§ MR. JAMES O'CONNOR (Wicklow, W.)To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland if he can state the number of school managers who recommended the introduction of the Rule 127 (b), and the number of managers who have approved of it since its introduction; and whether the rule has been approved by any Catholic clerical manager in Ireland.
(Answered by Mr. Bryce.) This Question could not be answered without an exhaustive examination of the correspondence of the Commissioners for the past three years. This would take a very long time and would not be conclusive. As regards the attitude of Catholic opinion in Ireland towards Rule 127 (b), I may remind the hon. Member that for many years the right of infant boys to be educated in convent national schools has been embodied in the Commissioners'rules, and there has never been any objection to this rule by the Catholic clerical 1387 managers. There are about 2,700 national schools under Catholic clerical managers in which boys and girls are educated together.