asked what progress the Estates Commissioners have made towards the acquisition of the whole or portion of the untenanted lands on the Leader estate, Dromagh, county Cork; are the Commissioners aware that several evicted tenants in the locality, certified as deserving, are anxious to acquire equivalent holdings; and that uneconomic holders of land and many deserving labourers are looking for holdings in this district; and whether, in view of the fact that the landlord sold the tenanted portion of the estate five years ago, the Commissioners will endeavour to facilitate the acquisition of these lands for public purposes?

The Estates Commissioners are in negotiation with the owner with a view to the purchase of these lands.

In a case of that kind where the owner is willing to sell, and has sold some of his untenanted land, can nothing be done to expedite the matter?

I suppose they must agree to the terms of the sale. I understand they are doing the best they can.

asked whether the records of the recent spring assizes reveal the fact that in the 32 counties of Ireland the number of indictments only reached a total of 138, or about 35 per million of the population; and whether, in view of this marked immunity from crime in this part of the United Kingdom, the Government will consider the wisdom of repealing the Criminal Law and Procedure (Ireland) Act, 1887?

As stated in my reply to a question on the same subject asked by the hon. Member for South Down on the 11th instant, the number of indictments for the 32 counties in Ireland, not including the cities of Dublin, Belfast, Cork, and Londonderry, was 224, or 60 per million of the population. As regards the concluding portion of the question I have nothing to add to the opinions which I have already expressed in Debate as to the wisdom of retaining the Act referred to permanently on the Statute Book.

Will the right hon. Gentleman be kind enough to send a copy of that answer to the late Attorney-General for Ireland, who described the condition of Ireland as a saturnalia of crime?

Why is he keeping this offensive Act on the Statute Book, when there is no intention of enforcing it?

The hon. Member can ask that question in another place.

Twice over the House of Commons has passed Bills repealing this Act?

But never became law.

The Lords.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether his attention had been called to the fact that Mount Dillon River, in the county Roscommon, Curraghroe district, is unable to carry off the surface water in the autumn and winter, with the result that for several months in the year the low-lying lands of Killavackan, Culleenora, Tullyvarran, Curraghroe, Mount Dillon, Granaghan, Monagh, Drinagh, etc., are under water; whether he is aware that as a consequence the tenants who have bought their holdings complain that, owing to the damage sustained, they will be unable to pay their instalments; and whether, under the circumstances, a competent engineer will be sent to the district to report upon its present condition and to recommend a remedy?

I am informed that the lands referred to are often flooded in wet seasons, but that the water does not usually remain for long. The lands would no doubt be improved by drainage, but there is no reason to suppose that their condition is worse now than it has always been. As I have explained to the hon. Member, in reply to a question asked by him on 26th May last, it does not seem possible to undertake a drainage scheme for the locality at present. No useful purpose, therefore, would be served by sending an engineer to report.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he will circulate with the Votes a copy of the circular (Return No. 54) issued to the Royal Irish Constabulary, giving particulars of the rewards and punishments made during the six months ending 31st December last?

The return in question is of a confidential character and is intended solely for the information of the Royal Irish Constabularly. It would not be in the interests of the public service to circulate it as suggested.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland when there will be a Return made by the Board of National Education (Ireland) to the Motion passed by this House on Tuesday, 1st December, 1908, relative to national education in Ireland?

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that the Return is being prepared and will be furnished next month. For the purposes of the Return it was necessary to obtain and tabulate detailed statistics for about 8,400 schools and to ascertain the emoluments under different heads from State sources of about 12,700 individual teachers.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland what is the Constabulary Force Fund, the amount available for it, and who is responsible for its administration; whether he is aware that the way in which rewards from this fund are bestowed puts a premium on the magnifying of agrarian offences by the police; and whether he will grant an inquiry into the matter?

