§ Sir J. Newportenquired if the right hon. gentleman the Secretary of State for the Home Department, would have any objection to produce the documents on which he founded his assertion, that persons educated at the college of Maynooth had employed undue means to make proselytes, particularly in the north of Ireland, to the Roman Catholic persuasion?
Mr. Secretary Ryderanswered, that the expression he had employed in the debate upon this subject had been misunderstood and misrepresented. He had not stated, that he had any reason to believe that persons educated at Maynooth had employed any undue means to propagate their religion. He had no hesitation in repeating what he had said upon that occasion, which was, that he wished the institution had never existed, as it had afforded the means of spreading Catholicism in districts where the Protestant faith had before been prevalent. On this account he had resisted the extension of the grant.
§ Sir J. Newportadded, that he had taken down the words employed by the right hon. gentleman at the time, and they were," that individuals educated at the college of Maynooth had made use of the facilities they there obtained to propagate by undue means the Catholic religion."
§ The Speakerobserved, that it was contrary to order for any member to refer to expressions employed by any member on a former debate, as a ground for calling for documents to prove the veracity or falsity of the assertion.
§ Sir J. Newportthen gave notice, that tomorrow he would move for any documents on which the right hon. gentleman had founded his assertion.