To ask the Secretary of State for War whether his attention has been called to the case of Arthur Thackeray, late driver Royal Field Artillery, discharged through injury received on duty on 1s. per day pension; and whether, if this pension cannot be increased, it might be compounded for a sum of money which would enable this man to set up in some little business which might give him a chance to make a living. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Haldane.) This man was discharged after four years thirty-seven days service, on account of fracture of the left radius, due to an accident on duty. He is, as stated, in receipt of a pension of 1s. a day. The Commissioners of Chelsea Hospital have taken steps to have him medically examined with the view of ascertaining whether the effects of the injury are sufficiently severe to justify an increase of his pension. Under present regulations, as pensions of 1s. and under may not be commuted, he is not eligible to commute his pension.

To ask the Postmaster-General if he will state when it is proposed to give a telephone service to Longford connected with Dublin and other towns; whether he is aware that this serivce was promised by Lord Stanley four years ago; and what is the cause of the delay, seeing that it has been given to Cavan, Mullingar, and Sligo. (Answered by Mr. Sydney Buxton.) I can find no trace of a promise by my predecessor to extend the trunk telephone system to Longford. The system has not as yet been extended to Cavan, Mullingar, or Sligo; but terms have been quoted for a guaranteed extension to Mullingar, and if these are accepted I shall be happy to quote terms for a further extension to Longford.

To ask the Postmaster-General whether repeated complaints have been made by the staff at the Corn Exchange post office regarding the absence of heating apparatus; whether promises of reform have been made on a number of occasions; and whether he will give instructions that the alterations shall be made immediately. (Answered by Mr. Sydney Buxton.) I have already had this matter under my personal consideration, but I am not aware that any promises have been made with regard to it. The office in question forms a small enclosure inside the Corn Exchange, and is occupied by one clerk only for four hours a day on three days of the week. I recently asked the Corn Exchange Company to arrange, if practicable, for the supply of a small oil-stove; and the company are giving the matter attention.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade whether he can make any formal statement in regard to His Majesty's Government's intentions as regards the Coastguard service, so that in the event of the present system being abolished the men now employed may be able to make arrangements for their return to civil life. To ask the President of the Board of Trade whether, in the event of the present Coastguard service being abolished, it is the intention of His Majesty's Government to establish a new service; if so, whether the men now employed in the Coastguard service will be allowed to join; and whether the time served in the Coastguard service will be allowed to count for pension. (Answered by Mr. Edmund Robertson.) I cannot undertake to make any statement on the subject of the Coastguard until Vote A and Vote 1 are before the House.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade when the French-Canadian Treaty comes into operation; whether Switzerland and other countries having most-favoured-nation treaties with Canada receive the benefit of the tariff reductions granted to France; whether the reduced tariff applies only to goods either shipped direct from French to Canadian ports, or which if they touch at a British port do so without breaking bulk; and will French goods re-exported from British ports also obtain the benefit of the reductions. (Answered by Secretary Sir Edward Grey.) The Convention in question will come into force as soon as ratifications are exchanged. Countries entitled to most-favoured-nation treatment will receive the benefit of the tariff reductions granted to France on conditions similar to those imposed upon that country. I am not in a position to give further information at present.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland if he can state why, on the introduction of the grading system, national teachers with no un-favourable record were not placed in grades corresponding to their classification at that time; whether in schools where teachers after years of hard study succeeded in obtaining first division of first class, and where proficiency is recorded as good on every occasion, even very good on some occasions, the principal teacher has been placed and kept in the lower grade while assistants in the same school have been awarded increments on every occasion where they became due; whether, in such cases, the former classification does in any way aid in obtaining the corresponding grade; and whether the Commissioners can consider these matters with a view to the removal of what is an injustice to this hard-working body of teachers. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The Commissioners of National Education have furnished me with the following statement in reply to this Question. When the system of payments of teachers by consolidated salaries was introduced in 1900, each teacher was, as a rule, awarded an initial income equal at least to his average income from all State sources for the preceding three years. Cases in which this method of fixing initial income seemed to operate inequitably were specially considered by the Board. There were three grades of income recognised, namely, first, second, and third; and in the first grade there were two divisions. The teachers took rank in the grades in accordance with their initial incomes fixed in the method already indicated. In a large proportion of cases the grades of the teachers were found to correspond to their classification under the old rules, but this was not so in all cases, for many teachers of the first class (old regulations) had very small incomes, seeing that they were in charge of small schools, while a large number of teachers of the third and second classes had very large incomes. It is obvious, therefore, that to have placed all teachers in 1900 in grades corresponding to their classes would have been productive of grave injustice in numerous instances. Moreover, there was no real connection between classification and gradation, class salaries and grade salaries being entirely different. Promotion of teachers depends on a variety of circumstances, such as training, position in school, ability and general attainments, good service, seniority, average attendance at the school, etc., and if teachers of the first division of first class (old regulations) have not obtained promotion, some essential condition has not been complied with. But the Commissioners are always prepared to investigate any case of alleged hardship that may be brought under their notice, either in connection with refusal of promotion or refusal of increment. The promotion of principals and the award of increments to assistants are independent operations and may have no relation one to the other. No general Answer can be given to this part of the Question. High classification under the old rules is an element for consideration in connection with promotion. The Commissioners will consider any case of alleged grievance which may be submitted to them.

To ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the Secretary of State will confer with the Admiralty concerning the desirability of widening the channel of the waterway of St. George's Channel, Bermuda, so as to admit of the passage of vessels of deeper draught than those now able to use it with safety. (Answered by Mr. Churchill.) The question of improving the waterway of St. George's Channel in the manner suggested has already engaged the attention of the Secretary of State, but there are grave financial difficulties in the way of the scheme; and, even if these difficulties were removed, it is very uncertain whether alterations in the channel could be made sufficient to permit the entry of large Transatlantic vessels. The Secretary of State does not feel able at present to take up the matter again.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he can say how many persons in the United Kingdom were, in 1906 and 1907, convicted under Section 5, Subsection 1, of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1885, in whose cases the girls were thirteen and fourteen years of age, respectively. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Gladstone.) The number of convictions in 1906, under the subsection mentioned by the hon. Member, was seventy-four. I cannot say how many of them related to girls of thirteen and fourteen years of age, because the calendars in describing the offence usually follow the words of the Act and speak of the girls as being over thirteen and under sixteen years of age. The figures for 1907 are not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many factory inspectors and assistant factory inspectors were appointed in 1907; and whether those appointed passed any examination prior to their appointment. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Gladstone.) Five men inspectors were appointed last year. One was taken from the list of successful candidates in the Home and Indian Civil Service examination; one was appointed after a competitive examination (limited to three inspector's assistants) in factory law and sanitary science; the remaining three were appointed after the ordinary competitive examination for factory inspectors. One lady inspector was appointed after the usual examination, and one of her competitors was also appointed temporarily, to supply the place of an inspector absent on leave. No inspector's assistants were appointed during the year.

