THE CROWN JEWELS

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 10713, 23 December 1912, Page 5

THE CROWN JEWELS

CABLE NEWS

(United. Press Association—By Elcotrie Telegraph—Copyright.)

A STARTLING ASSERTION. ALLEGED DEBAUCHERY. (Received Last Night, 5.5 o'clock.) LONDON, December 21. In the House of Commons, Mr Lawrence Gimmell', Independent Nationalist member for Westmoatli North, declared that the theft of the Crown jewels from Dublin Castle had been mixed up with debauchery. One of the thieves', bo asserted, had been a railway guard who lihd robbed the mail between Buluwayo and Salisbury in South Africa', and had wantonly killed Kaffirs. Although lie had been kicked out of Tlibrnycroft's Horse, he had secured a commission in the' Royal Irish Regiment. In conjunction with a fellow-officer he had engineered a theft, and when accused of it, he threatened revelation a which would compromise others. For social reasons he had not been brought to trial. Both of the officers had since resigned from the Army. The Right Hon A. Birrell, Chief Secretary for-Ireland, angrily repudiated the suggestion that lie had not acted in t'lie matter because he feared a scandal. Mr Gimmell, ho said might know more than the nolice. but he had never furnished the criminal's names. Mr Gimmell, interrupting Mr, Birrell, shouted the two names across the House. Mr Birrell retorted that the police had assured him that they bad, up to the present, no ground for arresting anybody.