Eighth Report of proceedings—Failure of the potato—A fourth commissioner appointed—Ninth Report—Potato disease in 1846—Public Works Act—Distress in autumn 1846—Labour-rate Act—Relief-works—Temporary Relief Act—Pressure upon workhouses—Emigration—Financial state of unions—First Annual Report of Poor-Law Commissioners for Ireland—Extension Act—Act for Punishment of Vagrants—Act to provide for execution of Poor Laws—General import of the new Acts—Change of the commission—Dissolution of boards of guardians—Report of Temporary Relief Act Commissioners—British Association—Second Annual Report of Poor-Law Commissioners—Recurrence of potato disease—Cholera—Rate-in-Aid Act—Further dissolution of boards of guardians—Boundary commission—Select committee on Irish Poor Laws—Expenditure, and numbers relieved. [Sidenote: 1846. Eighth report of proceedings in Ireland.[125]] The Report for 1845-6, like those of preceding years, is dated on the 1st of May, and represents the progress of the law during the previous twelve months as being on the whole satisfactory. All the workhouses were open and the rates in course of collection, except in the two small unions of Clifden and Cahirciveen, in each of which however the guardians had taken steps for making a rate and opening the workhouse. ----- [125] This eighth Report of proceedings in Ireland, is included in the twelfth Report of the Poor Law Commissioners; but as before stated it has been thought better to keep the Irish portion of the Reports distinct from the other, and to give them a separate number. ----- [Sidenote: Numbers relieved, and cost of relief.] The number of persons relieved in the several workhouses continued to increase throughout the present year, the total number amounting to 114,205. In the week ending 27th December 1845 the number so relieved was 41,218, whilst in the week ending 28th March 1846 (the last for which the returns were complete) the number was 50,717, being an increase of 9,499 in three months, and indicating that the distress which had now become very general was beginning to press upon the workhouses. The number described as able-bodied was 8,246, that is 1,984 males and 6,262 females. The total expenditure on relief of the poor during the preceding year in the 113 unions of which the workhouses were opened prior to 1845, amounted on the 1st of January 1846 to 298,813_l._ The number of inmates at that date was 40,876. In the 10 other unions the workhouses of which were opened in the course of 1845, the expenditure on relief amounted to 17,213_l._, and the number of inmates to 1,192,—so that on January 1st 1846 there were 42,068 poor persons relieved in 123 workhouses, and the entire cost of relief during the year amounted to 316,026_l._