To ask the Secretary of State for War if he can state the number of colonels on half-pay unemployed holding Staff College certificates. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Arnold Forster.) The number of full colonels on half-pay unemployed holding Staff College certificates is twenty-nine.

To ask the Secretary of State for War if he can give the names of the firms previously struck off the list of Government contractors which were restored to that list during the period of the late South African War. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Arnold-Forster.) Three firms previously struck off the War Office headquarters list of contractors were restored to that list during the South African War. But seeing that their work was satisfactory, I am reluctant to do them possible injury by stating their names in public. I will give them to the hon. and gallant Member privately, if he so desires.

To ask the Secretary of State for War what has been the total cost of the barracks built under the Army Corps scheme on Salisbury Plain and in other districts; whether those barracks will be utilised under the present scheme; and, if not, whether building operations have been suspended. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Arnold-Forster.) The hon. Member is mistaken in supposing that any barracks on Salisbury Plain or in other districts were built with special reference to the Army Corps scheme. Owing to the large increase in the artillery and infantry during the last few years it has been necessary to provide considerable additional accommodation. All these barracks will be required, though some of them may be reappropriated to units other than those for which they were originally intended. There has been no suspension of building.

To ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether it is proposed to take the Second Reading of the Naval Lands (Volunteers) Bill before the Easter recess; whether, seeing that it is a measure that will save expense to the Volunteer force, it is the intention of the Government to pass it through its various stages without undue delay. (Answered by Mr. Pretyman.) It is hoped to take the Second Reading of this Bill before the Easter recess, but this must depend on the condition of business in the House. It is intended to pass the Bill through all its stages with as little delay as possible.

To ask the Secretary to the Board of Trade whether he can yet state when the Select Committee on Board of Trade Shipping Regulations will be reappointed. (Answered by Mr. Bonar Law.) The Committee will, I hope, be appointed very soon.

To ask the President of the Board of Agriculture if he is aware that renewed complaints have been made to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and to kindred societies in Rotterdam and Antwerp, as to the condition in which old horses are shipped from the eastern ports of this country, and particularly from Goole and Grimsby; and if he will instruct the inspector of the Board of Agriculture to fulfil to the letter the Orders in Council and the instructions of his predecessors with a view to reducing to a minimum the sufferings of these animals on the voyage, and the prevention of the export of animals afflicted with actual disease. (Answered by Mr. Ailwyn Fellowes.) I have not received recently any communication from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals on this subject, but my attention has been called to the letters respecting it which have appeared in the Field newspaper during the last few weeks. It is the duty of our inspectors, in pursuance of their instructions, to keep the Orders governing the exportation of horses continuously in view, and to take every possible means of securing their efficient enforcement by the local authorities. I do not think there is any failure of duty on their part in this respect. I may perhaps be allowed to express my entire sympathy with the hon. Member in his desire that the evils of the trade in question should be reduced to the lowest possible point.

To ask the Secretary to the Admiralty if his attention has been called to the importation into the Staffordshire chain making district from the dockyards of quantities of chain, in such lengths as permit of their being easily joined together and resold; if so, will he say if such a practice is a contravention of an existing Admiralty order; and, if so, whether he will take steps to have the order enforced. (Answered by Mr. Pretyman.) The hon. Member apparently refers to the unserviceable chain sold at dockyard auctions. This matter was thoroughly investigated in 1894, and orders were then issued that the end links and parts of all chain sold were to be stamped about every six feet, and the stay pins knocked out. There is no reason for assuming that these instructions are not being properly carried out by the dockyard officers. It is a practical impossibility for old chain of this nature to be resold to the Admiralty, as the iron of which chain cables and rigging are made is inspected, and the chain itself is made under inspection.

To ask the Secretary to the Board of Trade whether he can state the amount which was paid to ship-owners in the shape of a reduction of the lighthouse dues for 4,373 apprentices carried by them under the scheme of the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Croydon since 1898; and what was the average yearly payment per head per boy. (Answered by Mr. Bonar Law.) I am not able to state the amount paid with respect to the 4,373 apprentices carried under Mr. Ritchie's boy sailors scheme up to the 18th instant, as no payments have yet been made for boys employed during the year 1904–5. The amount paid from 1898 to the end of the year 1903–4 was £13,653. It is not possible to give the average yearly payment per head per boy.

To ask the Secretary to the Board of Trade if he will state the comparative prices of sugar in this country and in Switzerland in December, 1903, June,

To ask the Lord-Advocate how many applications have been made to the Education Department for approval of regulations made in terms of the Local Government (Scotland) Act, 1889, Section 85; in how many cases these regulations have been approved; and what is the amount of the funds dealt with by these regulations. (Answered by Mr. Scott Dickson.) In 166 cases regulations under Section 85 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act, 1889, were approved by the Scotch Education Department, whilst in 238 cases no regulations were deemed necessary. From the character of the provisions of the schemes affected by the Act, it is impossible to state the amount of the funds dealt with by the regulations which were approved.

To ask the Lord-Advocate whether he can state the amounts to be paid into the Education (Scotland) Fund from the several sources prescribed in the Education (Scotland) Bill. (Answered by Mr. Scott Dickson.) There are certain balances, referred to in Section 31 (3) of the Bill in the hands of the Department, which amount at the present time to about £230,000 in all. These will constitute the nucleus of the special fund referred to in Section 32; and, subject to the sources of revenue being productive in the same degree as at present, the annual payments to the general fund after its establishment might be expected to be, approximately, as follows:—Under Section 31 (1) (A) (about) £69,000; under Section 31 (1) (B) (about) £60,000; under Section 31 (2) (A) £60,000; under Section 31 (2) (B) (about) £37,000; under Section 31 (2) (C) £60,000; under Section 31 (2) (D) (about) £223,000; in all (about) £509,000 annually.

To ask the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, looking to the value and interest of the information contained in the Memorandum on the Egyptian Budget of the Financial Adviser to the Egyptian Government, he will in future issue it as a Parliamentary Paper. (Answered by Earl Percy.) It seems doubtful whether the demand for the publication is sufficient to justify the expense of its issue as a Parliamentary Paper, especially in view of the fact that the Memorandum is published in the Egyptian official journal, and can therefore be easily obtained.

