§ MR. JOSEPH DEVLIN (Kilkenny, N.)I beg to ask Mr. Attorney-General for Ireland whether his attention has been called to a decision given by Mr. 780 Garret Nagle, resident magistrate in the Belfast Custody Court, on 7th June, 1905, in the case of J. H. Burke Murphy, plaintiff, and Robert Turner, defendant, in regard to weekly tenancies in Belfast and whether, seeing that the decision has upset the practice that has prevailed in that city for many years, and is the cause of inconvenience both to landlords and tenants, he will say what action he proposes to take in the matter.
§ THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL FOR IRELAND (Mr. ATKINSON, Londonderry, N.)I cannot admit that this decision of Mr. Nagle has upset a prevailing practice, inasmuch as the same question was decided in the same way by Mr. Hodder, the senior resident magistrate in Belfast, some time ago, and is in effect, Mr. Nagle contends, governed by the judgment delivered in the Queen's Bench Division thirteen years ago, in the case of Harvey v. Copeland. The soundness of Mr. Nagle's decision can be tested by a case stated. I see no reason to introduce any legislation on the subject.