Fam Chron 46

Aug 1 Trev new memorandum detailing new scheme which was to be adopted.
Aug 3 "It is possible to have heard the tale of sorrow too often" - Times lead-writer declared.
Aug 7 Fr. Matthew, the apostle of temeprance wrote to Trev; ' the capitalists in the flour and corn trade are endeavouring to induce gov not to protect people from famine but to leave them at their mercy.'
Aug 17 "the prosepct of the potato crop is even more distressing than last year" - Russell in the house introducing the new Labour Rate Act. (1) Cost was to be met in it's entirety by the distrcits effected. Money would be advanced by the treasury at a rate of 3.5 % interest and repayed by a levy on all poor rate payers in the district.  'Presentment sessions of ratepayers would be held as before but no longer volounbtary but called upon by the lord lieutenant. £50,000 in free grants was to be spent on those districts too poor to pay the rates. [50,000 to feed a starving people! exclaimed Archbishop John Machale, reminding Russell that twenty millions had been spent freeing the negroes of the West Indies.] (2) the gov assured everyone it would not import or supply any food. There would be no gov depots to sell meal at low cost or in emergency to issue free meal as had been done last season. Merchants sought and received assurances from gov that no meal would be purchased  by them. Charles Wood (C of Ex) said the gov was pledged ' not to interfere with the regular mode by which Indian corn and other grains were brought into the country' but to leave that trade as much liberty as possible. Once wages were paid on the new public works the conviction was that food would be made available by profit-seeking merchants. (3) Ireland west of the Shannon was to be excluded from this ban on gov depots.
Aug 25 Routh travelled to England to meet Trv and Wood with a view to get them to buy up large quantities of food. An official dispatch was sent to Baring's looking for 2,000 tons of Indian corn. The merchant house declined but recommended a corn-factor, Mr. Erichsen. Euro harvest of 1846 was 'wholly or partially a failure'.
Aug 28 Labour Rate Act received the royal assent
Aug 28 Erichsen's reports impossible to buy up Indian corn; merchants were eagerly buying it up for the Irish market as well as French and Belgians for their own.
Aug 28 200-300 men marching to Lord Crofton's seat in Mote Park, Roscommon were dispersed by two troops of Dragoons.
Aug 31 Capt Perceval, Com off at Westport wrote the 'subjection of the masses were extraordinary' ( they truned blindly to authorities for salvation writes)C WSmith) large and orderly body of people actually kneeled before Lord Sligo
Sept 2 Terv to Stephen Spring Rice, Lord Monteagle's son; the object of the act was to force Irish landlord's to do compulsorily what they failed to do voluntarily, relieve distress in their districts. "the bacwardness of the landlords had made compulsory measures inevitable" Rushed through in ten dsys when most Irish members were away, enough to make a man turn Repealer Rice replied. Palmerston ; the lamdlords will be as well qualified as their cottiers to seek admission into the workhouse if the act were to stay in effect for any length of time.
Sept 4 Presentment sessions began under the act.
Sept 17 Trev instructs Erichsen to purchase 5000 quarters of Indian corn for the West of Ireland but all he could secure was 1,000 quarters. HUndredweight (cwt) is 112 pounds, a ton is 2240 pounds, a quarter is 28 pounds, a stone 14 pounds. So twenty hundreweight in a ton and 80 quaters in a ton. Tev wanted Er to buyat 40s a qrt when Indian corn was selling in Sligo at 50s a qrt
Sept 22 - .large sums are voted at baronial sessions as though there were no such thing as repayment' wrote the Times. Burden of repayment was distributed among all ratepayers, no money was required up front and thus an orgy of works were proposed and ratified.
Oct 13 Indian corn reached 54 s a qrt on London market and even at that price was unobtainable. [At 56 shillings a qrt of grain = 2 shillings a pound (28 pounds in a quarter). Woodhanm moith's qurtaers are actually quarter tons!! -  [Edit - http://www.victorianweb.org/history/work/nelson1.html]