§ ME. BOLAND (Kerry, S.)To ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether steps have been taken by the Government to secure copies of the memoranda of Madame Bakhmetieff and of the information supplied to the Russian Government by M. Westman, the Russian Vice-Consul at Philippopolis, with reference to affairs in Macedonia; and, if so, will copies be circulated for the information fo Members of this House.
(Answered by Mr. A. J. Balfour.) It is not usual to apply to Foreign Governments for Reports of their agents for the purpose of publication here, nor is it desirable to present to Parliament reports which have appeared in foreign newspapers except in cases where they are quoted by our own agents as worthy of credence. Reference to Madame Bakhmetieff's mission will be found in Mr. Elliot's despatch of 12th December, on page 266 of the recent Blue-book (Turkey, No. 1, 1903).