The Sun.
London, England, 1868-03-14 00:00:00

11'01?KlIOUSE REFORM.

A meeting, consisting chiefly of members of the Legis-
lature, has been held at the residence of Mr. E. Hart, in
Wimpole-street, to consider various questions connected
with the expected reform in the administration of relief
to the sick poor in country workhouses. Sir John
Simeon, M.P., presided. The meeting was called under
the auspices of the Workhouse Infirmaries Association,
and Mr. Ernest Hart, one of the hon. secretaries, drk w
the attention of the meeting to the disclosures made in
the reports of poor-law inspectors in a blue-book just
issued by the authority of Parliament. The facts brought
to light in the report, Mr. Hart proceeded to say,
shewed the necessity of a change being made in the
present form of inspecting these large hospitals,
and he urged that it was time to adopt means for
strengthening the hands of the President of the Poor-law
Board if he should bring forward any good measure of
reform, or for the purpose of indicating to him the
direction in which changes were required. The speaker
concluded by moving a resolution to the effect that the
general principles which he drew up for the London
infirmaries, and which were in the main adopted in Mr.
Hardy's Act, should be submitted to the President of the
Poor-law Board, as applicable to country workhouse in-
firmaries, and that the Poor-law Board should be pressed
to bring in a measure giving technically skilled inspectors
for the country workhouses. A long conversational dis-
cussion followed, and the resolution, which was seconded
by Mr. Percy Wyndham, was adopted unani-
mously., and a committee was formed to draw up the
suggestions to be submitted to Lord Devon. It was moved
and carried " That this association learns with regret
that the Poor-law Board have required Dr. Joseph Rogers
to resign his situation as medical officer of the Strand
Union Workhouse ; and that, without prejudging the
truth or falsehood of the charges brought by the guar-
dians against Dr. Rogers, the association regrets the
refusal of the Poor-law Board to give so old and faithful
a public servant the advantage of an open inquiry and
cross-examination of witnesses, which had been demanded
not only by himself, but by a respectable minority of his
own board of guardians." On the motion of Mr. Percy
Wyndham, M.P., it was also resolved that a question
should be asked in the House concerning the same case.
The meeting closed with a vote of thanks to Sir John for
presiding.

THE ASSOCIATED CHAMBERS OF
COMMERCE.

-4- -
DEPUTATION TO LORD STANLEY AND THE

DUKE OF RICHMOND.

A deputation from the Associated Chambers of Com-
merce had an interview yesterday with Lord Stanley and
the Duke of Richmond, at Downing-street.
Lord STANLEY said that the Chancellor of the Exchequer
would have been present, but unfortunately he had been
summoned to attend the funeral of a relative.

Mr. Norwood, M.P, introduced the deputation, which
consisted of Sir J. Ogilvy, M.P., Colonel Akroyd, M.P.,
Mr. Baines, M.P., Mr. Pease, M.P., Mr. Price, M.P.,
Mr. Monk, M.P., Mr. Bristow, Mr. Brocklehurst, Mr.
Clark, Mr. Sampson Lloyd, and 1% r.
The subjects to be discussed were the treaty of corn•
merce between this country and Spain and Portugal, and
the desirability of the Government granting loans to
harbour authorities. A memorial was also presented in
favour of a decimal system of weights and measures,
trade marks, &c.

Colonel AKROYD, M,P. (Halifax Chamber), introduced
the subject of the treaty of commerce with Spain and
Portugal, in accordance with the terms of the resolution
passed at the meeting of the Chambers of Commerce last
week.
Mr. Pease, M.P., Mr. Baines, M.P., and several other
members of the deputation having spoken,
Lord STANLEY replied. He said that he very much
regretted the absence of the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
because, though he (Lord Stanley) had Leard the arguments
which the deputation had adduced, he could not help
feeling that the question was a financial one ; as the diffi-
culties which had arisen hitherto in regard to it had been
on the part of the Treasury, and not on that of the Foreign
Office or the Board of Trade. He thought that Col. Akroyd
had made much lighter of the question of distillation than
he and his colleagues were disposed to do. It was now
nearly a year since he attended in that room, together
with the Chancellor of the
.Exchequer, now the Prime
Minister of this country, a meeting of the officers of Excise
and Customs, and when this question was raised it was
anticipated that very serious losses would accrue
to the revenue. He knew that Mr. Disraeli was
then very anxious —indeed he himself was equally
anxious—that some arrangement should be come to with
regard to a reduction of the duty on wines coming in from
Spain and Portugal. When the question came before the
Treasury it was met by the supposition that there would
be great loss on the duty on spirits and other alcoholic
drinks, and that consequently the revenue of the country
would very materially suffer. The question, he
apprehended, after all, was not what would be
lost directly by a reduction of the duty on
wine, as they all knew that increased consumption
would most likely make up for temporary loss in that
respect ; but it was for their consideration whether this
country would gain, in the way of trade with Spain and
Portugal, advantages which would be equivalent to the
loss of the £300,000 that Colonel Akroyd had spoken of.
It was a question, moreover, whether, by introducing
these strong wines of Spain and Portugal, they would
not be consumed by the people instead of spirits.
He was sure that the Chancellor of the Exchequer would
enter into the matter most fully, and with an unprejudiced
mind ; and if anything could be done to meet the views of
the Associated Chambers in this respect, it would receive
every attention at his hands.
The subject of the Harbour Loan was introduced by
Mr. PEASE, M.P., and spoken to by Mr. NORWOOD, M.P.,
Mr. LLOYD, and others.
The Duke of RICHMOND .and Lord STANLEY again
regretted the absence of the Chancellor of the Exchequer,
as this subject was one, they said, which had been under
his especial consideration, and they would take care that
the views of the deputation were correctly placed before
the right hon. gentleman.
The subjects of the treaty with Tientsin, quarantine,
and trade marks were then discussed. Upon the latter
a memorial embodying the resolution framed at the
meeting last week was presented.
The Duke of RICHMOND, on receiving it, remarked that
ale subject was one that had attracted the serious atten-
tion of the Board of Trade, and that he was about to
prepare and introduce into Parliament a bill upon the
subject.

COMPULSORY VACCINATION. —The Poor-law lsoara
has just issued an order to unions and parishes, repeating
the old regulations as to contracts with medical officers
for vaccination.

A meeting of metropolitan commanding officers
has been held at the office of the National Rifle Associa-
tion, Lord Elcho in the chair, when it was resolved to re-
quest the Secretary of State for War to receive a deputa-
tion on the subject of the capitation grant.
The Illustrated London News states that the late
Miss Ann Lockwood, of Bletchworth, Surrey, whose will
has just been proved in London under £40,000, has left to
the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge the sum
of £28,000 in funded property.

Tho Marquis of Donegan has expressed his
approval of the rules drawn up for the guidance of the
" Irish team" of twenty, which is to compete in the rifle
contest at Wimbledon. The noble marquis mentions that
he intends to present the champion of the twenty with a
badge, as " Champion of Ireland."
EXTRAORDINARY ACCIDENT.—A gentleman m
Tichfield-terrace, Regent's Park, whilst in the act of open-
ing his dining-room window, had his hands jammed by the
sudden giving way of the sash line. The chair on which
he stood slipped from him, and he was suspended full
length. His cries quickly brought assistance, but it was
not until a crowbar was procured that he could be released.
It is feared that many, if not all,-of his fingers will require
aipPVt.PA9Pt .