§ MR. MAURICE HEALY (Cork)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he has seen the Report of the proceedings at the Rathmore (County Kerry) Petty Sessions on the 14th instant, from which it appears that a number of men were charged with having assaulted the police, and that two of the police assaulted (Constables O'Connor and Lett), who were at the time carrying rifles, admitted that they had been drinking previous to the occurrence; whether the two policemen, Burns and Cullinane, concerned in the disturbance at Timoleague, County Cork, on the 3rd of September last, in which Daniel Donohoe lost his life by a revolver shot fired by Constable Cullinane, also admitted that they had been drinking previous to the occurrence; whether his attention has been called to the increasing frequency of cases of this kind, pointing to the spread of drinking habits among the Irish police; and, whether the rule which formerly existed, prohibiting constables from drinking or visiting public houses while on 1634 duty, is still in force; and, if not, when and why it was abrogated?
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURThe case referred to in the first paragraph is sub judice, having been adjourned to the 30th instant. With regard to the general allegation as to increase of drunkenness amongst the Royal Irish Constabulary, the Inspector General informs mo that, having given special attention to this point, he is able testate that offences of this kind have, during recent years, very much declined. It is at present, and always has been, a strict rule of the Service that men should not enter a public house when on duty, unless the duty itself requires their presence.