§ MR. HEALYasked Mr. Attorney General for Ireland, Whether it is the fact that the prisoners who have refused to give bail under the Act of Edward III. 223 are not allowed to communicate with each other in the same prison, or with anybody else, except during the fifteen minutes allowed to outside visitors; whether, while they are allowed to write to friends outside the gaol and to prisoners in other gaols, they are not allowed to write to friends in the same prison, nor allowed to speak to them; whether the rule affecting such prisoners expressly states the object of this is "to prevent contamination" and "the defeating of the ends of justice;" whether the Government apprehend "contamination" or the "defeat of the ends of justice" in the case of the persons at present arrested under the Act of Edward III.; if not, whether they can permit a modification of the rule; whether it is the fact that a person reasonably suspected of murder is only kept in solitary confinement for 18 hours out of the 24, and is allowed to have free communication during exercise and recreation with the other suspects; whether it is the fact that the whole of the prisoners detained under the Act of Edward III. have refused to give bail, because they consider that this would be an admission of crime on their part; whether such prisoners who choose imprisonment rather than admit the supposition of crime are placed in a worse position as regards association, recreation, and confinement than persons whom the Government suspect of murder; whether, in view of the inequality of treatment, the Government intend to propose any alteration; and, how many ladies and gentlemen are confined in consequence of the refusal to give bail?
§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. W. M. JOHNSON), in reply, said, that persons who declined to give security for good behaviour when charged with indictable offences were treated according to the prison discipline provided by the Act of 1877. The Rules framed under that Act had been before Parliament, and they could not be altered by Government, Parliament having placed the power of dealing with them in the hands of the Prison Commissioners only. As to whether the persons alluded to had refused to give bail, because they considered that to do so would be an admission of crime on their part, he could only say that he did not know what motives actuated them in not complying with the magisterial 224 orders. The entire number of persons in all Ireland at present committed in default of sureties amounted to 43.
§ MR. HEALYsaid, the right hon. and learned Gentleman left six paragraphs of his Question unanswered.
§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. W. M. JOHNSON)said, he would answer them one by one. In the first place, the magistrates derived their jurisdiction partly from their commission and partly from the Act of Edward III. The prisoners were subject to the rules for untried prisoners, which the Government had not power to alter. He was unable to say whether any exception was made in reference to persons committed for trial for murder.
§ MR. HEALYasked, if it was not the fact that these persons were kept in solitary confinement for 22 hours out of every 24, whilst persons detained under the Coercion Act on suspicion of murder were only kept in solitary confinement for 18 hours?
§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. W. M. JOHNSON), in reply, said, that the House had thought fit to make special provisions in regard to persons detained under the Coercion Act, so as to make their position, if not as agreeable as possible, at least as little punitive as possible.
§ In reply to a further Question from Mr. SEXTON,
§ THE ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. W. M. JOHNSON)said, he was aware that three ladies were on Wednesday committed to prison in default of entering into security to be of good behaviour; but he did not know what the particular charge against them was. If the committal was illegal, it could be upset in the Queen's Bench.