SHOTS AT ST. STEPHEN'S

STARTLING SCENE IN PARLIAMENT A. SUPPRESSED BOOK.

(From. 'Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, lut March.' Tho House of Commons wao startlud ori Monday evening-. by tho firing of a revolver by. a visiles iv the 'outer lobby. Although them were many people scattered about at the time, fortunatelj' no onb was hurt. The iitCj'Jetit created great excitejaent", ' aud it -is recalled fchat the_ lant time' firearms were di&charged in. Parliament w?s iv 1812, when ' Mr. l J ercoval : the Primo Minister, wao shot and killed by a man named JLJellingLsiEi. Tho man who fired tho revolver i& Samuel Henry, 38 years of age, anrl • a licensed preacher of Hereford. He has a, grievance against the Government concerning the suppression of a book he had written entitled "Tolstoy and The Messiah." Hd was charged next day at Bow-street with wantonly discharging a revolver to the common danger in a public place, namely, the Central Hall of the House of Commons. Chief Inspector Scantlebury said he found defendant being held by two constables. He had a revolver -in his right hand. It was smoking, and witness asked defendant why He - had discharged 'it? He replied : "To bring my case to the front." "What is your case?" ' asked witness, and the answer was: "I have written , a book — Tolstoy on The. Messiah' — which' tho Government has suppressed." Defendant told biin-that as he had no intention 'of, hurting any one,' he fired at tho ceiling. The revolver contained four, ball cartridges,! and one Bpent one. In one of the defendant's pockets ton similar cartridges' were iound. Defendant sjiid the inspecior's evidence wa« pretty -accurate, except- as- to tho title of the book. It was "Tolstoy -and the Messiah." He should likV to ask witness if _ members of his staff were terrified, frightened, or incapacitated from duty as a result of the explosion. They were not suffering from brokendown nerves, or anything of that sort? Witness — No. A police constable said he was about a dozen yards away from the defendant in the Central Hall when ho saw him suddenly jump from a Beat near a statue, take two paceß forward, and fire a revolver in the air. Witness ran to the back of him, and, putting his arms over his shoulders, seized his wrists, thus causing him to hold the revolver point downward. The defendant struggled violently. The defendant (smiling) — Oh, no; oh, no. • DEFENDANT'S PEOTEST. "Ab ,a matter of fact," said defendant, "I wak in a semi-recumbent 'position 'when I fired the revolver. I had been sitting down, and on rising I addressed the people present lam sure they wore all very flustered. My object was to. draw attention to the fact that I was there, which some people would havo done their. best \o ignorA. I rose, and placed tho revolver with the muzzle towards the floor, so as not to endanger anyone, and then submitted very quietly indeed. I told the officers there was no necessity for violence. If such force is used towards a priest — an accredited priest — I dp not know what sort of treatment is meted out to the ordinary poor man who is a victim of the law." ' Inspector Scantlebury said lie saw the defendant at the House of Commons last week. On Monday he wanted to see Mr. Crooks, M-P Hb sent a message to him, but he did not think Mr. Crooks granted him an interview. The defendant did nothing wrong last woek, and there was then nothing strange in his manner. The defendant: 1 want to say I had sent a telegram to Mr. Asquith telling hun I wag coming up. If he did not dosire to see me it 'would only have been polite to tell me so in some way, but he did not reply That waß last week. There; was no disposition to see me at any time. J I also communioated with the Press, who, | I understand^ are in the habit of communicating with the Government in matters of this sort, but nothing was done. It was quite a trivial thing to fire a revolver in the air. It was done at Belfast, and I fail to see anything dangerous, criminal, or silly in~*it. If men' like Sir Edward Carson and Lord" Londonderry sanction suph thingß, why should not I ? It was quite a simple, straightforward way of drawing attention to a fact. The Magistrate : That is not the proper way to do it. The Magistrate having been informed by Mr. Henry that he did not wish (to call witnesses, said that he should remand the case and call the attention of tho prison, doctor to the defendant. Defendant was them removed, protesting aguinst the way in which he said he was being treated.