§ MR. ANDERSONasked the Lord Advocate, If there has recently been an investigation into certain charges of unfair treatment of Roman Catholics in judicial proceedings at Irvine in Ayrshire; and, if he will state the result of 822 the investigation, or lay upon the Table any Papers connected with it?
THE LORD ADVOCATEIn Irvine there are a considerable number of Catholics and Orangemen among the working classes, and I regret to say that some time ago these parties gave each other considerable annoyance, and their differences occasionally led to breaches of the peace. In a recent case the offenders were prosecuted at the instance of the police authorities before the magistrates of the borough of Irvine. Complaint was made to me that a certain amount of unfairness had been shown by those magistrates in awarding unduly lenient sentences to the Orangemen tried before them. I considered it to be my duty to instruct the Procurator Fiscal of the Sheriff's Court, who is a Government official, to inquire and report to me the circumstances of these various cases in which unfairness was said to have been signally displayed. The result of the examination and investigation having been reported to me I have now to state, in answer to the hon. Member, that there seems no ground for imputing any want of fairness or any partiality to those justices in the discharge of a very difficult and delicate duty.
MR. ANDEESONThe right hon. and learned Gentleman has not answered my last Question—Will he lay the Papers upon the Table?
THE LORD ADVOCATEI understood the Question was put alternatively. I do not think the Papers are of such a character that they ought to be laid upon the Table; but I will communicate with the hon. Member on the subject.