Commons Sitting of 7 August 1874

Preamble
The House met at half after Two of the clock.
CONTROVERTED ELECTIONS—WIGTOWN DISTRICT OF BURGHS.
Mr. SPEAKERinformed the House, that he had received from Lord Neaves, one of the Judges for the time being for the trial of Election Petitions in Scotland, pursuant to the Parliamentary Elections Act, 1868, a Certificate relating to the Election for the Wigtown District of Burghs, to the effect that Mark John Stewart was duly elected and returned as Member of Parliament for the said Wigtown District of Burghs.
ARMY—KILMATNHAM HOSPITAL.

  QUESTION.
  SIR JOHN GRAYasked the Secretary of State for War, If he received any report from the medical or other officers of the Kilmainham Hospital, Dublin, respecting the recent outbreak of typhoid fever in that institution, and its supposed origin; and, if not, will he cause an inquiry to be instituted, and a report to be made, as to the number of cases of typhoid fever that occurred in the hospital this year, the class of residences in which they occurred, the opinion of the medical officer, Dr. Carte, and of the medical gentlemen who were consulted as to the immediate cause of the outbreak, and place such report upon the Table of this House for the information of the sanitary authorities of the Kingdom?
  MR. GATHORNE HARDY, in reply, said, the Reports relating to the Hospital were not laid before the War Office, but before the Commanding Officer in Ireland. A communication would be made on the subject to the Commanding Officer, who, he had no doubt, would furnish the desired information, and he anticipated there would be no objection to laying the particulars before Parliament.

THE GENERAL ELECTION RETURNS.

  QUESTION.
  SIR HENRY HAVELOCK (for Mr. DODDS)asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, When the Re-
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  turn relative to the General Election ordered on the 20th March last, will be presented; and, in case particulars have not yet been received from every county, division of county, and borough, to give the names of the counties, divisions of counties, and boroughs from which particulars have not been received, and to state what course he proposes to pursue with reference thereto?
  MR. ASSHETON CROSS, in reply, said, that the Returns were now practically complete, with the exception of those relating to the counties of Anglesey and Carnarvon, and the boroughs of Chelsea and Grantham. He hoped the Returns would be ready for circulation in a very short time.

FIRST FRUITS AND TENTHS.

  QUESTION.
  MR. MONKasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, "Whether he has considered the Report of the Convocation of the Province of Canterbury with respect to the abolition of First Fruits, and the re-adjustment of Tenths; and, if so, whether the Government are prepared to take the recommendations contained in that Report into consideration, with a view to legislation next Session?
  MR. ASSHETON CROSS, in reply, said, he could not promise that the Government would bring in a Bill on the subject, as there would be so much to be done next Session; but it was undoubtedly a subject which deserved the attention of Parliament. The hon. Member himself would be rendering great assistance, with a view to legislation upon this subject, if he would submit a Bill embodying his views.

METROPOLIS—THE KNIGHTSBRIDGE BARRACKS.—QUESTION.
LORD ERNEST BRUCEasked the First Commissioner of Works, Whether there is any prospect of Her Majesty's Government being shortly enabled to remove the Life Guards' Barracks from Hyde Park to some other situation, so as to widen the important thoroughfare of Knightsbridge, and thus confer a great boon on the public, especially on that important and constantly increasing district of the Metropolis?
LORD HENRY LENNOX, in reply, said, he was afraid he could give no other

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Answer to the Question of his noble Friend than that which was given on the same subject in "another place" last week. The question of the Knightsbridge Barracks was under the consideration of the Government; but even if they should disappear, his noble Friend must not be too confident as to the space being used for the purpose of widening the road to Kensington, as other interests would interfere which might still withhold from his noble Friend the boon he now sought.

PALACE OF WESTMINSTER—THE WATER-GLASS PICTURES.

  QUESTION.
  MR. ERRINGTONasked the Chief Commissioner of Works, Whether it be true, as stated in the "Morning Post" of the 5th instant, that Mr. Richmond, E.A., has examined the two water-glass pictures by the late Mr. Maclise in the Royal Gallery of the Palace of Westminster, and has ascertained that they are not permanently injured; and, whether it be true that the "efflorescence" which exhibited itself some time ago has been removed?
  LORD HENRY LENNOX: Sir, in answer to the Question of the hon. Member for Longford County, I have to say that the "efflorescence" in question on the magnificent frescoes of Maclise of the meeting of Wellington and Blucher commenced to show itself shortly after the picture was completed in 1861, and from that time it has unhappily spread over the whole face of the picture. For myself, I wish I could say positively that the picture is not permanently injured. More than a year ago Mr. Richmond examined the picture, and he stated that in his opinion by a delicate treatment he could remove the "efflorescence" without injury to the rest of the picture. That opinion, however, was contradicted by other artists as eminent as Mr. Richmond, and the matter was allowed to drop. With regard to the second part of the Question, I would only ask the hon. Member to call this afternoon at the Royal Gallery, and he will see for himself most painfully that the "efflorescence" has not been removed.

