§ * MR. WILLIAM JOHNSTON (Belfast, S.)I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury if he is aware that communications have been addressed to the War Office, in behalf of many loyal subjects of Her Majesty in Ireland, desiring to be permitted to enrol themselves as volunteers both for home service and service in South Africa; whether they have been informed that under the existing law the Secretary of State for War cannot sanction the formation of such corps; and whether, as more than one thousand gentlemen in Belfast alone have already come forward with offers of service, in addition to such offers from all parts of the country, he will take immediate steps to remove the legal disabilities which prevent these patriotic Irishmen from becoming soldiers of the Queen.
§ THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. A. J. BALFOUR,) Manchester, E.I fully recognise the spirit of patriotic loyalty that animates the gentlemen of whom my hon. friend speaks, but he asks the Government to make a change in the settled policy of this country that certainly we could not make without much greater consideration than we have hitherto been able to give to it.
MR. PATRICK O'BRIEN (Kilkenny, N.)Are there any legal disabilities to prevent these men enlisting in the ordinary way, and going out to fight in South Africa? Will the right hon. Gentleman instruct the recruiting officers to try and enlist them?
§ [No answer was given.]
565§ MR. WILLIAM REDMOND (Clare, E.)I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether, in view of the almost complete withdrawal of troops from Ireland, the Government will consider the expediency of authorising without further delay the formation of Volunteer corps throughout that country, following the precedent of 1782.
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURI have already answered that question.
§ MR. WILLIAM REDMONDDo not the people of Ireland regard it as an insult that they are refused permission to bear arms?
§ [No answer was given.]