Chapter IV (3)

In connexion with the workhouses, the difficulty of always finding suitable employment for the inmates requires to be noticed. That pauper labour is unprofitable, was generally admitted; and if it were so in England where there is a constant demand for labour, it could not fail of being so in Ireland where the labour market was for the most part overcharged. All that had hitherto been done in this respect in the Irish workhouses, was to keep the inmates occupied as far as possible in employments of the commonest kind. The aged and infirm of both sexes who constituted a great majority of the inmates, were generally employed in oakum-picking, in the picking carding and spinning of wool, in knitting, and some few in making and mending the clothes belonging to the establishment. There were scarcely any able-bodied men in the workhouses, although there were many partially disabled, who were mostly occupied in the kitchen or doing the rougher work about the yards, and where this did not afford sufficient occupation they were employed in breaking stones. The able-bodied women were employed in household work, and there were not always a sufficient number of these to clean and keep the house in proper order; but where the number was greater than could be so employed, they were set to work with the needle, or in carding spinning or knitting. With regard to the children of both sexes, when not at school, they are employed in occupations suited to their age and strength—the girls under the matron in household work, or in working with their needle; the boys working in the yards, or in the garden, or at some trade in the house, thus accustoming their hands to labour, and fitting them for the everyday occupations of life. Much difficulty had always been found in getting young persons out into service or other occupation in Ireland. The better the workhouse children are trained and educated however, the better will be their chance in this respect. With the boys there will probably be less difficulty than the girls. Emigration would seem to be the suitable remedy for an excess of numbers in either case; but emigration, contrary to what was originally intended, was by the _51st section_ of the Relief Act made a charge upon the electoral division. The board of guardians collectively had no power to deal with it. And hence, although there were a number of friendless young persons, mostly females, the residuum of a former system, in the workhouses of the two Dublin unions, and at Cork, Waterford, Limerick, and Belfast, for whom no employment could be found, the money necessary for defraying the expense of their emigration could not be raised, and they continued a burden upon the unions instead of becoming useful as colonists.

[Sidenote: Sanitary state of the workhouses.]

The sanitary condition of the workhouses had generally been good, although they were in some instances much crowded during the winter. This was especially the case with the Dublin and Cork houses. Yet the inmates had on the whole been remarkably healthy, and fewer deaths occurred than might have been expected, looking at the advanced age and generally depressed physical condition of a large proportion of the individuals admitted. But the absence of all exciting influences, the regular hours, due supplies of food and clothing, and the warmth and ventilation which are found in a workhouse in a superior degree to what can be obtained by the same class out of it, no doubt conduce to the preservation of the health, and the extension of the life of its inmates. Such is not always the case however with respect to children. In the Dublin workhouses, a large proportion of the infants were in a diseased or extremely emaciated state when admitted, and very many of them in their then condition could hardly be expected to live. The mortality which took place was accordingly so considerable as to lead to an inquiry being instituted, the result of which showed—“that although the mortality among the infants under two years of age in the workhouse was large, it yet had not exceeded, but rather fallen short of the average mortality among infants of the same age and class in foundling hospitals and other like institutions, or even at large under the care of their parents.”

[Sidenote: Audit of the accounts.]

The accounts of the unions in which workhouses were in operation were severally audited by the assistant-commissioners, and duly reported upon. These reports showed the working of the system in all its details, pointing out and commenting upon the good and bad parts of the administration, and exhibiting and explaining the general results. The audit reports are in fact calculated to afford a complete view of the working of the Poor-law, wherever the administration of relief under its provisions had been brought into operation. Several of these were appended to the fourth annual Report.

[Sidenote: Amount of expenditure and number relieved.]

The expenditure on relief of the poor during the previous year, and the numbers relieved on the 1st of January, in the four unions then in operation, of which an account has been given,[106] was in the year ending January 1st 1842 as follows—

Number in the house on
the 1st January 1842.

Cork £11,775 1881

North Dublin 14,643 1940

South Dublin 15,613 2124

Londonderry 3,711 385

_______ ____

£45,742 Total 6,330

These unions may therefore be considered as being in orderly working, and equal to the duties imposed upon them by the Poor Relief Act. Thirty-three other unions in different parts of the country were likewise in operation during a portion of the year, longer or shorter according to the respective orders of declaration; and the expenditure in these unions down to the same date as the above, had amounted to 64,535_l._, the number of inmates in the several workhouses at that time being 8,916, of which number 1,310 were in the Limerick house. It thus appears that at the commencement of 1842, after somewhat more than two years’ preparation, workhouse relief was administered in 37 unions, to 15,246 destitute persons, at an expense of 110,277_l._—a result which, having regard to all circumstances, could hardly fail of being deemed satisfactory, and as holding out a promise of the early maturing of the other unions, all of which had been declared and were in progress of organization.

-----

[106]

Ante, p. 263.

-----

[Sidenote: Collection of the rate.]

Apprehensions had been expressed, that in some parts of the country it would be difficult if not impossible to collect the poor-rates; but with very few exceptions no difficulty whatever occurred. There was nowhere any concerted resistance to the payment of the rate. “In a few instances, (it is observed) personal caprice or misapprehension of the law, has led individuals to refuse to pay the rate when it has been demanded; but such refusals have not been persisted in, after the commencement of legal proceedings, or after due explanation has been given; and in no instance has any material difficulty arisen, where the magistrates have evinced a prompt and firm determination in carrying out the law.” Whatever apprehensions may have been felt on this point, experience hitherto had therefore shown to be without foundation.

