§ MR. OSMOND WILLIAMS (Merionethshire)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his attention has been drawn to the sentence of three years' penal servitude passed on a woman, Frances Melville, at the North London Sessions, in February last; and whether, in view of the absence of motive for the crime charged (shoplifting), and the indication the case afforded of mental irresponsibility, he proposes taking any action in the matter.
§ * MR. GLADSTONEI had not heard of this case until my attention was called to it by the hon. Member's Question. I have now made inquiry as to the woman's mental state and I find that there is nothing in her condition to justify her being certified insane. The information I have received points to drink as the cause of this unhappy woman's crimes, and I fear there is no action I can take in the matter.
§ MR. OSMOND WILLIAMSasked the right hon. Gentleman to bear in mind the fact that this old lady had £700 in consols and other property, and that she had collected a most miscellaneous set of articles in her room.