To ask the hon. Member for Chorley, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether, with a view to providing more accommodation for Members of this House, he will consider the advisability of having tea served in the large dining-room so that the present tea-room could be used as a newspaper and writing room. (Answered by Lord Balcarres.) The First Commissioner is quite ready to consider the matter; but he doubts very much whether such an arrangement would be convenient for all Members of the House. The First Commissioner, moreover, hesitates to recommend an alteration of this character without receiving from Members some general assent to the proposal.

To ask the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that a letter sent by registered post from the Ilford Post Office on February 17th last, and addressed to Mr. W. Josling, Senior, Clarke's Farm, Walter Belchamp, near Sudbury, was allowed to be intercepted by Mr. W. Josling, Junior, of Fisher's Farm, Walter Belchamp, who destroyed it without its reaching the addressee; and, if so, what steps he proposes to take in the matter as regards punishment and redress. (Answered by Lord Stanley.) I am aware of the case mentioned. The registered letter was delivered to the addressee's representative. The addressee, who was ill in bed at the time, states that he approves the action taken with regard to it. I do not, therefore, feel called upon to take any further steps.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will grant a Return of the number and nature of the casualties caused by motor-cars and motor-cycles from June 1st, 1904, to March 1st, 1905, in continuation of the Return granted last session. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Akers-Douglas.) I shall be happy to furnish the hon. Member with these figures for the Metropolitan police district, as I did last year.† As I then explained, I have no means of obtaining them for the whole country.

To ask the Secretary of State for India whether he will state the regulations now in force in regard to privilege leave and furlough for officers of the Indian Army. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Brodrick.) The regulations now in force were published in an Indian Army Order, dated 1st February, 1904. Under that Order officers of the Indian Army, and officers of the Indian medical service in military employ, are permitted to combine privilege leave with furlough provided that the total absence from duty on any one occasion does not exceed eight months, and that such combined leave is taken between February 15th

† See (4) Debates, cxxxvi., 141.

and November 15th. In certain cases this restriction as to dates may be waived.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that only 500 teachers of national schools in Ireland have passed through a full course of elementary science instruction; that less than 5,000 teachers have attended the organisers' classes and have been trained on the work for the junior standards only, and that over 8,000 teachers have got no training whatever; and will he explain why, in view of these facts, six of the science organisers have received notice that their services will not be required after March 31st; and will he say what arrangements have been made for the training of the teachers who have not as yet had an opportunity of attending a course of science instruction; and will he call for the reports of the Head Organiser of Science Instruction and of the inspectors and be guided by their expert opinions in deciding as to whether or not the services of the science organisers at present employed should be retained. (Answered by Mr. Walter Long.) I beg to refer to the Answers which I gave to similar Questions put by the hon. Member for West Cavan yesterday†. I do not propose to call for the reports mentioned in the concluding inquiry. The consideration of these reports is for the Commissioners.

I beg to ask the Civil Lord of the Admiralty whether His Majesty's ships at Malta were formerly supplied with drinking water from the Valetta town reservoir via the naval tank at Corradino, and are not now so supplied; and, if so, when was the change made, and why.

† See page 1205.

No alteration has been made in the method of supplying His Majesty's ships with water for several years past. The water is obtained from the aqueduct mains belonging to the Civil Government, supplemented by the rainfall on the Admiralty catchment areas which partially feed the Corradino tank.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether, during the year 1904, there were many cases of typhoid in His Majesty's ships resorting to Malta Harbour.

During the year 1904, forty-six cases of enteric (typhoid) fever were admitted into Malta Hospital.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty how many cases of typhoid occurred during 1904 in His Majesty's ships "Venerable," "Montagu," and "Arrogant," respectively; and how many cases ended fatally.

In H.M.S. "Venerable" there were seventeen cases of typhoid fever, four ending fatally; in H.M.S. "Montagu," six cases and one death; in H.M.S. "Arrogant," four cases and one death. As these Questions and Answers might be liable to cause misapprehension, I think it desirable to add that the outbreaks of typhoid in these ships were not due to the Malta water supply. The disease was contracted during the visits of the ships to other Mediterranean ports.

Then it is not correct that the supply from Valetta ceased in 1893?

No, Sir.

What precautions have been taken to prevent this occurring again?

I have said the outbreak did not arise from the water supply

But it was due to some water supply.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty if his attention has been directed to the high speed attained by boats fitted with internal combustion engines; if experiments are being conducted by the Admiralty to prove the value of boats so fitted for naval purposes; and if he can state the nature and results of such experiments.

The reply to the first and second parts of the hon. Member's Question is in the affirmative. With regard to the latter part, the experiments are not sufficiently advanced to enable a decision to be arrived at as to the general suitability of this type of engine for naval purposes.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that foreign Governments are taking up this question seriously?

Yes, Sir.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether, in view of the diminution of the supply of Welsh steam coal, the Board of Admiralty are taking any, and, if so, what steps to find a suitable substitute for coal for use in the Royal Navy.

The Report of the Coal Commission indicates no such diminution in the available supply of Welsh steam coal as to necessitate the use of any substitute. Experiments are, however, being conducted with oil fuel.

Are the Board of Admiralty taking any steps to have a duty placed on the export of this steam coal?

No, Sir.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty how many battleships have been laid down in Great Britain, France, Germany, and Russia in the period 1900–4 inclusive, up to the autumn of 1904, when the present Navy Estimates were framed; what battleships had been sanctioned but not laid down in the four countries when the present Navy Estimates were framed; have any additional programmes for building battleships been brought forward or sanctioned in France, Germany, or Russia beyond what were under consideration when the Navy Estimates were framed; and, if so, what are those programmes.

