William Dargan on the Dublin–Blessington–Carlow road

1580 Is there an engineer employed to oversee the works on the Blessington Road? — There has been a surveyor, a Mr Dargan.

1581 From the commencement of the Trust? — From the commencement of the Trust.

1582 At what salary is Mr Dargan employed? — About £100 a year.

1583 Is he still in the employment of the Trust? — He is nominally so.

1584 Does he receive a salary at present? — He does not.

1585 But he is still in the employment of the Trust? — He is.

1586 What was the reason, if the Trust continue to employ him, that they should take away his salary? — At that meeting in Baltinglass, in November, there were very general complaints as to the quality of the materials then lying on the road, and also of the quality of materials that had been expended on the road during the year; this induced me to ask the question, whether the surveyor, to whom we paid so high a salary, had attended; and upon further inquiry, I could not ascertain that he had done any duty, or taken any active part whatever in the management of the road, for the twelve months previous; upon which I entered on the books of the Trust a notice, that at the ensuing meeting I would move for the dismissal of Mr Dargan from that situation altogether. At the subsequent meeting I brought forward this motion, when there was a proposal sent in from Mr Dargan, in which he offered to do the duty for £50 a year. Upon further pressing the matter, his friends at the Board stated that he would withdraw all claim whatever for salary, would not ask what he might do for the last half year, and that he would be obliged to us if we would allow him to remain nominally as our surveyor, and pay him as we would any other surveyor when we had occasion to employ one. This was a proposition that I thought only reasonable, and I consented to it, and it was so entered upon the books, and I did not further interfere or further press the proposition that I had originally brought forward.

1587 In any further accounts that were laid before the Board, did any charge appear on the part of the treasurer for a sum of £50 to be paid to Mr Dargan after he had refused to receive any salary? — There was; the very first item in the treasurer’s account was a claim for a credit of £50 for salary to Mr Dargan, which he himself had conscientiously refused to take; so that we were, in fact, putting £50 into Mr Dargan’s pocket, whether he would take it himself or not.

1588 What was the proceeding of the Board upon that item appearing on the accounts of the treasurer? — It was, I presume, a mistake.

1589 Was it actually paid? — I never heard; but the moment I heard that it was a mistake, not to go to the credit of the treasurer, I said no more about it. It is not the loss of £50 to the funds. I only mention it to show the willingness to dispose of the money of that Trust.

[…]

1656 Can good materials be obtained? — As good as possible; there are as good materials on that road as on any in Ireland.

1657 Then you conceive that the putting on of bad materials was the cause of the bad state of the road ever since? — I do; repairs are eternally going on; it is not permanent. They do not screen it properly, so that it is literally drawing on mud and drawing off mud; for this gravel is not properly screened; the consequence is, that what they draw on to-day they draw off to-morrow.

1658 Do they ever employ an engineer? — Mr Dargan is professedly an engineer.

1659 Did not that engineer give directions as to the materials to be employed? — He may have done; but his directions were not attended to, if he gave them.

1660 Still he received his salary? — Still he received his salary.

Evidence of Peter Purcell in Report from Select Committee on Turnpike Roads in Ireland: with the minutes of evidence and appendix Ordered, by The House of Commons, to be Printed, 26 July 1832 645