[Sidenote: Liability relatives.]

By the _53rd and four following sections_ of the Relief Act, the relatives of persons maintained in a workhouse are, when of sufficient ability, made liable for the cost of such maintenance; and the boards of guardians were advised, whenever a case of this kind occurred, and the ability of the relatives was undoubted, to take the necessary steps for enforcing the law. That the guardians ought to do this can hardly admit of doubt, it being no less a legal than a social obligation. No fitting opportunity of pressing the fulfilment of this duty upon the guardians was therefore omitted, and an intention was expressed of continuing to do so—“in the conviction that the liabilities of natural relations, as established by the 53rd and following sections, were calculated to confer an important benefit upon the whole community.”

[Sidenote: The valuations.]

The valuations of rateable property had now been completed in a hundred and ten of the unions, and were in progress in all the others. Before the end of the present year they would it was expected be complete throughout Ireland, and confidence is expressed as to their general sufficiency, “without however venturing to assert that they are in every instance free from error.” It was indeed said to be almost impossible that they should be so, the value of properties continually changing; but they had attained a satisfactory state of average accuracy, and would, it was considered, become more and more correct through the successive revisions they will undergo previous to the imposition of every new rate. On the Municipal Corporations Act coming into operation in Dublin however, and when the poor-rate was taken as the basis of the municipal franchise, respecting the possession and exercise of which much excitement prevailed, the accuracy of the valuations was more closely scrutinised, and an inquiry with regard to the means for their revision was instituted. The result of the inquiry was, that although the valuations in their present state might be sufficient for poor-law purposes, yet with reference to the Municipal Act, it was desirable that a supervisor of the rates should be appointed in the unions comprising large towns. This was accordingly at once done in Dublin and Limerick, and was determined to be done in other places, as it should be found necessary. Instructions were at the same time prepared for the guidance of supervisors in the execution of this duty.

[Sidenote: Report on the medical charities.]

The Report on the medical charities in pursuance of the powers conferred by the _46th and 47th sections_ of the Poor Relief Act, was presented to government shortly after the date of the last annual Report,[107] together with the evidence which had then been taken, and including “the heads of a proposed bill for the better regulation and support of the medical charities of Ireland.” The remainder of the evidence was presented on the conclusion of the inquiry, and the whole was in due course laid before parliament. I was then the commissioner acting in Ireland, and being highly impressed with the importance of the numerous medical institutions, and with the necessity for their better support and regulation, I had bestowed much time and labour on the subject, and had earnestly endeavoured to devise the means of placing these valuable charities in a more secure condition with regard to their finances, and at the same time to improve the position of the medical practitioners by whose exertions they were in very many cases chiefly supported. All my efforts were directed to these ends, and to increasing the efficiency of the charities for the objects for which they were instituted. I was aware that there were difficulties to be overcome, arising from interested motives professional jealousies and misapprehensions; but there was no concealment, the course adopted was open, no pains were spared, able assistance had been obtained, and I was hopeful of success. The Report, with the heads of the proposed bill, was sent to every medical institution throughout Ireland, and had also been otherwise extensively circulated, without calling forth any expression of dissent, either from the medical profession or other parties; and with the sanction of government a bill was prepared in exact conformity with the headings set forth in the Report, and was about being introduced into parliament, when so violent an opposition was suddenly manifested by a great majority of the medical profession, that government deemed it inexpedient to proceed with the bill. The measure for “the better regulation and support of the medical charities in Ireland” was therefore suspended, but it was not abandoned; and the author had a few years afterwards the satisfaction of seeing a measure substantially the same as he had recommended, and founded on the inquiry which he had instituted, generally acquiesced in and become the law.[108]

-----

[107]

Ante, p. 268.

[108]

The 14th and 15th Vict. cap. 68. See post, p. 382.

-----

[Sidenote: Vaccination.]

Every attention was continued to be given for carrying into effect the provisions of the Vaccination Act, and no efforts were spared to realize the benevolent intentions of the legislature for extending the benefits of vaccination, and for preventing the occurrence and the spreading of smallpox. The Appendix to the Annual Report contains a return showing the numbers successfully vaccinated in each of 100 unions, the whole amounting to 104,713, a number fully equal to if not exceeding what could reasonably have been expected under the circumstances.

[Sidenote: Mendicancy.]

