HC Deb 26 February 1883 vol 276 cc839-40
MR. O'DONNELL

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, If his attention has been called to the statement of Mr. Ferguson, Chairman of the West Riding of Cork County, at the trial of the appeal of Messrs. Gilhooly, O'Brien, and Hodnett for alleged intimidation at a public meeting, that he Thought it was a cruel thing to allow those meetings to be held at all, for if the old lines were followed it was impossible that a man should not commit an offence against the Act, and it would he impossible for any man to speak at a meeting unless he had a lawyer telling him every word he should say; and, whether the Government intend to take any notice of Mr. Ferguson's statement of the operation of the Act?

MR. TREVELYAN

I have seen a report of the Judgment delivered by the County Court Judge in this case. The words quoted in the Question as quoted apart from their context are open to misconstruction. Mr. Ferguson spoke as follows:— Mr. O'Brien said that the landlords were exacting an unnatural blood tax in the shape of rent, and that they should he got rid of. Now, could any one have any reasonable doubt but that any landlord reading those remarks or hearing of them about exercising his legal rights would he intimidated? Mr. O'Brien further told the tenants to pay only what they did not want. There, beyond doubt, was the advice given in the old agitation. Having explained what he meant by the "old lines," Mr. Ferguson then used the words quoted in the Question. His obvious meaning was that a person who makes a public speech advising people not to pay rent is guilty of intimidation under the Prevention of Crime Act. The Government do not intend to take any notice of his statement—first, because it is perfectly easy for any speaker to refrain from advising people not to pay rent; and, secondly, because (and this cannot be too clearly understood) persons holding judicial positions, such as County Court Judges, are not officers of the Executive, and the Executive is not responsible for any remarks they may make.