gested by the Committee. The Committee was appointed to carry out a system which had received the assent of Parliament, and in respect of which a large amount of money had been spent. If the question before them had been an open one, he thought it likely that the Report would not have been in all respects what it was. THE DUKE OF BUCCLEUCH said, as the noble Viscount opposite (Viscount Cardwell) had accused him of a change of opinion on the subject, he wished to explain that, in signing the Report, he had acquiesced in some things with which he did not altogether agree. He did so in the hope that the new system would prove to be successful; but, as the result of practical experience of it, he must say that he was disappointed in that expectation. THE EARL OF GALLOWAY expressed himself satisfied with the discussion he had raised, and would withdraw his Motion. mons) [172]; Inclosure Provisional Order (East Stainmore Common) [174]. Committee Public Health Act (1875) Amendment [33] R.P. Committee-Report-Local Government (Ireland) Provisional Orders (Clonmel, &c.) [166]; Local Government Provisional Orders (Artizans' and Labourers' Dwellings) * [159]; Gas and Water Provisional Orders Confirmation (re-comm.) * [136]; Local Government Provisional Order (Abergavenny) * [137]; Local Government Provisional Orders (Aysgarth Union, &c.) * [142]. Third Reading-Costs Taxation (House of Commons) [190], and passed. * MR. GLADSTONE: I beg to present a Petition from the Bombay branch of the East India Association against charging upon the Revenues of India all Motion (by Leave of the House) with- the expenditure of the Afghan War. A drawn. In summary of their statements on the subject is this-they believe, in the first place, that all Indian opinion is extremely adverse to such a measure. the second place, they consider that the action and policy of Her Majesty's Government in this war has been directly opposed to the spirit and wording of the 56th section of the Government of India Act, and they ask for a disapproval of it by the House. In the third place, they state that the vote by which this expenditure was sanctioned, on the part of Parliament, was principally founded on the allegation of a surplus Revenue of £1,500,000, by which the charge was to be defrayed; but that that surplus does not really exist, and that the Famine Insurance Fund is absorbed. In the fourth place they state that, although the official estimate of the expenses of the war is £3,000,000, the prevalent belief in India is that it will not cost less than £5,000,000; and they finally refer to a declaration, which they conceive to have been made by Members of Her Majesty's Government, to the effect that the war has been made for European, and not for Indian inte rests. Notice taken, that 40 Members were not present; House counted, and 40 Members being found present, included in these Returns, they repreSOUTH AFRICA-THE CIVIL AND MILI- sent less than one-fifth of the wheat TARY COMMANDS.-STATEMENT. grown in England; and, whether he has any grounds for believing that the averages calculated upon this basis fairly represent the prices the grower receives for his wheat? VISCOUNT SANDON: Sir, the subject which is raised by my hon. Friend's Question is a difficult and complicated THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER: Sir, it may be of interest to the House that I should state that, after full consideration of the condition of affairs in South Africa, Her Majesty's Government have decided that the arrangements, under which the chief Civil and Military authority in the neigh-one, and if I were to endeavour to reply bourhood of the seat of war is distri- to it I should be obliged to enter into buted among four different persons, can an argument, and, in fact, to make a no longer be deemed adequate to the speech of some length. I have had a requirements of the present juncture. careful Memorandum prepared by the They have, therefore, decided on ap- Statistical Department of the Board of pointing Sir Garnet Wolseley to the Trade, and I propose to lay it very shortly supreme Civil and Military command in upon the Table of the House, so that I Natal, the Transvaal, and the Native may give my hon. Friend all the inforterritories to the Northward and Eastward mation that I can obtain on this matter, of these Colonies, now the seat of war. respecting which I am aware that very It will be remembered that this district considerable interest is felt. is at a distance of more than 1,000 miles from Cape Town, where, during the approaching Session of the Cape Parliament, Sir Bartle Frere must be engaged on important and pressing affairs. Papers will at once be laid on the Table explaining the precise nature of the change, and the reasons for it. MR. W. E. FORSTER: I did not quite gather from what fell from the right hon. Gentleman whether the Transvaal was to be under the new arrangement or not? THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER: Yes; I said that Sir Garnet Wolseley was to be Governor of Natal and the Transvaal. RIBANDISM (IRELAND).—QUESTIONS. MR. VERNER asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland, If he has seen the statement of Mr. W. Sinclair, of Holy Hill, county of Tyrone, in the " Daily Express" of May 16th, in which that gentleman says― only hope that the late outrage will draw some "Myself detained by illness abroad, I can attention to the general state of the district, which is at present under the absolute rule of a Ribbon Distillery Gang;" and, whether this alleged state of things will be at once investigated and put down? MR. MITCHELL HENRY: Before the right hon. Gentleman replies to the Question, I beg to ask him the Question on the same subject of which I gave him private Notice. It is, Whether he has seen a letter from Mr. Gallaher in the "Londonderry Journal" of the 21st instant, contradicting the statement of Mr. Sinclair, and alleging that the outrage was not a Ribbon outrage, but the result of an Orange conspiracy; and, whether the letter of Mr. Sinclair from Biarritz, in the. South of France, stating that certain districts in the county Tyrone were under the absolute rule of a Ribbon distillery gang, is not a great exaggeration of the