§ MR. M'GOVERNI beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland what steps will be taken to protect the Roman Catholic witnesses who have been summoned to give evidence against the parties who are charged with being concerned in the riot at Annaghmore; and whether he will take steps to provide that those rioters who are Orangemen shall be tried at Petty Sessions by a Court of which no member is a master of an Orange Lodge.
§ MR. ATKINSONIt is a fundamental duty of the police to afford every necessary protection to all members of the community without regard to, and quite irrespectively of, their religious denominations. That duty the police will discharge in the present instance without any instructions from head quarters. From proceedings which have taken place in other parts of Ireland, the hon. Member must be aware that the Executive Government have no power to prevent a magistrate from sitting at Petty Sessions even though they had reason to believe he is prejudiced; but the hon. Member may rest assured that the Executive will do everything in its power to bring to justice all persons against whom there is satisfactory evidence.
§ MR. M'GOVERNinquired if the clerks at the Table had any right to alter his Question without consulting him.
§ * MR. SPEAKERThey do communicate with hon. Members whenever possible. But it is sometimes difficult to do so, and in that case they sometimes have to judge whether the alteration is such that the hon. Member would prefer to postpone the Question or to have it put down in its altered form.
§ MR. M'GOVERNIn regard to the answer to the Question, may I ask if it is competent for a magistrate who is a Member of an Orange Lodge to try another member of the same lodge.
§ [No answer was returned.]
§ MR. SWIFT MACNEILLWhy don't you challenge the magistrate.