The number of battleships laid down in the period 1900–4 inclusive in Great Britain was thirteen; France, six; Germany, ten; Russia, six. The number sanctioned but not laid down, in November, 1904, was—Great Britain, two; France, nil; Russia, three; Germany, two each year 1905 to 1909 inclusive, one each year 1910 to 1912 and 1914 to 1916, and two each year in 1913 and 1917. No additional programmes for battleships have been brought forward since November, 1904, by France or Germany. A large new Russian shipbuilding programme is known to be under consideration, probably extending over a series of years, but the extent or date of commencement is not known.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether it is proposed to group other Highland regiments, besides the Highland Light Infantry, with Lowland regiments, to divest them of the kilt, and to quarter them in depots in the Lowlands of Scotland.

No, Sir.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War if he will state for what reason the Highland Light Infantry is grouped with Lowland regiments, and quartered at Hamilton in the Lowlands of Scotland instead of in the Highlands.

Hamilton has been selected as the best headquarters for the group of Lowland regiments. The Highland Light Infantry have been at Hamilton since 1881. There would not, therefore, appear to be any sound reason for removing them from Hamilton.

Are there no places in the Highlands where the headquarters could be situated?

Very few.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that, in September last, on the military authorities in Belfast inviting tenders for the supply of forage for all the military stations in the Belfast district, including Belfast, Dundalk, Athlone, and Belturbet, these contracts were, in each ease, given to one Belfast company, Cullen, Allen, and Co., at prices for hay, oats, and straw from 20 to 33 percent. higher than various traders, who had each of them at different times discharged forage contracts with satisfaction, had tendered for the contracts thus entailing loss of public money, and that Cullen, Allen, and Co. handed the contracts for Belfast thus obtained to one of the local traders who had tendered himself unsuccessfully, and have allowed him even higher prices than the prices at which he tendered to the military authorities, at the same time obtaining for themselves about 25 percent. profit, and have likewise farmed out the other contracts to local traders; if so, will he say what explanation, if any, have the War Office authorities to give of these contracts, which are still in existence; and whether there will be an immediate investigation into the circumstances under which these contracts were made.

These contracts were, as usual, made by the General Officer Commanding, and were duly reported to and approved by the War Office. Messrs. Cullen, Allen, and Co. state that they did not sub-let any of the contracts, and that the business at Belfast is conducted by their own staff.

Did this firm's tender exceed the other tenders by from 20 to 33 percent., and if so, why was this preference given?

I must ask for notice of any further Question.

But will there be an investigation, or will the right hon. Gentleman's connection with the city prevent that?

Order, order!

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the fact that the average life of a field gun is about 2,000 rounds, he can state what number of guns now with our batteries are practically useless owing to the rifling having become defective; and whether it is proposed to issue these guns to the Volunteers as soon as the batteries have been re-armed with new quick-firing guns.

There are no guns now with the batteries which are useless owing to the rifling having become defective. All field guns are examined after every 150 rounds, and when the rifling is worn to such an extent as to render the guns unserviceable they are condemned. As regards the Volunteers no guns would be issued to them except such as are in a serviceable condition.

May I ask the number of years represented by 2,000 rounds?

I am afraid I cannot answer that Question. It all depends on circumstances.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War if he can state what was the reserve of field guns and the supply of reserve gun ammunition at the close of the year 1899, and what supply of each we have at the present moment; also what percentage of the number of guns actually with our batteries is considered adequate for the reserve; and when, according to existing arrangements, the reserve will be complete.

As I have already informed the hon. Member, I am not prepared to publish information concerning the state of our reserves. As regards the information for the close of the year 1899, I would refer him to a Minute of Sir H. Brackenbury on this subject, dated December 15th, 1899, which will be found in Appendix E. to the Report of the Royal Commission on the South African War (page 278).

But can the right hon. Gentleman not say what percentage of the number of guns actually with the batteries is considered adequate for the reserve? And when will the reserve be complete?

The reserve of the guns is being manufactured with the service guns. I think it will be admitted that a proper standard is maintained.

Will the reserve be complete in three years.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether he will state what meaning is to be attributed to the phrase naval ports on page 18 of his Memorandum; what is the present condition of that portion of the defences of Berehaven which has hitherto been supervised by the Royal Engineers afloat; whether it has been handed over to the Navy; and whether the units of Militia garrison artillery intended for the defence of Berehaven on mobilisation are among those for which recruiting has been stopped on the ground that the retention of the units is under consideration.

The phrase naval ports as used in the Memorandum on Army Estimates is merely intended to express those more important ports used by His Majesty's Ships where the Navy were prepared to take over the submarine mines and their appliances. As regards Berehaven, the portion of the defences which has hitherto been supervised by the Royal Engineers afloat is now being prepared for transfer to the Navy. The reply to the last part of the Question is in the negative.

On behalf of the hon. Member for Deptford, I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War how many new rifle ranges for Volunteers have become available during the years 1902, 1903, and 1904, respectively.

The numbers are as follow:—In 1902–3, 43; 1903–4, 52; 1904–5, 33.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War what regulations and restrictions exist as to showing the Fortress of Gibraltar to distinguished foreigners who visit the Rock.

Will my hon. friend kindly refer to the King's Regulations, Appendix V., where he will find full instructions with regard to admission to the national defences? Within those instructions the General Officer Commanding concerned has full powers of discretion.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether second lieutenants in the Royal Engineers are being promoted on much shorter service than second lieutenants in the infantry; and whether he can do anything to equalise the promotion in the two services.

The average rate of promotion of second lieutenants in the Royal Engineers for the year 1904 was only two months more rapid than that in regiments of Infantry of the Line, which was two years nine and a-half months. The normal rate in the Royal Engineers is three years, but his was reduced to two years seven and three-quarter months in 1904 by the fact that the reduction of service for promotion to captain from eleven to nine years caused vacancies in the lieutenants' ranks. This acceleration is merely temporary.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether land at Aveley, Essex, has been acquired for ranges at from £100 in one case, to £170 per acre in the other; and will he say why land in Essex, which usually sells for £10 to £15 per acre, was not bought for the War Office.

The selection of a site for extensive ranges for the use of Metropolitan Volunteer Corps has proved a matter of great difficulty, and while no doubt land can be procured in Essex at the prices mentioned, it has not been found possible to obtain large tracts suitable for the purpose or within easy access of London so cheaply as my hon. and gallant friend supposes. The prices paid were determined by arbitration, and the figures given in the Question are approximately correct.

