§ MR. CHARLES CRAIGI beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, whether in view of the wide publicity given by the Press in Westmeath and the West of Ireland to the speech of the hon. Member for North Westmeath lately delivered at Killulagh, 1597 in which he advised his audience to obtain possession of the grass farms by driving the cattle off them, and in which he said they had it on the authority of Lord Denman, a member of the Government, that scattering cattle was no crime if they were not houghed, and in view of the added importance which a speech of this character has when made by a Member of Parliament, he will take steps to have the conduct of the hon. Member adjudicated upon by a Court of law.
§ MR. BIRRELLI informed the hon. Member on Wednesday last that there was no evidence of the speech referred to beyond that afforded by the newspaper report. No proceedings could be taken upon a newspaper report.
§ MR. CHARLES CRAIGHas the right hon. Gentleman endeavoured to get any evidence of what happened at this meeting?
§ MR. BIRRELLThe only evidence is a newspaper report, and the Irish Office has had experience of the folly of taking criminal proceedings on a mere newspaper report.
§ MR. CHARLES CRAIGHas not a police report been asked for?
§ MR. BIRRELLI am quite prepared to ask the police what took place, but I do not think we can take criminal proceedings on the recollections of a policeman.