circumstances of the illicit distillation which is carried on in the neighbourhood, and which was common in various parts of Ireland just as much amongst Protestants as Catholics? MR. CALLAN also asked, If the Chief MR. J. LOWTHER: I have stated Secretary for Ireland has seen the state- that my impression is derived from the ment of Mr. Patrick Gallaher, of perusal of various reports. This is all Strabane, in the county of Tyrone, in the information I have. the "Londonderry Journal," referring to the letter in the "Daily Express" of Mr. Sinclair, of Holy Hill, county Tyrone, of which Mr. Gallaher states "a more unfair communication was never penned by any man assuming to be a gentleman," and that "If Mr. Sinclair honestly investigated the matter he would find that the perpetrators of the outrage are closely connected with his own place, where there are a number of rabid Orangemen," and "that there was strong evidence to show that it was the work of some members of that blood-stained society;" and, whether Mr. Sinclair made any information of the "stills," of the working of which he found traces on ten different farms on his property, or whether he took any steps whatever to abate that nuisance? upon MR. J. LOWTHER: Sir, my attention has been called to some correspondence conducted through the Irish Press, in which statements and counterstatements of a recriminatory nature have been indulged in. I am not in a position myself to decide which of the contending parties is in fault; but the only point I think I am called to answer is whether at the present time I have reason to believe the district referred to is "under the absolute rule of a Ribbon distillery gang." From the reports I have perused, I believe there is a certain amount of Ribbonism, and I have no doubt there is a good deal of illicit distillation; but as to how far these movements are connected, I must say no evidence has reached me leading me to suppose that both practices are indulged in by the same parties. As regards the steps which it is our intention to take, I can only say the subject is under investigation, and such steps will be taken as are found to be MR. CALLAN said, what he wanted to ask was, Whether these reports were newspaper reports, or authoritative reports from the Constabulary Office; whether they were received from those interested in the preservation of peace and order in the district and the maintenance of the Revenue, or whether they were merely the newspaper reports of insane and rabid individuals? MR. J. LOWTHER: As I have already said, from the various sources of information I had at my command, including official and other reports. MR. CALLAN: But, Sir, what I wish to ascertain-[Cries of" Order!"] MR. SPEAKER: The hon. Gentleman having already had a full Answer, it is not competent for him now to renew the Question. POST OFFICE (TELEGRAPH DEPART MENT)-FEMALE CLERKS. QUESTION. MR. CHAMBERLAIN asked the Postmaster General, Whether it is a fact that the Telegraph Department has ceased to take on female clerks, and that the female branch of the Government Telegraph School has been closed; and, if so, what is the reason for thus excluding women from one of the few opportunities which they have hitherto had of employment in the public service? LORD JOHN MANNERS, in reply, said, the Post Office authorities had no intention of discontinuing female labour in the Telegraph Department. On the contrary, they were constantly extending it, and were favourable to its extension. In consequence, however, of the excessive amount of labour at the principal London offices at night, which could only be satisfactorily done by male clerks, the further appointment of female clerks to these offices had been suspended, until the number of female clerks had been properly adjusted to the requirements of the Service. IRISH CHURCH MISSION-DISTRIBU- aware that a regular centre for the printing and distribution of tracts of the most offensive description exists in Dublin, where, it is announced, they are kept “Stereotyped, and can be had on application, from one copy to a million copies, at cost price, for universal circulation;" whether it has come to his knowledge that in these productions catholic places of worship are styled "mass houses," and catholics are described as worshipping "stone goddesses and wafer gods," whether such statements, offensive to the religious belief of many millions of Her Majesty's subjects, are scattered wholesale in tramcars and Railway carriages, and even in private carriages standing at shop doors, and are flung down areas and thrust into private letterboxes, and into the hands of passengers through the public streets; and, whether it has not been repeatedly reported to the Government by magistrates, clergymen, and respectable persons of all denominations that such practices are a cause of deep pain to honourable Protestants, and highly calculated to provoke to breaches of the peace among an earnestly Catholic people. MR. J. LOWTHER: Sir, with respect to the two first paragraphs of the Question of the hon. Gentleman, the facts are as he has stated them. With reference to the third, I understand that these documents have been circulated pretty generally, but no intimation has ever been conveyed which would authorize me to affirm that they have been circulated in the way referred to. As to the fourth part of the Question, I cannot say that any reports have reached me on the subject; but, since public attention has recently been called to it, I have received certain communicationsamongst others, I may say, from the secretary and other persons responsible for the conduct of the Irish Church Mission, in which they certainly do express themselves very much in the manner that the hon. Gentleman does, in so far as he says that these practices were the cause of giving pain to honourable Protestants; but, beyond that, no communications have been made to the Government. As to the last few words of the Question, no information has reached me that leads me to suppose that those practices are calculated to provoke a breach of the peace. Mr. O'Donnell MR. O'DONNELL asked Mr. Attorney General for Ireland, Why, since in Scotland outrages upon the religious belief of a section