140 ON THE STATE OF IRELAND. [BOOK II. 



One witness said, that it was certainly very bad to 

 desert a child, but that it was still worse to send it to the 

 Foundling Hospital, where it was made a Protestant. It 

 was stated, moreover, to be much less expensive to nurse 

 foundlings in the country than to send them to an hospi- 

 tal ; and all the witnesses agree that the child, not acqui- 

 ring in that establishment family habits, turned out ill. 



Province of Leinster, county of Carlow ; examinations taken by Captain 

 White and T. N. Vauglian, Esq. ; union of Aghade and Ballin, 

 barony of Forth. Four witnesses. 



The Catholic priest estimated the number of deser- 

 tions each year at about three, and nearly as many or- 

 phans are left unprovided for : notwithstanding the general 

 misery, the charitable people receive and keep them until 

 they are old enough to gain their livelihood. He prefers 

 this system to the Hospital, or any other means of bring- 

 ing up these children. 



Parish of Carlow, barony of Carlow. Twenty -nine witnesses. 

 The construction put on the laws about the provision for 

 deserted children, requires that the child must be under 

 twelve months old, found destitute, and without any traces 

 as to the parents. If at the vestry the parishioners dis- 

 agree about the provision for a deserted child, the clergy- 

 man applies to the sitting judge of assize, who gives a fiat 

 on the parish. The churchwarden takes charge of de- 

 serted children as overseer of deserted children, but not 

 in his character as churchwarden. The children are sent 

 to school, and must be brought up Protestants. The 

 limit of expenditure for each child is 51. a year, and the 

 assessment is in proportion to the number of children on 

 the list. A clergyman gave his opinion that the religious 