I hope the next time the right hon. Gentleman wants to buy land he will inform me. There are many who will be glad to accommodate him.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that the soldiers in camp at Middleburg are being placed on the register of electors in that district of Cape Colony; and whether it is the usual practice for soldiers to thus take part in the political affairs of self-governing colonies in which they may be temporarily resident for garrison, duty.

I understand that British soldiers in Middleburg are being placed on the register of electors. They are registered as voters according to the laws of a self-governing colony with which in this matter I have no right and no desire to interfere.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether an Act has been passed by the Reichstag of the German Empire for the construction of a railway through the Cameroons to Lake Tchad; and whether His Majesty's Government propose to construct a light railway from the Niger to Zaria in order to develop the cotton-growing industry and the general trade of Northern Nigeria, and with a view to the continuation of such a railway to Kano and ultimately to the Lake Tchad region.

I have no information as to the German railway beyond the statement which appeared in the Press on the 24th instant, to the effect that His Imperial Majesty had signed a Bill for the construction of a railway from the Cameroons to Lake Chad, and that a sum equivalent to £650,000 was required for the first 100 miles. A survey for a railway from the Niger to Zaria was completed last year, but no decision to construct such a railway has yet been taken.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India if a scheme of reorganisation of the police force in India as an armed force has been adopted; and, if so, will he state whether this is the result of a recommendation by the Police Commission or by the military authorities; also what number of men are to be so armed, and whether they will have to undergo any special training; and what is the estimate of the additional cost of such reorganisation; and further, whether his sanction has been given to the scheme, and if he will lay upon the Table of the House all Papers and correspondence between himself and the Government of India bearing on this subject.

No new principle affecting the training of the police force in India in the use of arms has been adopted in the reorganisation of the force; but principles laid down in 1860 and 1889 have now been reaffirmed as a result of the inquiries made by the Commission. The military authorities have of course been consulted. The exact additional cost of the reorganisation has not yet been reported to me. I hope shortly to receive from the Government of India Papers which will include a full summary of the decisions arrived at after correspondence. I propose to lay this summary with the Report on the Table.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether a concession of, or option over, a tract of land in British East Africa has been granted to the Zionists; if so, what is the position and the acreage of the concession or option; what are the terms and conditions of the arrangement with the Zionists; who are their representatives; and whether, in view of the present policy of the Department, he will refuse to grant large concessions or options of land in East Africa to a private community or association.

No further step has yet been taken in regard to the allotment of land to the Zionists. We are awaiting the Report of the Commission which is now on its way home, and, as I stated last year, the correspondence will be laid before a final decision is arrived at.

I beg to ask the Under-secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when he proposes to issue further correspondence on the subject of contraband of war, in view of the fact that the recent Parliamentary Paper (Russia No. 1,1905) contains no correspondence subsequent to October, 1904; if any modification of the attitude of the Russian Government on the subject has been notified; and, if not, whether His Majesty's Government is continuing to make representations on the subject.

The correspondence which has taken place since October relates only to the claims presented by His Majesty's Government. No ground of complaint against the action of the Russian naval authorities has arisen subsequent to the issue by the Russian Government of the supplementary instructions referred to on page 26 of the correspondence already laid.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he has any official information about the duration of the stay of the Russian Fleet in the territorial waters of Madagascar.

The Answer is in the negative.

I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has yet received a full report from the Colonial Office as to the practice of the Canadian Government in granting certificates, on the payment of a small stamp duty, to distillers and merchants endorsing the age guarantee affixed by such traders to pot-still whiskies bottled in bond, as the Excise officers know by the official books the exact time such whiskies have been in Government custody; and, if so, whether, in the interest of the trade, the public health, and increase of the revenue, he will instruct the Excise authorities to adopt a similar practice in these countries.

No, Sir. I have not yet received the report which I have asked for from Canada.

I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total of Exchequer Bills outstanding at the present time.

I think, as I said yesterday† in answer to the

† See page 1179.

hon. Member for North Manchester, that statements relating to the Unfunded Debt which are issued at different dates cause great inconvenience and are apt to mislead. I will therefore ask the hon. Member to await the delivery of the Budget Statement. If the details I then give respecting the National Debt are insufficient, I shall be happy to supplement them.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury if he can state why the usual practice of recognising seniority in the case of preferments in the Civil Service has been departed from recently in the case of an appointment to a checking allowance in the Statistical Department, Custom House, in which an assistant clerk was preferred over the heads of nineteen of his colleagues, against nearly all of whom no charge of official incom-petency had been made; and whether he will see that due regard is, in future, accorded to the traditional claims of seniority.

Checking allowances are assigned to those officers who, in the opinion of the Board of Customs, are the most competent for the work to be performed. It was in accordance with this principle that the appointment referred to was made.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General if he will state what progress has been made up to the present time with the underground cable to Edinburgh and Glasgow on the Scottish side of the border; what further progress he proposes to make during the present year; and when he expects that the work will be completed.

With the exception of a small section where there has been some difficulty owing to differences with the road authorities—now fortunately settled—the line of underground pipes is complete to Glasgow. The cable will be drawn in along the whole of that line during the year 1905–6. I shall not be in a position to extend the underground line to Edinburgh at present, but there will be little chance of serious interruption of communication with that city when Carlisle and Glasgow, which have a number of independent lines to Edinburgh, are both on the main underground system.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, as the City of London is only calling up, under the Licensing Act, 1904, one-fourth of the possible compensation fund, he will take steps, by legislation or otherwise, to enable the City to collect the whole fund provided by law, and devote it to the extinction of liquor licences in the county of London.

No, Sir, I do not see how it would be justifiable under the Licensing Act, 1904, to impose charges on the licences in one jurisdiction for the purpose of extinguishing licences in another jurisdiction.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether any statistics are being collected where by the value for compensation purposes of licensed premises may be determined, calculated as if the licence were subject to the same conditions of renewal as were applicable immediately before the passing of the Licensing Act of 1904.