of Her Majesty's subjects can be prevented and punished by the Law, a similar protection has not yet been extended to the Catholic people of Ireland? THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. GIBSON): Sir, the expression, "outrages upon religious belief," is somewhat indefinite, and might be used to describe events differing very widely from each other. The reply of the Lord Advocate to a Question put a few days since by the hon. Member with reference to certain occurrences at Dun dee was, no doubt, justified by the facts and circumstances of that particular case. Indeed, it is obvious that all such cases, wherever they occur, must be decided on their own special facts and cir cumstances. I have no doubt that the law of England and Ireland, in the event of occurrences causing riots or breaches of the peace, would be found amply sufficient to protect all sections of Her Majesty's subjects, no matter what their religion might be. PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS-HAD DINGTON BURGHS.-QUESTION. MR. HOPWOOD asked the Lord Advocate, Whether his attention has been directed to an article in the "Scotsman newspaper of the 14th instant, making among other statements the following: "No doubt exists in the Haddington Burghs, and there would be little difficulty in procuring evidence of the fact, that money was spent in the assumed interest of the Conservative candidate in corrupt practices. It is notorious and easily susceptible of proof, that drink was sup plied freely to voters in Haddington, Jedburgh, Dunbar, and North Berwick. In the case of the Haddington Burghs there was, beyond doubt, a deliberate conspiracy to debauch the constituency. It has been pointed out above that the law has been broken by the Conservative agents in at least three important particulars, and that for such breaches certain penalties are specified. If, after this, the officials who are responsible for the vindication of the law do not take prompt measures for bringing the offenders and culpable neglect of duty; to justice, they will be open to a charge of gross whether he can inform the House that the Procurator Fiscal is making the inquiry which is usual when information reaches him that a breach of law has with the Government of India and procure that Despatch in its entirety with a view to its publication in the "London Gazette," where only an extract, omitting the names of officers, has yet appeared? been committed; and, if not, whether the Peiwar Kotal, he will communicate he will direct that the Procurator Fiscal discharge his duty in the matter? THE LORD ADVOCATE (Mr. WATSON): Sir, I have made inquiry with regard to these matters, and I have not obtained any information to warrant a prosecution for any of the offences mentioned in the Question of the hon. Member. I desire further to say that it is exceedingly inconvenient and very difficult to deal with general accusations of this kind, such as are bandied about in times of excitement during an election. It is quite open to anyone to lay specific information before the Officers of the Crown; persons are protected by privilege in doing so, and whenever such information is given, a full investigation will be made. AFRICA (WEST COAST) — TREATIES MR. ASHBURY asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether, considering the existing state of trade on the West Coast of Africa, and especially in those rivers known as the "Oil Rivers," it is contemplated to extend the treaties, and thus permit British traders to establish stations beyond the present Treaty limits, by which means they will obtain direct intercourse with the natives of the interior? MR. BOURKE, in reply, said, the British Consul on the West Coast had general instructions to make Treaties with the Native Chiefs wherever he could see the possibility of extending British trade. In regard to the Brass River, it had been thought unadvisable to make Treaties with the Chiefs in the interior, as we already had Treaties with those at the mouth of the river, and any relations come to with those in the interior would be likely to disturb the friendly arrangements already existing. AFGHANISTAN-THE WAR-GENERAL SPATCH.-QUESTION. MR. E. STANHOPE, in reply, said, the practice of publishing subordinate officers' reports of military occurrences having been carried to a great excess, the Government of India had decided that for the future the duty of reporting on actions and campaigns should rest solely on the General Commanding-inChief, who was responsible for their conduct in every particular. He was afraid, therefore, he could not undertake to produce that to which the hon. and gallant Member referred. EDUCATION (SCOTLAND) ACT—BARVAS (ISLAND OF LEWIS) SCHOOL BOARD. QUESTION. MR. FRASER-MACKINTOSH asked the Lord Advocate, Whether his attention has been called to the fact that four persons were recently imprisoned at the instance of the School Board of Barvas, in the Island of Lewis, under the provisions of the Education (Scotland) Act, for neglecting to send their children to school; and, whether the defence they stated, that the children were attending a school maintained by the Gaelic School Society, in which reading, writing, and arithmetic were taught, was not a good defence in law to the proceedings taken against them? THE LORD ADVOCATE (Mr. WATSON): Sir, my attention was called to this matter by the hon. Member; but I have not yet been able to get full information on the subject, and, therefore, I am not in a position to say whether the facts are as stated or not. I may state, however, that if reading, writing, and arithmetic are efficiently taught in the Gaelic Society's school, and the children of these parents were in actual attendance, this would form a perfectly good defence to any prosecution under the Education Act. SONERS-ALLEGED BARBARITIES. GENERAL SHUTE asked the Under Secretary of State for India, Whether, FIJI - EXECUTION OF NATIVE PRIin justice to those officers who were mentioned in General Roberts' Supplementary Despatch as having distinguished themselves in the front attack made by Brigadier General Cobbe's Brigade on QUESTION. MR. A. MOORE asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies, Whether it is |