§ MR. BRAMSDONI beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether his attention has been called to the sentence of eighteen calendar months imprisonment with hard labour recently inflicted by a naval court martial at Malta upon John Beer, a gunner in the Royal Marine Artillery, of the battleship "Queen," convicted of behaving with contempt to and attempting to strike with a weapon a superior officer, also with striking and making use of threatening and insulting language; whether he will state what was the nature of the weapon as well as of the striking referred to, the age of the prisoner, and whether he was sober at the time, and what his previous character was; did the whole of the charges arise out of one transaction and occur on board ship or, if not, where; and what is the rating of the superior officer referred to, and has the sentence been confirmed by the Admiralty.
§ MR. EDMUND ROBERTSONThe particulars set out in the first part of my hon. friend's Question are correct. The weapon was a mess kettle, and the striking was a kick in the thigh. The prisoner, whose age is twenty-eight, was sober at the time, and his previous character was "good." The whole of the charges (five in number) arose out of one incident which occurred on board the "Queen," and the superior officers were all sergeants 604 of the Royal Marine Artillery. The Judge-Advocate of the Fleet has pronounced the charges to be in order, the proceedings regular, and the sentence in due form and within the powers of the Court, and the Admiralty have decided that the sentence shall be carried out.