§ MR. CONWAY (Leitrim, N.)asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether an emergency man, named. Lennox, in the employment of George Hewson, of Dromahair, County Leitrim, was charged, in the early part of April, at Drumkeerin, with writing threatening letters; whether the said letters were directed respectively to his employer and to himself; whether Lennox personally complained to the police; whether police asked to be furnished with copies of letters by Lennox, with the result that Lennox was charged with being the writer of the originals; whether a primâ facie case was made out by the police against Lennox; whether his employer declined to proceed against him, with the result that, on the 15th April, 1887, Lennox was discharged; whether the Government will take up the prosecution; and, whether the so-called threatening letters were reported by the police, and formulated in the return of crime for the quarter ending 31st March, 1887?
§ THE PARLIAMENTARY UNDER SECRETARY (Colonel KING-HARMAN) (Kent, Isle of Thanet)(who replied) said: Lennox, who is not an emergency man, but a caretaker, employed by Mr. Hewson, reported to the police that he had received a threatening letter. The letter was addressed to himself. No letter was received by Mr. Hewson. The police tested Lennox's handwriting, and came to the conclusion that he had probably written the letter. The evidence, however, was not sufficient to establish a case; and, under the circumstances, Lennox was discharged. Mr. Hewson had nothing whatever to do with the 949 case, which was entirely in the hands of the police. The case occurring near the end of the quarter, was at first included in the Return of Outrages for that quarter; but, as the result of the subsequent investigation, steps were taken to cancel the record, a note of which will appear in the April Return.