IRELAND—POLICE FORCE IN TIPPERARY.—QUESTION.
SIR JOHN GRAY (for Mr. MOORE)asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland,
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Whether it is true that whilst the South Riding of County Tipperary is charged at the rate of £1,150 a-year for the maintenance of an extra police force of sixty-one men, not a single man of that extra force is in the county; if he would explain to the House what is the cause of such a state of things, and how long it has existed; and, whether, under those circumstances, he will withdraw the charge altogether?
SIR MICHAEL HICKS-BEACH: It is true, Sir, that the South Riding of the County Tipperary is now subject to an annual charge of about the amount named in the Question for extra police force; but it is by no means accurate to state that not a single man of that extra force is in the Riding. There are a considerable number of vacancies in the total nominal force of the South Riding, but not more than the average number for the whole of Ireland. By 29 & 30 Vict., c. 103, s. 14, these vacancies are distributed proportionately between the free and extra force, and the county is allowed a reduction in the charge for its extra force, corresponding to the number of vacancies held to exist therein. As it would not be equitable that one county should be more fully manned than another, it would become necessary, if the extra force of the South Riding were abolished, to march 46 men, or thereabouts, out of the Riding. It is for these 46 that a charge is being at present made, being the number whose services are thereby secured to the Riding. The amounts charged to the Riding have been calculated as directed by Act of Parliament, and are strictly correct.

ARMY—MILITARY OUTRAGE AT ALDERSHOT.—QUESTION.
SIR WILFRID LAWSONasked the Secretary of State for War, Whether he has received any information as to the outrage said to have been perpetrated by soldiers at Aldershot?
MR. GATHORNE HARDY, in reply, said, that last night he received a telegram, which had been confirmed by letter, that no outrage had been perpetrated on women, but that certain recruits connected with one of the regiments at Aldershot broke out of the barracks during the night, and attacked some public-houses and some houses of

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bad character in the neighbourhood. I They were arrested by the military police, three of them being handed over to the civil power, and the others to the military authorities.

THE APPELLATE JURISDICTION.

  OBSERVATIONS.
  SIR GEORGE BOWYERsaid, he wished to call attention to what he regarded as the dictatorial nature of a speech which had been made by a Member of the Government in "another place" on the previous day. The noble Lord in question had endeavoured to pledge the Government not to reconsider the question of the jurisdiction of the House of Lords as the final Court of Appeal, but to re-introduce the Judicature 'Bills in the shape in which they had been withdrawn.
  MR. SPEAKERreminded the hon. Baronet that there was no Question before the House.
  SIR GEORGE BOWYERsaid, in that case, to put himself in Order, he would move the adjournment of the House. He believed that the withdrawal of the Bills had given great satisfaction to the Judges and to the Bar both in Ireland and Scotland, and certainly to the Bar in England. In Ireland, the abolition of the appellate jurisdiction of the House of Lords was looked upon as uncalled for, unnecessary, unconstitutional, and revolutionary; and it was considered that the Court which was proposed to be constituted in lieu of the House of Lords was unsatisfactory, and would certainly not carry with it that dignity, weight, and experience which attached to the Upper House. He trusted the Government would not allow themselves to be dictated to by the noble Lord to whom reference had been made, and who, with another noble Lord, had adopted a most dictatorial course.
  Motion made, and Question proposed, "That this House do now adjourn."—(Sir George Bowyer.)
  MR. M'CARTHY DOWNINGwished it to be understood that the hon. Baronet had not expressed the general feeling of the Irish Members, and he trusted that the Government would not listen to the hon. Baronet's suggestion.
  Question put, and negatived.

PROROGATION OF THE PARLIAMENT.
Message to attend The LORDS COMMISSIONERS:—
The House went:—and a Royal Commission to that purpose having been read, the Royal Assent was given to several Bills.
And afterwards Her Majesty's Most Gracious Speech was delivered to both Houses of Parliament by The Lord High Chancellor, in pursuance of Her Majesty's Command.
Then a Commission for proroguing the Parliament was read.
After which,
THE LORD CHANCELLORsaid—
My Lords, and Gentlemen,
By virtue of Her Majesty's Commission, under the Great Seal, to us and other Lords directed, and now read, we do, in Her Majesty's Name, and in obedience to Her Commands, prorogue this Parliament to Friday the Twenty-third day of October next, to be then here holden; and this Parliament is accordingly prorogued to Friday the Twenty-third clay of October next.