The Motions I have to make are to alter the form of Standing Order 183A, in order to bring it into agreement with an altered condition of things. The Standing Order, as it now exists, requires that in every Bill which contains power to take dwellings occupied by the labouring classes, compulsorily or by agreement, clauses shall be inserted to prevent the promoters from taking them until they shall have obtained the approval of the Central Authority to a scheme affording equal accommodation to them. The Standing Order in the case of Scotland declares the "Central Authority" to be the Home Secretary. But a Secretary for Scotland has now been appointed, who has superseded the Home Secretary as Central Authority for Scotland; and the object of the alterations of the Standing Order, which I am about to propose, is simply to substitute the Secretary for Scotland for the Home Secretary as the Central Authority. I beg to move, in line 49 of the Standing Order, in the passage which defines the Central Authority to mean "as regards the Metropolis or Scotland the Secretary of State for the Home Department," after the word "Metropolis," to leave out "or Scotland."

discharged from attendance on the Committee:—Dr. Cameron added to the Committee.—(Sir John R. Mowbray.)

I beg to move—

"That the Petition against the Belfast Main Drainage Bill, deposited in the Private Bill Office on the 19th instant, he printed and circulated with the Votes."

The Petition referred to here is one which was adopted at a public meeting of the occupiers and inhabitants of Belfast in opposition to a local Private Bill which is about to come before a Committee of this House. But in consequence of the depressed condition of trade in Belfast and the enormous cost which attends the opposition to a Private Bill in Parliament the ratepayers are unable to send witnesses here, and appear in opposition to the Bill in the ordinary way. I have given Notice of my intention on Tuesday next to move an Instruction on an important matter relating to this Bill; and I think it would be for the convenience of the House, and would also tend to an economy of its time, if the facts relating to the case were placed at once in the hands of the general body of Members. I, therefore, make this Motion.

I beg to give Notice that on Monday next I will ask the right hon. Gentleman the Chief Secretary for Ireland, with reference to his statement as to dispensing with certain powers claimed by the Executive in Ireland, Whether he is aware that the National League arrogates to itself the power directly and indirectly to prohibit the payment of rent; whether the Rev. Mr. O'Connor, parish priest, of Firies, is not reported in The Kerry Sentinel of November 10 to have stated at a meeting of the National League—

"That any tenant who went behind the back of the other tenants and paid his rent was a traitor to the cause. [A Voice: Shoot them.] Father O'Connor: Don't."

Whether Mr. Curtin was not shot on the Friday following, having paid his rent; and, whether as this and similar circumstances have occurred constantly in Ireland the Chief Secretary will take steps to bring the laws of conspiracy to bear upon illegal combinations of this character?

Mr. Speaker, I rise to a point of Order. I would ask whether the statement of the hon. and gallant Member that the National League arrogates to itself certain powers is not a matter of opinion and argument, and is, therefore, by the Standing Orders of the House, excluded from the Journals of the House?

At the same time I would ask, as a matter of Order, whether it is within the spirit of the Rules of this House that hon. Members, at Notice time, should inflict upon the House long extracts from letters in newspapers, containing expressions such as those to which my hon. Friend has called attention, which will not and cannot afterwards appear on the Journals of the House, being contrary to the Orders and spirit of the Rules of the House?

In reply to the two hon. Members, I have to say that I wish the House would sanction me in restraining Questions of the nature referred to, and also in enforcing the practice that when Questions are to be put they may be placed on the Notice Paper without previous Notice, or being required to read them. With reference to the special Question asked, I shall, of course, before it appears on the Paper, carefully revise it; and if I find introduced in it any argumentative matter or any disputed statement of fact I shall not allow it to appear.

When the Question is put I will ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant, whether the meeting referred to was not a meeting of the tenantry of a certain estate; whether it is not the fact that the landlord, in consequence of the action of the tenants since, has made a reduction of rent to the extent of 20 per cent; and, whether the landlord in question is not a Member of Her Majesty's Government?

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether he will appoint an Inspector of slate and sett quarries in North Wales?

in reply, said, his hon. Friend might not be aware that legislation would be necessary before the appointment of the officer referred to could be made. The advisability of such a Bill was now occupying his careful attention.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland, Whether his attention has been directed to alleged action of the Constabulary force at Bennetsbridge, in the county of Kilkenny, in flinging stones and grappling irons during night-time from the summits of bridges spanning the River Nore, and from other places into such river, to the danger and bodily injury of boatmen and others of the public plying on the same, instead of ascertaining the names of offenders, if any, against the police regulations of the river, and proceeding by summons according to due course of law; and, whether he will cause inquiry to be made, with a view to putting a stop to such alleged irregular action of the Constabulary?

I am assured that the police have never acted as alleged in this Question. The River Nore at Bennetsbridge is not navigable, and consequently neither boatmen nor the public ply on it.

asked the President of the Board of Trade, Whether the Inspecting Officers of Railways have reported upon the various Railway coupling appliances that were exhibited at the Inventions Exhibition last year; and, if so, when will the Report be laid upon the Table; whether he is aware of the fact that the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants have voted the sum of five hundred pounds to assist in testing improved modes of Railway couplings; and, whether, having regard, to the great loss of life and limb consequent upon the present system of doing this dangerous part of Railway work, the Government will supplement this sum by a grant from the Treasury for the purpose of a thorough and practical investigation into this important question?

The Railway Inspecting Officers have not reported to the Board of Trade upon the various railway coupling appliances that were exhibited at the Inventions Exhibition last year. Some of those officers were on the jury to whom those appliances were referred; and I believe the jury expressed an opinion with regard to the various inventions that were submitted to them. I am not aware that the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants have voted the sum of £500 to assist in testing improved methods of railway couplings; but I do know that some experiments have recently taken place under the auspices of that society in regard to those matters upon the London and South-Western Railway. With regard to the last paragraph of the hon. Member's Question, I am not prepared to recommend the Treasury to supplement the sum referred to for the purpose of further investigations in this important matter, for I do not think it would be desirable that the Board of Trade should assume the responsibility of deciding upon the respective merits of various inventions—a responsibility which must properly rest upon those who have the control and management of railways.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland, Will he lay upon the Table of the House, Copies of all Correspondence, had from 4th December 1884 to 25th January 1886, between John Suffern, of Windsor, Belfast, and the Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests for Ireland, relative to the management of the lands and property of the "Belfast White Linen Hall," a charity founded and established in the year 1783, at a great cost, for the encouragement and extension of the linen trade; also Copies of all Correspondence and Protests and Statements had between the Chamberlain, Chairman, or Committee of the said "Belfast White Linen Hall" and the said Commissioners, and the said John Suffern, relative to the management of the said charity from the 1st day of November 1882 till the 25th day of January 1886?

