§ MR. SERJEANT SIMON (for Mr. WADDY), asked the honourable Member for Stoke, If he can state to the House the names of the Members who have refused to present Petitions referring to the trial of the Queen v. Castro, and the number of Petitions that have been so refused; and, whether, after such refusal, any or all of those Petitions have been presented to the House by some other Member?
§ DR. KENEALYI am quite willing, Sir, to answer the Question of the hon. and learned Gentleman, although I think it an invidious one, and repugnant to all gentlemanly feeling, if the House wishes me to do so. I have a list here that has been presented to me of hon. Members who have not presented Petitions. If the House desires me to read that list I will do so. ["Read, read!"] I must premise that I myself have no personal knowledge of the refusal of these hon. Gentlemen to present Petitions. I can only speak on the information that has been furnished to me. I understand that Mr. Walker, Member for East Worcestershire; Sir John Astley, Member for North Lincolnshire; Mr. Birley and Mr. Callender, Members for Manchester; Mr. Fortescue Harrison, Member for Kilmarnock Burghs; Mr. Baillie Cochrane, Member for the Isle of Wight; and Mr. W. E. Forster, Member for Bradford, have refused to present Petitions; the last-named right hon. Gentleman because he doubted whether the terms of the Petition were consistent with the Rules of the House. Whether that be called a refusal or a putting off is not for me to decide. Sir James Elphinstone, Member for Portsmouth; Lord John Manners, Member for North Leicestershire; and the late Mr. Gore-Langton, the Member for West Somer- 1282 setshire, also refused to present Petitions, the latter because he believed the language of the Petition was inconsistent with the Rules of the House. That is an answer to the first Question. With respect to the second, I have to say that I am utterly unable to give an answer to the hon. Member, nor do I think I ought to be expected to give one.
§ MR. W. E. FORSTEROne word of personal explanation. The hon. Member for Stoke stated that he was informed that I refused to present a Petition, but with the qualification that I would only present it in case it was not contrary to the Rules of the House. What is the fact—and I can give the hon. Member proof of that—is that when I was asked to present a Petition having the object to which he alludes, I distinctly stated that I would present any Petition from any of my constituents provided it was in accordance with the Rules of the House.