The prevalence of mendicancy continued to be felt as a burden, and was very generally regarded as an evil which ought to be put an end to. It is true that the law did not confer an actual right to relief, and that the workhouses might possibly be sometimes inadequate for the reception of all who were in a state of destitution; but a rate was nevertheless made for the relief of the destitute, and the persons who were most helpless would be received into the workhouses. It was therefore considered that means should be taken, if not for putting an end to mendicancy altogether, at least for its diminution in a ratio corresponding with the means which had been provided for the relief of destitution. Many of the boards of guardians had passed resolutions to this effect; and at a public meeting held in Dublin for considering the subject, it was resolved to apply to the Irish government, urging the necessity of immediate steps being taken to put down the evil. The prevalence of mendicancy was found to be a positive obstacle to the working of the Poor Law. Thus in some of the unions, after the stock of habitual mendicants had for the most part been taken into the workhouses, the ratepayers of particular electoral divisions finding that the removal of what might be called their own established poor did not protect them from mendicancy, but was followed by inroads of beggars from other districts, deemed it better that their own poor should be permitted to levy contributions from house to house as theretofore, than that the ratepayers should incur the charge of maintaining them in the workhouse, and at the same time be called upon for contributions to the mendicants by whom their doors were beset. If the mendicancy clauses in the Poor Relief Bill as originally framed had been retained, these evils would have been prevented, and the repression of begging would have kept pace with the administration of relief under the Poor Law; but in the passage of the measure through parliament, these clauses, as before stated, were withdrawn, and no step had subsequently been taken for their re-enactment in any shape, as was understood to be intended at the time.[109]

-----

[109]

Ante, p. 211.

-----

[Sidenote: Unfavourable weather, backward crops, and consequent
distress.]

During the greater portion of the last year, excessive rains and a general prevalence of cold ungenial weather affected both the grain and the potato crops, which were in consequence neither so early, so good, nor so abundant, as under more favourable circumstances they might have been. The same had been the case in the two or three previous years; and this succession of adverse seasons necessarily tended to increase the distress which usually more or less prevails in Ireland, especially in the western districts, during the months of June July and August. But notwithstanding the existence of much distress from these causes, it was in the present as in the preceding year met and overcome by the energies of the people themselves, without aid from government as on former like occasions; a circumstance which must be regarded as indicative of improved habits, and as warranting hopeful anticipations with regard to the future.

[Sidenote: 1843.
Fifth report of proceedings in Ireland.]

At the date of the last Report (May 1st 1842), the whole of Ireland had been formed into 130 unions, all the workhouses were either built or in progress of building, and 81 had been declared fit for the reception of destitute poor. It was then likewise expected that by midsummer of the following year all the workhouses throughout Ireland would be in operation.[110] This expectation however was not fulfilled, for at the date of the present Report (1st May 1843) no more than 110 of the workhouses had been declared, and in only 98 of these was relief administered. In the earlier proceedings, it had been the practice to declare and bring the workhouses into operation as quickly as possible, leaving certain minor matters to be more leisurely completed afterwards. This was done, often at some inconvenience, in order to give effect to the law at the earliest practicable period. But it was now deemed more expedient to have the workhouse and all the arrangements fully completed before bringing it into operation; and hence a period longer or shorter according to circumstances, would necessarily intervene between the declaration of the house and the actual admission of applicants by the guardians. This accounts for relief being administered in only 98 of the houses, although 110 had been declared. It may also account for the non-fulfilment of the expectation which had been expressed, as to the declaration of the whole of the workhouses.

-----

[110]

Ante, p. 271.

-----

[Sidenote: Cost of relief and numbers relieved.]

In the 37 unions, the workhouses of which were in operation previous to the 1st of January 1842, the numbers then relieved and the amount of expenditure have already been stated.[111] On the 1st of January 1843 the numbers relieved in these unions amounted to 17,529, and the expenditure to 150,050_l._, thus showing an increase in the former of 2,283 persons, and in the latter of 39,773_l._ And in 55 other unions in which the workhouses had been brought into operation in course of the preceding year, the numbers relieved on the 1st of January 1843 amounted to 14,043, and the expenditure to 131,183_l._, making when added to the above—31,572[112] persons receiving relief in 92 workhouses, at a cost of 281,233_l._ The comparative amount of relief administered in the years 1840, 1841, and 1842 will thus stand as follows—

No. of No. of Cost of relief
workhouses in inmates. in the previous
operation year.

On the 1st of January 1841 4 5,468 £37,057

” 1842 37 15,246 110,277

” 1843 92 31,572 281,233

In connexion with this statement of the relief afforded during these three years, it should be borne in mind that the relief was administered in workhouses so regulated as not to deter the really destitute from availing themselves of the shelter afforded, whilst the discipline and regularity of the establishment made it an unwelcome residence for such of the able-bodied as had the means of supporting themselves by their own exertions.

-----

[111]

Ante, p. 277.

[112]

Although this was the total number in the 92 workhouses on the 1st of
January 1843, no less than 56,000 had been admitted and discharged,
and consequently relieved for a longer or shorter period, during the
previous year.

-----

[Sidenote: The author quits Ireland.]

At the end of 1842, the author quitted Ireland. The charge and direction of the proceedings in that country, had hitherto from the commencement been devolved upon him; and as these were so far advanced as to leave no doubt with regard to their completion, and as the commissioners were jointly responsible for carrying the law into effect, it was considered desirable that his colleagues should now take their full share in the management of the Irish business. It was intended that each of the commissioners should reside for a time in Dublin, when and as it might be found necessary, as had been recommended in the author’s first Report, and as is provided for by the _11th section_ of the Act. This arrangement was accordingly acted upon, but only for a short time, it not being deemed satisfactory; and with the sanction of the Home Office, it was determined to delegate to two of the assistant-commissioners the powers necessary for conducting the Irish business,[113] this being considered, it is said—“a course more consistent with the intention of the legislature as expressed in the Irish Poor Relief Act.” The author will now therefore be relieved from a difficulty he has hitherto experienced in regard to the proceedings in Ireland. With these proceedings he will no longer be individually connected, and may advert to them with greater freedom, as being the acts of the commission collectively.

