§ MR. COBBI beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has now been furnished with a print of the shorthand notes of the proceedings before the Deddington Bench of 27th September, upon the conviction of Mr. William Churchill of selling a bottle of whisky to Amelia Gilbey while she was in a state of intoxication; and whether, in view of the fact that these notes show that the only evidence of the defendant having supplied such whisky to Amelia Gilbey while she was intoxicated was that given by police-constable England and Gregory, a rural postman, the Chairman, H. C. Kisley, Esq., stopped the defendant's solicitor from cross-examining England as to his character and credibility; that police-constable England was recently removed from a former place for drunkenness; and that there were six witnesses who gave evidence on behalf of the defendant to the effect that the woman was not drunk before the whisky was sold to her, against whose character or conduct nothing has been alleged, the Home-Office will take any steps with a view of ascertaining if there has been a miscarriage of justice?
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT (Mr. MATTHEWS,) Birmingham, EastThe hon. Member has been good enough to supply me with a copy of the shorthand notes taken at the trial. They do not add anything 121 material to the facts of the case as I had ascertained them when I replied to a question of the hon. Member on February 17. There was conflicting evidence before the magistrates, but I see no ground for thinking that there has been a miscarriage of justice because the magistrate believed the witnesses for the prosecution rather than the witnesses for the defence.