The Constabulary Force Fund was originally established under the Constabulary (Ireland) Act, 1836, and is divided into two parts, styled respectively the Reward and Benefit Branches. The income of the Reward Branch, to which the question appears to refer, is derived from fines imposed on members of the force by the Constabulary authorities, and from portions of the fines and penalties awarded to the police, and of the fees received by them for the verification of weights and measures. The receipts, which are necessarily fluctuating, amounted, in the year ended 31st March, 1908, to £5,439; the disbursements in the same year amounting to £5,405. The funds of the Reward Branch are accounted for by the Inspector - General under Rules approved by the Treasury. All good police service, whether in connection with agrarian crime or not, is considered and dealt with by the Reward Board, which is composed of the superior officers of the force, on precisely the same lines as have been followed for many years past. I see no reason for any inquiry.

May I ask whether in this fund is a special heading for rewards dealing with agrarian offences?

Very likely there will be a special heading under that subject, but it is not the only branch which is rewarded under this fund.

Has the strength of the force been increased or reduced since the Government came into office?

It has been increased.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he can give any information respecting the progress of events in Somaliland, and if the forces of the Mullah are rapidly diminishing in numbers?

There is no definite change in the situation, but it is reported that there is disaffection among the Mullah's followers, and that a number of them have deserted him.

asked whether the through traffic by river between Bussorah and Baghdad has been restored.

No official information to this effect has yet been received, but the Tigris and Euphrates Navigation Company have informed me that the Arabs have dispersed, and that a resumption of the service is being arranged.

asked whether an arrangement has been made with regard to the construction of the Hankau-Sze-chuan Railway, which involves the surrender of the rights secured to the British under the agreement concluded by Sir Ernest Satow with Prince Ching in October, 1903; and whether this arrangement has the approval of His Majesty's Government?

asked whether he can state the present position in regard to the construction of the proposed railway from Hankau to Sze-chuan?

In reply to this question, and that asked by the hon. and gallant Member for Kincardine, negotiations respecting the construction of this line are proceeding. No definite agreement has yet been concluded, and for the present I am unable to make any statement.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if Mr. H. C. Ross had to leave the Egyptian Sanitary Service owing to his zeal for stamping out malaria; and if that is not the reason would he inform the House of it?

Mr. H. C. Ross was never in the permanent employment of the Egyptian Department of Public Health. He resigned his temporary post under that Department when he learned that the Director-General was not prepared to promise him a permanent post in the Inspectorate in Cairo.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has any information to give to the House with regard to the situation in Persia?

Since my reply given on 6th May to the hon. and gallant Member for the St. Andrew's District the political situation in Persia has improved in some respects. The Saad-ed-Dowleh has been reinstated, and has formed a satisfactory Cabinet. A proclamation issued by the Shah restores the Constitution and orders the immediate promulgation of a suitable electoral law, after which the elections will be held at once. The National Assembly will be opened as soon as two-thirds of the deputies are ready. An amnesty has been granted for political offences. Matters appear to be quieting down in Tabriz. It is, however, impossible to say yet what effect these declarations are having upon the country generally.

Is the constitution which the Shah has promised the original June Constitution revived or some other?

As far as our information goes, it is.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Portuguese Government has received from the British Government a note advising it to comply, in the interests of both countries, with the terms of a recent stipulation for the construction of a large arsenal in the Port of Lisbon, with docks extensive enough to accommodate the largest ironclads of the British Navy, and for the reorganisation, as soon as the finances of Portugal permitted, of the Portuguese Royal Navy; and whether, having regard to the plans of the new arsenal presented to the Portuguese Government on the 23rd ultimo, whose cost is estimated at £1,250,000 sterling, and the proviso that it will be open to British naval constructors to tender for the construction of these ironclads and several torpedo-boats and destroyers, the note of the British Government to the Portuguese Government in reference to the naval supremacy and armaments of that country will be communicated to Parliament?

No such note has been presented, and no such scheme has ever been contemplated by His Majesty's Government.

Is he aware of the public notice on which I base that question, the public intimation of that, which is uncontradicted?

asked whether a police but was to be placed on the Lynch Staunton estate at Clydagh, Headford, county Galway; whether there were already 18 police stationed at Headford; and whether this force was more than sufficient to meet all likely requirements?