To ask the hon. Member for the Crewe Division, as Church Estates Commissioner, if he will say how many public houses have been suppressed by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners upon their estates during the twelve months ending 31st October, 1907, and in how many cases the leases of public houses have been renewed by them during the same period; and if he will also state what have been the aggregate amounts received by the Commissioners in respect of public houses on their estates during each of the twenty official years last past. (Answered by Mr. Stuart-Wortley.) During the twelve months preceding 31st October, 1907, the Commissioners refused to renew the lease of one public house (expiring 1911), and, on the application of the lessee, allowed the discontinuance as licensed premises of another house, while a third was closed owing to the financial failure of the lessee. The leases of two public houses expired by effluxion of time and were not renewed. The lease of one existing public house was renewed, but this was agreed to as long ago as 1896, the applicants allowing the licence of a neighbouring public house to lapse in that year. Apart from the question of the labour which would be involved, the Commissioners are not prepared to give the information asked for in the last paragraph of the hon. Member's Question.

To ask the Secretary to the Admiralty if he will say how many men are now eligible to become Greenwich age pensioners, and how many actually receive these pensions, what is the annual amount set apart from Greenwich Hospital funds for the purpose of paying these age pensions; how much additional money would be required annually if all eligible men were actually provided for; and what is the average age of the men now receiving these age pensions who have not belonged to the Seamen Pensioner Reserve. (Answered by Mr. Edmund Robertson.) Four thousand and eighty men are eligible for, but not in receipt of, the age pension. There are 8,820 actual recipients. The amount set apart from Greenwich Hospital funds for the payment of these pensions is £100,900. An additional sum of £31,000 would be required to provide for the men actually eligible at the present date. The average age of the recipients of these pensions, excluding those who have served in the Seamen Pensioner Reserve, is sixty-four.

To ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether the workmen who lost their tools in the fire that happened at the Royal Dockyard, Portsmouth, on 12th November last, have had them replaced; and, if not, is it the intention of the Admiralty to make good the loss sustained by the workmen. (Answered by Mr. Edmund Robertson.) The payment of compensation on account of the losses in question has been authorised, and the amounts awarded will be paid to the claimants in due course.

To ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether his attention has been called to the prevalence of a disease called diphtheria in wood pigeons in several comities in England; whether he will take steps to form a Commission to investigate the matter and to ascertain whether it is a disease contagious to game, poultry, or other birds; and whether it is of a nature to be dangerous to man. (Answered by Sir Edward Strachey.) The Board are aware of the prevalence of the disease to which the hon. and gallant Member refers. They understand that scientific investigations are being made with respect to it, the results of which will be carefully watched. They do not think that the matter is one which could with advantage be made the subject of inquiry by a Commission. I shall be glad to bring the concludeing inquiry to the notice of the Local Government Board, by whom questions concerning the public health fall to be considered.

To ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the Board of Agriculture, whether, having regard to the letter addressed on 15th November, 1907, to the Board of Agriculture from the Central Chamber of Agriculture, in which it was stated that the importation of hay and straw from Holland and Belgium was likely to convey foot-and-mouth disease to this country, and having further regard to the fact that this disease has broken out in close proximity to Leith, one of the ports through which the importation of Continental hay and straw takes place, His Majesty's Government will prohibit the future importation of hay and straw from all countries in which foot-and-mouth disease exists. (Answered by Sir Edward Strachey.) The matter to which the hon. Member refers is receiving very careful considera- tion, but our information on the subject is not complete, and no decision can as yet be arrived at respecting it.

To ask the Postmaster-General whether he will order a daily delivery of letters in the townlands of Askakeagh, Carnog, and other townlands in the rural district of Shillelagh, county Wicklow, instead of the present tri-weekly delivery, which causes considerable inconvenience to the inhabitants. (Answered by Mr. Sydney Buxton.) I regret to find that, as the cost of the existing postal service three times a week to the townlands in question is as much as the correspondence justifies, I am unable to comply with the hon. Member's wishes.

To ask the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that the Board of Trade Returns of the Import and Export of Motor Cars are misleading owing to the fact that complete chassis are not classified separately, but are included among parts; and whether he will give instructions that complete chassis shall be classified separately in future. (Answered by Mr. Kearley.) The imports and exports of motor chassis have been separately distinguished since the beginning of the current year, and particulars for January have already been published in the issue for that month of the "Monthly Accounts relating to Trade and Navigation."

To ask the President of the Board of Trade, whether he is aware that a syndicate of hop growers has been formed on the Pacific coast of America with the object of destroying the British hop industry, and that this fact is seriously accelerating the grubbing of hops in this country, and is thereby causing the loss of employment to many thousands of persons; and whether, pending the Report of the Select Committee on the Hop Industry, he will take steps temporarily to safeguard British hop growers against the action of this syndicate. (Answered by Mr. Kearley.) The Board of Trade have received a Report from His Majesty's consul at Portland, Oregon, to the effect that an attempt is being made to form an association whose operations would include the exportation of hops from the Pacific Coast to the United Kingdom, but I have not yet heard that such an association has been actually formed. I understand that, generally speaking, such hops are not so suitable for making beer as the British, as the flavouring quality is inferior, and a larger quantity is required of these American hops to bring the flavouring power up to that of the British.

To ask the Secretary to the Treasury what is the number, respectively, of alehouse, on-beerhouse, and on-beer-and-wine licences, whole-year, issued for each of the years ending 31st March, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, and 1908, stating separately for each year how many of each kind were new licences. (Answered by Mr. Runciman.) I have received the figures, which are given below, for the number of ale house, on-beerhouse, and on-beer-and-wine licences for the year, ended 31st March, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, and 1907. The figures include part-year licences, but the number of these is small. I regret that I have been unable to obtain any figures showing the number of new licences issued.

