§ SIR STAFFORD NORTHCOTEasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, Whether he will have any objection to lay upon the Table a copy of a letter written by Mr. H. D. Warr, Secretary to the City of London Livery Companies' Commission, by the direction of the Commissioners, and addressed to the editors of certain Liberal newspapers with a view to "educate the opinions of the Liberal electors of the Provinces" upon the recommendations of the Commissioners in their Report?
§ SIR WILLIAM HARCOURT, in reply, said, that since the right hon. Gentleman had put that Question on the Paper he had communicated with Mr. Warr, Secretary to the Commission, and also with its Chairman. On seeing the Secretary, that gentleman frankly admitted 1099 to him that substantially what was stated in the Question was true; but he also stated that he had no authority from the Chairman of the Commission, or from anyone upon it, to write such a letter. He had also communicated with the Chairman, who wrote that he never directed Mr. Warr to write letters to the newspapers, or to call their attention in any way to the subject of the Report of the Commissioners; nor did he know that Mr. Warr had done so; and Mr. Warr certainly had no right to use the name of the Commission in connection with any correspondence of that kind. He himself had told Mr. Warr that it was a most indiscreet and improper proceeding on the part of the Secretary of a Commission, who ought to be absolutely impartial in the matter, and ought to obey their directions in what he wrote and did. Mr. Warr, he thought, recognized that that statement on his part was well-founded. He thought, therefore, that the right hon. Gentleman would see that it was impossible to lay any Papers on the Table. He had not seen the letter in question; but Mr. Warr admitted that he wrote it without any authority from the Commission or the Chairman. Consequently, it would not be an official document at all, and it was written after the Commission was functus officio, and its Report had been made. Mr. Warr could only allege a slight communication from one of the Commissioners at all relating to communications with the newspapers.