So far as I am aware, the Answer is in the negative.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the total number of Metropolitan police, including pensioners, available for immediate duty; and how many assaults were committed against policemen in London during 1903 and 1904.

The strength of the Metropolitan Police Force is 16,877. Pensioners are not liable for any duty. During the year 1903, 2,683 assaults were committed against Metropolitan policemen, while the number so committed during 1904 was 2,749.

I bag to ask the Secretary of State for the Homo Department if the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the means of locomotion and transport in London has completed its deliberations, and when its Report is to be issued.

I regret that I cannot at present add anything to the Answer I gave to the hon. Member for Christchurch on March 21st,† viz., that the Committee are now engaged in preparing their Report and I cannot say when it will be presented.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he can see his way to make representations to the local authorities to avoid, as far as possible, extensive road repairing at the approaches to the Houses of Parliament during the session.

I have communicated with the London County Council and the Westminster City Council upon this matter, and I am assured that all repairs to the approaches to the Houses of Parliament shall, as far as possible, be performed out of session. The work which is at present being executed is stated to be necessary for the public safety.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether members of the Metropolitan Police Force who are acquainted with the Judish-Deutsch and other foreign tongues will be placed in a more favourable position when eligible for promotion

† See page 650.

than members of the force who are only acquainted with their native tongue.

The question of promotion in the Metropolitan Police Force is one which must be left entirely to the discretion of the Commissioner, who may be trusted to consider in every case the qualifications and disqualifications of those concerned.

I beg to ask the President of the Board of Agriculture whether there have been any experiments in the cultivation of sugar beet in England; if so, what have been the results of such experiments; whether they have been such as to cause the Board of Agriculture to form an opinion as to whether the cultivation of sugar beet can be profitably undertaken in this country.

Several experiments in the cultivation of sugar beet have been carried out in this country, and, so far as they go, it would appear that the yield compares favourably, both as to quality and quantity, with that obtained in Germany. The information in our possession as to the commercial results of the cultivation of sugar beet is much too meagre to enable me to say that its growth could be profitably undertaken here, but we will keep the matter in view and issue from time to time such information respecting it as may be available and likely to be of service to farmers.

Are the experiments being continued?

Yes, Dr. Stein and several landowners in this country and in Ireland are continuing to cultivate sugar beet.

I beg to ask the President of the Board of Agriculture if he proposes to issue during the present year the daily meteorological reports for the guidance of farmers.

As my hon. friend may be aware, arrangements were made in 1893 and 1894 for the experimental exhibition at telegraph stations in certain parts of the country of the daily weather forecasts issued by the Meteorological Council during the hay and corn harvests. It was found, however, that the areas to which the forecasts apply were too wide to allow of anything like close accuracy in any particular locality, and the experiment was therefore abandoned. The Meteorological Council recently established a special service of afternoon forecasts during the summer months for the benefit of agriculturists, and they will telegraph these forecasts each day to any persons who will pay the cost of the telegrams. I may add that the expense of the arrangement suggested by my hon. friend is considerable, and I am afraid that there is no prospect of my obtaining the necessary funds for the purpose unless a very strong case for the proposed service can be made out.

Has the right hon. Gentleman ever studied the methods by which meteorological notices are distributed in Canada and the States by placing them on trains, so that the farmers in the districts through which the trains run may know what weather to expect?

I will make some inquiry as to that.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Board of Trade whether he can yet state when the Select Committee on Board of Trade Shipping Regulations will be re appointed.

The Committee will, I hope, be appointed very soon.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Board of Education whether the Lambeth Board of Guardians have made inquiries into the cases of ill-fed children in the Johanna Street School.

I understand that inquiries have been made, but I have no official information on the subject.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Board of Education whether he is aware that, in the months of May and June, 1904, notices were given for the provision of two new public elementary schools in the village of Nymphsfield, under Section 8 of the Act of 1902; that the county education authority issued the notice in May to take a transfer of an existing Church of England school with twenty-two scholars, and that the managers of St. Joseph's Catholic School, with fifty scholars, issued the notice in June; that St. Joseph's School had been certified efficient for more than three years, and had been conducted in accordance with the provisions of Section 7 of the Elementary Education Act of 1870; that appeals, were lodged against both proposals; and can he state why the Board of Education decided that the school with twenty-two children was necessary, and that the school with fifty children was not necessary.

I may point out to the hon. Member that of the fifty children attending the St. Joseph's School, twenty are Roman Catholic children from other parts of England who are temporarily boarded out in Nymphsfield, seventeen are Protestants, while only thirteen are indigenous Roman Catholics. The Board considered that, in view of the fact that the large majority of the children living in Nymphsfield are Protestants, a Catholic school would not best meet the requirements of the place. It is clear that only one school is required.

I beg to ask the hon. Member for Chorley, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, if arrangements can be made to place legible letters indicating rooms and numbers on book-cases and shelves, commonly called press marks, in the Members' Libraries.

This matter is receiving attention.

I beg to ask the hon. Member for Chorley, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, if it is proposed to carry out certain suggestions made by Dr. M. H. Gordon in his recent Report on Ventilation in the House of Commons; and if these recommendations are in any way incompatible with, or superseded by, the scheme of ventilation now in use.

The reply to the first paragraph is in the affirmative; the recommendations are intended to improve the system now in use and are not incompatible with it.

I beg to ask the Lord-Advocate if he will state the names of the six counties in Scotland where the medical officers of health engage in general or consultative practice; and will arrangements be made for such officer to give their whole time to the duties of their office when fresh appointments are made.

The names of the counties are Bute, Forfar, Haddington, Orkney, Zetland, Ross and Cromarty. Since 1901 it has been a necessary condition of participation in the Sanitary Officers' Grant that a county medical officer shall not engage in general private practice.

I beg to ask the Lord-Advocate, in view of the fact that, shortly after the assembling of the present Parliament, the then Secretary for Scotland stated, in reply to a memorial from Scottish Members, that in order to purchase an additional Fishery Board cruiser he proposed to save moneys out of funds at his disposal for fishery purposes, have any such funds accumulated; and, if so, to what extent.