To ask the Secretary of State for India whether he is aware that on 8th January an appeal was heard before the High Court of Calcutta from the order of the district judge of Mozufferpore who, differing from the opinion of both of the assessors in a murder case, had passed a sentence of death; that the counsel who appeared for the condemned man was stopped by the Court before he had finished his argument; that the Crown Prosecutor then said that he could not support the conviction as the sessions judge had implicitly believed the defence story, and that therefore the prosecution was bound to fail; that judgment was then reserved; that on 14th January the court dismissed the appeal and confirmed the sentence of death; and whether he proposes to take any action in the matter. (Answered by Mr. Secretary Morley.) I have seen a report to the effect stated in the newspapers. I will make inquiry as to its accuracy. I must remind my hon. friend that the Secretary of State has no power to revise the judgments of the High Court.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland if he will state whether the Estates Commissioners have yet succeeded in bringing about the restoration of Thomas Kent to the holding at Ballinamona, on the Kingston estate, Cork County, seeing that the farm in question is in the landlord's possession and the purchase of the estate nearly completed. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The Estates Commissioners have not so far effected the restoration of Thomas Kent. The matter is at present in the hands of an inspector.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether, at the recent inquiry into the scheme promoted by the Kells Rural District Council for the erection of labourers cottages, the application of William Dooley, Fordstown, for a cottage and plot was rejected; and, if so, for what reason. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) This application was rejected by the inspector on the ground that the applicant did not appear to be an agricultural labourer within the meaning of the Labourers Acts.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland when the M'Donnell estate at Cappadarock, Lavally, county Galway, sold over three years ago to the Estates Commissioners, will be divided up amongst the tenants; and whether it is proposed to give any of the grass lands to Mrs. Burke, who already holds 70 acres on the estate. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The Estates Commissioners have not yet purchased the property in question. They have had it inspected with a view to purchase, and the inspector's report is at present under their consideration. The manner in which the lands, if acquired, will be resold has not yet been considered

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether the local head constable, accompanied by other policemen, disturbed the household of Mr. C. J. Kennedy, County Councillor, Dunmore, county Galway, on a certain night last November, about 12 o'clock, for the purpose of inquiring after the whereabouts of Mr. Kennedy; and, if so, what was the purpose of their action. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) Mr. Kennedy is a licensed publican. On 1st November, 1907, at 11 p.m., a police patrol, consisting of the head constable and a constable, visited and inspected the public house in pursuance of their powers under the Licensing Acts. The visit was not paid with the object of ascertaining Mr. Kennedy's whereabouts.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether the Estates Com missioners received an application for reinstatement from Bartholomew Kearns, son of a tenant evicted on the estate of Captain Edward Armstrong, Chaffpool, county Sligo; and, if so, when was the application received, has it been considered, and what decision has been arrived at; and, in view of the fact that Kearns must emigrate in case he is not reinstated at an early date, will he ask the Estates Commissioners to make an order in his case as soon as possible. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The Estates Commissioners received the application in question on 7th July last, but have not yet been able to have inquiries made in the matter.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether he can state the amount spent in the various unions in the acquisition and improvement of land by the Congested Districts Board. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The expenditure of the Congested Districts Board is not recorded by unions. I may, however, refer the hon. Member to the last Annual Report of the Board (Cd. 3767, of 1907). In Appendices 31 and 32 he will find detailed abstracts of the Board's expenditure on estate improvement works and the purchase of estates.

To ask the Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland whether the Estates Commissioners have received a claim for reinstatement from Mr. James Revington, Grennan, Attanagh, Queen's county, estate of Lord Orkney, who claims as representative of his mother, who was evicted in June, 1882; whether he is aware that Mr. Revington's claim is supported by the Very Rev. Canon Barry, D.D., P.P., and the other clergymen of the parish; and can he say what course the Commissioners propose to adopt in this case. (Answered by Mr. Birrell.) The Estates Commissioners have inquired into the application received from James Revington, who seeks reinstatement as the representative of an evicted tenant, and have decided, after full consideration of the circumstances, that they can take no action in the matter.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether the present system of using the artisan ratings under the direction of the warrant officer carpenters to make good defects in the hulls and fittings of His Majesty's ships has proved satisfactory, and maintained the efficiency of the ships; whether this system has enabled the Vote for Maintenance to be in any way reduced; and whether the Admiralty will consider the advisability of improving the position and the conditions of service of the warrant officer carpenters, by whose efforts these results have been obtained.

Satisfactory work in making good minor defects and in maintaining general efficiency continues to be performed by the artisan ratings as hitherto, and the Vote for repairs is consequently less than it would otherwise be. In supervising these repairs, the carpenter warrant officers are only carrying out the duties for which they were appointed, and it is not considered that they are entitled to special treatment on this account.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the warrant officers referred to in the Question have received no advance for twenty-five years?

I am not aware of that.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether a petition from the operative masons and bricklayers employed in the western district, under the Director of Works, with regard to rates of pay and the abolition of the bonus system, has been received; and whether any and, if so, what reply has been given to the petition.

A petition has been received at the Admiralty from a committee, and inquiry is being made into this committee's position.

Will the right hon. Gentleman cause inquiry to be made as to why the (Works Department have not conceded the advance to the labourers?

asked for notice of the Question.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War if he will state the reason which led the Army Council to omit the ages of cavalry and horse and field artillery horses from the General Annual Report on the British Army, published in March last; and whether, inasmuch as the number of horses of military age continues to be known to the Army Council, the policy can be reconsidered in publishing tables in the coming spring, and the number of horses fit for service given.

These tables were omitted from the General Annual Report after careful consideration, because they were not held to be of sufficient public or official interest to justify their retention. Owing to the recent reductions in the unit Returns, it would have been necessary to institute a special Return in order to obtain this information from India, as the Return in which it was formerly included has been abolished. At a time when every effort is being made to reduce the labour involved in the preparation of Returns, I deprecate any reintroduction of such work. My right hon. friend will also doubtless recollect that a Committee of this House only recently urged strongly the necessity of reducing the size of Parliamentary publications, and the Return affords a case in point.

The British part is quite separate from the Indian part, and the reduction of the contents by the change was a single page, and the Report itself was increased by three pages.

If the right hon. Gentleman wishes any particular information, and will ask me privately, I shall be glad to gratify him.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether the reductions in His Majesty's arsenal at Woolwich have reached the normal point aimed at, or whether further reductions are now in contemplation.

The numbers in the arsenal have not yet reached the normal minimum proposed, but the gradual reduction to that minimum will be effected by wastage, and not by further discharges.

Will the right hon. Gentleman consult the Admiralty in view of the fact that some 2,000 men at Devonport Dockyard are working overtime? Cannot he find work for the Woolwich men there?

If the hon. Member will put down a Question I will look into it.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India whether he is aware that under the joint operation of the Indian Christian Converts Dissolution of Marriage Act and the Indian Penal Code, converts to Christianity suffer hardship, and particularly Roman Catholic Christians, who are at present by the Civil law deprived of the benefit of the Pauline dispensation to which they are entitled by the Canon Law of their Church; whether he is aware that by this privilege of the Roman Catholic Church, and by immemorial usage in that behalf, the dissolution was permitted of a marriage subsisting between a convert and a spouse, who refused to live with him or her, because of his or her conversion, by a simple process outside the courts, lasting thirty days and costing nothing, whereas under the existing law the procedure is so dilatory and expensive as to make recourse to it impossible to the average Christian convert; and whether he will cause inquiries to be made into a position which results in such hardships to those concerned, in view of the substitution of some short and simple procedure in place of that now provided by law.

