§ MR. BRADLAUGH (Northampton)asked the Under Secretary of State for India, Whether he will state the tenour of the document communicated to Messrs. Streeter with reference to the Ruby Mines of Burmah, and the names of the several persons who have applied for permission to visit the mines, the dates of their several applications, and the respective grounds stated for each such application, and the date and tenour of the reply in each case; why permission was granted in one case and withheld in others; and who is the person responsible for the permission granted to the representatives of Messrs. Streeter?
§ THE UNDERR SECRETARY OF STATE (Sir JOHN GORST) (Chatham)The Secretary of State is not in possession of such official information as is necessary to enable me to reply to the detailed inquiries of the hon. Member. He has, therefore, referred to India for a full Report upon, the matters in question.
§ MR. BRADLAUGHasked, whether the hon. and learned Gentleman could give him any information of which the Government were now in possession, whether official or officious?
§ SIR JOHN GORSTsaid, that he did not like in a matter of that kind, which appeared to be of a controversial character, to make any statement unless it was supported by official information.
§ MR. BRADLAUGHasked, whether the hon. and learned Gentleman meant, by the term "controversial," that he had any reason to modify any answers that he had already given on this subject?
§ SIR JOHN GORSTI am afraid that I cannot answer that Question without Notice.
§ MR. BRADLAUGHsaid, he would like to know from the right hon. Gentleman the First Lord of the Treasury, whether, as the question could only be raised on the Indian Budget, and as he (Mr. Bradlaugh) had reason to suppose that many of the answers which had already been given were not in accordance with the facts which were now known, the right hon. Gentleman would give him some opportunity of permitting the question to be raised, seeing that it implied serious misrepresentation by the Home Government, or serious misconduct on the part of the officials in Burmah?
§ THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. W. H. SMITH) (Strand, Westminster)I must ask the hon. Member to be good enough to give me Notice of the Question, as I have no information which justifies me in giving an answer which might appear to imply agreement on my part with the views of the hon. Member.
§ MR. BRADLAUGHsaid, he should like to know whether the hon. and learned Gentleman the Under Secretary of State for India could give a similar assurance to that of the right hon. Gentleman, or, indeed, any information on the subject?
§ SIR JOHN GORSTAs the hon. Member has appealed to me, I can only say that there is no foundation whatever for the implication involved in the Question put to the right hon. Gentleman by the hon. Member.
§ MR. BRADLAUGHgave Notice that, inasmuch as the answers which had been given on the part of the Government were unsatisfactory, unless within a reasonable time the Government were 1075 in a position to make a complete statement as to the contracts with reference to the Ruby Mines, he should take such means as were in his power to raise a discussion on the subject.