§ MR. WILLIAM REDMOND (Fermanagh, N.)asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether his attention has been called to the Correspondence between the Lord Chancellor of Ireland and Mr. Frank Brooke, J. P., in which the Lord Chancellor called on Mr. Brooke for an explanation of the following language, used by him at a meeting held at Brook-borough on the 16th March:—
Brother Orangemen, if England spurns us from her then, and if by the vote of the men who are tied hand and foot to Gladstone's chariot wheels and who would follow him to——sooner than vote against him, if I say by these votes Home Rule is granted to the Parnellite rebels, then I say England scorns us, and we must let her know with no uncertain sound that we, the loyal minority, will not allow the rebels to place their yoke around our necks, at least without a struggle, and before accepting their law as the law of the land we will rise as one man, and fight for our liberties, our homes, and our glorious religion;whether Mr. Brooke acknowledged that this was in every respect an accurate report of what he said on the occasion, and declared that he was unable to withdraw or qualify a single statement, at the same time saying that while he admitted as a general rule citizens were bound to yield obedience to the legislative and executive authority, that he also held that in exceptional cases that authority might be such as to make "resistance" to its power a "right, if not a duty;" whether the Lord Chancellor has intimated that he did not feel called upon to take further action in the case; and, whether the Government will take any steps to mark their condemnation of Mr. Brooke's language as a magistrate?
§ MR. JOHNSTON (Belfast, S.)Before the Question is answered, allow me to ask the Chief Secretary, whether, considering that the matter has been already disposed of by the Lord Chancellor, he will not postpone any further action on the subject, and leave it to be settled between the Parnellite Parliament and the hon. Gentleman who asks the Question?
§ THE CHIEF SECRETARY (Mr. JOHN MORLEY) (Newcastle-on-Tyne)No, Sir; I think I had better deal with it now. I think that everybody—hon. Members 198 in all parts of the House—must feel very strong disapprobation indeed at the language used by Mr. Brooke. That gentleman, however, in his letter to the Lord Chancellor, practically disclaimed any intention to counsel resistance to any measure now before Parliament; and, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, we do not think it necessary or expedient to have recourse to the extreme measure of removing him from the Commission of the Peace.