A correspondence on this subject has taken place between Mr. Suffern and the Commissioners of Charitable Donations and Bequests; and if the hon. Member will move for it in due form there is no objection to its production. There has been no correspondence between the Commissioners and the Linen Hall; and if any has taken place between the Linen Hall and Mr. Suffern the Government have no control over it, and are not in a position to produce it. The hon. Member should, therefore, confine his Motion to the Correspondence I have first mentioned.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland, Whether the Inspectors of Irish Fisheries have reported, on the complaints of the Foyle fishermen, with respect to a steamer which the lessees of the Foyle and Bann Fisheries send out at night without lights among their boats; whether complaints have been made by the fishermen with respect to the uncertain boundary between the several fisheries in the Foyle and the sea beyond; and, whether he will ask for a report on these matters, and lay it upon the Table of the House?

Yes, Sir; the Inspectors of Fisheries have reported on these matters, and there is no objection to the production of the Report, if the hon. Member will move for it.

asked Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether he will kindly consider the practicability of complying with the wishes of the agricultural labourers that the cottage brewing licences shall expire in April instead of September, so that those who cannot afford to take them till haytime in May or June may be able to enjoy the use of them for all the year instead of for only a small portion of it, as now?

asked Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, If he would consider the inequality of the farmer with a large house and small farm having to pay the Private Brewer's Duty, whilst the farmer with a small house but a large farm pays the licence only; and, whether, considering the small sums produced to the Exchequer by Private Brewer's Licences, he would consider the utility of abolishing them altogether?

In answer to the hon. Member for Suffolk (Mr. Everett), I made some inquiry about this matter, and I hope something may be done; but I do not wish to pledge myself. In reference to the Question of the hon. Member for Shropshire (Mr. J. More), there is considerable difficulty about the first part. This matter was very carefully considered at the time the alteration was made in the Malt Tax, and I fear I cannot propose any change in that direction. As to the second part of the Question, it is quite true that the sum derived from these licences is very small; but then we have to consider the unfair operation which this would have upon small brewers. At present I do not see my way to abolishing these licences.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether he is aware that His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury did, on the 16th instant, while the two Houses of Convocation were sitting, open a third House in the Broad Sanctuary, giving it the title of the "House of Laymen;" whether, in his opening address to that House, His Grace used the following words, as reported in The Times:—

"The Convocation of Canterbury has now, after much careful discussion, requested the Bishops in each diocese of the Province to call upon the lay members of their several conferences, who are themselves all elected by the laity of the parishes, to elect a House of Laymen;"

and, whether the request, mentioned by the Archbishop as adopted after careful discussion, was recorded in the proceedings of Convocation and acted upon without licence from Her Majesty the Queen; and, if so, whether any authoritative legal opinion was previously obtained as to the consistency of any such resolution, or order or ordinance, with the 25th Henry VIII., c. 19, where it is enacted that the clergy shall not

"Enact, promulge, or execute any canons, constitutions, or ordinances provincial, by whatsoever name or names they may be called, in their convocations in time coming (which always shall be assembled by authority of the King's writ), unless the same clergy may have the King's Most Royal Assent and licence to make, promulge, and execute such canons, constitutions, and ordinances provincial or synodal, on pain of every one of the clergy doing contrary to this Act, and being thereof convict, to suffer imprisonment and make fine at the King's will?"

I wish also to ask the right hon. Gentleman another Question—namely, whether, in the event of the Law Officers of the Crown advising Her Majesty's Government that the action of the Archbishop was illegal, the Government will be prepared to bring in a Bill to legalize such an alteration in the constitution of Convocation as the Archbishop sought to make, thereby facilitating in the Church of England that reform from within which constitutes the sole advantage derived by the Irish Church from the otherwise unmixed disaster of disestablishment and disendowment? ["Order!"]

As a Question of Order, I wish to ask you, Mr. Speaker, whether the Question of the hon. and gallant Member, like the former Notice given by the hon. and gallant Gentleman, is not entirely irregular?

The last part of the Question of the hon. and gallant Member is entirely out of Order.

When I have answered the Question on the Paper, I think the hon. and gallant Gentleman will not find it necessary to put his Question. In reply to my hon. Friend, I beg to say that I have ascertained that the Archbishop did, at the time and place named, open a meeting called the House of Laymen; but the Archbishop did not open a third House of Convocation. The House of Laymen is a voluntary body, and in no sense a third House. The Archbishop did use the words which my hon. Friend quotes; but the request was an informal one, and was not recorded in the proceedings of Convocation. It was not proposed to promulgate or execute any ordinances by any name whatsoever, so no question arose as to their legality.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Is it the fact that the Recorder of Galway last month granted to Mr. Marcus Lynch a decree of ejectment against Michael Carter, of Barna, from his holding of six acres, although the rent was fully paid up; that the cause of the proposed eviction is the fact that the tenant, who holds from a middleman, got his rent reduced in the Land Court from £8 2s. 2d. to £5, this being less than the middleman paid the head landlord; that though the tenant has always paid the fair rent fixed by the Land Commissioners, the county court now holds that to escape eviction he is bound to pay the higher rent due by the middleman, in spite of the operation of the Land Act; are the Government aware that analogous cases have previously occurred in county Waterford and elsewhere; do they propose to take any steps to prevent the nullification of the Land Act by such proceedings; and, is it intended to lend the forces of the Crown to the landlord to evict Carter, whose "fair rent" is fully paid, and who has complied with all the conditions of his judicial tenancy under the Land Act?

The Question of the hon. and learned Member has reference to a subject which, no doubt, as an abstract one, is of importance to tenants holding under middlemen; but in this particular instance I am informed that the tenant has appealed, and the legal rights of the parties depend upon the result of the appeal, which will be disposed of next month.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, If the Irish Chief Remembrancer has completed his investigations into the accounts of the late official assignee of the Irish Court of Bankruptcy, Mr. Charles Henry James; and, if he has reported thereon; and, if so, will the report be printed and circulated in the usual manner?

The Treasury have been informed by the Treasury Remembrancer of Dublin that the investigation of the accounts of the late official assignee of the Court of Bankruptcy would be completed during the next week. Until my Lords have received and considered the information thus obtained they cannot state what course they will adopt with respect to it. As I have not yet seen the Report, I cannot say whether it can be laid on the Table of the House.

Might I ask the hon. Gentleman whether this examination has not been going on for the last eight months?

I have no means of answering that Question.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland, If his attention has been drawn to the manner in which the revision of the Dublin Port and Docks Board list of claims to vote has been made, such revision having been begun on the 23rd, instead of, as the Act directs, "as soon as possible after the first day of November," the result of which was that, before it was half gone through, the revising barrister closed the list, stating it should be signed on the 30th; and, if the present Irish authorities purpose taking steps to remedy the wrong so done to the traders and manufacturers of Dublin, by ordering a new revision and election?

Before the right hon. Gentleman answers that Question, I would like to ask whether it is a fact that 900 claims put forward by the Nationalist Party were disallowed; whether many of the so-called claimants had left without leaving their addresses; whether the persons advocating such claims were not liable under the 64th section of the Act of 1867 to fine; and, whether the term "traders and manufacturers of Dublin" could not at all be said to apply to these persons?