The opportunity has been given to the authorities of the Roman Catholic Church in India of suggesting simplifications of the procedure laid down in the Act mentioned. I shall always be ready to consider such suggestions, but I am not prepared in any way to exempt the class of case referred to from the jurisdiction of the Civil Courts. I have no reason to suppose that the provisions of the Act are regarded as a hardship by the Indian Christian community generally, and I do not think it necessary to order a special inquiry.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that it was represented that it was a grievance, and when I asked leave to introduce a Bill to remedy it, the answer of the Council was not that there was not a grievance, but that that was not the time to remedy it?

Would it not be much better for the right hon. Gentleman to assume there was a grievance?

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India whether his attention has been drawn to a notification of the magistrate of Mymensingh, dated 3rd January, which directs the local village authorities to report to the police any case of interference with the sale or use of any class of goods, any political demonstration, and the resort to any place within or passage through any village of any person for the purpose of political agitation, or of interference with the sale or use of any goods; whether this notification has been issued with the authority of Government; and whether he will indicate his disapproval of official action of this nature, which is directed against the popular movement in favour of using country products in preference to foreign imports.

I have seen a newspaper report of the nature indicated in the Question, but I have no knowledge of the matter from any other source. I will make inquiry on the subject. Meanwhile, it seems reasonable that the district officer should be acquainted with all the events (including those described in the Question) that take place in his district, and especially in view of the disturbances that have occurred in Mymensingh district.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India if he will state the object of the proposed military expedition into Afridiland; how many men are to be employed; and what the estimated cost is likely to be.

The object of the punitive measures against the Zakka Khel is to put an end to the series of raids which armed bands of the tribe have been executing for some months in territory beyond tribal limits under the civil administration of the Government of India. I gave a full statement of these raids on Monday in reply to a Question from the hon. Member for Mid-Armagh. The force to be employed consists of two brigades, roughly speaking 6,000 men, with a third brigade in reserve. The cost must depend on the length of the operations. I have received estimates, but they are necessarily rough estimates, because, owing to the secrecy involved, estimates have not yet been received from Comptrollers of Accounts.

With reference to the notice which I gave to call attention to this subject, I wish to say that action will not be taken by me in consequence of two blocking notices having been put down, one by a warlike Liberal and the other by a pugnacious Tory.

As a personal explanation the all-sufficient excuse for my action is found in the hon. Member's action two days ago when he thought fit soundly to abuse—

This is an irregular conversation.

Will the right hon. Gentleman put the cost of this expedition on the British public instead of on the people of India?

If the House of Commons desires it, I will consider that matter.

What is the proportion of Imperial troops to the native regiments in this expedition? Is it not a fact that while the expedition amounts roughly to 6,000 men on our side, the force of the tribesmen amounts all told to 4,000 men only?

I do not know how that is; but I hope that my hon. friend does not mean to say that we are only to employ exactly the same number of men as the tribesmen.

Can the right hon. Gentleman now say whether news correspondents will accompany the expedition?

I am in correspondence with the Government of India on the subject, and I have not yet decided as to my own views.

If we are rightly informed, this expedition has started. Surely the right hon. Gentleman could have found out from Lord Kitchener whether or not war correspondents were to be allowed to accompany the force.

The hon. Member must put his interruption in the form of an interrogation.

I hope then that the right hon. Gentleman will take my interruption as an interrogation and answer it.

I cannot myself quite put it in the form of an interrogation.

Then I will try. Has this expedition started or has it not? Can the right hon. Gentleman not obtain precise information showing whether or not war correspondents have accompanied the expedition? If they do not accompany it we know its object.

I wish to ask whether is is not the fact that the late Lord Lawrence said that expeditions of this kind were unnecessary?

Is this expedition supplied with explosive bullets?

I hope not.

The House

As a matter of personal explanation, may I say that the action of the hon. Member for Clare explains my own? Only two days ago he accused the Indian Government of wantonly making war on innocent tribesmen at the expense of its own starving subjects. Such an accusation could only proceed from abysmal ignorance or mischievous—

Order, order. Under the guise of a personal explanation, the hon. Member is not entitled to make an attack on another Member.

After what the hon. Gentleman has said, I think you will consider, Sir, that I am entitled to a word. I made no attack whatever on the Indian Government. I never mentioned it at all; and the statement of the hon. Gentleman is, therefore, quite unfounded. I still maintain that he is a warlike Liberal.

I have no objection to the hon. Member's representation, or misrepresentation, of myself. I believed that I quoted the hon. Member's words; but if in anything I have said there was a personal attack on the hon. Member I regret it. My anxiety was to defend the Government of India.

After what the hon. Gentleman has said, perhaps it is only right for me to say that, if I have said anything—I very readily withdraw the epithet "warlike"; and, for the rest, I hope the hon. Gentleman is a Liberal.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India, whether a military expedition against the Afridis is in preparation by the Government of India; whether he will state to the House the reasons for this expedition; and whether, since the expenditure on this expedition may prevent the reduction of expenditure on the North-West frontier of India, he will appoint a Commission to inquire into the necessity.

I would refer the hon. Member to my Answer on Monday last to the hon. Member for Mid Armagh for the reasons of the punitive measures being taken against the Zakka Khel. There seems no reason on financial or any other grounds for appointing a Commission to inquire into the necessity for the punitive measures. It would be an abdication of the plain duty of His Majesty's Government.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India, what reduction in the military expenditure on the North-West frontier of India will be made as a result of the signature of the Anglo-Russian Convention; and when he expects such reduction to take place.

I am not at present in a position to make a statement on the subject. The question is under our consideration.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether, having regard to the fact that under the Proclamation No. 28 of 1907 the whole of the Government concessions, which comprise about one-third of the Swazi territory, will be available for native occupation, in addition to the area of one-third of the land granted to the concessionaires for the exclusive use and occupation of natives, His Majesty's Government will take the necessary steps to secure to the natives the inalienable possession of the land which is available for native occupation.

Under he Proclamation the Special Commissioner has power to set apart areas of land for the sole and exclusive use and occupation of the natives. He has instructions to select ample land of good quality for the accommodation of the Swazis and for the reasonable expansion of the tribe. It does not, there ore, appear that any further measures are at present required.

I beg to ask he Under-Secretary of State for the Monies, whether His Majesty's Government will take into consideration the advisablity of establishing the Swazi chief and council as an advisory council for native administration and legislation in Swaziland on similar lines to the advisory committee which has been organised in Basutoland.

This question was raised by the Swazi chiefs when they were recently in England, and the Secretary of State is in communication with the High Commissioner on the subject.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, whether the Report of the French and English Commissioners to the New Hebrides, containing instructions for regulations, lately received by the Colonial Office, will be laid upon the Table at an early date.

