The Sun.
London, England, 1847-01-05 00:00:00

then, can the disease be attributed ; but, we cannot have
any hesitation in attributing to the following circum-
stances a very great influence in predisposing to aid in
propagating the disease :
" Ist. To the circumstance that, for some months past,
a large proportion of those admitted into the workhouse
have been already broken down in constitution ; arid
many of them, as already noticed, labouring under dy-
sentery.
" 2d. To the circumstance, that in the workhouse itself
the wards are so crowded, and the ventilation so defec-
tive, that disease, no matter how caused at first, must
soon acquire and maintain a highly contagious character;
and, as is universally the case under such circumstances,
will also assume a fatal form, bidding defiance to the
efforts of the best medical skill.
" We cannot let pass this opportunity of endeavouring
to impress this fact strongly upon your attention, that
good air is as necessary to the support of health as
wholesome food; and that, on the other hand, impure
air is not a less certain poison, though it may be some-
times a little slower, than unwholesome food."
After urging the necessity of improved ventilation, the
report proceeds:—
We minutely examined the nature and progress of
the disease in all its stages, the appearance after death,
and the remedial measures employed. The result of our
inquiry is- to be able to assure you that we believe all
that medical science and unwear.y ing attention could do
has been done by your medical officers to arrest the pro-
gress of the malady. We must observe that the labour
your medical officers at present uudergo is more than, we
think, they can continue to endure, and a failure of their
energies in their present trying circumstances will be
productive of injury to the poor as well as to themselves.
Each of the medical officers has now under his care about
270 patients ; allowing only five minutes, on an average,
for seeing each patient, twenty-two hours would be
required to go through the whole number ; or supposing
that only half the number require to be seen daily, the
duty to be yet done is far beyond what your present staff
of medical officers can efficiently perform.
" We cannot entertain a hope that any course of mere
medical treatment will of itself remove, or even materi-
ally arrest, the progress of disease in your institution.
The crowded state of the wards should be corrected ;
sufficient ventilation should be ensured ; the diseased
should be separated from the healthy ; the former re-
moved to situations more favourable to recovery, and the
latter no longer exposed to agencies calculated to predis-
pose to and engender disease ; in short, we are of opi-
nion, that the same institution cannot safely be at once
both a poor-housaand an hospital. We remain, gentle-
men, your obedient servants,
" PHILIP CRAMPTON.
" D. J. CORRIGAN, M.D.
"Note.—The beds are so close together that there is
barely room for a person to walk in between them."
CENTRAL RELIEF COMMITTEE FOR
IRELAND.

The following sums were received since last meeting :
—George Pim, Esq., Brenanstown, 2001.; Rev. Dr.
Wray, vice-provost, 100 L; Christopher Macdonnell and
Sons, 501.; Thomas N. Redington, Esq., 501; John
Hatchell, Esq., Q.C., 501.; 11. S. Sweetman, Esq., 201.;
Miss Sweetman, 101.; Cheyne Brady, Esq., ; Rev. J.
Leary, C.C., Great Haywood, Staffordshire, per Daniel
O'Connell, 5/.; Miss Smith, Glenaghgare, her second
subscription, 21.; Lord George Paget, officers, and non-
commissioned officers 4th Light Dragoons, 421.; Sir
Montague Chapman, 101. The following letter was re-
ceived by the Marquis of Kildare on yesterday, at the
meeting of the committee:—" Lord George Paget pre-
sents his compliments to the Marquis of Kildare, and
has the honour to inclose him a draft for 421., being the
amount subscribed by the officers, non-commissioned
officers, and privates of the 4th Light Dragoons, towards
the relief of the distress now existing in Ireland, which
he begs may be placed in the funds of the General Cen-
tral Relief Committee for all Ireland.—Portobello Bar-
racks, December 31, 1846."
SOCIETY OF FRIENDS. MR. FORSTER'S
MISSION. _