-----

[113]

The gentlemen selected for this duty were Mr. Gulson and Mr. Power;
and the instrument of delegation is dated 20th April 1843.

-----

[Sidenote: Inspection of the workhouses.]

Before leaving Ireland, I visited the several unions, and inspected all the workhouses whether completed or in course of erection, as I had done in previous years, for the purpose of satisfying myself with respect to the arrangements and management in the former case, and as to the condition and progress of the works in the latter. The result of this inspection was for the most part satisfactory. There were exceptions, no doubt, and in two instances owing to the bankruptcy of the contractors, the houses had to be in great measure built, and entirely fitted up and completed by the Dublin Board. But on the whole, the contractors had fulfilled, and were fulfilling their engagements satisfactorily. The workhouses in operation were also managed in a creditable manner; and the guardians were generally attending to the business of their respective unions with regularity and efficiency. I quitted Ireland therefore without apprehending the occurrence of any material difficulty or delay, and looked forward with confidence to the early and universal establishment of the law, and with a deep sense of thankfulness for the prospect which was afforded of its successful operation.

[Sidenote: Distress, and government aid.]

In the early part of the summer of 1842, the weather having continued unfavourable, distress again manifested itself especially in the western districts, as had been the case in the three preceding years; and it was considered necessary that some assistance should be afforded, and that the people should not be left entirely to their own resources, as on the two last occasions. Accordingly on the application of the Irish government, coupled with an intimation of its desire to extend its aid “in such a way as not to prejudice or embarrass the future proceedings of the commissioners,” the assistant-commissioners in charge of the districts where the distress prevailed, were directed to give all the facilities in their power by making inquiries and furnishing information on the cases forwarded to them, preparatory to the distribution of such aid as the government might think fit to bestow.[114] But before the end of June the weather changed, and became so favourable as to promise abundant crops. The markets immediately fell, and the scarcity, which had arisen rather from the holding back of supply than from any general deficiency, no longer existed.

-----

[114]

The amount distributed by government on this occasion, in aid of local
subscriptions, was 3,448_l._ See ‘The Irish Crisis’ by Sir Charles
Trevelyan, p. 19.

-----

These facts appear to indicate, that a portion of the distress which periodically takes place in Ireland, may be referred to a cause, the operation of which is likely to be increased by grants of public money; for provisions are said to be sometimes accumulated in the stores of persons who will not bring them to market, under the expectation of being able to dispose of them at a famine price as soon as government shall be induced, on the plea of distress, to make an advance of public money for the purpose. Wherever the union workhouse was in operation, it proved of the greatest use throughout these periods of difficulty, from whatever cause arising. It not only afforded efficient relief in numerous cases where it was needed, but likewise effectually tested the representations of distress which were continually being made. The fluctuations in the numbers admitted and discharged, afforded moreover the means of forming from time to time a correct judgment on the condition of the poor in the surrounding district, and was thus an index of the intensity of the distress wherever it existed.

[Sidenote: Pauper lunatics.]

Applications had been frequently made both to the Irish government, and to the Board in Dublin, representing that if the idiotic and harmless lunatics then confined in the gaols or maintained in the lunatic asylums, were transferred to the workhouses of the unions to which they belonged, those institutions would be greatly relieved, more especially the asylums, which would then be enabled to receive more curable cases, and thus extend their usefulness. To such communications it had always been replied—“that the Irish Poor Relief Act made no provision for the support of insane and lunatic persons, specially as such; but that a destitute person, being insane or lunatic, might be admitted into the workhouse if the guardians so decided, in the same manner as any other destitute individual.” To provide for cases of this description, idiot wards had been prepared in every workhouse, which were calculated to afford accommodation for about 2,400 of this class of paupers, whenever the guardians in the exercise of their discretion, should think fit to admit them. It had however been thought right to discourage any forced or immediate transfer of insane or idiotic persons or harmless lunatics from the asylums and gaols, but rather to wait for the gradual absorption by the workhouses of such of these unfortunates as could be properly relieved therein.

[Sidenote: Emigration.]

Fruitless efforts were made, particularly at Cork and Belfast, to raise the funds necessary for defraying the expense of emigration. In Cork, Dublin, Waterford, Belfast, and certain other large towns, a considerable number of young persons chiefly females, and for the most part the remnants of a former system, had as has been before stated,[115] accumulated in the workhouses, for whom emigration would afford at once the most eligible, and it may almost be said the only outlet. Yet in the present state of the law, it was found nearly if not quite impossible to take advantage of it. The workhouses had not created the present burden, but they had gathered it into mass, and might be made useful auxiliaries to a well-directed plan of emigration. The commissioners declared that it would materially facilitate this object, if the boards of guardians were empowered to apply a portion of the rates for the emigration of such fit persons as had been resident sufficiently long in the workhouse for testing their actual helplessness and destitution. This would in fact be reverting to what was originally proposed, but which had been altered in the progress of the bill through the house of lords, by substituting divisional chargeability for that of the entire union—a change to which is mostly owing whatever difficulties have since occurred in the working of the measure.

