asked the Secretary of State for War the number of Army horses sold to Germany during the last four years and the average price paid for each?

The sale of surplus Army horses has been effected by public auction, and I have no information as to the number, if any, that have reached Germany.

Is it not the case that because of the sale of horses to Germany we are short of them for Army purposes?

No, Sir.

Does the hon. Gentleman say that that is not so?

Is there any possibility of tracing how many of these old Army horses went abroad, and how many of them were sold to Germany?

Obviously it would require very elaborate machinery to establish the whereabouts of Army horses that were sold by auction.

Is it not a fact that the number of horses sold to Germany is shown by the Board of Trade returns to have been negligible?

asked the Secretary of State for War the number of horses being purchased for the Army and the average price paid for each?

My Noble Friend will, I hope, appreciate that it would not be in the public interest to disclose this information.

asked the Secretary of State for War the position of a candidate in possession of an Officers' Training Corps certificate A who has been accepted by an officer commanding a unit for a temporary com mission, after undergoing training with an officer cadet training unit, and has been graded A1 in the medical examination in every respect other than that of vision, where the category given is A2; whether the necessity to wear glasses when on duty precludes such candidates from entry; and whether such a rule has general application to the Army as a whole?

Acceptance or rejection, so far as vision is concerned, would depend on the degree of the visual defect, and this would be decided before a candidate goes to an officer cadet training unit. The necessity to wear glasses does not, in itself, preclude candidates from entry, and this applies generally throughout the Army.

Does not the medical grade A2 amount to rejection?

I should like to have notice of that question.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that there are a large number of men who are anxious to join up as volunteers before they are called upon under their age-groups; and whether he will make arrangements to facilitate their enlistment as soon as possible?

As my right hon. Friend has already stated, we have at present all the men we can handle, except for certain classes of tradesmen. Volunteers for these classes are still being accepted. It is not intended generally to allow young men to anticipate the age of calling up but, side by side with the calling up of age-groups, opportunities will occur of accepting a number of volunteers other than tradesmen.

Will facilities be available for men who are anxious to obtain military training in some form or other, so that they will be ready for the Army sooner than if they had to wait for their age-group to be called up?

Men are able now to register themselves as volunteers. The hon. Gentleman knows that, as opposed to what happened during the last War, we are proceeding this time upon a regularised basis and not upon some form of haphazard recruitment, which would lead only to confusion.

Would it not be a pity if the regularised basis were slower than the haphazard form; and did not 500,000 men, in fact, join up voluntarily in the first five or six weeks of the last War?

Our present basis cannot be slower because, as I say, we already have as many men as we can deal with.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that there are large numbers of men who are prevented from joining the armed forces because they are in scheduled occupations, or are over the military age, who are anxious to do part-time military training and who would be willing to do home-defence service; and whether he will sanction the organisation of training centres on the lines of the Volunteer Training Corps and the volunteer force during the last War?

At the present time, it is essential to concentrate on the training of soldiers on full-time service, though it may be necessary, at a later date, to accept men for part-time military duties. In the meantime, I think that those who are available for part-time work could be most usefully employed in connection with the air-raid precautions services.

asked the Secretary of State for War (1) whether his attention has been drawn to the conditions governing the commissioning and promotion of Army officers in war time, in which no distinction is made between years spent on active service and years of normal peace-time routine; that eight years for promotion to captain and 17 years for promotion to major is an unfair margin of time in present conditions and that serious injustice is likely to be done to many officers of the Regular Army Reserve of Officers, particularly those who have seen active service between the years 1914 and 1920; and whether he will take steps immediately to alter the present conditions;

(2) whether he will consider the advisability of reducing to five years and 10 years respectively, the time-serving condition of eight years for promotion to captain and 17 years for promotion to major which now applies to all officers of the Regular Army and the Regular Army Reserve of Officers?

Substantive promotion during the war will be confined to the Regular Army, and, in their case, the existing rules for time promotion to captain and major will continue to apply. These rules do not apply to the Regular Army Reserve of Officers. Vacancies in war establishments will be filled by acting promotions, which will, after various qualifying periods, be confirmed into temporary rank and confer upon the officer war substantive rank one grade lower than the temporary rank. This will apply to all officers, who will be selected for such promotion by merit.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether his attention has been drawn to a letter issued to Cambridge undergraduates in which it is stated that medical students, research or post-graduate students in engineering, metallurgy, chemistry, physics, mathematics and biology will not be used for normal combatant service; and whether this was issued with the approval of his Department?

I have not seen the letter referred to, but it has been agreed that medical and dental students who have attained a certain stage in their medical and dental studies should complete those studies with a view to medical or dental employment with the Forces or as civilians. Arrangements have also been made to secure that the services of the research and post-graduate students mentioned in the question should normally be used, either in the Forces or in civil life, in such a way as to make the best use of their scientific or professional abilities.

Will my hon. Friend convey to the right hon. Gentleman the fact that discrimination of this kind will lead to a population of twittering scientists?

Does that apply to other universities than Cambridge?

Yes, Sir.

Does it apply to all universities?

It applies to all students studying those scientific subjects.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he will arrange for the issue of portable wireless sets to the detachments in charge of anti-aircraft guns and searchlight sets, in order to relieve the tedium of their duties?

I am glad to say that the trustees of the Nuffield Trust have agreed to provide a number of wireless sets for detachments in isolated stations.