The Dublin Mercantile Advertiser of this day contains
the following :
" We have seen some letters from Mr. William Fors-
ter, of Norwich, who has been engaged in his truly
benevolent mission for several weeks past, in the counties
of Roscommon, Donegal, Sligo, Mayo, and Galway.
Mr. Forsterohe brother- in law of the late Sir Thomas
Fowel Buxton, had entered upon his labours with the
utmost anxiety to ascertain the real extent of destitu-
tion. He has gone amongst the peasantry—has in-
spected the poor-houses, and, after the most careful
inquiries, he has arrived at the conclusion that the ter-
rible pictures of suffering, of actual famine, which have
been published in the newspapers are borne out to the
fullest extent by his personal observation.
" The scenes of misery detailed in Mr. Forster's letters
are most harrowing ; the people absolutely perishing
from fever and want, whilst in some districts food is not
to be obtained for money. From Donegal Mr. Forster
wrote to the central committee in Dublin that the clergy-
man of a parish had been existing upon one meal in
the day, until he had been enabled to procure food, con-
veyed on horseback a distance of fourteen miles !
The Friends Central Committee have made arrange-
ments for sending relief to some of the most distressed
districts. At their request, two members of the Cork
Committee (furnished with 6C1., hastily raised to alle-
viate the present distress) left on Monda) morning to
ascertain the best mode of administering some reliet to
the famishing people at Skibbereen, and the districts
adjoining.
" The London Committee of the Society of Friends
have been most energetic in the good work. Amongst the
metropolitan donations are the following :—Sand.
Gurney, 5001. ; Josh. John Gurney, 500/. ; George H.
Head, 3004 ; Edmund Pease, 2001. ; Wm. Peckover,
2001. ; Robert Barclay, 2001. The following twenty-
six members of the society in London have subscribed
1001. each :—Josh. Gurney Barclay, Abm. Darley,
Henry Berbeck, John Bell, John Kitching, Mary Over-
end, William Janson, John Hodgkin, Thomas Fowler,
Josh. Owen Harris, Han. Backhouse, Josh. Sturge, John
Feil, Samuel Hull, William Hull, Thomas Smith, Samuel
Gurney, jun., Henry Edmund Gurney, Henry Christy,
George Thomas. Edmund Thomas, Joshua Eaton, Josh.
Sharpies, George William Alexander, Charles Harris,
Jane and Henry Harris.
'6 Mr. S. Gurney, when putting down his name for
the 500/. which stands at the head of the list, said (so
sensibly did he feel for the privation of our countrymen),
that if five thousand were requisite, he would alter the
sum to that.
' "An address from the London Committee, calling
upon the Friends generally to meet and subscribe, has
been issued and very generally acted upon. In Liver-
' pool, within two or three days, the sum of 1,7501. had
been collected, and the Friends of Birkenheaci, very few
of whom are in affluent circumstances, have already con-
tributed 2501.
" Mr. Forster, after leaving Connemara, intends to
proceed to Limerick, and from thence continue his mis-
sion to the southern districts."
PRESENTMENT SESSIONS.—THE LANDLORDS.
COUNTY OF CLARE.—BARONY OF LOWER BUN -
RATTY.—At the adjourned sessions for this barony, held
at Newmarket-on-Fergus, on Tuesday last, Sir Lucius
O'Brien, Bart., in the hair, new presentments were
passed to the amount of 17,0001., which, added to the
10,000/. passed at the meeting held on the week previous
for the completion of work in progress, make a total
sum of 27,0001. which is looked upon by the gentle-
men connected with the barony as barely suffi-
cient to give employment to the people for three
months. We have learned from officers connected
with the Board of Works in that neighbourhood, that
the number of applicants for work are being daily in-
creased by accessions from the ranks of small farmer,
who are comp'elled to adopt this course to secure sub-
sist.!nce for their families. Among the presentments
pa,,ed on the occasion, there 6ut..c fur new rued'-,
and also one for cutting down the hill at Dromoland, the
residence of Sir Lucius O'Brien, Bart., which was con-