The hon. Member opposite must be aware that his Question is one which could not be answered without Notice. No representation whatever has been made to the Irish Government as to the manner in which the revision was carried out. Should any such representation be made, it will, of course, receive careful attention; but the hon. Member is no doubt aware that the Revising Barrister is appointed by the Chief Justice of the Queen's Bench, and is not under the control of Government.

asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether it is the case that the British barque Mary Mark, when lying at anchor at British Honduras, was on 9th July 1883 run down by a Spanish man-of-war, owing to the sole negligence of the latter, as certified by a Court of Inquiry held at Belize 7th August 1883; that the claim of the owners, in respect of the loss thereby sustained, was submitted to the Spanish Government by Her Majesty's Foreign Office in March 1884, but that up to the present no compensation has been awarded; and, what steps Her Majesty's Foreign Office propose to take to insure the prompt settlement of the reasonable demands of the owners, so long neglected?

The facts of the case are correctly stated by the hon. Member; but it must be added that the Spanish Government do not recognize the sufficiency of the inquiry held by British authority at Belize, and are prosecuting a further investigation of their own. Sir Clare Ford, Her Majesty's Minister at Madrid, was assured, on the 12th ultimo, that the case would receive immediate consideration, and he will continue to press the matter on the attention of the Spanish Government.

asked Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether his attention has been called to the large arrears of appeal cases, in reference to fixing fair rents, now depending in the Land Commission Courts in Ireland, and undisposed of, amounting to some 10,000 in number; and, further, to the great length of time which has elapsed since proceedings have been initiated by some of the poor tenantry concerned, and the harassing character of the dilatory proceedings; for instance, in the county Carlow appeal cases:—Denis Pack Beresford, landlord, Thomas O'Neill, tenant (Mr. M. M. Murphy, solicitor for the tenant). Record No. 631. That notice to have a fair rent fixed was served on the 21st April 1883; the case was heard by Sub-Commission, 19th March 1884, and rent reduced from £78 to £63; that notice of appeal was served by landlord immediately after; that appeal was listed for hearing, 15th July 1885, tenant and six witnesses brought to Dublin from Slyguff, county Carlow, seventy miles, kept in Dublin for two days, and appeal not heard; that appeal was again listed on 29th July 1885, and tenant and his witnesses had again to go to Dublin, but the case was not heard; that, pursuant to General Order, Session 1885–6, there will be no sitting for hearings for the county of Carlow until the 2nd August 1886. And, again, in the case of Arthur M'Murrogh Kavanagh, landlord, Denis Doherty, tenant (same solicitor). Record No. 660. That originating notice was served, 18th May 1883; case heard on 5th June 1884 by Sub-Commission at Bagenalstown, and rent fixed at £34, old rent £48; that notice of appeal by landlord was served on the 20th June 1884, and the case has never been listed for hearing by the Appeal Court; and, whether Her Majesty's Government is prepared to make immediate provision for this state of things?

I have not been able to go fully into the subject of the arrears of appeal cases before the Land Commission. I should observe, however, that the number of cases at present undisposed of is about 8,000. As regards the particular cases referred to, it appears that in both instances the appeal is by the landlord. It is fair, therefore, to assume that the tenants are not dissatisfied with the judicial rents, which, I believe, are considered to be the rents they are liable for pending the hearing of the appeals. The delay and expense due to a case not being reached, or having to be postponed for one cause or another, are, I fear, inevitable when the sittings at different places have to be fixed some time in advance. I am assured that the Land Commissioners use every effort to dispose of all the cases on their lists.

asked Mr. Attorney General for Ireland, Whether the police at Moville, county Donegal, have discovered that the author of certain outrages reported to them by one Caldwell Moore (caretaker for a local landlord there) is Moore himself; whether Moore, having been summoned therefor, failed to appear to answer the charge, and a warrant has been issued for his arrest; whether Moore has been since made amenable; and, whether care will be taken to exclude Moore's reported outrages from the forthcoming return of agrarian crime in Ireland?

The facts are as stated. Moore was convicted at Petty Sessions on the 2nd instant, and sent to prison for 14 days in default of paying a fine of £1. The case was not reported by the police as an outrage.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether it is a fact that, last year, a person named Townsend, agent of Sir Roger Palmer, baronet, failed to make a return, which he was bound to make under the "Representation of the People Act, 1884," of the names of nearly two hundred Parliamentary voters in the district of Push, county of Dublin; and, if so, whether he will take steps to enforce the penalties provided by the Act against Townsend?

I am informed that Mr. Townsend did omit to make the Return provided for by the Representation of the People Act, 1884. I will consult my right hon. and learned Friend the Attorney General for Ireland as to whether a prosecution should be instituted, and, if so, by whom.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether Henry M'Dougall, agent of the Gormanstown estate in the county of Meath, recovered money under the Arrears Act when, as a matter of fact, no arrears were due on that estate; whether, when called on for an explanation, ho practically admitted his offence by re-funding the money in one case in which he had obtained it on an ex parte application made in spite of the tenant's refusal to join in applying; and, whether he will accordingly direct a prosecution of M'Dougall, either under the section of the Arrears Act which is concerned with such cases, or for perjury?

Applications under the Arrears Act were made in the case of 20 tenants on the Gormanstown Estate; and in one case the tenant was stated by the agent, Mr. M'Dougall, to owe a half-year's rent, £3 10s., which, as a matter of fact, had been paid. Mr. M'Dougall was called on to explain this in November last; and his explanation was, and is, that the payment of the rent had not been written up in the ledger by his clerk—who was leaving him at the time—that he had 1,349 tenants under him as agent, who took the benefit of the Act, and that, as there was pressure for time, the payment escaped attention. He has refunded the sum paid by the Land Commissioners, and has given the tenant credit for half a year's rent. I am advised that, on this information, there does not appear to be evidence of a criminal intent on Mr. M'Dougall's part; but, if a case is made, the Attorney General will consider it.

asked, whether 10 such cases regarding Mr. M'Dougall had not been laid before the late Attorney General (Mr. Holmes)?

said, he could not be aware of that fact.

asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, To state the total amount of actual payments for telegrams to and from Sir fl. D. Wolff, distinguishing those to and from Turkey and to and from Egypt. He further asked if it was the intention of the Government to take the Vote for the Diplomatic Service that night?

inquired whether arrangements had been made to pay Sir H. Drummond Wolff any salary or personal allowances in connection with his mission?

In answer to the hon. Member for Burnley (Mr. Rylands), I may say that the Estimates, I think, will show that Sir H. Drummond Wolff is in receipt of a salary. In reply to the Question of the hon. Member for Northampton (Mr. Bradlaugh), I have to say that the cost of the telegrams sent from the Foreign Office to Sir H. Drummond Wolff at Constantinople amounted to £165, and to Cairo, up to the 20th instant, to £607. The cost of the telegrams received from Sir H. Drummond Wolff while at Constantinople amounted to £685, and from Cairo, up to the 20th instant, to about £2,507. The total amount, therefore, up to the 20th instant, was £3,964.

asked what was the amount of Sir H. Drummond Wolff's salary, as it was not shown in the Estimates?

