CAPTAIN WHITEsaid, he would beg to call the attention of the Secretary of State for the Home Department to the decision of the Police Magistrate at Marlborough Street in a recent charge of furious riding in Hyde Park. Colonel Knox, the defendant in the case, was charged with riding furiously in Rotten Row at 7 30 in the morning. The police officer stated that the pace was between ten and eleven miles an hour; but Colonel Knox, on whose word he would place implicit credit, said that he was not riding at the rate of more than eight miles an hour. On the evidence of the police the magistrate convicted Colonel Knox, and inflicted the full penalty of 40s., as much as could have teen inflicted if the riding had occurred in the middle of the afternoon when the Row was thronged with people, assigning the extraordinary reason that it ought not to be objected to, inasmuch as the amount of the fine could matter but little to a gentleman in his position. That might be Marlborough Street justice, but he did not think that it was such, justice as that House would approve. The police constables ought to temper their zeal with discretion. He wished to know, Whether the right hon. Gentleman would cause investigation to be made, with a view of ascertaining whether the Constables exceeded their duty on the occasion in question?
MR. BRUCEsaid, he hardly thought that a matter of this kind ought to be brought before the House. The policemen appeared to have given their evidence in a very temperate manner. The police appointed to prevent furious riding in the Park had been non-commissioned officers in cavalry regiments, and he thought he might appeal to many gentlemen in that House to bear him out in saying that they discharged their duty with great discretion. He quite 1592 agreed with his hon. and gallant Friend that, as a rule, there was a difference between riding rapidly at an early hour in the morning and doing the same thing in the middle of the day, so far as the safety of the public was concerned; but many work-people were in the habit of crossing the Park when going to their work in the morning. He was rather astonished to hear that Colonel Knox was riding on the occasion at a pace of only eight miles an hour, because he had read in the paper that in order to prevent the horse running away with him, Colonel Knox had been obliged to run away with the horse. He did not think it would be the opinion of the House that it was called upon to sit in review on the decision of the magistrate, who happened to be one of the most experienced on the bench.
§ SIR PERCY BURRELLasked, whether there had been any corroboration of the testimony of the policemen?
§ MR. J. LOWTHERsaid, he thought the right hon. Gentleman had mistaken the scope of the hon. and gallant Member's observations. Cases of this kind— persons going eight miles an hour— were of daily occurrence. He thought he had seen the right hon. Gentleman himself riding at a pace of more than eight miles an hour.
§ Motion, by leave, withdrawn.
§ Committee deferred till Monday next.