§ MR. CONYBEARE (Cornwall, Camborne)I desire, Sir, with the leave of the House, to make a personal explanation with reference to a question which was raised on Monday week, when certain expressions of mine were brought 708 under your notice. It will be in the recollection of the House that the right hon. Gentleman the Member for the Sleaford Division of Lincolnshire (Mr. Chaplin) on that occasion called attention to a speech which I was reported to have delivered out-of-doors, and, in the course of introducing the matter, the right hon. Gentleman used this expression—
I have informed the hon. Member of my intention of putting this Question to you, and I do not understand that the hon. Member repudiates the substantial accuracy of that speech.Now, Sir, in the first place, I wish to say that the right hon. Gentleman was not at all justified in making use of that expression. He simply gave me formal Notice, a few minutes before he introduced the matter, that he was going to bring it on. He showed mo no report; he referred to no report; he did not ask me whether I admitted the accuracy of the report, or of any report; and when he introduced the subject to the House he did not quote from any report, so as to give me any idea of what the words he referred to were. Therefore, as the individual whose conduct was called in question, I took the only course open to me. I had no time to examine any report, nor had I seen a single report of my speech in any newspaper. I had no intention, and I think no one would suggest that I was required, to express regret, or to make an apology, for words which I had never spoken, and which I never intended to speak. Therefore, under the circumstances, I used this form of expression, which will be in the recollection of the House—Following upon that, I desire to say that if what I am reported in The Times and other newspapers to have said should, on examination, be found accurately to represent what I did say, and if it does appear that I in any way expressed myself in a manner calculated to reflect upon you, Sir, as the occupant of the Chair, I should at once most humbly and most fully express my regret.Now, Sir, I have since examined two reports, one in The Times and the other in The Daily News, and what do I find? I find that neither of these reports professes to be a verbatim report; neither is a full report, and neither is an accurate report; and I must say that it speaks volumes for the discrimination and fairness of both those papers that the very sentence of my speech which 709 would have protected me from the imputations and censures which have been heaped upon me is diligently omitted from both reports. That sentence was at the very commencement of the remarks I made at the Westminster Palace Hotel, and was in the following terms:—I hope that no word will escape me that can be possibly construed as unworthily reflecting upon the Speaker, or as being unbecoming in me as a Member of Parliament.I have asked several hon. Members who were present if they remember my having made use of the sentence, and they say that they do. This statement proves what I said last week, that I did not intend to make any personal attack on you, Sir; and I maintain that, as a matter of fact, I did not make one remark on your conduct for which I am liable to be called to account by this House. Although I should be very sorry to assume anything as to the somewhat erratic genius of the right hon. Gentleman the Member for the Sleaford Division of Lincolnshire, if he is the fair-minded gentleman I believe him to be, and have always supposed him to be, I think he will himself admit that had that particular and material sentence in my speech been reported, he would not have considered it necessary to call your attention, Sir, to what I said out-of-doors on the occasion in question. I rejoice, Sir, as every other hon. Member rejoices, to see you back in your place once more.