The question of salary does not arise out of the cost for telegrams.

asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether Her Majesty's Government have received the full Malagasy text of the Treaty lately concluded between France and Madagascar; and, if so, whether he will lay that document, together with a translation, on the Table of the House, with as little delay as possible?

asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether the new Treaty concluded between France and Madagascar will in any way change the relations of England, Germany, Italy, and the United States with the Malagasy Government, or otherwise affect the existing Treaties between those Powers and the Queen of Madagascar?

The French text of the Treaty, as it has been published in the Yellow Book laid before the French Chamber, has been received from Lord Lyons, and will be laid on the Table; but neither the Malagasy text nor a translation of it has as yet been received. In reply to the Question of the hon. Baronet the Member for the City of London, I may now state that by that Treaty the relations with Madagascar of the Powers named will be so far changed by Articles 1 and 2 of the Treaty as to give to France the right of representing Madagascar in all its foreign relations through a Resident appointed by the French Government. Distinct assurances have been given by France to the Powers that the Treaty will make no change in their existing Treaties with Madagascar.

asked the Secretary to the Admiralty, At what date the construction of the Royal Dock at Haul-bowline was commenced; what was the total amount of expenditure on the work up to the 31st December 1885; what was the original estimated cost; whether the plans provided for the erection of suitable workshops connected with the dock; and, whether, considering the importance of having a proper dock in Cork Harbour in which Her Majesty's ships could be repaired, and the great dearth of employment in Queenstown, he can promise to accelerate the completion of the work by employing additional labourers and artizans?

In reply to the hon. Member, I have to say that the work was commenced in the year 1865, and the expenditure up to the 31st December, 1885, amounted to £494,845, the work having been chiefly done by free labour. The original plans, which proposed the employment of convict labour, estimated the cost at £550,000. The original plan contains a design for the erection of workshops; but the time has not yet come when they are wanted. In regard to the last paragraph of the Question, I beg to say that the works are drawing to a close. To engage extra labourers just now would defeat the object which the hon. Member appears to have in view.

Might I ask the hon. Gentleman when he thinks it will be necessary to commence the workshops?

I think the erection of the workshops will have to be delayed till the Dockyard is completed.

Might I ask what time the hon. Gentleman thinks the work will be completed, considering that it has now been 22 years in progress?

I think the work will be completed in the course of the present year.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether it is a fact that, early in 1885, the Irish Piers and Harbours Commissioners made grants of £1,250 and £400 for the construction respectively of a boat-slip and breakwater at Killer-duff, and of an inclined approach to the landing place at Polnamuck, both in the parish of Ballycastle, county Mayo; whether it is a fact that, although nearly a year has expired, the Board of Works in Ireland has not as yet even commenced the construction of the works in question; and, whether, if the facts be as stated, he, in view of the severe distress existing on the Western Coast, will use his influence, as President of the Board of Works, to hasten the beginning of these undertakings, which would, by providing local labour, relieve local distress, and which, would, when they were finished, advance the interests and protect the lives and property of the local fishermen?

The hon. Member, in describing me as President of the Board of Works, invests me with a responsibility which I do not possess. That Department is under the control of the Treasury, and not of the Irish Government. However, the Board have furnished me with a Report, from which it appears that the recommendations of the Piers and Harbours Commissioners in these cases were made, not early in 1885, but in the month of July last, and that the working plans and necessary legal preliminaries were not completed till towards the end of the year. There will be no unnecessary delay in beginning work. I am glad, to be able to add that, in view of the existing distress, the Board have departed from the usual course of calling for tenders, and have ordered that, in 17 cases, the works shall be executed by day-labour, under the supervision of their own officers.

asked the Secretary to the Admiralty, Whether, having regard to the difficulty in providing Greenwich Hospital pensions for the aged Seamen and Marines who are eligible for them, the Admiralty will abstain from bestowing the pension of £150 a year, freed by the death of the late Admiral Morshead, upon another Flag Officer?

There is no intention to deprive officers of their share of Greenwich Hospital funds. This share is a small one, officers and their relatives receiving between £8,000 and £9,000 a-year; while seamen, marines, their children, and relatives receive £145,000 a-year from the funds of the charity.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, If it is his intention to introduce the Police Superannuation and Pensions Bill of the last Liberal Government during the present Session?

I have to reply that the Government are still in favour of the principle of this Bill, which they have supported for the last three years. I therefore hope to be able to re-introduce a measure dealing with this subject; but there are certain details in the Bill of last year which will have to be reconsidered.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, If he will indicate the mode by which compensation will be made to the tradesmen who were sufferers in the not of the 8th instant, for the destruction and robbery to which they were exposed from no fault of their own?

In reply to the right hon. Gentleman, I have to say that a Bill has been drafted, and will be introduced immediately, enacting that such compensation as seems just shall be provided out of the Metropolitan Police Fund to those who have suffered loss through the riots on the 8th of February. The various claims will be inquired into by the Receiver of Police; and in the event of dispute an arbitrator will be appointed to decide upon the claims. I hope to be able to introduce the Bill tomorrow.

asked, whether the right hon. Gentleman would include in the Bill the case of persons whose property was destroyed at the late General Election?

No, Sir; it is not our intention to do so.

asked the President of the Board of Trade, If any inquiry has taken place on the subject of new and improved harbour accommoda- tion for the islands of Lewis and Skye, and for the Highlands generally; and, if so, when may the House hope to have a report thereof, and hear the intentions of Her Majesty's Government on the subject?

No inquiry has been made on the subject of harbour accommodation since the general inquiry made in the last Parliament by the Select Committee presided over by my right hon. Friend the Member for Berwickshire (Mr. Marjoribanks).

asked the Secretary for Scotland, If the Government will advise Her Majesty to appoint a Royal Commission or Select Committee to inquire into the administration of justice in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland?

It is not the intention of the Government to advise Her Majesty to appoint a Royal Commission to inquire into this matter, no sufficient cause for it having been shown. I would remind the hon. Member that in the Report of the Crofters' Commission, 1884, there was a passage which deals with this matter, and which has been fully kept in view.

asked the Secretary for Scotland, If any inquiry has been made into the circumstances connected with the alleged illegal demands of Sheriff Ivory, of Inverness-shire, to have the contents of private telegrams disclosed to him; and, if so, will the papers and memoranda in reference thereto be laid upon the Table of the House?

I will refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the then Postmaster General and myself on the 8th of June, 1885, on this subject, from which it will be seen that we did not consider there was ground for further inquiry beyond what was then made; and also to a statement made in this House by the First Lord of the Treasury of the late Government on 10th July last, in which he said that "no new information having reached the present Government, the Secretary of State did not see any ground for re-opening the case." Nothing has since occurred to alter the views thus expressed on the part of two successive Governments. I believe that there are various documents which have been called affidavits connected with the case.

asked the Secretary of State for War, Whether any officers of the Army Medical Service have been sent to report upon the surgical treatment of the wounded, and the working of the field hospitals, in the recent Servian and Bulgarian War; and, if so, whether their Report will be published?

