§ MR. SANDERSONasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether his attention has been called to the decision of Mr. Serjeant Tindal Atkinson, County Court Judge at Barns- 814 ley, as reported in the "Yorkshire Post" of June the 15th, as to the funds of the South Yorkshire Miners' Association for the benefit of widows and orphans, which decision affects most seriously the future maintenance of three hundred widows and five to six hundred orphans, and having regard to the deprivation and loss likely to ensue to these unfortunate people who were led to believe that they had some provision to fall back upon in time of need, whether he will interfere on the part of the Government by instituting an investigation into the management of this association, with a view to inquiry whether the funds have been in any way misappropriated from the purpose for which they were subscribed?
MR. ASSHETON CROSS,in reply, said, he very much regretted the position in which the particular society in question found itself, for the sake of those persons who had been practically deprived of the benefits which they might reasonably have expected to receive from it. The decision of the learned Judge was, however, he believed, perfectly correct, so far as the law of the matter was concerned. He was advised that the effect of a contrary decision would be that, if trades unions were brought within the law, proceedings might be instituted in the Courts to compel workmen to abstain from going to work, or, if they continued on strike, to compel trustees to apply their funds for the maintenance of strikes.