§ MR. ONSLOWasked the Undersecretary of State for India, Whether Her Majesty's Government are in possession of any documents which directly or indirectly corroborate the statement conveyed in a conversation of the 22nd of October, 1879, between Sir Frederick Roberts and Yakoob Khan, in which the latter asserted that his father, Shere Ali, being dissatisfied with the result of the visit of Nur Mahomed Shah to Lord Northbrook in 1873, "began to turn his attention to the thoughts of a Russian alliance;" and, if so, whether Her Majesty's Government will now or at some future time lay those Papers on the Table of the House?
§ MR. E. STANHOPESir, I am afraid I shall not be able to give a very satisfactory answer to the Question of my hon. Friend. He will, I am quite sure, see that if I were to give any information as to what this Correspondence does or does not contain it might as well be produced at once, and it has been decided not at present, at any rate, to produce it.