No British medical officers have been sent to report on the campaign between Servia and Bulgaria.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury, Whether it is the fact that the Post Office Authorities have interfered with the long-continued practice of the colleges of Oxford and Cambridge to send messages within their localities respectively; and, if so, whether there is any, and what, justification, for the interference?

The attention of the Postmaster General having been called to certain private arrangements made by the Colleges for the collection and delivery of letters in their respective localities, he was advised that these arrangements were illegal, as being an infringement of the exclusive privilege of carrying letters by post conferred on him by Act of Parliament. It was, therefore, incumbent upon the Postmaster General to inform the College authorities to that effect, and to request that the arrangements objected to might be discontinued. I am happy to say that the Postmaster General's representations were received in the spirit which might have been expected in the learned bodies to which they were addressed, and steps have been taken to put an end to the practices to which objection was made.

gave Notice that he would, at an early date, ask the hon. Gentleman what Act of Parliament conferred the privilege to which he had referred?

asked the Secretary of State for War, Whether it is intended to give any special recognition to the Royal Irish Regiment to commemorate their march from Korti to Gubat, which began on the 28th January 1885 and was completed 6th February, seeing that it was the only regiment which accomplished it?

The Royal Irish Regiment, in conjunction with the other regiments, did its duty well in the course of the campaign. It is not intended to give any mark of recognition to the regiment, as the services of all the troops engaged in the operations were specially acknowledged.

asked if the regiment had not performed a very gallant march across the desert on foot?

I do not know about on foot or otherwise; but the whole of that regiment was not engaged in the operations.

Ono battalion.

asked Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether any consideration will be given to the representations made during the late Parliament on behalf of the Inland Re-venue officials; and, whether the Government will consent to the appointment of a committee to inquire into the alleged grievances?

said, that this matter had not come before him, and he should certainly act upon the same principles as his immediate Predecessor, who declined to re-open this question unless new points or new evidence were brought before him. Last December, however, it had been found possible, owing to savings in other branches of the Inland Revenue, to improve very sensibly the condition of the Excise staff, and Papers on the subject would be laid before the House.

asked if the right hon. Gentleman was aware that the officers of the Treasury had bound themselves to accept the decision of any Committee which might be appointed by the House; and whether it was not in the right hon. Gentleman's recollection that when he was a candidate for the representation of Derby he did not undertake in writing, if he (Sir Herbert Maxwell) were not mistaken, to support a Motion for inquiry?

I really have no recollection of that; but candidates and Chancellors of the Exchequer are very different persons.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether his attention has been called to the inconvenience caused by the delay in issuing the Reports of the English and Scotch Lunacy Commissioners; whether it is the case that they are never ready for distribution until the month of August, when the Session has ended, or nearly so, and that last year the Scotch Report was not ready till September; and, whether there is any special reason why these Reports, which are prepared annually on set forms that never vary materially, could not be issued while the facts are fresh, say in at least three or four months after the expiration of the year?

I have been in communication with the English and Scotch Commissioners on the subject of the issue of their Reports. The former tell me that, owing to the data for the tabulation of statistics not being to hand till the end of March, they cannot promise an earlier issue of their full Report; but they will undertake to have ready by the end of April for presentation to Parliament a tabular statement showing the total number of lunatics in various institutions up to the beginning of each year. The Scotch Commissioners tell me that they expect to be able to present their Report in future by the middle of June.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury, Whether it is the fact that a wholesale mutilation of large and ornamental holly trees has taken place throughout the New Forest during November and December last, by cutting off the heads for sale with the berries; by whose authority and by whom this has been done; what precautions have been taken to prevent the death of the trees so mutilated; what is the total amount receivable from the sale of such holly; and, whether a Select Committee of this House unanimously recommended, in 1875, that the ancient ornamental woods and trees should be preserved, and the character of the scenery be maintained, by the officials in charge of the said Forest?

in reply, said, that no unusual cutting of the trees had taken place during the last season. The cutting was executed under the direction of the proper authorities, and as it was for the benefit of the trees no steps would be taken to prevent it. The amount which had been realized from the sale of the cuttings was £142 3s. With reference to the recommendation of the Select Committee that the ornamental trees should be preserved, they were endeavouring to carry it out; but the authorities had not the powers they required for the purpose.

asked the Secretary of State for War, What steps have been taken to obtain the entire quantity of Cavalry swords from manufacturers of steel cutting tools in this country; whether tenders for the supply of Cavalry swords were advertised for in The Times and other newspapers; and, whether applications have been made during 1885, by letter or otherwise, to manufacturers of steel cutting tools in England, and how many such applications were made and sent to Sheffield, Birmingham, or other towns in this country?

No steps were taken to invite the manufacturers of steel cutting tools to tender for the supply of swords. The sword of 1885, introduced upon the Report of the Committee of which the hon. Gentleman was a Member, has to sustain a test in advance of any to which swords had hitherto been subjected by the War Department; and it was not considered probable that weapons which would stand such a test could be produced in sufficient numbers by firms which had never made swords. For what were regarded as sufficient reasons, it was not thought advisable to advertise the requirements; but the Department will gladly welcome any desire of English manufacturers to address themselves to the task of producing the whole quantity of swords from time to time required; and if my hon. Friend will confer with me on the subject I will undertake to afford him all reasonable facilities and encouragement.

asked the Senior Member for Cambridge University, Whether it is a fact that, under a grant of Henry VIII. and after the dissolution of the Monastery at Newburgh, the Rectory of Coxwold, Yorkshire, which had belonged to that Monastery, was given to Trinity College, Cambridge, under the sacred obligation of providing for the spiritual wants of the parishioners; whether the present state of things as between Trinity College, Cambridge, and the parish of Coxwold is as follows: Trinity College is possessed of the Rectory, which comprises the whole ecclesiastical revenues of the parish, of the annual value of £1,678 13s. 8d. commuted rent-charge, under the sacred obligation of providing for the spiritual wants of the people of the parish, which obligation the College discharges by the annual money payment of £30, there being no parsonage house in the parish, no glebe land, and no other endowment except £20 per annum from the Governors of Queen Anne's Bounty, while the parish is so extensive that it is impossible for one clergyman properly to discharge his duties without assistance; and, whether steps cannot be taken with- out delay to put an end to the neglect on the part of Trinity College to fulfil the obligations accepted by the College when it became possessed of the whole ecclesiastical revenues of the parish of Coxwold?

I am very sorry to have to point out to the right hon. Baronet that under the Rules of the House he is not entitled to put a Question to an hon. Member who is not in an official position.

May I be allowed to say that I have brought the case under the notice of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners; but they decline to have anything to do with so gross a case. My object in putting the Question upon the Paper was to obtain a confirmation of the report as to the state of the case.

I am afraid that it is not in accordance with the Rules of this House to put a Question of this nature to a private Member.