-----

[115]

Ante, p. 275.

-----

[Sidenote: Electoral divisions.]

The _18th and 44th sections_ of the Relief Act provide for dividing the unions into electoral divisions, and for charging against each electoral division not only its proportion of the general expenses of the union, but also the expense incurred for the relief of persons stated in the registry to have been resident in such electoral division; the relief of others not stated to have been so resident, being charged against the union at large. These provisions were inserted in the bill in the house of lords, on the motion of the duke of Wellington, with the professed view of assimilating the mechanism of the Irish unions to the unions in England; but the circumstances in the two countries were widely different, and there would be little analogy between the long-established English parish, and the newly-created electoral divisions. This difference was however overlooked in the desire for assimilation, and the electoral division system was incorporated in the Act, together with a sort of quasi settlement as between the different divisions, approximating to settlement as between parishes in the English unions. Under these circumstances, it can hardly occasion surprise, that although arranged with the utmost care, and with every endeavour to give them a general harmony and coherence, the electoral divisions did not work smoothly. Their separate chargeability interfered with the efficient action of the unions for general purposes, as in the case of emigration, and led to struggles and contention in the boards of guardians as soon as the unions got fully into operation, each division endeavouring to relieve itself from the charge of a registered pauper, by fixing it upon some other, or by casting it upon the union at large; and thus one of the evils of the English settlement-law was inflicted upon the Irish unions, contrary to the intentions of the original framers of the Act, and contrary likewise to what a more thorough knowledge of the condition of the two countries would it is believed have dictated.

[Sidenote: Valuation and rating.]

There was moreover still considerable difficulty with respect to the valuations, and the difficulty was not a little increased by the complexity of the form in which the rate is directed to be made out. This form is expressly prescribed by the Amendment Act, and is rather calculated for the state of things in England, than for what exists in Ireland, although it is too minute and complex to admit of its working satisfactorily in either. The form was engrafted on the bill in the house of lords, with a view to other than poor-law purposes, and contrary to the author’s earnest representations. As the number and the business of the unions increased, it was found nearly impossible to adhere to this form, owing to the extreme subdivision of property.[116] In all the 130 unions the number of persons rated whose valuations did not exceed 5_l._ was 630,272, whilst the number whose valuations were above that amount was 550,866, and those at 50_l._ and upwards 46,565; thus showing that a considerable majority of the ratepayers were valued at and under 5_l._[117] Believing that such would turn out to be the case, the author had recommended that no occupier under 5_l._ should be called upon to pay the poor-rate, but that the rate on all such holdings should be paid by the landlord. It was however provided by the _72nd section_ of the Act, that instead of the exemption of 5_l._ holdings, the landlord might agree to pay the rate himself, and be allowed a rebate of 10 per cent. for so doing: but this provision has not been acted upon, and all the small tenements are required to be rated in the complex form of the _2nd schedule_ of the Act, comprising no less than eighteen distinctive columns, under penalty of the rates being deemed illegal. There can be no doubt that in the abstract, as the commissioners observe, “all property should contribute to the rate, and the whole population be interested in the prevention of pauperism, and in the well-being of the class for whose immediate benefit statutory provision has been made.” But the small ratepayers in Ireland are so numerous, and the amounts to be severally collected from them are so trifling, whilst the distinction between them and the destitute is often so little perceptible, that Ireland seems to constitute an exception to the general rule in this respect; and it would be a great convenience, and tend to facilitate the working of the Poor Law, if as was at first proposed, the burden of the rate on the smaller holdings were to be thrown upon the owner or immediate lessor, rather than on the tenant himself.

-----

[116]

See the author’s first Report on Irish Poor Laws, p. 160.

[117]

These numbers were ascertained by returns which the author had
obtained in 1842, and caused to be tabulated by desire of the Irish
government, with a view to the parliamentary franchise. The same
returns show that the net annual value of property assessed to the
relief of the poor in Ireland, was 13,428,787_l._; but more exact
returns subsequently obtained place the amount at 13,253,825_l._ The
annual value of property assessed to the poor-rate in England and
Wales at that time was 62,540,003_l._—See return to an order of the
house of commons dated 3rd May 1842. Both of these valuations are no
doubt below the actual amount, probably by 20 or 25 per cent.; but of
the two, the Irish valuation is perhaps somewhat nearer the truth than
the other.

-----

The defects above noticed are explained and commented upon at great length in the fifth Report. They no doubt impede the orderly working of the law, and add to the labours and embarrass the proceedings of the entire executive; but they do not affect the principle of the measure, nor very materially detract from its usefulness. They are of a different origin from the measure itself, having been grafted upon the bill in its progress through parliament; and they will no doubt be removed, or so modified as to be less obstructive than at present, to which end they were now brought prominently under notice.

[Sidenote: 1844.
Sixth report of proceedings in Ireland.]

The Report of 1844, like those preceding, is dated the 1st of May; and it will be convenient to commence the account of the year’s proceedings with a summary of the Act for amending the law, which was passed on the 24th August 1843, and which what is said above will have prepared the reader to expect.

