§ SIR THOMAS BATESONasked the First Lord of the Treasury, Why the proposed Vote for the purchase of Plate to be presented to certain of the Arbitrators in the Geneva Award has been postponed until this late period of the Session; whether he will inform the House as to the exact day on which he intends to bring forward this Vote; whether any steps have yet been taken with reference to the purchase or selection of the Plate in question; and, if so, what steps; and, further, whether a sum of £15,000 was not voted by Parliament last year to meet the expenses in connection with the Arbitration?
MR. GLADSTONEI am extremely sorry, Sir, that I was prevented by an imperative call from being in the House when my hon. Friend the Member for Devizes put the Question down before. The first part of the Question is very easy to answer. It is intended, as my hon. Friend knows, to submit a Vote for the purpose of purchasing plate, to be presented to the Arbitrators, and that Vote will be submitted at a convenient and proper period. [Laughter.] mean to say it will be submitted at a 1557 period when it can be conveniently considered by the House, which I have no doubt is my hon. Friend's object; but it is not usual when charges of this kind, limited in amount and of secondary importance, have to be brought forward after the presentation of the ordinary Estimates, nor would it be very convenient to the House to present them one by one. It is more convenient, and certainly according to the usual practice, to wait till the Government can see its way tolerably clear to bring them up with any small group of such charges which it may be their duty to propose to the House, and very shortly we shall be in a condition to do that. I cannot name a day when the Estimate will be proposed, but it will be laid on the Table with certain other charges of no great importance at a very early period. Steps have been taken with reference to the purchase and selection of the Plate in question. This was a case in which, the proceedings not depending entirely upon the action of the Government of this country, we did not, as we should probably otherwise have done, take the opinion of the House of Commons before any step was taken in the matter. The initiative was, in fact, taken at a very early period, as I think the House was informed some time ago, by the Government of the United States; and it would not have been becoming, I think, that the Government of this country should say, in a matter of this description, that they could not make any answer till they had had an opportunity of submitting the proposal to Parliament. It was not necessary to reserve the judgment of Parliament expressly in such a matter; but, of course, the judgment of Parliament is perfectly free. However, I may say that steps have been taken for the selection of the Plate in question, and if my hon. Friend asks what step, I believe the usual step—namely, that of ordering it. With regard to the amount voted by Parliament last year in connection with the Arbitration, owing to some accident, reference has not been made to the proceedings, but no doubt my hon. Friend is correct in regard to the amount.
§ SIR THOMAS BATESONThen, Sir, I beg to give Notice that on an early day I will ask the Prime Minister, Whether he, as First Minister of the Crown, considers it consistent with his 1558 duty to the constituency he represents, as well as to the Nation at large, thus secretly to expend sums of money unknown to Parliament, and without having previously obtained the sanction of the Representatives of the people?