The Report is not, in my opinion, of sufficient interest to justify the expense of an official publication; but I will arrange to have a typewritten copy placed in the Library for the use of Members who may care to study it.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, what is the date of the latest Report received from Tristan d'Acunha; whether the trade foreshadowed in the correspondence published in September, 1907, has sprung up; and whether he can furnish any information as to the welfare of the inhabitants.

I have no further information upon this solitary island than is contained in the last Blue-book on the subject.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, whether he has any official information showing that, since the voluntary surrender of Dinizulu to the civil authorities on 9th December last, the Government of Natal has closed Zululand to the outside world; that the lash has been freely used there; that unresisting natives have been shot dead; that hundreds of natives who were suspected of being likely witnesses for Dinizulu have been arrested and thrown into prison, and all information regarding their whereabouts kept absolutely secret; and whether His Majesty's Government will cause inquiry to be made into the matter.

I can say no more about these matters than that we are asking for information on many points, and we hope that the Governor of Natal will be able to supply us with it on his return from Zululand. In the meanwhile I would advise the House to suspend their opinion. Very full accounts of all native affairs in Natal will be found in the Blue-book recently published, and they will be supplemented as soon as possible by a further publication.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether, in regard to such charges as these brought against the governors of British Colonies and Possessions, it would not be simpler to assume that they are true?

I have not found anything to complain of in any of the questions.

When does the right hon. Gentleman expect to be in possession of the information mentioned in the earlier part of his Answer?

said he did not quite know when the new information alluded to would be ready. The Government had already published a very full and comprehensive Blue-book on affairs in Natal. The information accumulated from time to time, and as soon as they got another batch of information it would be laid before the House of Commons,

I beg to ask the Under Secretary for the Colonies, whether he will state the number of Chinese labourers employed in and on the Witwatersrand mines, on 1st January, 1906, and 1st January, 1908, on skilled labour and on unskilled labour; the number of white men employed, on the same dates, on skilled labour and on unskilled labour; and the number of natives employed, on the same dates, on skilled labour and on unskilled labour, respectively.

The official Returns show the numbers employed on the last, and not on the first day of the month. The total numbers employed on the Rand gold-mines on 31st December, 1905, were: Whites, 17,248; natives, 84,254; Chinese, 47,267. On 30th November, 1907, the latest date for which official statistics are available, the numbers were: Whites, 16,918; natives, 116,832; Chinese, 40,055. It will be seen that an increase of 32,578 natives is to be set against a decrease of 7,212 Chinese. It is true that there has been a small reduction of 330 in the number of whites employed; but to appreciate the true significance of these figures it must be remembered that in consequence of the strike, the number of whites fell to 15,118 on 31st May, 1907, since when there has been a continuous increase, amounting to 1,800 in six months. All the Chinese employed are said to be engaged upon unskilled labour. In the cases of white men and natives the numbers employed on skilled and unskilled labour respectively are not distinguished. In reply to a further Question the right hon. Gentleman said the 31st May figures represented the low-water mark of white employment, but since then the increase had been steady.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, if he can make arrangements for the consideration, by the subsidiary conference contemplated by the resolution carried on 9th May at the Imperial Conference, of the desirability of uniformity, as far as practicable, in the treatment of natural-born subjects of Asiatic descent, as well as the conditions of naturalisation in one part of His Majesty's dominions being made effective in other parts.

The resolution of 9th May to which the hon. Member refers dealt solely with the question of naturalisation, and could not be held to include within its scope the distinct subject of the treatment of natural-born subjects of Asiatic descent.

Would it not come at any rate within the scope of the right hon. Gentleman's consideration whether this particular question should not be dealt with either by that subsidiary conference or by another? The reason I mentioned the subsidiary conference is that there should be no question of naturalised Asiatic subjects being placed in a better position than natural-born Asiatic British subjects.

It is a serious point and it ought to be considered. The machinery of the new Secretariat no doubt lends itself to the consideration of such questions, but whether we can charge it with the specific duty of inquiring into this point I have no authority to pronounce. I will, however, see that the hon. Gentleman's suggestion is not overlooked.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, when Papers will be laid dealing with the recruiting of indentured labourers from the island of Madagascar.

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to a Question by the hon. Member for North-West Lanark on 3rd February. No reply has as yet been received to the inquiry referred to in that Answer and I am not, therefore, in a position to lay Papers.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether it is held as necessary by the Colonial Office that candidates for positions in the Civil Service in East Africa must have a university education; and whether retrenched civil servants from the Transvaal applying for a position in East Africa or Nigeria, have received no encouragement because they did not possess a university training.

It is not essential that candidates for the East African Civil Service should have had a university education, but a university degree is one of the qualifications which is taken into account in determining the respective merits of candidates. It is not the case that retrenched civil servants from the Transvaal have been discouraged on the ground suggested.

I beg to ask the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether, prior to the proclamation of martial law in Natal, or up to the present time, there has been any armed resistance to the law; whether the Petition of Right is part of the law of Natal; whether any sanction has been given by the Legislature of Natal, either before or since the proclamation of martial law, for the suspension of constitutional rights by the Executive; and for how long His Majesty's Government intends to be a party to the suspension of the constitution by the Executive Government without legislative sanction by continuing His Majesty's commission to the Governor.

No, sir, no armed resistance has, I understand, taken place, though it was apprehended. I understand that under the Roman Dutch Common Law, which is the common law of Natal, there is no Petition of Right, but in 1894 the Legislature passed an Act to provide for enforcement of claims against the Crown which substantially secures to the subject the same privileges. The Legislature of Natal has not been in session since martial law was proclaimed in Zululand. With regard to the attitude of His Majesty's Government I cannot at present add anything to the statements already made.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether His Majesty's Government will press the Government of Natal to summon the Legislature without delay?

A matter which affects the assembly of the Natal Parliament must be a matter for the Natal Government to decide. The Government will no doubt be held to account by their supporters and opponents in their own Parliament.

Is not His Majesty's Government satisfied that the Constitution has been suspended, and is His Majesty's Government not responsible for that by maintaining the Governor who gave his consent to that proceeding?

I do not think we can attempt to advise the Natal Government as to the method upon which they should deal with their own Parliament, to which they are responsible and by which they are controlled. I am not aware that the Constitution has been suspended.

Does the right hon. Gentleman lay it down that for the Executive Government in time of peace to announce that they will not proceed according to the law of the land is not a suspension of the Constitution?

I must explain that an Act of indemnity will have to be passed to cover the action taken under martial law. That Act has first to be passed in the Natal Parliament, and that is the moment when the people of Natal will be able to express any opinion they have formed on the conduct of the Executive. That Act will also have to receive the sanction of the Crown.