There is no present intention of erecting a police but at this place. The police force at Headford is now one sergeant and twelve constables. The Constabulary Authorities consider that force sufficient.

asked whether Mr. T. Griffin, of Timoleague, South-East Cork, had recently obtained the commission of the peace for county Cork; whether Mr. Griffin was a publican in the village of Timoleague; on whose recommendation had he been appointed a magistrate; whether the Lord Chancellor had repeatedly refused to appoint certain gentlemen in South Cork, of the highest personal and commercial standing, on the grounds of their having an interest in licences; and whether the Lord Chancellor would now, in view of Mr. Griffin's appointment, reconsider the claims of the gentlemen in South county Cork who had hitherto been refused admission to the bench because of their connection with the trade?

Mr. T. Griffin, of Timoleague, county Cork, was appointed to the Commission of the Peace for the county Cork upon the recommendation of the lieutenant of the county in the usual way. The Lord Chancellor was not aware that Mr. Griffin, amongst the many businesses which he carries on, included that of a publican.

When recommendations emanate from local popular bodies, why does the Lord Chancellor consider it necessary to make these official inquiries, and not when recommendations are made by the lieutenant of the county?

I do not know how that may be. The Lord Chancellor has great objections to persons connected with the publicans' business being put upon the Commission of the Peace, and possibly where the responsibility rests entirely upon him he makes inquiries of a more searching character than when recommendations are made by the lieutenant of a county. I do not know how that may be, but he accepts responsibility and he will continue to pursue his inquiries on the lines he has hitherto followed.

Had Mr. Griffin any business a couple of months ago except that of a publican?

My information is that he carries on a great many businesses, and in Ireland it often happens in such cases that the publican's business is a very small part of a man's total trade.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say why a gentleman in South Cork, who was very highly qualified and belonged to nearly all the representative boards, in the county, has been kept off the bench for years because of his connection with the trade?

The hon. Member must give notice.

Why was an exception made in this case, when applications in other cases of a similar character were refused?

I am not responsible for the exercise of the Lord Chancellor's discretion in any shape, manner, or way.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that one of the disqualifications for the office of justice of the peace is that the nominee is not a member of the United Irish League?

You know all about it.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say what are the other businesses in which Mr. Griffin is engaged besides that of publican?

No, I cannot.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that in other constituencies in Ireland the lieutenants of the county has recommended publicans and they have been appointed, whereas wholesale manufacturers who happen to have retailers' licences have not been appointed, simply because the Lord Chancellor does not wish to have them?

I am not the Lord Chancellor of Ireland.

Who appointed the Lord Chancellor?

Is it a fact that the Lord Chancellor invariably appoints any person whom the lieutenant of the county may recommend for the post of magistrate?

No; I do not think he is under any obligation to do so.

Did not the right hon. Gentleman say that it was in consequence of this man's being recommended by the lieutenant of the county he received the appointment?

Certainly.

Is it the invariable custom of the Lord Chancellor to appoint gentlemen as magistrates if they are recommended by the lieutenant of the county?

I will answer as far as I am responsible for the Lord Chancellor—which is in no respect whatever. The Lord Chancellor usually pays great respect to the recommendations of lieutenants of counties, but he is under no obligation to appoint the men so recommended.

asked whether the attention of the Estates Commissioners had been directed to certain ejectment proceedings at the suit of Mrs. Fanny Pyne, Ballyvolane, Fermoy, Co. Cork, against Mr. Jeremiah Twomey, whom she had reinstated, as a future tenant in his holding at Kilcor, on the 25th of March, 1902; whether the judicial tenants on the estate signed purchase agreements on the 28th of October last, and if the Commissioners fixed a purchase price for Mr. Twomey's holding, which, however, the landlord refused to accept; and whether the Commissioners would take any action to ensure that the holding in question should be included in the sale and purchase of the estate as a whole?

The Estates Commissioners have no power to interfere in any legal proceedings which may be pending against the person mentioned, who was reinstated some time ago by the owner as a future tenant. The owner has been informed of the price which the Commissioners would be prepared to advance to the tenant to enable him to purchase, but no purchase agreement has yet been lodged in his case. Proceedings have recently been instituted by the owner for sale to the tenants direct under the Irish Land Act, 1903, and the matter will be inquired into when the property is being dealt with in its order of priority.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he would state how many extra police were at present stationed in the parish of Drumlease, Co. Leitrim; whether they were chargeable on the rates; and whether the present peaceable condition of that district necessitated their further continuance?