Inconsequence of your ruling, Sir, I beg to give Notice that on going into Committee of Supply I will call attention to the matter which forms the subject of my Notice, and will move a Resolution.

asked the Secretary of State for War, Whether the authorities intend retiring Major Kerr, of the Cavan Militia, as being beyond the limit of age and service?

This officer has not yet attained an age at which he would, under existing Regulations, be compulsorily retired.

asked the Secretary of State for War, What number of recruits has the Adjutant of the Cavan Militia secured since the last training of the regiment?

35 for the Army, and 56 for the Militia, since the 1st of July, 1885.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, as President of the Irish Local Government Board, If any circular will be issued to local authorities in Ireland relative to out-door relief similar to that recently issued by the English Local Government Board; and, whether, in view of the distress and want of employment in Ireland, local authorities will be permitted to grant out-door relief there on similar conditions to those upon which it may be granted in England?

The Irish Local Government Board have already much information on the subject of the prevailing distress, from communications made to them by Boards of Guardians and others, and from the Reports of their Inspectors, and they do not think it necessary, at present, to issue a Circular. The hon. Member is no doubt aware that, under existing powers, out-door relief cannot be afforded to able-bodied men while there is room in the workhouse; but, as I have previously stated, the situation is most carefully watched, and we shall not hesitate to ask for further powers if the necessity should unfortunately arise.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury, Whether any directions have lately been given for the more rigid exaction or more prompt collection of the Income Tax?

In reply to the Question of the hon. Member, I have to inform him that no instructions have been given for the more rigid exaction or more prompt collection of the Income Tax by the Treasury. The preparation of the terminal assessments for 1885–6, however, caused some delay in the commencement of the collection of the tax, which was due on or before the 1st of January last; and that has necessitated at this moment greater activity on the part of the collectors to enable them to collect the amount proper for the current financial year before the 31st March next.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Whether, up to a couple of years ago, paper for impressed stamps for Irish news- papers was stamped at the Custom House, Dublin; whether a new regulation was then made requiring all such paper to be sent to Somerset House, London, to be stamped, but the Government paying the cost of carriage; whether recently, still another regulation has been made requiring the newspapers to pay the carriage to and from London: whether the receipts for the goods are still required to be sent to the Custom House, Dublin; and, what reasons have influenced the Government in making these changes?

I have, in reply to the Question, to say that newspaper wrappers, which it is supposed is the meaning of "paper for impressed stamps," have never been stamped in Dublin, and no new regulation requiring each wrapper to be sent to London has consequently been made. Formerly the carriage of the paper wrappers sent up to London to be stamped was paid by the Government; but from motives of public economy the Board of Inland Revenue now expect newspaper proprietors in all parts of the Kingdom to pay the carriage of wrappers which they send up to be impressed for their own convenience. Receipts will be required at the Custom House, Dublin.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether it is a fact that, on the 28th April 1885, in reply to an inquiry by William Feny, the resident medical superintendent of the Let-terkenny Lunatic Asylum stated that John Feny, an inmate, "was not improving in the state of his mind, but that his bodily health is good;" whether, in reply to a further application, William Feny was informed, by the same official, on the 20th August 1885, that his son John had died on the 14th July 1884; and, whether he will cause inquiry to be made into the case?

Some confusion appears to have arisen from the fact that there were two patients of the same name at the same time in this asylum.

Will the right hon. Gentleman inquire generally into the condition of the persons in this asylum, and the number of deaths?

was understood to reply in the affirmative.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether, under the existing distress which prevails along the Connemara coast, the Government will prevent undue pressure being exercised in the collection of the seed rate in that district, and will also give immediate instructions that the works which have been discontinued at the Bunowen Pier be at once resumed, with the view of mitigating to some extent the prevailing distress?

As I have already stated in reply to the hon. and gallant Member for North Galway, I hope shortly to be in a position to make an announcement of our intentions with respect to the seed rate. The Board of Works inform me that work has not been suspended at the pier at Bunowen. On the contrary, directions were given on the 22nd instant for additional men to be employed on it.

asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether the Treaty lately made by the French Government with China purports to confer any exclusive privilege upon French subjects, in place of following the example of the Treaty of Lord Elgin, under which equal rights were stipulated for the subjects of all nations; whether the Government have made or will make endeavours to procure the like privileges, if any, for British subjects; and, with an authenticated Copy of the Franco-Chinese Treaty will be communicated to the House?

I beg to thank my hon. Friend for having held this Question over from last week, at my request, and perhaps the House will allow me to take this opportunity of saying that it would be not merely for the advantage of the Foreign Office, but for that of the public service and hon. Members themselves, if in future, when possible, they would be kind enough to give two or three days' Notice of Questions which refer to the Foreign Office, because it is often necessary to send telegrams abroad and make extensive researches at the Foreign Office itself, which necessarily take some time, in order to answer their Questions. In answer to my hon. Friend I have to say that there will be no objection to laying at once before Parliament the text of the Franco-Chinese Treaty, which has already been published in Paris. Meanwhile I may state that permission to trade across the land frontier of Tonquin at certain fixed points and to establish Consuls is granted to French subjects; but the conditions under which the trade is to be carried on are to be defined in special regulations which are now being negotiated in China. The Article in regard to the construction of railways by French assistance stipulates that no exclusive privilege is to be constituted in favour of France. Her Majesty's Chargé d'Affaires in China was repeatedly instructed, at the time when the Treaty was being negotiated, to claim for this country, under the Most-Favoured Nation Clause of our Treaty, any such special privileges as might be granted to French subjects. He has made representations accordingly, and is continuing to pay every attention to the negotiations, which are still going on, with a view to secure British subjects any improved facilities which these new regulations may contain. Papers on the subject will be prepared and laid on the Table of the House as soon as possible.

asked the Secretary of State for War, Whether he is aware of the evils and inconveniences resulting from paying the Army Pensioners quarterly, and whether ho will consider the desirability of paying them at shorter intervals, say every month?

It is believed that the great majority of pensioners themselves prefer the present system of quarterly payments. It was found that the men were more apt to squander the monthly small sum than they are to make away with the more appreciable amount received quarterly. There is, of course, a saving in labour, and therefore in ex- pense, to the War Department and the Post Office by the quarterly instead of monthly payment of pensions; and it would require strong evidence of inconvenience or hardship to justify a reversion to the former system.

asked the Secretary for Scotland, What course the Government intend to take with respect to the two vacant Principalships and the vacant Professorship in the University of St. Andrews?

The Government hope, in a few days, to fill up the Principalship of the United College of St. Salvator and St. Leonard and the Physiological Chair at Aberdeen. With regard to the Principalship of St. Mary's College and the vacant Divinity Professorship, to which it has been attached, the Government are considering the obligations under which they are laid by the Report of the Royal Commission of 1878 and their legal position with regard to the recommendations of that Report.

asked the Secretary of State for War, Whether he will take care that the Annual Report of the Inspector General of Recruiting, and also the Preliminary Return of the British Army (presented last year on the 18th of April), may both be presented before the discussion on the Army Estimates is taken?

