§ MR. FORWOOD (Lancashire, Ormskirk)I beg to ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he can state the number of Magistrates he has placed on the Commission of the Peace for the county boroughs of Lancashire since August last, and how many were political supporters of Her Majesty's Government; and if, when appointing 12 additional Magistrates for Liverpool, he was aware that all wore supporters of the present Government, and that he thereby raised the number of Liberals to 50 as against 60 Conservatives, the proportion of the Parliamentary representation being seven Conservatives to two Liberals.
§ MR. CROSFIELD (Lincoln)Before the right hon. Gentleman answers the question I desire to put another on the same subject. It is, whether he is aware that the official list issued by the Town Clerk of Liverpool at the commencement of the present year shows that out of 113 Borough Magistrates 33 are supporters of Her Majesty's Government, whilst 80 hold opposite views?
§ SIR J. FERGUSSON (Manchester, N.E.)And is it not the case that immediately after the presentation of the bogus Petition against the return of the right hon. Member for East Manchester, in which four persons were guarantors, he placed three of them on the Commission of the Peace for the borough, one of them being on it already?
§ *THE CHANCELLOR OF THE DUCHY OF LANCASTER (Mr. BRYCE,) Aberdeen, S.Sir, in answer to the last question, I have to say I have no knowledge of the subject; I do not know, and never have known, who were the guarantors; I conceive the words "bogus Petitions" ought not to have been used. In reply to my hon. Friend behind me, I think he will find my answer in the answer I am about to give to the question on the Paper. The total number of Magistrates placed upon the Commission of the Peace for the county boroughs of Lancashire since August last is 145. Of these, so far as I can ascertain, 118 are supporters of Her Majesty's Government, while 24 were appointed as representatives of working men, some of them being Liberals, some Conservatives, and some not attached to either Party. In these 14 boroughs the proportion of Parties was in last August, when I entered Office, more than three opponents to one supporter of the Government; and in no one of these boroughs, except Rochdale, where the Parties are now equal, have the appointments that I have made brought the number of Liberals up to that of their opponents, the latter being nearly two to one, or, to be quite exact, in the proportion of 20 to 11. The 12 Magistrates whom I have appointed for Liverpool were not all supporters of the present Government, one of them being a Dissentient Liberal, and one of them a representative of the working men. It is not the ease that the number of Liberals upon the Liverpool Bench is now 50 Liberals to 60 Con- 1130 servatives. That proportion, is in fact, 30 supporters of the present Government to 80 opponents. During the six years from August, 1886, to August, 1892, the late Government appointed 30 Magistrates for Liverpool, of whom 27 were Conservatives, three were Liberal Unionists, and no one was a Liberal.
§ MR. FORWOODDo I understand the right hon. Gentleman to say that no supporters of the present Government were appointed to the Commission of the Peace in Liverpool during the last six years?
§ *MR. BRYCEI can only repeat the numbers I have just read. Between August, 1886, and August, 1892, 30 Magistrates were appointed, of whom 27 were Conservatives and three Liberal Unionists. Not one was a Liberal.
§ MR. FORWOODFrom whence did the right hon. Gentleman get the information as to no Liberals being appointed?
§ MR. BRYCEI got it from a list of Magistrates appointed during the last six years, furnished to me by friends in Liverpool.
§ MR. BARTLEY (Islington, N.)Are we to understand that in the number of Liberals none of the working men are included?
§ *MR. BRYCEThe working men have been classed as separate altogether. Some of them are Liberals—probably the greater number; some are Conservatives; but a considerable number are not attached to either Party; and I have no record as regards their politics.
§ MR. BARTLEYDo I understand the Government does not include working men among its supporters?
§ MR. TOMLINSON (Preston)Are we to understand that the right hon. Gentleman, having taken so much pains with regard to the polities of the opponents of the Government, has not taken the trouble to ascertain what those of the working men are?
§ *MR. BRYCEI have reckoned working men as being appointed simply in the interests of working men, and that is why less attention has been paid to their politics than to the politics of other persons.