Funds were accumulated in the manner indicated by Lord Balfour of Burleigh and a new cruiser, the "Freya," was built and launched last year.

I beg to ask the Lord-Advocate, in view of the fact that the sum of £15,000, placed at the disposal of the Fishery Board for Scotland in terms of Section 2 (3) of The Local Taxation Account (Scotland) Act, 1898, for marine superintendence, is stated to be wholly absorbed, will he state from what source he proposes to obtain funds for the purchase of an additional cruiser required for the protection of the interests of the line fishermen from the depredations of illegal trawlers.

The Secretary for Scotland does not propose to purchase an additional cruiser, as the funds at the disposal of the Fishery Board will not at present admit both of purchase and maintenance of another vessel.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is prepared to introduce a Bill assimilating the law in Ireland with that of England in reference to extraordinary traffic on roads, as dealt with in The Highways and Locomotive (Amendment) Act, 1878, The Locomotive Act, 1898, and The Locomotive Act, 1861.

I am unable to give any undertaking to introduce legislation on this subject in the present session.

Before the law is altered, will inquiry be made as to the state of the roads?

I am not sure that an inquiry is necessary. The Question asks if I am prepared to assimilate the law in the two countries. As to the necessity of that there can be no dispute.

But the right hon. Gentleman has altered the law in England.

No, Sir. We are discussing total different things. The Question refers not to motor-cars but to the power of local authorities to make special charges upon the users of heavy engines on their roads.

I beg the right hon. Gentleman's pardon. He has altered the law in England and Scotland.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether the attention of the Commissioners of National Education has been drawn to the fact that the new rule with reference to the instruction of children under eight years of age will deprive many assistant male teachers of their positions, and by reducing the average attendance will render insecure the position of others; that it will also result in many cases in reducing the grade of principal teachers of small schools and in debarring them from future increments; and whether, in view of the objections to the rule on the part of the managers, the teachers, and the general public, and of the inconvenience which it will cause, he will have the rule suspended until fuller inquiries will have been made.

I beg also to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he can now say, in the event of proposed new Rule 127 (b) being put into force by the Commission of National Education, how many assistant national teachers will be thrown out of employment; what amount will be saved to the Treasury by the depression in grade which a number of principal teachers must undergo; and what has been the practice heretofore adopted by the Commission in regard to vested rights of teachers when a new rule affecting average school attendance has been put into force.

The Commissioners are unable to anticipate the effect of this rule. I have already stated that the Commissioners will, on application of the manager, specially consider any case in which the enforcement of the rule would lead to the loss of an assistant teacher. The Commissioners, when modifying their rules, always endeavour to safeguard what may be regarded as the vested rights of teacher. It is not intended to put the new rule into operation for some time.

What is the saving to the Treasury, and what is the effect of the rule on the interests of the teachers?

I cannot say what the saving to the Treasury is, but the Commissioners have safeguarded the interests of the teachers.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, is he aware that on the night of 3rd October last an emergency man named Denis Connolly, of Borrisnoe, was caught in the act of stealing cabbage from the haggart of Daniel Greed residing near the same place; that he was accompanied by Constables Neary and Buckley; that Constable Buckley subsequently asked the Greeds to say nothing about the occurrence, and, on being refused, threatened them; that, a few days later, Head Constable Fallon came to the Greeds, and under the pretext of an investigation obtained from Cornelius Greed a statement of the facts; and that the magistrates at the trial, where Connolly pleaded guilty, expressed their opinions that these constables should have been brought forward as witnesses, and for their production adjourned the trial for a fortnight; and, if so, will he say what order was subsequently made in the case of Connolly, were the constables produced at trial, was any investigation held, and where are those constables stationed at present; and will he take steps to hold an investigation into all the facts of the case.

I have not had sufficient time to examine the papers in this case, which only came before me to-day. Perhaps the hon. Member will defer the Question till Thursday.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he can state what promotion in grade was given to those national teachers trained in 1899 and 1900 who were classed first of second on entering the training college, and who passed the examination in 1900; and whether all the teachers so classed on entering were thus promoted.

Every case was dealt with on its merits. In some cases the teacher was promoted in grade; in others he received the equivalent of one or more increments of good service salary without any promotion in grade.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that Sergeant Fitzsimons, Mountmellick, acted on last Court day as petty sessions clerk; and whether, in view of the fact that Fitzsimons was prosecutor in several cases at the same sessions, he will state who is responsible for the appointment and whether it is to continue.

The clerk of petty sessions having been suspended from duty, the custody of the petty sessions books was handed over to Sergeant Fitzsimons under the authority of the 6th Section of the Petty Sessions Act; and the magistrates requested the sergeant to act temporarily as clerk, pending the reinstatement of the clerk or the appointment of a new one. Sergeant Fitzsimons was prosecutor in one case at the last petty sessions. He is not exempt from his ordinary duties whilst in custody of the petty sessions records and acting as clerk.

Why was the clerk suspended?

I have no information as to that.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether the purchase arrangements of the Heathfield Estate, situate near Collooney, county Sligo, have yet been sanctioned by the Estates Commissioners; and, if so, will he say whether these arrangements include the enlargement of uneconomic holdings by the addition of a portion of the waste land on the estate from which the tenants or their predecessors were evicted.

The Commissioners cannot identify this estate. If the hon. Member will furnish me with the name of the owner I will have further inquiries made.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that Thomas M'Cormack, Timahoe, Queen's County, an evicted tenant, has been informed by the Estates Commissioners that should they acquire untenanted lands in the Queen's County his application for reinstatement will be considered; and whether, in view of the fact that M'Cormack has already informed the Commissioners that he is willing to take a firm of equal value in any other district, he will state what course the Commissioners propose taking in the matter.

The Commissioners will consider the application of Mr. M'Cormack should a suitable opportunity occur.

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether, pending a decision as to the legality of placing the owner's name and address in Irish on carts, he will direct that no more prosecutions shall be instituted by the police in cases similar to that of Nial MacBride, of Dunfanaghy, county Donegal.

The Answer to this Question is in the negative.

How is an owner of a cart who lives in an Irish-speaking district going to identify his cart if his name appears on it in English only?

