§ MR. O'DONNELLasked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, If it is true that offers to ransom Professor Palmer and his companions were made to the Arabs charged with the killing of these gentlemen; whether the ransom was refused by the Arabs on the ground that superior orders forbade the sparing of the lives of the captives; whether the Government have any information as to the source of the orders under which the Arabs acted; whether the mission entrusted to Professor Palmer and his companions exposed them to more than the ordinary risks of being attacked by Arabs for the sake of plunder; and, what steps have been taken by the Government to secure that, at the trial of the accused Arabs at Tantah, no evidence will be suppressed which could reveal the source of the authority under which Professor Palmer and his companions were captured and slain?
§ MR. CAMPBELL-BANNERMANSir, the Papers relating to the death of Professor Palmer and his party are ready for publication, with the exception of one final despatch from Colonel Warren, which is now on its way. We have thought it best to wait until the Papers were complete before presenting them; but they will now be immediately laid on the Table. From them the hon. Member will derive the fullest information we possess on the several points of his Question. I may, however, say that so far as we know there is no evidence that the Arabs acted under superior orders. We are told that a ransom was offered by the Sheikh who acted as guide; but he had previously hidden away the greater part of the money carried by the party, and his offer was rejected as inadequate. As to the risk incurred in the expedition, it was undoubtedly greater than the ordinary risk of being attacked for the sake of plunder in consequence of the excited and disturbed state of the people generally. The accused Arabs are being tried before Egyptian tribunals, and Her Majesty's Government have perfect confidence in the ability, discretion, and fairness of Colonel Warren, who is representing them at the trial.
§ MR. O'DONNELLgave Notice that on Monday he should ask, Whether it was the fact that Professor Palmer and his companions, when attacked, were engaged, under the guidance of an Arab Sheikh, in purchasing the neutrality of the Arab tribes on the east of the Suez Canal, to whom the National Egyptian Government trusted for the defence of the Canal against the invasion of the British forces?
§ MR. CAMPBELL-BANNERMANI will at once answer the hon. Member's Question. I have repeatedly stated in this House what were the objects for which Professor Palmer and his party were sent, and the Papers which will be immediately laid upon the Table will give full information as to the circumstances of their mission.