_Summary of the 6th and 7th Vict. cap. 92._

For the further Amendment of the Law for the Relief of the Poor in
Ireland.

_Sections 1, 2._—That where the property rated is not of greater value
than 4_l._, or in certain boroughs named than 8_l._, the rate on
such property shall be made on the immediate lessor, and if his name
be not known he may be rated as “the immediate lessor;” and the rate
is to be recoverable together with costs, notwithstanding any defect
or error in the name, by action, or by civil bill, or by complaint
before a justice, but no action is to be brought without consent of
the Poor Law Commissioners.

_Sections 3, 4._—If a rate be not paid by the lessor in four months, it
may be recovered from the occupier, who in such case may deduct the
amount from the rent due to the lessor, or recover it from him. If a
house be let in lodgings, the lessor is to be rated for the whole
house, and if the rate be not paid within thirty-one days, it may be
recovered from the occupiers, who will be entitled to deduct it from
the rent due by them; but the Municipal Corporations Act is not to
be affected by any of these provisions.

_Sections 5, 6._—When the property rated is above 5_l._, the lessors may
in like manner be rated instead of the occupiers, if both enter into
a written agreement for the purpose, and if the guardians consent
thereto. All goods and chattels to whomsoever belonging, found on
premises for which the occupier is liable to pay rate, may be
distrained for the same.

_Sections 7, 8._—To remove certain doubts with regard to valuators and
valuations, the commissioners are empowered to appoint valuators, or
they may direct the guardians to do so; and the person so in either
case appointed, may enter premises for the purpose of making or
revising any survey or valuation; and rates are to be assessed on
the valuations so made or revised, and sealed by the commissioners;
and are not to be altered unless appealed against, when on receiving
a copy of the order of court amending such rate, the commissioners
are to authorize its alteration in conformity therewith. The appeal
in all cases is to be made to the sessions of the peace of the
county, or county of a city or town within which the hereditaments
are situate.

_Sections 9, 10, 11._—Any person affected by a rate, may on all days
except Sunday, between ten o’clock and four, inspect the valuation
on which the rate is made, and take copies thereof. The form of rate
prescribed by the Amendment Act is repealed, and the commissioners
are empowered to prescribe the form in which the rates are to be
made. The clerk to certify that the rate when made conforms to the
valuation, and the chairman and two or more of the guardians present
are to certify that they allow the same. In Dublin the poor-rate is
to be collected in the same manner and with the like remedies as the
grand jury cess.

_Sections 12, 13._—The residence required in order that the expense of
relief may be charged to an electoral division in any case, is the
occupation of a tenement for eighteen months, or having usually
slept within such division for twelve months before the person’s
admission to the workhouse. The expense of all others not having so
occupied or slept, is to be charged against the whole union. If a
person after quitting the workhouse be again admitted within six
months, the expense of such person is to be charged as before. The
charge of every child admitted, is to conform with that of the
person liable for its maintenance. The guardian or any three or more
ratepayers of an electoral division, may with consent of the
commissioners appeal against its being separately charged in any
case.

_Sections 14, 15, 16._—The guardians, subject to the commissioners’
approval, may send any poor deaf and dumb or blind child under the
age of eighteen, to a deaf and dumb or blind institution, and defray
the expense of its maintenance therein; and may also defray the
expense of conveying any poor person from the workhouse to a fever
hospital or lunatic asylum and his maintenance therein. Persons
affected with fever or other contagious disease, may be relieved in
houses hired for the purpose under the commissioners’ regulations,
and the expense be charged upon the rates.

_Section 17._—The guardians may charge the rates with any expense
reasonably incurred, in apprehending or prosecuting offenders
against the provisions of any of the Poor-law Acts.

_Section 18._—Two-thirds of the guardians of any union, subject to the
regulations of the commissioners, may assist any poor person who has
been in the workhouse for three months, to emigrate to a British
colony, and may charge the expense on the union, or on the electoral
division to which such poor person has been chargeable; but the
entire amount of such expense is not in any one year to exceed
sixpence in the pound on the net annual value of the rateable
property of the union or the electoral division respectively.

_Sections 19, 20, 21._—If the number of ex-officio guardians be reduced
by death removal or disqualification, the commissioners may appoint
a day for the election of another ex-officio guardian in the place
of the one so removed. A person put in nomination for an elected
guardian, may refuse by notice in writing to serve the office; and
in case of vacancy or refusal to act, the commissioners may order a
fresh election if they think fit, but not otherwise.

_Sections 22, 23._—A person convicted of felony fraud or perjury, or
adjudged liable to forfeiture under the provisions of the Poor Law,
is incapacitated for acting as a guardian. The commissioners
empowered to inquire into and decide disputes in regard to the
elections.

_Sections 24, 25._—Notice of claims to vote by owners and proxies,
extended from one week to one calendar month. Any person knowingly
tendering a false claim to vote, or forging falsifying or altering
any such claim, or altering carrying off destroying or defacing any
voting-paper, subjected to a penalty of ten pounds.

_Sections 26, 27._—In case of reasonable doubt in regard to any claim,
the returning officer may refuse the vote until proof of its
correctness be produced. Ratepayers, guardians, and union officers,
not incapacitated for giving evidence.

