ yin one instance had he heard a.n
i ,gt• d, but he
-411t4tio- '1-
itexar"leappy
wgenehral conduct. Upon this estate two deaths
te.uhirltetiSietto'setsi.aultied would struggle
successfully
e thatssfelly thatt
through
up
ar ihe t oars nowp.rde
present
ena
est
of others. He had every
.conti e
occupy
more
atstvas
.natural that the state of Ireland should
Without referri ention, but he could not resume his seat
Prvsein_ .. ng to the West Highlands, and the destitution
Mc ski.bere.
adopts t LAGHAN thought that some means should be
cork to 0 compel the depots'on the coast from Donegal to
lisit 3 °Pen their stores
-of food forthesuppy of the people
boo 0 great was the
d. t
is ress of that country, that the s.eork-
tie 'es were utt lyunable to contain the numbers which it was
eetet"nrY ha thrust
...„.agers had
bust into them,. and it was well known that the
lo?lid their rat een keeping back the money that should have
%sbit3, food
foes, and had been reserving it for their private use
Was a lawnro the %sinter, He did not blame them, though
,11x:
i)erestsediothwaltliterhi'lletihtims el 1,
e country was
especially when he saw the state of
plunged, for it could not be
irnmoney which was required for food should be
LtiPeended in the
improvement of their farms.—( Hear, hear.)
cant the latter
pre er for which it via:n
nkobned in the part of the year, the number of paupers
adaptedat
wCorkas was
only 2 ,29,(0) to/
(,),
and whereasat
thetlie
r0...1:et moment th H.!'
ss aeeoinino,
,eer.e. were ab olutely as many as 5,000 in-
tae_orpeie_ gtollopzoth
prueossienwith
anyufautelliteitn the house He would not trouble.
.the
_everemarks, but would conclude with =-
lied where their health
feool-id
without
the necessity of enAling the
home osinistry Or ii• out the hardship of being thus im-
av for thetr'reatlinedutY
to
s,AIII.I.ToDN and the country alike suffered.
thought that he should not be doing jus-
Cole,have wished that t to the country, if he did not thank
t,„°,,';'PeCially for the" t° meet the necessities of Ireland,
ptablithment of soup-kitchens. He
e'zsprrPee,riod, but ate as ht Measure had been adopied at an ear-
thhave been gladYill
classes tot his gratitude f came,, he would not refrain from
"es he country .t uc the boon, for he felt that to all
Would h would prove an immense benefit, and
ritei.se,, %wen's spee6i. snrne notification of it had been given
guar fe of out.riont, ~ Ho regretted, however, that some
uiatte of relief' had
teeter the poor
m. ,_ not been devised so that the
lieu, " Pr°Viders for !gut have been divested of their cha-
Ws. eof coinmon the
Pe°Pie, and he trusted that the
~,,nn which the s would relieve them from the responsibility
sinnersl•foristois Y. were invested. The law had clothed the
irltta Keratitude
Pt.!°'•'se of -,mriiivoluth supreme power, and it was hoped that the
ilty. 11e",..,
noteould relieve them from their responsi-
ee_.`fe Ministry for the
could
to tit ~ however, sit down, without expressing
A for the
exertions which they hau
miur. stiArt,le
,t,:isf the people of Ireland.
butheart the '1
int Ai
CRAWFORD said that, feeling deeply
reins right that h "es.
of
the
people of Ireland, he thought it
e should make some observations on the subject
leeretthinenfirse. Ele had listened with much attention to the
I,r_ellirid oh°. Lae
Right Hon. Gentleman, the Secretary for
~elaltitute nu:l,or
ee ripe,' w_...,
.a.houchere.) But there were some facts, which ;Il ht, al:111.'01.0e brought under the consideration of Govern-
ing was more prominent than the state of the
door lett had
beetnanti in connexion with that, the. restrictions
placed on the disbursements to relieve the out-
-1 thstress
11 the w..,_„. Not a farthing was granted for this purpose.
