§ MR. SUMMERSasked the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies, Whether his attention has been called to the statements of Captain Turpie, the Rev. Thomas Neilson, and others, to the effect that outrages are being constantly perpetrated with impunity upon the natives of the islands of the South Pacific by white men sailing under the British flag; and, whether he is able to give the House any information on the subject; and, if not, whether he will cause strict inquiry to be made?
MR. GRANT DUFFSir, our attention having been drawn some time ago to these statements in the newspapers, 17 my noble Friend the Secretary of State directed a letter to be addressed to the London Missionary Society, asking for any particulars as to the time, place, and nature of any such outrages, expressing likewise his regret that missionaries should not at once report such cases to the naval or colonial authorities, or to Her Majesty's High Commissioner in the Western Pacific.