_Section 28._—This and the two previous Acts (_1st and 2nd, and 2nd
Vict. cap. 56 and 1_) to be construed as one Act, except where
otherwise provided.

The alterations made by the above Act relate exclusively to matters of detail. There is no change of principle in the measure. The electoral division system remains entire, except only as regards emigration, the expense of which the guardians have now the option of making either a union or a divisional charge. The definition of residence for establishing the chargeability of an electoral division, may be of some practical convenience, and would amount to a law of settlement if a power of removal were given; but as it is, it will merely in a slight degree facilitate the working of the divisional system. The abolition of the previous complicated form of rate is no doubt an advantage, as is also the power of rating the immediate lessors in certain cases, instead of leaving it optional with them to compound for the rates of their tenantry as before. The provisions in regard to fever cases will be of much use, especially as the measure proposed for regulating the medical charities was not carried into effect.[118] The additional powers given to the commissioners in election cases are likewise desirable; and it may indeed be said of the Act generally, that it is calculated to remedy certain minor defects and omissions, and to promote the more orderly working of the law.

-----

[118]

Ante, p. 280.

-----

We will now turn to the commissioners’ Report of 1844, which commences by declaring that “The administration of relief of the poor in Ireland had been attended with some difficulties during the past year, arising in a great measure from the political influences which had agitated that country.” The influences and agitations here alluded to, were connected with the great movement for a repeal of the Union, stirred up and organized by the late Mr. O'Connell, the consequences of which were in various ways exceedingly pernicious, diverting the people from their legitimate and necessary occupations, exciting jealousy and ill-feeling towards England, inculcating distrust of the government, weakening the authority of law, and inciting to a resistance of whatever was established, of course including the Poor Law. Some indications of this hostility appeared before the author quitted Ireland towards the end of 1842, but shortly afterwards it was openly manifested, and the Poor Law was declaimed against as being an intolerable burden inflicted and enforced by England and English officials, and that it ought consequently to be opposed by every true Irishman.

[Sidenote: Resistance to the law.]

Under these circumstances, and in the then state of Ireland, it cannot excite surprise that there should be resistance to the law, and that efforts should be made to evade its provisions. As early as the end of 1842 there had been resistance to payment of the rates in some of the divisions of the Skibbereen and Waterford unions, which afterwards extended to Tipperary and several other unions in different parts of Ireland. At Skibbereen indeed a death had unhappily occurred, through the violent resistance made to the constabulary while assisting the collectors in levying the rates. In a return made to an order of the house of commons, 21 unions are named as having down to the 1st of January 1844, so far resisted the payment of the poor-rates as to require the intervention of the constabulary or the military to enforce the collection. In 11 of these unions, a military as well as constabulary force was deemed necessary. In the other 10, the constabulary alone were found sufficient to protect the collectors in the execution of their duty. But it was not alone resistance to the rates which obstructed the working of the law; in the Tuam union a rate was made in October 1842,[119] but no part of it had been collected on the 1st of January 1844. This was not owing to resistance on the part of the ratepayers, but to the unwillingness of the guardians to proceed in the administration of relief. The workhouse, capable of accommodating 800 persons, had been declared fit for the reception of destitute poor in August 1842, a master matron medical officer and porter had been appointed, but such was the backwardness of the guardians in fulfilling the requirements of the law, that no case of destitution however urgent, was or could be relieved except by application to some neighbouring union.

-----

[119]

The rate amounted to 1,796_l._ The population of the union exceeded
70,000.

-----

Even after the workhouse had been opened, and relief therein administered, there were several instances of unwillingness on the part of the guardians to make rates of sufficient amount to meet the liabilities of the union, and at the same time to provide for the relief of the poor. Some of the boards moreover refused to borrow and charge the rates with the sums necessary to cover the expense of building the workhouses, on the alleged ground of dissatisfaction with the architect’s certificates in favour of the contractors, or of the manner in which the work had been executed.[120] Legal proceedings against the guardians were in consequence taken on account of these refusals, and much expense was thus injudiciously incurred, whilst the poor were curtailed of their needful relief. The contracts entered into under such circumstances for supplying the workhouse, if they could be made at all, were necessarily made on extremely disadvantageous terms; and thus the intentions of the legislature were frustrated, and disaffection towards the law was generated, by the very parties appointed to carry out the one, and guard against the occurrence of the other. Several unions are named in the Report, in which such was or had been the case, and in one (Carrick on Shannon) a poor man had died in consequence of being refused relief. Yet there can be no doubt that where the unions were properly in operation, a large amount of actual destitution and extreme suffering was effectually met by opportune relief afforded in the workhouses. In many cases however the poor people were so reduced as to be in an extremely debilitated state when admitted, and they often died shortly afterwards. In this worst extremity to which, in a physical sense, a human being can be exposed, an institution affording shelter, medical attendance, and the last consolations of religion, must surely be one of the most effective forms in which relief can be administered, more especially among a population such as exists in Ireland.

-----

[120]

The complaints of the architect’s certificates were not confined to
the guardians, for whilst these complained of his too liberal
allowance of charges, the contractors complained that their charges
were unduly cut down. Both complaints were however totally without
foundation, and in fact one negatived the other.

-----

[Sidenote: Divisional chargeability.]

