§ Sir WILLIAM CROSSLEYasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he can cause a Return to be made of ail cases of assault on children coming before assizes in quarter sessions for the past three years?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLI am sorry that the materials in my possession do not enable me to give the Return for which my hon. Friend asks. The Calendars of the Courts from which the criminal statistics are compiled do not give the age of the person on whom an assault is committed, and I believe that in many cases it does not appear at all in the record of the proceedings. There are, of course, certain offences under the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1885, when the age of the victim enters into the definition of the crime. Figures showing the numbers of persons tried for these offences will be found in Table I. of the Annual Criminal Statistics.