I beg to ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he is aware that the Gore-Booth Estate, on which the town of Ballymote, county Sligo, is situate, has recently been sold under the Land Act of 1903, and that the majority of the town tenants are also tenants on the agricultural portion of the estate already sold; and whether, seeing that the purchase arrangements have not been yet completed, and that the vendor is anxious to have the town included in the sale, and is willing to leave the settlement of the price to the Estates Commissioners, this matter will be reconsidered with the view of having the town included in the general terms of purchase.

The Estates Commissioners are prepared to make advances for the purchase of holdings which are in the main agricultural or pastoral, but, as my right hon. and learned friend has already informed the hon. Member, the Land Purchase Acts do not contemplate advances on the resale of houses in villages or towns. The matter is one for the decision of the Estates Commissioners, subject to review by Mr. Justice Meredith.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General under what circumstances he recently appointed three English officials to vacant Irish postmasterships; what applications did he receive from members of the Irish service for these posts; can he say what special qualifications the three selected officials had over their Irish colleagues; and whether he will give three corresponding positions in England to members of the Irish service.

Appointments to postmasterships, whether in England, Ireland, Scotland, or Wales, are open to all Post Office officials throughout the United Kingdom. In making these appointments I take no account of the nationality of the candidates, and I select for each appointment the candidate who, in my opinion, is the best qualified to fill it.

Are these English importations good Unionists?

I hope so.

Were there no Irish candidates competent to fill these positions? Are these posts to be reserved exclusively for Englishmen?

There may have been Irish candidates, but they were not so well qualified as the English ones.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General if he is aware that, in face of the statement made by the Bradford Committee that they understood that the system of unpaid learners had been abolished, there are still unpaid learners in many offices in Ireland; and will he take steps to have this system abolished forthwith.

The matter referred to by the hon. Member is under consideration.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General if he can say, in view of the rule of his Department stating that no learners can be kept in the service for over two years without appointments, what arrangements does he intend to make to place upon the establishment in Ireland those learners who have already over two years service.

There is no rule to the effect suggested by the hon. Member. I am now considering what steps can be taken to improve the position of learners of long service who have not been appointed, and the Memorandum I am about to issue will show what is being done temporarily until a definite scheme has been arrived at.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury whether any, and, if so, what representations have been made to him with regard to Portrush Harbour, county Antrim; and what reply he has given.

No representations have reached either the Board of Works or me.

Oh, wait a minute. Did not the hon. Gentleman receive a deputation headed by the hon. Member for North Antrim on this very subject? Has he forgotten it altogether?

I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether the responsibility for the adequacy of numbers and composition of land forces for Home and Imperial defence rests with the Imperial Defence Committee, in their advice to the Department of the War Office, or with the Secretary of State for War, as head of that Department; if with the latter, why the authoritativeness of the Memorandum furnished by the War Office to the Royal Commission on the Militia and Volunteers, setting forth the numbers required for Home defence, was withdrawn two months after that Memorandum was furnished.

In reply to my hon. and gallant friend, I have to say that the responsibility rests with the Cabinet, whom it is the duty of the Defence Committee to advise.

Cannot the right hon. Gentleman answer the latter part of the Question.

As my hon. and gallant friend will see, the latter part of his Question is hypothetical and turns upon an affirmative Answer to the second part of the Question, which affirmative Answer I have not given.

The Question as to authoritativeness has relation to a fact.

Certainly, that is so.

I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether he can fix a day before Easter for the Second Reading of the Scotch Education Bill.

I hope it will be before Easter, but I cannot yet fix a day.

asked for some explanation of the Motion.

said the House was probably aware that this Bill had already passed its Second Reading. It was a private Member's Bill authorising the appointment of a Public Trustee, and great progress had been made with it in the Grand Committee, but further progress was delayed for the consideration of the money clause. He believed that the Bill would not ultimately involve any charge on the public funds, and indeed it might prove a source of revenue, but it was necessary to authorise the money clause: hence this Motion. Although he was making it in his capacity as a Minister of the Crown, he had no intention or desire to make the Bill a Government measure; but as hon. Members on both sides were anxious to pass it the Government considered that they should not be prevented by a mere technicality.

moved to insert, after "granted," the words "or proposed to be granted." He said he would not press the Amendment if the Chancellor of the Exchequer was able to give them satisfactory assurances concerning the point raised on the previous day—namely, that in consequence of the way in which this Bill had been drafted he would be bound to act illegally.

Order, order! I think the Amendment unnecessary and therefore out of order.

Do I understand you rule it out of order?

Yes.

Then I must argue——

No, there can be no argument. I hold it is out of order because it is outside the scope of the Resolution on which the Bill is founded.

On the point——

There can be no discussion or argument on it.

as a point of order, asked leave to draw the attention of the Chairman to a precedent for his present Motion in the year 1902. On August 8th in that year, on the Appropriation Bill, an Amendment was moved by the hon. Member for West Islington to Clause 3 to insert the words "£20,000,000 at any one time," and that was certainly not in the terms of the Resolution on which that Bill was founded. It was allowed to be proposed, and he could quote precedent after precedent of similar Amendments having been moved.

That seems to me to be quite a different case. I adhere to my ruling.

said he would be perfectly satisfied if the Chancellor of the Exchequer would give him the assurance he had asked for.

rose to reply, but

I still adhere to my ruling, and there is no Question before the House.

said he thought he would now be in order in answering the hon. Member. The point of the hon. Member opposite—which he raised on the previous day—was that the words of the Act of 1891, which were intended to extend the legal power of the Treasury, had, in fact, a limiting effect, and that they prevented the Treasury from legally employing money voted, as on the present occasion under Vote 1 of the Navy, on the feeding of the Navy until such time as the Victualling Vote had passed through the Committee and been reported. That was not the case. The illegality the hon. Member feared did not arise, because Section 15 of the Exchequer and Audit Department Act, 1866, provided that the issues for Army and Navy services should be made under the general heads of "Army" and "Navy" respectively. The issue was made for the Army and not for any specific Vote, and no illegality arose in applying it to any particular service of the Army Estimates.

said he would like to point out to the right hon. Gentleman that his construction of Section 15 was not accurate, and he would refer him to Clause 4 of the Appropriation Act of last year, in which an express provision was introduced in order to enable the Comptroller and Auditor-General to sanction payments in respect of the Army which had not been specifically appropriated. Such a provision would have been entirely unnecessary if the view now stated by the right hon. Gentlemen was correct. As a matter of fact, as no money had been voted for the Army and as only Vote 1 for the Navy had been voted, the right hon. Gentleman could not legally do more than use the money of Vote 1 for the Navy and could not use any money at all for the Army. The words in the Act on which he relied were—

"Every sum issued in pursuance of this Act shall be applied towards making good the Supply so granted at the time of such issue."

