§ MR. WILLIAM O'BRIEN (Tyrone, S.)asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Is it a fact that, on Saturday night last, a stone was flung into the shop of Miss Fearon, newsagent, Portadown, and two panes of plate glass broken; has Miss Fearon's house been repeatedly attacked and her life threatened unless she ceased to exhibit the cartoons of the Nationalist papers in her shop window; was a stone or bullet fired through the window on the night of the 22nd February last; was another stone flung into the shop on the evening of 18th February, and a Mr. M'Intyre, who was standing by the counter, struck; have the police failed to bring the authors of any of these repeated attacks to justice; and, whether adequate police protection will be afforded to Miss Fearon in the exercise of her lawful calling, against the intimidation practised against her?
§ THE CHIEF SECRETARY (Mr. JOHN MORLEY) (Newcastle-on-Tyne), in reply, said, that the police were aware that two stones and a marble were thrown into the shop of Miss Fearon, in whose shop Nationalist newspapers were sold, and that notices were posted cautioning her against exhibiting the cartoons. The police had not heard of the incident of the 18th February mentioned in the Question, and therefore they assumed it had not occurred. The police had instructions to keep watch on the house in their order to detect the guilty parties; but efforts had hitherto been without success.
§ MR. WILLIAM O'BRIENI would draw the attention of the Chief Secretary and the Government to the singular supineness of the authorities in dealing with Orange rowdies, and will ask a Question on that subject.