Before it is sanctioned by the Crown will the matter be brought before Parliament?

What does the right hon. Gentleman mean by "the people of Natal "?

I mean, of course, a more limited representation than would be conveyed by the words "people of Great Britain." I mean the people of Natal who elect the Parliament.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he can give the House any information regarding the progress of the railway from Pekin to Kalgan.

As stated in my reply to the hon. Member on 3rd June last, trains are running as far as Nank'on, a distance of over thirty-four miles, out of a total of 125 miles to Kalgan. Last September the following additional particulars were furnished by the engineer-in-chief. Beyond Nank'on, three miles of rails had been laid and two tunnels completed, besides which a third tunnel (1,200 feet long) and two-thirds of the remaining one (3,450 feet) had been driven through. On the north side of the Nankow Pass work had been begun and about two-thirds of the earthwork to Huailai (about half-way between Pekin and Kalgan) had been finished. The line was to be opened to traffic as far as Huailai as soon as the rails reached that place. It was estimated that the whole line would be opened in a semi-finished state in 1909, and would be completed in 1910.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the retention of 1,600 opium dens within the British settlement of Shanghai is entirely dependent on the annual meeting of ratepayers of the settlement, which will be held in March next; whether the ultimate control over the municipal council and responsibility for the settlement rests with His Majesty's Government, under whose authority alone the settlement has any existence in China; and, if so, whether, having regard to the decision of His Majesty's Government to support and encourage the anti-opium policy of the Chinese Government, even though it may cost us some sacrifice, His Majesty's Government will now take steps, before the meeting of ratepayers in March, to ensure that the municipal council at Shanghai shall follow the example of the Chinese authorities in the native city of Shanghai and close all opium dens in the British settlement without delay.

The retention of the opium dens in the settlement is, in the first resort, a matter for the decision of the municipal council, who are elected by the ratepayers. The ultimate responsibility for the good order of the settlement, which now has an international status, rests not only with His Majesty's Government, but with the other Treaty Powers in China. The council have already been informed of the desire of His Majesty's Government that the bona fide efforts of the Chinese authorities to diminish the consumption of opium should be encouraged and supported as far as possible, and the council have decided to refuse applications for new licences. The council having intimated that they cannot go beyond the refusal of applications for new licences without the authority of the ratepayers, His Majesty's Government consider it advisable to await the result of the meeting to be held next month before taking further action in the matter.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can give the House any information as to the occurrences in connection with the occupation by Turkish troops of the Persian town of Suj Bulak; whether the Turkish troops have been removed from the town and district; and what progress is being made by the Governments of Great Britain and Russia in their efforts to secure a speedy delimitation of the frontier between Turkey and Persia.

According to telegraphic reports received from His Majesty's Consul-General at Tabriz, who is at present at Urumia, the Persian Governor-General evacuated Suj Bulak on or about 25th January, and the Turkish troops entered the town the next day; but the accounts of the incidents which preceded and gave rise to these occurrences are conflicting. The Turkish troops are stated by the Porte to have evacuated Suj Bulak and to have retired on Lahidjan, but Turkish troops are still in occupation of Persian territory. A Turco-Persian Frontier Commission is at Urumia. Little progress has yet been made, and the question continues to engage the attention of His Majesty's Government.

Have there been any disturbances recently at Tabriz?

asked for notice of the Question.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when he proposes to issue the map showing the respective spheres of Great Britain and Russia in Persia; and whether the line mentioned in Article 1 of the Anglo-Russian Convention as running through and including certain towns extends only to the town boundary in each case, or whether it has a larger extension.

Two maps were placed in the tea-room early last week. The line includes in the Russian sphere the towns through which it is stated to run, but has no larger extension.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will communicate to the House any correspondence which may have taken place between His Majesty's Government and that of Germany in connection with the Anglo-Russian Convention.

There is no such correspondence.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs when the Papers promised respecting the opium traffic from India to China will be in the hands of Members.

It is hoped that the Papers promised respecting the opium traffic from India to China will be presented to Parliament in the course of a week or ten days.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether, having regard to the value of British trade in Turkey and to the fact that various nations grant subsidies to commercial schools in Constantinople for the purpose of training boys of their own nationality to represent the interests of their trade, he is prepared to recommend the granting of a small subsidy to the English high school for boys in Constantinople.

The question of making such a grant is now under consideration.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if the Naval Programme of this country has been communicated to any foreign countries in accordance with the intimation made at the Hague Conference.

I presume the intimation to which the hon. Member alludes is a declaration made by the Senior British Plenipotentiary at the Fourth Plenary Meeting of the Hague Conference on 17th August. That declaration stated that His Majesty's Government would be prepared to communicate annually to Powers who would adopt the same course, what new ships of war they contemplated building, and the cost thereby entailed. It was based upon the assumption that in fact, if not in theory, the naval programmes of Great Powers are to some extent dependent upon each other. Until other Powers are ready to exchange information on this basis, there is no object in one Power communicating programmes in advance to another. But the offer of His Majesty's Government will hold good at any time.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India whether Article 4 of the provisions concerning Tibet of the Convention of 1907 between Great Britain and Russia cancels Article 3 of the Convention of 1906 between the United Kingdom and China respecting Tibet, by which Article it was arranged with the Chinese Government that Great Britain should be entitled to lay down telegraph lines connecting Gyantse, Gartok, and Yatung with India.

Article 3 of the Convention with China of 1906, while modifying Article 9 of the Convention with Tibet, concedes to the British Government the right of telegraphic communication between India and the trade marts. Telegraphic communication with the marts, thus comes within the terms of the Convention with Tibet, the fulfilment of which, under Article 1 of the Convention of 1906, Great Britain and China have engaged to secure. Article 2 of the arrangement with Russia regarding Tibet recognises the engagements entered into by Great Britain and China in Article 1 of the Convention of 1906.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India whether he will state the names and status of the British agents appointed to watch over British trade at the trade marts of Gyantse, Gartok, and Yatung, in Tibet; whether it is proposed to make any change in their status; whether, under Article 9 of the Convention of 1904 between Great Britain and Tibet, it would be open to the Government of India or their subjects to obtain a concession for the improvement of the roads from India to these trade marts in case the Tibetan Government were to fail to keep them in order; and whether, under the Convention between Great Britain and Russia of 1907, the Government of India and their subjects are debarred from applying to the Tibetan Government for such concession.

