§ MR. PATRICK O'BRIEN (Kilkenny)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for War whether he has any objection to give the name of the person who supplied the information relative to the cairn at Finner, County Donegal; whether he is aware that the Royal Society of Antiquarians of Ireland hold that the formation is properly described as a cairn; that human remains, believed to be those of Irish chieftains who died in battle, were discovered 20 years ago in the chamber, and are now in a vault adjoining the cairn; that there is no such place known as Muldoon's grave; and that the Society has taken up the matter with a view to disproving the statements made and protecting the place from further interference by the contractor for the rifle range; whether he is aware that the officer in charge of the construction of the rifle range, Mr. Hogg, was conducted over the place on the 11th instant by some local 713 antiquarians and was given the fullest information concerning the cairn; and whether, as material for the construction of the rifle range is easily obtainable in other parts of the district, he will see that no more stones are removed from the immediate neighbourhood of the cairn?
*THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY TO THE WAR OFFICE (Mr. POWELL-WILLIAMS,) Birmingham, S.It is not usual to give the names of officers by whom reports of this character are made in the course of their duty. I have no doubt that in this case the officer reported according to the best information which was open to him at the time he wrote. The matter seems, however, to be one on which even antiquarians are not agreed. Whether there is a cairn or a grave or not no further removal of materials will take place.