I hope to pre sent the Report of the Inspector General of Recruiting in the course of a few days. With regard to the preliminary general Annual Return, I will do my best to hasten its completion; but I cannot at present make any promise on the subject.

asked the Under Secretary of State for India, If the Council of India were consulted either by the late or the present Secretary of State on the question of the annexation of Upper Burmah, and if they were agreed in advising that the interests of India demanded the annexation of that Country; or, if not, who were the advisers of the late Secretary of State who expressed that opinion?

The orders on the subject to which the hon. Member refers were given by the late Secretary of State under the special powers by which the Secretary of State can deal with certain questions without submitting them to the Council. With regard to any other advisers, I must refer him to the late Secretary of State.

asked if they were to understand that the Council of India had not been consulted by either the late or the present Indian Secretary?

said, he had already answered the Question in regard to the late Secretary of State. As to the present Secretary of State, he reminded the hon. Gentleman that the annexation took place before he came into Office.

asked the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Whether, considering the importance of the subject, the Government will lay upon the Table of this House the Return on the subject of Allotments and Small Holdings, which has been promised by the Lord President of the Council to the House of Lords?

in reply, said, the Return promised by the Lord President of the Council to the House of Lords would be laid on the Table of the House of Commons also.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Is the Postmaster General taking any further steps to induce the French Government to complete the connecting link for the parcels post between France and England, the system being in operation in the two countries?

The Postmaster General is in active communication with the French Postal Administration as to the proposed Parcels Post between this country and France. Some questions of difficulty have presented themselves, which, however, it is hoped, will be shortly adjusted. In any event, before a Parcel Post Convention can be brought into operation it will have to be submitted to the French Chambers for ratification.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether it is the intention of the Government to take efficient steps to carry out the recommendations of the Royal Commission on the Pollution of the Thames by the outfalls at Barking Creek and Crossness?

This question has been repeatedly under the consideration of the Metropolitan Board, who have charge of the sewerage of London. They have not yet finally reported to me their conclusions; but I will press the Board for an early answer.

asked whether the right hon. Gentleman was aware that 6,000 tons of liquid muck were emptied into the Thames every day at these points?

said, that was a calculation he should be slow to accept the responsibility for; but there was ho question that the subject was a serious one.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, If he will now say in what way he proposes to make the further inquiry into the organisation of the Police Force of the Metropolis, which he stated his intention to undertake; and, whether he will engage that no such steps shall be taken until the House has had opportunity of expressing an opinion on the Report of the Committee now in the hands of Members?

I propose to make my inquiry into the organization of the Police Force by means of a Departmental Com- mittee, over which. I shall myself preside. ["Oh!" and a laugh.] Yes; I am responsible for the organization, and I am not going to throw the responsibility upon others. I have not finally settled the names of the Committee; but, in all probability, whoever may be the new Chief Commissioner will be one. I also hope to have the assistance of Mr. Pemberton, now Assistant Under Secretary at the Home Office, and long a Member of this House, and of Mr. Pennefather, whose financial experience in police matters will be of great service to me. Perhaps I may be allowed to say, when on the point of instituting this inquiry, how much I regret the absence of the late Chief Commissioner, Sir Edmund Henderson, whose lengthened experience and intimate knowledge of the details of police administration would have been invaluable upon such an inquiry. I am afraid I do not quite understand the words "such steps" in the second Question. I shall certainly undertake this inquiry without waiting for any particular debate in this House. To-morrow my hon. Friend the Member for Shoreditch (Mr. James Stuart) has the first place on the Motion for Supply, and proposes to call attention to this subject. If Notice of a serious Motion be placed upon the Table, it will be sufficient time to consider whether any facilities would be required for its discussion.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether, on the Motion which he has mentioned as coming on to-morrow, we shall have the opportunity of discussing the Ro-port of the Special Committee, and the conduct of the right hon. Gentleman himself in this matter?

The only answer I can give is that the hon. Gentleman, if he wishes to discuss either the Report or my conduct, will be able to do so on the Motion of the hon. Member for Shoreditch.

Is there any objection to placing Sir Edmund Henderson on the Committee?

It would hardly be right that a gentleman who has just retired or is just retiring from the Public Service should be asked to sit on the Committee; but means will be found, no doubt, of obtaining the advantage of Colonel Henderson's experience.

asked the Surveyor General of the Ordnance, Whether it is the case, as stated in The Pall Mall Gazette of February 22nd, that the wages of the workwomen employed in the Army Clothing Factory at Pimlico have been reduced 25 per cent, in the last year?

asked whether it is the fact, as currently reported, that the women in the factory referred to were working at starvation wages; and whether ho will give a Return showing the number of workers whose wages were respectively below and above 10s. per week in the week ending February 12?

I shall be happy to give the Returns, and to include in them all the information I can. The statement referred to in the first Question is not accurate. The average wages of the women employed in the Army Clothing Factory during 1884 amounted to 15s. 8d. a week of actual earnings. The average for 1885 was 15s. 8½d. The corresponding average for the four weeks ending February 17 last was 17s. 1½d. Perhaps the numbers at different rates of wages will make the comparison more intelligible. In 1881 and 1885 respectively there were employed in all 1,259 and 1,399 women. Of these, 231 and 262 received respectively less than 10s. a week; 752 and 805 from 10s. to £1 a week; 254 and 291 from 20s. to 30s. a week; and 22 and 41 respectively over 30s. a week. I may add that certain Memorials and representations have been addressed to the Secretary of State concerning the general administration of the clothing factory, to which I am giving my own very careful attention.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, If it is the intention of the Government to introduce, at an early date, a Bill dealing with the acquisition of the London Water Companies, so long looked forward to by the people of London?

I am fully alive to the great importance of this question; but I think the question of the acquisition of the London Water Companies' property cannot be dissociated from the larger question of the government of London, as to which I hope to be able to make a statement in a few weeks.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, Whether the Treasury, in the month of June last, intimated their willingness to aid undertakings under the Tramways (Ireland) Act by loans to be made through the Irish Board of Works, and the West Clare Railway Company applied in the same month for a loan on the security of shares having dividends guaranteed in perpetuity by the county of Clare; has the granting of this loan been delayed by the Board of Works down to the present time, although the adequacy of the proposed security is not questioned; has the result of this delay been that the works of the Railway had been partially suspended about two months ago, by which several hundred men were thrown out of employment; whether representations have reached the Government that great distress exists in the district; and, whether they will cause the Board of Works to hasten the completion of this loan, and enable the works to be resumed, which will give large and immediate employment where it is now so badly wanted?

said, that serious legal difficulties had arisen in the way of granting to the West Clare Railway Company the loan for which they applied on the security offered by them. The Board of Public Works had had every desire to facilitate in every way in their power the advance of the loan, in order that the works might not be stopped, and that the railway might be completed and opened for traffic. Their Surveyor was now on the spot, and it was hoped that in the course of a few days his Report would be received, and such arrangements made as would enable the works, a portion of which only were suspended, to be resumed.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, The names of the Australasian Colonies that have declined to join the Postal Union; is he aware that French mail steamers convey ten centime or one penny postal cards from France via Australia to New Caledonia; and, whether he will take steps to introduce penny postal cards between England and Australia in the interests of poor emigrants and their friends?