I am informed by my right hon. friend that the British trade agent at Gyantse is Captain W. F. T. O'Connor, C.I.E., an officer of the Indian Political Department. The trade agent at Gartok is Thakur Jai Chand. There is no British trade agent at Yatung. There is no immediate intention of changing the status of these officers. As regards the contingency contemplated by the hon. Member of a failure of the Tibetan Government to carry out their obligations as to roads under Article 5 of the Convention of 1904, the action to be taken in that event would be covered by Article 1 of the Convention with China of 1906, which, as explained in my Answer to the hon. Member's other Question, is again covered by Article 2 of the arrangement with Russia regarding Tibet. Article 9 of the Convention with Tibet does not apply to the contingency contemplated in the hon. Member's Question.

I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that final notices were issued in Scotland on the 6th February demanding payment of arrears of income tax within seven days under penalty of distraint by the sheriff officer; and whether on the same date similar notices were issued in England.

May I also ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that the I final notices, threatening distraint for non-payment of income-tax within seven days, were issued in Scotland in the middle of last week; and whether this has been done at an equally early date in I England.

Owing to the intervention of the sheriff-officer in Scotland, proceedings for distraint are somewhat slower than in I England, where the collector is empowered to distrain immediately on the expiration of the final notice. It is usual therefore for the final notice to be issued about a fortnight earlier in Scotland than in England.

I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer what sums, if any, have been issued to Jamaica under Section 4 of The Public Works Loan Act, 1907.

No issue has yet been made, as the Government of Jamaica have not up to the present found it necessary to apply for any part of the loan.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his attention has been called to the verdict of the coroner's jury in the recent inquiry into the fatal explosion which occurred at St. George's Avenue, Aldermanbury, in the City of London, on 1st January last, with a rider attached, pointing to the urgent necessity for an amendment of the law relating to the storage of explosives, whereby local authorities could become licensing authorities instead of being bound to register the application of anyone tendering the sum of 1s., quite irrespective of the suitability of the premises registered; and whether he proposes taking any action in the matter.

My attention has been drawn to this verdict. I am awaiting a report from the Inspector of Explosives on this case which will deal with the question raised by the hon. Member, and the consideration of the point must be deferred until that report is ready. To prevent misunderstanding I may add that the registration in question applies only to the keeping of explosives for retail purposes in small quantities and under strict regulations.

I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if his attention has been called to the accident at Roachburn Colliery, on 28th January, by which three lives were lost through an inflow of water and moss into the workings of the mine; and whether, as the bodies have not been recovered and as no coroner's inquest has been held, and having regard to the exceptional nature of the accident and to the need for a searching inquiry, he will authorise a formal investigation into the whole circumstances, under Section 45 of the Coal Mines Regulation Act, 1887.

Yes, Sir. In view of the exceptional nature of the accident and of the fact that an inquest may very likely never be held, I think it is desirable that a special inquiry should take place under Section 45 of the Act of 1887, and I am taking the necessary steps for that purpose.

I beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade whether instructions have been given to oblige Scottish candidates for master and mates first-aid certificates to qualify through St. Andrew's Ambulance instead of St. John; whether he is aware that the yearly St. Andrew's course consists of 144 lectures, while that of St. John is only 52; and that the St. Andrew's Ambulance course is, therefore, more expensive in time and money than that of St. John; will he say whether the St. John Ambulance classes, hitherto conducted on the East Coast of Scotland, have proved satisfactory; and if so, why a system involving more time trouble, and expense is enforced in Scotland, and an easier system deemed sufficient for English candidates.

Before granting a certificate for master or mate, we require a man to have a knowledge of first-aid to the injured. This he can acquire through attending a course under either of the societies mentioned in the Question. We have been in communication with the two Societies, and as the St. John Ambulance Association inform us that they have centres at one or two Scottish ports only, we have arranged with the St. Andrew's Society that courses should be available at all the chief ports in Scotland. If the suggestion in the Question is that the Board impose attendance at one Society's course rather than the other the hon. and gallant Member is under a misapprehension.

Is the St. John Ambulance course now giving place to the St. Andrew's course to the serious inconvenience of candidates? Is the St. John abolished in Scotland?

Not at all—where it exists.

I beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade whether he will take into his consideration the advisability of extending the Commercial Intelligence Branch of the Board of Trade to some of the principal commercial centres of the United, Kingdom.

Without expressing an opinion on the proposal of my hon. friend, we are prepared to lay the suggestion before the Advisory Committee on Commercial Intelligence.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General, whether, considering the convenience it would be to depositors in the Post Office Savings Bank who receive remittances by cheques or postal or post office orders for odd amounts which they wish to deposit, and also in the accurate keeping of small accounts, and also seeing that there is already a pence column in the Savings Bank books, he can see his way clear to make arrangements whereby such depositors may pay fractions of a shilling into the Bank, provided that no deposit shall be received at any one time of less than a shilling nor any interest paid on such fractions for the time being.

The refusal of the Post Office Savings Bank to take fractions of a shilling on deposit is based on the provisions of the Post Office Savings Bank Act of 1861; and no change could therefore be made without legislation. The hon. Member is no doubt aware that cheques, postal orders or money orders for odd amounts are received for deposit if the amounts are made up to complete shillings. The abolition of the rule forbidding the acceptance by the savings banks of odd pence over and above the minimum deposit of one shilling would enormously increase the cost of administration. As the hon. Member is aware penny stamps can be affixed to a form in order to make up a deposit of one shilling.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General, whether a new contract has been concluded with the Cunard Company for the carriage of the mails to America; and whether he can state the term for which the contract will run, and the amount of the subsidy.

No new contract for the conveyance of mails between this country and America has been concluded with the Cunard Steamship Company. The present contract was concluded in 1903 and is to remain in force until 1927. The annual subsidy paid to the Cunard Company for the carriage of mails is £68,000.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General, whether, before submitting to the House any proposal for a renewal of the Hong Kong mail contract, he will issue a memorandum explaining in what way it is proposed to carry out the declaration made by the Prime Minister in the debate that took place upon this question last session.

If proposals for the renewal of the Liverpool-Hong-Kong Mail Contract are submitted to the House, full explanations of the proposals will be given, either by Memorandum or in some other manner.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General, whether, while letters if specially addressed are forwarded from this country to Shanghai viâ Siberia, the Post Office refuses to forward commercial papers by this route; and, if so, what is the reason for this refusal.

In consequence of the very high charges for the conveyance of mails via Siberia the British Post Office has been compelled, in common with other European Post Offices generally, to restrict the use of this route to specially addressed letters and postcards.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether, considering the importance to British traders of getting their commercial papers forwarded by the best available means, he will see if he cannot arrange to allow those to use this route who are willing to pay a reasonable surcharge?

I do not know how far that comes within the terms of the Postal Convention, but if the hon. Member will speak to me I will consider the matter with him.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General whether any, and, if so, which, of the self-governing Colonies have informed the Government that they desire to adhere to the Radiotelegraphic Convention.

