HC Deb 24 June 1867 vol 188 cc428-9
MR. HORSMAN

said, he wished to know, Whether the right hon. Baronet the Secretary of State for War is prepared to offer any explanation of the conduct of the Volunteers at Birmingham during the late riots in addition to the statement which the right hon. Gentleman made a few evenings ago?

SIR JOHN PAKINGTON

said, he was glad to have an opportunity of offering an explanation upon that subject, and of doing justice to the conduct of Major Ratcliff, who had acted as the representative of the Volunteers upon that occasion. The paragraph which had appeared in The Times newspaper, and which formed the foundation of the Question which had been addressed to him by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Stroud, the other evening, was, he was happy to learn, altogether erroneous. Major Ratcliff had called upon him at the War Office, and informed him that there was at Birmingham a large room called Bingley Hall, which was used as a store for the arms of the large Volunteer force in that town; and that officer, having received a communication from the magistrates, warning him that if any disturbance were to take place it would be well to adopt precautions for the safety of those arms, collected about 100 of the Volunteers at the hall, where they appeared without uniform, and where they strictly confined themselves to the duty of watching over their arms. Major Ratcliff, in a subsequent communication, had given the following facts:— I remained in the Hall day and night until I was satisfied immediate danger had ceased. The Birmingham battalion is one of the largest in the Kingdom, and I had under my charge and in the Hall upwards of 1,200 rifles, which I was bound to protect, and for that purpose alone were we on duty. Allow me also to state that on two occasions on Tuesday a Roman Catholic Priest was at Bingley Hall to implore assistance, as he had been informed that his chapel, which was in the immediate neighbourhood, would be attacked, and it was about eleven o'clock on Tuesday night I last saw him. I then distinctly informed him we were only in the building guarding our rifles, and we could not leave the Hall. He then said, 'Surely, if my chapel were attacked you would render assistance?' I again repeated it was impossible in the capacity of Volunteers, as on no consideration could we interfere without proper authority. The House would be satisfied, he thought, that Major Ratcliff had only performed his duty.