§ MR. WILLIAM REDMOND (Clare, E.)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether General Barrow ordered the Russians to be opposed by force of arms in regard to the dispute over the railway at Tientsin; and, if so, why such order was not executed.
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDIA (Lord G. HAMILTON, Middlesex, Ealing)So far as I know, all orders issued by General Barrow have been executed; but his action in this instance, as I before said, was strictly limited to the protection of British rights on ground he believed to be property of the railway.
§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGE (Carnarvon)I beg to ask the Leader of the House whether he has any announcement to make as to the negotiations between Russia and this country.
THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. A. J. BALFOUR. Manchester, E.)No, Sir; I have no statement to make.
§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGEI understand a statement has been made in another place.
§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGEMay I ask the Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs whether it is not the case that a statement has been made by the Secretary of State in another place? I think we ought to know it.
*THE UNDER SECRETARY FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (Viscount CRANRORNE,) RochesterI have not the least doubt that my noble friend had notice given him, and if the hon. Member will give me notice of a question I shall be happy to answer it.
§ MR. DILLON (Mayo, E.)Surely, Mr Speaker, the House of Commons is entitled to hear some hours afterwards—
§ *MR. SPEAKERThe hon. Member is not entitled to comment on the answer of the noble Lord. This is not the time for comment.
§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGEI understand that no notice could be given because this: question relates to negotiations which were conducted to-day.
§ MR. O'SHEE (Waterford, W.)I beg to ask the Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs a question, of which I have given private notice, whether His Majesty's Government has any information as to the despatch or the bringing up of reinforcements of the British troops at Tientsin, and whether additional British troops have reached Tientsin yesterday or to-day, or are expected to arrive there; and whether the Russian general has; issued a statement that no settlement is possible except on the condition of the withdrawal of the British troops.
§ LORD G. HAMILTONIf the hon. Member will allow me I shall answer the question. [Opposition cries of "Why?"] The hon. Member put a question as to the British troops in China, and those troops are under my orders. The answer 705 to the first question is in the negative. The reply to the second question is that a certain number of white troops have been substituted for certain of the native Indian troops stationed at Tientsin. In reply to the third question, such a statement is reported to have been made, but I am not aware that it is authentic.
§ SIR H. CAMPBELL-BANNERMANThough the noble Lord the Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs is, of course, entitled to ask for notice of any question put to him, still I would ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether some Member of the Government could not make a statement as to what is going on in China, seeing that a statement on that subject has been made in another place.
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURThe right hon. Gentleman and the House appear to be under the impression that we are deliberately concealing something from the House which we know to have been given to the other House, I have not the smallest idea of what the communication was that was made to the other House.
§ *VISCOUNT CRANBORNENor have I.
§ MR. WILLIAM REDMONDMay I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether in future he can make arrangements that when important communications on foreign affairs are made in the other House they shall also be made in this House?
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURWe are always anxious that this House should have the earliest information on all points, but it would be practically impossible to lay down a rule that a question should never be answered in the House of Lords without previous notice to us here.
§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGEMay I ask whether an arrangement has been arrived at whereby both Russian and British troops are to retire from the disputed territory, that matters are to be referred to Count von Waldersee, and that an apology is to be offered by the party found to be in the wrong?
§ *MR. CORRIE GRANT (Warwickshire, Rugby)Was not a full statement made by the Foreign Secretary in the 706 other House at half-past four o'clock in answer to Earl Spencer?
§ MR. A. J. BALFOURThis is the first intimation I have received of it. I have no doubt that if the hon. Gentleman says it is so it is true, but I am not aware of it.
§ MR. O'SHEEArising out of the answer of the noble Lord, I should like to ask whether the substitution of British white troops for the native troops who were at Tientsin is due to the fact that friction exists between the French and British troops there?
§ [No answer was returned.]
MR. PATRICK O'BRIENCannot the First Lord of the Treasury get the House out of its difficulty by deputing the noble Lord the Under Secretary to go down to the other House and see his chief?
§ *MR. SPEAKEROrder, order! Hon. Members are proceeding to debate the whole question. Some other opportunity must be taken for that.
§ MR. LLOYD-GEORGECannot I have an answer to the specific question I put?
§ [No reply was given.]
§ MR. WILLIAM REDMONDMinisters ought to be in this House, and not in the other House.