I am glad to say that all the self-governing Colonies have informed the Government that they desire to adhere to the Radiotelegraphic Convention, except Newfoundland, which has not yet communicated its decision, and the Orange River Colony, which, as an inland Colony, sees no necessity at present for adhering.

I beg to ask the Postmaster-General whether the introduction of piece-work at the Holloway factory has had the effect of materially reducing the wages of the men employed there; whether some of the employees are now receiving for the same amount of work as done at day-rate previously as much as £1 per week less; and, if so, whether it is his intention to reconsider the case of such employees with a view to an improvement in their conditions of labour.

The system of payment by piece-work has been in use at the Holloway factory ever since the factory was established. Occasionally of course there may be a loss on a piece-work job, but the average piecework earnings show a profit over the day-rates of pay of fully 30 per cent. The Select Committee on Post Office Servants did not recommend any change in the piece-work system.

I beg to ask the President of the Board of Education whether he will state the reason why the Board of Education refused to sanction a council school at the village of Wentbridge, in the West Riding of Yorkshire.

The Board did not refuse to sanction a council school, but suggested to the local education authority that, in view of assurances given by the managers of the existing voluntary school that rebuilding would be carried out forthwith, they should withdraw their proposal, which the Board understand was done.

Did the West Riding Education Authority on that occasion give the right hon. Gentleman incorrect information on the subject?

I cannot say from memory. I have no knowledge of it.

I beg to ask the First Commissioner of Works what has been the total cost of the works of restoration recently carried out in Whitehall Palace.

£3,200.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury what the procedure of the Criminal Appeal Act has cost the country in shorthand writers' fees for reporting all possible cases for appeal up to the end of January, 1908; and if a Supplementary Estimate will be presented.

No cost has yet been incurred, as the Act does not apply to any persons convicted before 18th April, 1908.

Are any more Supplementary Estimates to be submitted?

was understood to reply that that hardly arose out of the Question on the Paper, and he could not answer it.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury, if he will state when the checking allowances consequent on the increase of staff in the Statistical Office of the Customs will be made.

These allowances were assigned on the 3rd instant.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury what is the number of ex-soldiers and ex-sailors affected by the decision of the Government under the Superannuation Act, 1859.

My hon. friend has no information on this subject.

Will the hon. Gentleman get the information?

To do so it would be necessary to circularise other Departments, and we do not think the advantage gained would be commensurate with the trouble and expense involved.

Then does the hon. Gentleman, as representing the Treasury, consider that ex-soldiers and ex-sailors are not worthy of attention?

Not at all. I only say the information asked for is not worth the time and trouble which the collection of it would involve.

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury if he is aware that an application was made to the Treasury a short time ago substantially to increase the salary of the staff officer-in-charge in the miscellaneous division of the Board of Works, Dublin; and, considering that this officer is by many years the junior of his grade in the secretary's department, and that his work is no more important than that performed by the other three senior staff officers, and its magnitude is very considerably less than that of the other staff officers in the secretariat, can he say whether this application is to be acceded to.

The Treasury were unable to see any sufficient reason for acceding to the application in question.

I beg to ask Mr. Attorney-General whether his attention has been directed to the fact that many automatic machines are so constructed as to, and that they in fact do, continue to invite, receive, and retain coins after their contents are exhausted; and whether he will consider what steps should be taken to stop this fraud on the public.

I have no-information on this matter and I am afraid I have no means of obtaining any. With regard to the practice suggested to be a fraud on the public, that depends on whether or not the persons who expose these machines do so knowing that they will have a fraudulent effect and that there will be no equivalent return for the money dropped into the slot. That would be somewhat difficult I to prove.

I beg to ask Mr. Attorney-General whether his attention has been drawn to the habit which has become prevalent in recent years of political organisations spending money during Parliamentary contests on behalf of candidates; whether the law officers have given instructions that candidates' official statements of expenses should be examined to discover whether these payments have been included; and whether it is proposed to draw the attention of the Public Prosecutor to the matter with a view to action being taken.

Moneys spent by a political organisation during Parliamentary contests are not necessarily illegal payments nor payments coining within the statutory maximum allowed to a candidate. In order that they may be so treated they must be shown to have been spent not merely during the election but also in the conduct or management of the election. There may, for instance, be payments for purposes which are part of the general propaganda of the political organisation itself and made entirely without reference to the expenses of the election. Whether they come under one class or the other is often a very difficult question of fact on which the decisions are not very easy to reconcile. No instructions of the kind suggested have been issued, but if the hon. Member is aware of anything which can be supported by definite evidence I will certainly draw the attention of the Public Prosecutor to it.

Is any distinction made between political organisations and party organisations?

And tea party organisations?

I am not aware of any distinction that could be drawn between political organisations and party organisations. Most political organisations are party organisations.

I beg to ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether his attention has been called to the form of application for a small holding recently issued by the Surrey County Council to parish councils within its area, wherein the provisions of the Small Holdings Acts of 1892 and 1907 are so intermixed as to mislead prospective applicants into the belief that, under the provisions of the Act of 1907 it is necessary for an applicant to guarantee one-fifth of the purchase money of such holding; and whether he will take steps to see that county councils are asked to issue immediately separate and distinct application forms relating to the two Acts.

My noble friend has seen a copy of the form to which my hon. friend refers. He thinks it is better that separate forms of application for leasing and for purchase should be used, and he proposes to call the attention of county councils to the matter at an early date.

I beg to ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, if he is aware that a notice was recently given at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to the effect that Constable Brennan would be stopped six days' annual leave for being improperly dressed while on duty, and that such improper dress consisted only of Constable Brennan having taken off his heavy coat to take up the ashes from the fire-grate and to sweep the paths; and, if so, whether, in view of the character of the offence committed, he will consider the advisability of reducing the punishment.

The form of punishment for offences generally at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, is receiving the attention of my noble friend, but as the particular case to which his attention is now drawn occurred last year and the punishment has been carried out, it is not possible now, even if it were thought advisable, to reduce or alter it in any way.

I beg to ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether Lammas lands can be taken compulsorily for small holdings; and, if so, whether, as a matter of policy, the Board of Agriculture would be prepared to put the powers of the Act in force for the purpose of taking such lands.

Lammas land can be acquired compulsorily under the Small Holdings Acts with the consent of the Board, but each case would have to be considered on its merits with due regard to the various interests concerned.

I beg to ask the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether he can now state what steps the Board of Agriculture propose taking to prevent the further spread of foot-and-mouth disease through the importation of foreign forage.

The matter is receiving careful consideration, but our information on the subject is not yet complete; and no decision has yet been arrived at.

Is foreign forage being imported into Scotland at the present time, and if so, does the hon. Gentleman intend to allow it to continue?

I have said the matter is being carefully inquired into. It is not possible to say more at present.