§ MR. MACALEESE (Monaghan, N.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (1) how many magistrates there are in the Newbliss Petty Sessions; (2) have those magistrates held any meetings to consider the wisdom of holding their Court of Petty Sessions in an Orange Lodge; (3) what are the names of those magistrates, and how did they individually vote in this matter; (4) was there a majority of them in favour of removing the Petty Sessions Court from the Orange Lodge; and (5) what prevented the carrying out of their decision?
§ MR. GERALD BALFOURThere are twelve magistrates appointed to attend the Newbliss Petty Sessions. The Court of Petty Sessions is not held in an Orange Lodge as alleged in the second paragraph, but in one room of many, in a building which is private property, and this room is rented by the Grand Jury as a Public Justice Room. On Thursday last I informed the hon. Member that the occupation of this room on a certain date in July 1896, by the members of an Orange Lodge has been brought under the notice of the magistrates by the Lord Chancellor, and I also stated the views of the magistrates in reference to the occurrence. I have no information regarding the third and fourth paragraphs and as to the last paragraph I can only repeat what I have again and again explained, that the question of providing accommodation for the use of the Justices 176 in Petty Sessions rests entirely with the Grand Jury over whose action the Government exercise no control.