is the
of Skibbereen, the place was formed for the
b.nere ,;,,__ :to. •1100 inmates ; and yet, at the preset moment,
mere
not
less than 1,169. The nurse had demanded her
Skim, :I' The apothecary had given notice to quit. The
use of
unable to attend to his duty. In the workhouse of
Melts bads seven children were put into two beds, and three
giottee_ ere put into the same number of beds ; and in one case
Pktrieku adults were put into seventeen beds. In Down-
tivio the same principle was observed, when the power of
veetag outdoor relief was denied. He could net deny the ad-
ti.ltesell of the measure of Government, although he much
'or 11:bed whether the abuse of the labour-sate had been just,
the ' recollected that when that rate was discussed it was at
be :" of the session, and but few of the Irish Members could
115.0 t together. If they objected to that rate, inefficient a.ts
111:11Owed it had been. they ought to have been in their
seises to state their objections, when the Government
thinett'd their assistance and advice. Yet the principal
he -C of which he would complain was the mistake which had
et.tejuo Mad;, in the wages allowed to the labourers for their ;-
eight" on the public works. These men were only paid
f4l.
enenee or ninepence a day, arid because this was only the
eZwat which labourers in general were paid, there were but
rtil_
.ho sought the relief. The Ministers of the Crown had not
oe7nupon the assistance of voluntary contributions, for if they
P ded opor? voluntary contributions they would he most
nes.miserably deceived. This fact would show, that where the
cessity was the greatest the contributions would be the
'etst He trusted that the Government would take warning
•
it.Ye their i
predecessors, and that, while they adopted
Ito principle, they would m
l'a. appeared, by the returns, prove upon the practice.that during the geed
me as many as 1,800,000 quarters oft during
were exported
natun Ireland, and as many as 92,720 tons of oat and other
'lle. Why was it that while food was exported from Ireland
Intlekpeople were starving ? This was a subject well worth
tethutg to. Then there was another consideration as to the
crops. Seed must be provided for these crops; for if it
War-ree
%I v- 1° I.e taken from the produce of the present year it would
nee'd ,ue reducing the amount of those supplies which were
feet ~.c", for present subsistence. Such was the. important sub-
detirwn,ich should engross the attention of Ministers ; but be
ees,i,c4 Particularly to impress upon the Government the ne-
ttle Y °Y Preventing the supply of food from being drawn from
Irc.'4l of the present season.
,vi,ord ,FITZSTEPHEN FRENCH rose to address a few
'''e 111-tt the House, solely on account of what haul fallen from
I), —.gilt Hon.
td.tt,,,,_ . Baronet the Secretary of State for the Home
• `nt, in reference to an occurrence that had taken
righ 1 1° the es
,_ t y infor orkhouse of Castlebar. Now, if he had been
.Was totall •Ined, the guardians of Castlebar that d
strict,at it.
'Unie of „ impossible to collect the rates in that d and
h‘l'hility
o'iner.a, therefore, took upon themselves the respon-
-leans reeding the inmates of the house, and by these
ten, the feeding
t0th,...... paupers were supported for more than two
„Is information of " Hear, hear.") He readily believed 1
Igri his n, because a similar circumstance occurred 1
iii.i°Wled-,,weneunnty. There, he knew of his own persoJal
e,ltvate 'll,'e‘oll,aet tthe paupers had latterly been supported at the
ke°lleet th 0 the guardians, and yet because they could
pilled
t the e rates, now that their own private resources
;hiehe p , they were to be handed over to the tender mercies
~ °ord.- ,-, . .
the e waS stro °Tr°
htitran, the ,orninisstoners. In the case of the Castlebar
issi?ners had already come to a decision,
40 Itintsdilms hug y inclined to doubt its legality, in so far as
hlen in the House who could bear him
never refused to act. There were many
s?retleteseewted
they were statementtktr'?ucable
._ att the
u n
candlest v av it
i tbho t whichds—hethweairs
csse we given
Itt ci distreup, and still they were unable to relieve every
v„,eoti tensions
and suffering that came to light. H
fnuuld k he could onl assure the -( ear. )
'AN that e the trou.bt .Y . House, that if they
I.
a-.1._ e c. to inquire into the matter, it would be
ti eouiti7l•l2. wisteria and southern districts of Ireland the-
DT Icy possibility be collected; end in many