O 10 ( 26 May.) ON THE LOCAL TAXATION OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN. 189 anxious when yarding coals from the ships to have master porters on the ships to . see them measured, as the Committee may perceive by a letter from a person of the ^ chard Oulton. name of St. Ledger, a coal- factor. [ The witness produced the same.] Are not the coal- factors or dealers, when they purchase coals from the ship for the purpose of yarding them, extremely desirous to have the support of the coal- meters in measuring them r— They are ; and the above document will attest it; it is from Mr. St. Ledger, who wrote to me particularly to desire me to have a coal- ineter on a ship. Have not many of them resisted that superintendence or inspection over their own measurement, when vending those coals to the public out of their own yards ?— Several of them. There are some very respectable persons among the coal- factors, but there are many of them not so : those of the latter description, previous to send- ing coals out from their yards, lock up the yards, and fill the bags as they please. If the yard should happen to be open, and a master porter goes in, the men stop immediately, and the master porter is told that they will not measure coal while he is there. They then take advantage when the master porter is away to fill the bags, and send them out as they please, which more or less affects the fair traders in that article, as well as the consumers. Does the superintendence of the master porters extend equally to yards as to ships ?— They have done so till within this year or two; until they met with the oppo- sition from the coal- factors I have alluded to. If they were placed on all yards, I am satisfied it would be to the advantage of the fair dealers as well as the consumers, for others can undersell them by reason of deficiency in the measure. Does not the London Coal Act require that all coals sold from the ship shall be measured in the presence of sworn coal- meters, who are required to give certificates of the quantity so measured ?— They are. In confirmation of what I said respecting coal- dealers in Dublin refusing to admit the coal- meters, I have here a letter, signed by several of them, calling a meeting at the corn- exchange for the purpose. Are not the London coal- dealers the principal purchasers from the ships?— They are solely, in London. Are not the coals so purchased by the coal- merchants or dealers afterwards removed to their wharfs or barges, in which they remain till sold ?— They are. Does not the London Coal Act require all coals sold at those wharfs to be measured in the presence of a coal- meter?— It does, and gives them sixpence per chaldron metage, as appears by the l02d sec. of the London Coal Act of 47th Geo. 3d, which does not include the metage on delivering them from the ship. Does not that act also impose a penalty, and render a coal- meter for ever after incapable of acting, if he suffers any quantity of coal, exceeding eight bushels, to go from any wharf without being first measured by a standard bushel ?— Yes. Are not the glass manufacturers of Dublin, and the proprietors of salt- works at Ringsend, particularly desirous, when they purchase coals from the ship, to have the superintendence of coal- meters over the measurement of them?— They are. It will appear from this certificate what the glass manufacturers opinion is. [ The witness produced the same.] Are not the coals always discharged from the ship at the pier of Dunleary under the superintendance of " coal- meters from your establishment?— They are; the reason of it was that some years ago the meters appointed by the local authorities there who had done duty at Dunleary, were so very deficient in their attention, that the magistrates of the Rathdown association applied for the meters of Dublin, and I sent meters to do the duty there, and they have continued there eight or ten years, to the general satisfaction of the association and the neighbourhood. The coal meters have no additional allowance whatever for this service, though it is upwards of six miles from Dublin. The London Coal Act gives the meter 10s. for travelling expenses when employed in any ship below Greenwich. Have you not received several applications from different gentlemen to have the superintendence of coal- meters for the measurement of coals ?— Many from the country. 1 had applications from the ltev. Mr. Trench, the rector of Swords, when laying in coals for the poor, and I sent down there at different times; and there is a letter of thanks from him for the attention of the master porters when on duty for him. 549. 3 B The fi J