The Australian Colonies were all represented at the Postal Union Congress which was held at Lisbon last year; and after considering the conditions on which they could be admitted into the Union they all declined to join for the present. It is true, as the hon. Member states, that postcards can be forwarded from France to New Caledonia for a postage of 10 centimes, or 1d. each. Pending admission of the Australian Colonies into the Postal Union, it has not been considered desirable to extend the postcard system from this country to Australia. No such arrangement could take place without the previous concurrence of the Colonies concerned; and, looking at the reduction of postage which would be involved by the introduction of 1d. postcards, it is by no means certain that they would acquiesce in any such arrangement.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether his attention has been called to language used in the north of Ireland, on Monday last, by a Member of this House, the late Secretary of State for India, to the following effect:—

"In the north the great privileges you possess are worth defending, are worth demonstrating for, and, by Heaven, it may he they are worth fighting for. I do not myself fear that so heavy a trial could be put upon you, but I impress upon you to keep the organisation in perfect readiness;"

and, whether he intends to prosecute the author of these words under the same Act which has been put in force with regard to the London Socialists?

From no want of respect to the hon. Member who made the speech, but simply from want of time on my part, I have not properly read that speech so as to appreciate the whole of it. But the speech itself to which the hon. Member refers, and the language to which he objects, was not delivered in England; and, therefore, it is no part of my duty to consider its character in the aspect suggested by the Question.

I beg to give Notice that if no action is taken in this matter-by the Government, I shall take the earliest opportunity open to me to move a Resolution to the effect that this House particularly regrets and condemns the public employment, by a Member of this House who has held high Office under the Crown and who continues to hold the Office of a Privy Councillor, of language designed to intimidate this House, and to excite bodies of persons in Ireland to the use of arms, in defiance of the will of this House and in opposition to the authority of the Crown.

I beg to give Notice, with regard to the Notice of Motion just now given by the hon. Member for Sligo, that if it should appear on the Faper to-morrow I shall ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether he will afford a very early day for its discussion?

asked the Secretary of State for War, Whether it is a fact that the War Office have sent orders to the Royal Small Arms Factory at Enfield to the effect that the number of workmen will be reduced by 300 on the 1st of April, thus throwing a large number of men out of employment during the time of the present prevailing distress?

No such order has been given. The number of workmen employed in a Government factory must, of course, depend on the money voted by parliament for the produce of that factory. The Vote to be asked for Enfield for next year's service is at present under consideration.

asked the First Lord of the Treasury, Whether his attention has been called to the attempt by the Salters' Company, the Ironmongers' Company, and other London Companies to make sale of their Derry estates; and, if the Government propose to do anything to prevent these Corporations making away with their property before the question can be legislatively dealt with?

I understand that in a very short time a Bill will be introduced by my right hon. Friend, whose Department it concerns, on the subject to which this Question refers, and which would embrace such cases as are mentioned in the Question. The further Question, whether that Bill can be extended to retrospective proceedings, is one which I am not so well able to answer at the present moment, not having a precise knowledge of the character of those proceedings.

Would the right hon. Gentleman kindly permit me to ask this Question—Whether his attention has been drawn to a recent notice issued by the agent of the Salters' Company in the following words:—

"On being informed that you had refused to complete the purchase of your farm I consulted the Worshipful Company of Salters. I am now desired to give you notice that if the necessary steps to complete he not taken within one fortnight from this date, proceedings will he taken in the High Court of Chancery in Ireland to compel specific performance of your agreement to purchase, and that this notice will be used to fix you with the costs of such proceedings."

I am cognizant of the document which the hon. and learned Gentleman has quoted; but the answer I have previously given will, I think, convey a perfect and distinct intimation to the Companies concerned as to the intention of the Government.

asked the First Lord of the Treasury, Whether Her Majesty's Government propose to give any legislative effect to the opinion recently expressed by the House on the subject of small holdings and allotments?

In the debate to which this Question refers it was, I think, fully understood by the House, and was stated expressly by myself and others, that the preliminary condition of giving effect in any manner to the idea contained in the Motion would be the establishment of a thoroughly efficient local government. When Her Majesty's Government are able to propose to the House their Local Government Bill they will consider what steps they can properly take in the direction of the Motion which was carried on the occasion referred to.

asked the First Lord of the Treasury, Whether he is correctly reported as having declared on 22nd February that—

"Her Majesty's Government are very desirous to see the authority of the Crown in Ireland restored to that full state of efficiency which it enjoys in England and Scotland;"

and, if so, whether Her Majesty's Government have taken or are taking effectual steps to put an end forthwith to so alarming a state of affairs as is implied in this confession that the authority of the Crown is in a definite degree in abeyance in Ireland?

I thought that this Question had been answered by me more than once. With regard to the words ascribed to me, I have no complaint whatever to make of the report of my words. I have no doubt of their substantial accuracy. I considered, and still consider, that the efficiency of the authority of the Crown in any portion of Her Majesty's Dominions must be measured by the degree of fulness with which the Judicial and Administrative Departments of the Government attain the end for which they are appointed in the protection of personal liberty, property, and life. Well, Sir, I have stated more than once, and I apprehend it cannot be denied, that, in the opinion of Her Majesty's Government, the question of social order in Ireland requires close attention, and we are engaged in considering by what means we can obtain remedies for the existing state of things.

asked the First Lord of the Treasury, If it is in accordance with the invitation conveyed in his letter of the 12th instant to Lord De Vesci, seeking information in reference to the wants and wishes of the Irish people, that Lord De Vesci, through his agent Mr. Fitzherbert, has been trying to compel his labourers and small tenants to sign a document protesting against Home Rule for Ireland, and, at the same time, compelling those labourers who signed the paper to remit a portion of their week's wages in order to pay expenses?

In regard to the first part of the Question, the object of my letter to Lord de Vesci was to make it known, for the purpose of obviating possible misapprehensions, that I should be very glad to receive information of the wants and wishes of the people of Ireland from those best qualified to describe them, quite irrespective of parties or opinions. I do not see the connection between the object of that letter and the report which the Question recites. I am aware of no such proceeding on the part of Lord de Vesci or his agent. I have never known Lord de Vesci except in the character of a most humane, kind, and estimable man; and I should be very slow indeed to credit without evidence any report to a contrary effect. I have no information supporting the report here mentioned; and I do not find, upon telegraphic inquiry, that the Government of Ireland are in possession of any such information.

in rising to move—

"That the Orders of the Day subsequent to the Order for the Committee on the Land Registry Bill [Lords] he postponed until after the Notice of Motion for the introduction of a Bill relating to Crofters in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland,"

said, that when they approached 10 o'clock the Government would ask the House to report Progress, in order to enable his right hon. Friend the Secretary for Scotland to bring forward his Motion.