§ MR. JOHN ROCHETo ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that Lord Ashtown applied for and obtained police protection about twelve months ago, on a plea that he was afraid of the tenants on the Galway estate, Cloncah, county Galway, which estate he was then trying to purchase in Judge Ross's Court; that, after the estate was sold to the Commissioners, he wanted to purchase the game on the tenants' holding, and upon his failure to secure it he had the police withdrawn; and whether he will take steps to prevent the police in Ireland from acting as gamekeepers to the local landlords.
(Answered by Mr. Bryce.) I am informed by the police authorities that it is not the fact that Lord Ashtown applied for police protection. The protection post at Clooncah, to which the 887 Question appears to refer, was established in 1902,but not for Lord Ashtown's protection, and this post was recently abolished when the police became satisfied that it was no longer necessary. The Inspector General informs me that there is no foundation for the suggestion that the police have acted as gamekeepers for Lord Ashtown.