Much dissatisfaction continued to be expressed with regard to the apportioning the charge of relief upon the several electoral divisions. Those in which the rated property was large, and the number of poor inconsiderable, complained of the proportion they had to pay towards the common charges of the union, whilst the amount of relief required by them was so small. The divisions on the contrary in which the number of paupers was considerable, and the amount of relief bore a large proportion to their rated value, complained of the high rate of poundage to which they were subjected, in comparison with the other divisions. The change now made in the law may help gradually to reconcile although it does not remove these distinctions. As new admissions take place, the proportion charged upon the union at large would most likely increase, and there would thus be a closer approximation towards an equal rating of the whole union. But many boards of guardians expressed themselves as not satisfied with this gradual and partial change, and declared themselves favourable to a union rate, whereby all charges would be borne by an equal poundage-rate over the several electoral divisions. That these guardians took a correct view of the question seems hardly to admit of doubt. They had seen the evils of divisional chargeability, and wished to apply the obvious remedy by bringing the law back to what was originally proposed; but the time for so doing had not arrived, and the evils and inconveniences were still to be continued, although perhaps in a somewhat mitigated form.

[Sidenote: Collection of the rates.]

At the date of the present Report (1st May 1844) resistance to the collection of the rates was in great measure overcome, and the authority of the law vindicated. The general results of the collection are stated to have been as follows—In 98 of the unions, in which the rates made previously to the 24th August 1843 amounted to 605,864_l._, there remained uncollected on the 1st January 1844 only 46,322_l._, or something less than 8 per cent. of the entire amount. But it must not be supposed that even the whole of this arrear was collectable. All tenements, whether occupied or not, are usually included in the rate, the infinite number of small tenements making it impossible to distinguish with certainty what are unoccupied at the time the rate is made; and it is only the occupied tenements which pay. Public property legally exempt is also often included in the rate, and the arrears in the South Dublin union amounting to 4,479_l._, are likely to include sums of this nature. On the whole therefore, it appeared to the commissioners, that “considering the great difficulty of collecting the rates from the occupiers of very small tenements, on which class a large portion of the entire rate is laid, these results would not be regarded as unsatisfactory.”

[Sidenote: Auditors appointed.]

In order to secure regularity and efficiency in the collections, and the proper keeping of the union accounts, it was determined to appoint four auditors, who would be employed exclusively in that capacity; and it is expected that they would be the means of establishing a greater degree of uniformity as well as accuracy throughout all the unions in Ireland.

[Sidenote: Cost of relief, and numbers relieved.]

Fourteen workhouses had been brought into operation in course of the year 1843, the cost of relief administered in which amounted to 23,277_l._, and the number of inmates to 1,529, on the 1st of January 1844—on which day the number of inmates in the 92 workhouses in operation prior to 1843 was 31,981, and the cost of relief 221,097_l._ So that the entire number of persons relieved on 1st January 1844 in 106 workhouses was 33,510, and the cost of relief during the year amounted to 244,374_l._ This appears less than in the preceding year, but the difference is probably owing to the much greater number of workhouses which were opened in 1843, and the extra expenditure always attendant upon first bringing the houses into operation. By a statistical table appended to the Report, the total number of inmates of all classes in the several workhouses on 31st January 1845, is shown to have been 43,293, of whom 9,231 were able-bodied (that is 2,809 males and 6,422 females) and 11,441 were disabled through sickness age or other infirmity. Another minutely framed table in the Appendix to the Report shows, that of 27,529 adults above the age of fifteen, and 22,585 children under that age, 5,942 of the former were widows, and 3,622 widowers; and that of the children 19,886 were legitimate (4,164 being orphans) and 2,639 were illegitimate.

[Sidenote: 1845.
Seventh report of proceedings in Ireland.[121]]

The Report of 1st May 1845, commences by declaring that “the administration of the law in Ireland had proceeded satisfactorily upon the whole since the date of the last Report.” The instances of resistance to the collection of the rates, or in which violence had occurred, were comparatively few, and the financial embarrassments which had operated prejudicially in several of the unions, had for the most part ceased. There were altogether 118 workhouses open for the purposes of relief. Of the 12 which remained, 3 were not yet declared fit for the reception of inmates, and in a few instances the guardians still neglected or refused to proceed in duly administering relief, although the workhouses had long since been declared. The most remarkable instance of this kind was in the Tuam union; but the commissioners had deemed it right to proceed against the Tuam guardians by mandamus, and their submission to the authority of the law was shortly expected. Meantime however they had, it is said, been sued for debts which they did not hesitate to incur, although they neglected to provide the means of payment.

-----

[121]

This forms a part of the eleventh Report of the Poor Law
Commissioners.

-----

[Sidenote: Provision for fever cases.]

Many of the unions had taken steps under the _15th and 16th sections_ of the late Amendment Act, for providing for the relief of persons suffering from fever or other contagious complaints, either by building fever wards distinct from the workhouses, or hiring premises for the purpose, or by arranging for the reception of such cases into fever hospitals; and the result had in several instances been highly beneficial. “In Galway for example, during a severe epidemic, the guardians erected a temporary hospital near the workhouse, and received into it during a period of about six months 1,096 cases, of which 995 were discharged cured.”

[Sidenote: Vaccination.]