§ SIR GEORGE GREYsaid, the intentions of the late Government did not appear to him to be sufficiently explained with regard to the Roman Catholic University in the Memorandum of the Chief Secretary for Ireland which had lately been laid on the table. In order to bring out their views more clearly, he would beg to put the Question of which he had given Notice. With reference to the statement contained in the Memorandum laid before the House in the Correspondence relative to the proposed charter for a Roman Catholic University, that the charter, the draft of which was under the consideration of the late Government, was a charter for the Roman Catholic University, to ask, Whether the attention of the Chief Secre- 715 tary, when preparing that Memorandum, was drawn to the express statements contained in the Letters of the 10th January and 14th February, 1866, from the then Secretary of State, that the charter asked for was understood to be for a College only and not for a University; and that Her Majesty's late Government proposed to remedy the grievance complained of, not by advising the grant of a charter to a Roman Catholic University, but by the other means therein described?
THE EARL OF MAYOI am glad, Sir, the right hon. Baronet has called the attention of the House to this subject, as there has been some misapprehension in regard to it. As I understand it, the proposal made by the late Government was that, either by the creation of a new University or by the alteration of the Queen's University, an institution should be created which should have the power of affiliating Colleges other than the Queen's Colleges to itself; and it was proposed to the Government to grant a charter to the Roman Catholic University College in Dublin, the draft of which charter was submitted by the Government to the Roman Catholic prelates. Now, that, I admit, is not clearly set forth in the Memorandum, as the word "College" was inadvertently omitted after the word "University." I am quite ready to admit that the words in my Memorandum have reference to the proposal of the late Government to grant a charter to the Roman Catholic University College in Dublin.
§ SIR GEORGE GREYsaid, there was no mistake as to the first part of the statement; but the noble Lord had not quite correctly stated the intentions of the late Government, which were expressed verbally and in correspondence.
§ MR. MAGUIREsaid, he wished to ask what were the intentions of the present Government?