APPOINTMENT OF SELECT COMMITTEE. (Hansard, 20 March 1885)

§ MR. SEXTON
said, he did not intend to oppose the appointment of the Committee; on the contrary, he thought it very desirable that it should be appointed, as there was good work for it to do. He was confident that the Postal Service between England and America was much less efficient and satisfactory than the corresponding post between America and England. In the case of the carriage of the mails from this country the contract was in the hands of one Company, the competition was consequently reduced to a minimum, and the mails were carried slowly. In America it was the custom for the Postmaster General to keep a record of the runs made by the several Companies, and upon that record the contracts were given — preference being given one month to the Company which had made the best run during the preceding month. In that way the quickest passages were secured for the mails coming to this country from the United States. He trusted that the representation of the Irish Members on the Committee would not be purely nominal, for in this matter Ireland was very much interested, for the reason that the mails were carried from Holyhead to Kingstown by an Irish line of steamers, and put on board the Atlantic liners at Queenstown. They could not forget the attempt which had been made some time ago to take the cross-Channel traffic out of the hands of an Irish Company for the purpose of giving it to the London and Northwestern Railway Company. The attempt had so far advanced that a draft agreement had been prepared, and had it not been for the strenuous opposition of the Irish Members of all Parties the contract would have been entered into. When he saw the Motion on the Paper for this Committee he had come to the conclusion that it would be necessary, in consequence of the intrigues which had been carried on lately, for the Irish Members to keep a very careful look out. An attack upon the Irish mails might be followed by an attack on the Irish railways. He would ask the Postmaster General, who had proved himself a successful legislator that night by carrying through an unopposed stage of a Bill, what would be the composition of the Committee?

§ MR. SHAW LEFEVRE
As this is a question in. which the Irish Members 195 are very much interested, I shall certainly propose to give them a fair representation on the Committee. I have not considered yet the number I shall propose, nor the composition of the Committee; but I will give the hon. Member full notice of my intentions in the matter.

§ MR. T. P. O'CONNOR
asked whether the Committee would inquire into the question whether the mails should or should not touch at Queenstown? He was informed that recently two or three mail steamers had actually run on to Liverpool without calling at Queens-town. He did not know what their authority was for doing that, or whether they had any right to do it. He must warn the right hon. Gentleman that the Irish Members would require to have a rather fuller representation on this Committee than on ordinary Committees, because they regarded this question as of supreme interest to Ireland. It would be little short of total destruction to Queenstown if the mails should cease to call there. He trusted the right hon. Gentleman would carry out, both in the spirit and the letter, the promise they understood him to have given—namely, that the Irish Members should have reasonable representation on the Committee.