These words clearly limited and defined the powers of the Treasury, and they were in an Act subsequent to the Act on which the right hon. Gentleman appeared to rely. All he desired the right hon. Gentleman to do was to introduce words in the present Consolidated Fund Bill instead of in the Appropriation Bill in August, legalising at once that which he was now illegally doing.

suggested that the words "granted at the time of issue" were sufficient to cover any subsequent Votes, and that was all the Chancellor of the Exchequer wanted, as he was going to get Vote A and Vote 1 of the Army as soon as possible. But if there was a doubt about this matter, the doubt should be resolved not by a Committee of the House, but by the Comptroller and Auditor-General, who had been appointed by the House in order to see that every legal formality was fully complied with before he sanctioned the issue of one sovereign or even of one halfpenny out of the Consolidated Fund.

said that, by the admission of the Chancellor of the Exchequer himself, it was quite unprecedented to have a Consolidated Fund Bill which did not include any sums voted for the Army specifically.

said he never made any admission of the kind. What he stated yesterday was that, so far as he was aware, Army Supply had never been in this condition before. He had since had further inquiry made; and as a result he found that Navy Supply had been in exactly the same position before, and that in 1883, when hon. Gentlemen opposite were in power, not merely had there been no Navy Vote, but no Civil Service Vote either.

pointed out that the Public Accounts and Charges Act, on which they relied, was passed subsequently to 1883. He submitted that it was a direct violation of that Act, and that it was highly unconstitutional to use money which had been voted for the Navy for other purposes of the Army than those for which it had been specifically voted for the Navy. For the first time since the Public Accounts and Charges Act was passed, they had no money voted for the Army in the Consolidated Fund Bill, and the House should take cognisance of that fact, seeing how the principle of the control of the House was involved.

moved to insert the following proviso—

"And the Treasury shall repay the moneys so borrowed, with interest not exceeding 5 per centum per annum, out of the growing produce of the Consolidated Fund at a period not later than the next succeeding quarter to that in which the said moneys were borrowed."

If these words were inserted it would restore the Act to its original shape. The form of this Bill had suffered an important change at the hands of no less a person than the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Before 1902 the Treasury had power only to borrow the money for three months. When, in 1902, in a moment of inattention he thought, the House permitted the Treasury to borrow for twelve months, it thereby quadrupled their borrowing power in point of time, and so added to the Unfunded Debt. He maintained that that added to their Unfunded Debt. It was true that the Chancellor of the Exchequer said that there was no more borrowing power, but there was only power to borrow for a longer time. That was, however, the whole point. Was it advisable that the power given in 1902 allowing the Treasury to borrow for a whole year instead of for three months only should be continued. He submitted that this was a time when the Treasury's power to borrow should be contracted in the most jealous way. The Chancellor of the Exchequer himself, when he made the Motion in 1902, said the borrowing powers had hitherto been exercised on the I.O.U. of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. But now the money was obtained on Treasury Bills, and the power formerly exercised of borrowing on the personal I.O.U. of the Chancellor of the Exchequer had been quadrupled. He thought that that was very unfortunate. They had seen their debt increasing, and any powers given to Ministers in regard to money matters ought now to be more carefully watched and more jealously circumscribed than at any previous period of history. Already their Funded and Unfunded Debt and contingent liabilities had reached a total far beyond the dreams of any of their ancestors, and for that reason he earnestly begged the Committee to assist him in restricting the powers of the Treasury. His Amendment would restore the Act to its original form, and if it were carried he would have to move to leave out Sub-sections 2 and 3 as a consequential Amendment.

said the gravamen of the hon. Gentleman's contention that the Treasury's borrowing powers were, by the words introduced into the Act of 1902 by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for West Bristol, quadrupled in point of time, might hold good if the whole transaction were as the hon. Gentleman had stated it. But the old practice was for the Treasury to borrow in the first three months of the year as much as was needed to finance the Exchequer during that period. Having paid off that sum, the Treasury then re borrowed it, together with an additional amount to finance them during the second quarter, and in the third quarter they reborrowed the amount they had borrowed in the first and second quarters, plus the further money they required. It would be seen, therefore, that the only difference of practice inaugurated in 1902 was that in the first quarter the Treasury were allowed to borrow there and then what they required for the year, instead of renewing their borrowings three times in the course of the year. It was, moreover, more economical for the country that they should be enabled to borrow on Treasury Bills in the market instead of being confined to borrowing for this purpose from the Bank of England. He hoped the Committee would consent to pass the clause in its present form. The only circumstances which, so far as he could make it out, would ever enable them to dispense with this power would be a reduction of the income-tax by 4d. or 6d. and that was a prospect which he did not think they were likely to realise in the near future.

asked was he to understand the submission of the right hon. Gentleman to be that there were certain financial advantages in making the loan for the longer period?

said that was so, and whatever Bills were issued for this purpose must be paid within the financial year. The real object of the proviso was to enable the Treasury to finance itself against the first nine months of the year, when the revenue was thin, and in anticipation of the great bulk of the income-tax, out of which the bills were paid, coming in in the last quarter.

hoped that the Motion would not be pressed. It was quite wrong to suppose that the practice under discussion increased the borrowing powers of the Government by sixpence.

I never said it did.

said the hon. Gentleman suggested that it increased the floating debt, but it did not even do that. It provided the Chancellor of the Exchequer with the power of borrowing on better terms by giving him greater freedem.