§ MR. O'DOHERTY (Donegal, N.)I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if he is aware that the population of the Moville Petty Sessions, county Donegal, is three-fourths Roman Catholic, and if he will state the number of Roman Catholic magistrates in the petty sessions district and the number of non-Roman Catholic magistrates in said district, and if the Government will take steps to have the number of Roman Catholic magistrates increased in proportion to the number of Roman Catholics in said district.
§ THE CHIEF SECRETARY FOR IRE LAND (Mr. WYNDHAM,) DoverI have no means of verifying the statement in the first part of the question, but I have no reason to doubt its accuracy. Of the fourteen magistrates who attended the petty sessions one or more times during the past year, ten appear to be Protestants and four Roman Catholics. Applications and recommendations for the Commission of the Peace are made to the Lieutenant of county, who transmits them, if he thinks them suitable, for the consideration of the Lord Chancellor.