I am informed by the constabulary authorities that there are no extra police at present in the parish mentioned in the question.

asked whether the Estates Commissioners had considered the claim of Peter Kelly, an evicted tenant on the Rodden estate, Drumkeerin, Co. Leitrim, who was reinstated in March last, for a free grant; and whether, having regard to the fact that he was a poor man, with no means to stock or work the farm or rebuild his house, his case would receive early attention?

The Estates Commissioners have considered the case of Peter Kelly. There is a substantial dwelling-house on his farm, and a grant for fencing has been sanctioned. The Commissioners cannot see their way to make any grant for purchase of live stock in this case.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that this man was kept out of his holding for two years, and when he was reinstated, after having been at so much expense, is it not really too bad that he should not get a grant for purchase of stock?

I can only say that I am not the Commissioners. The discretion is theirs, and I cannot interfere.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether he was aware that for many years the Wexford Rural District Council, and their predecessors, the guardians of the Wexford Union, made it a practice to enter into agreements with the parties interested as to the price to be paid for the lands proposed to be acquired compulsorily for the purposes of the Labourers Acts; that the Wexford Council entered into a number of agreements with the parties interested in the lands proposed to be acquired under the compulsory part of the Wexford Rural District Labourers (Unopposed) Order, 1908; that on this last occasion the Local Government Board refused to sanction a practice by which the council had in the past saved money and expedited the work of taking land for labourers' cottages, and, instead, actually forced an arbitrator on the council by sealed orders; whether, although the Court of Appeal had since held that a district council had a statutory right to enter into such agreements as the Wexford District Council had done on this and former occasions, the Local Government Board had claimed the cost of the arbitration in question by sealed order; and whether, as the council deemed the inquiry unnecessary, and as the decision of the Court of Appeal confirmed that opinion, he would request the Local Government Board to withdraw their claim in so far as it applied to the cost of the arbitration of the 8th of July last?

I am informed by the Local Government Board that more than half the plots included in the Wexford Rural District Labourers (Unopposed) Order, 1908, were authorised to be acquired compulsorily. In June last, while arbitration proceedings were pending in council and the persons interested had not council and the persons interested had not agreed, the King's Bench Division unanimously decided, in another case, that where an Order confirming a scheme provides for the taking of land compulsorily by way of absolute purchase, the amount of compensation must be determined by an arbitrator appointed by the Board. In accordance with this decision the arbitrator made his award on 20th July last in the cases to which the hon. Member refers, and the Board on 29th September last issued their certificate as to the amount of costs payable by the council in respect of the arbitration. Such certificate is final, under Statute, and the amount certified has now become a debt due from the local authority to the Crown. The matter was thus concluded months before the decision of the Court of Appeal, referred to in the question, was given, and that decision obviously can have no application to a past transaction.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if he could ascertain from the Commissioners of National Education the number of schools in Ireland that had passed from lay teachers to religious bodies during the last ten years?

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that forty-four National schools in Ireland have passed from lay teachers to religious bodies during the last ten years.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether increments had been withheld from several teachers in consequence of cookery being omitted from the subjects of study in their schools; and, having regard to the statement to the contrary effect made to a recent deputation by the resident Commissioner, he could ascertain the exact terms of the decision arrived at by the Board in reference to this matter.

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that the grant of increments has been deferred in certain cases, pending correspondence with school managers. In all such cases the Commissioners have primâ facie grounds for believing that no adequate reasons exist for the exclusion of cookery instruction from the school curriculum. The Commissioners' regulation on the subject is as follows:—"Cookery and laundry work form part of the ordinary school programme for girls enrolled in the fifth and higher standards, when suitable provision for instruction in these subjects has been secured. In such cases the successful teaching of cookery has an important bearing on the award of increments of salaries and on the promotion of teachers." I am informed that the resident Commissioner made no statement to any deputation inconsistent with this regulation.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if he could now state who would have to pay the interest due in the cases of persons proceeded against by the Land Commission on the Kenmare estate, county Kerry, if the Land Commission failed to recover from the persons proceeded against?

The Land Commission assume that the interest proceeded for on the Kenmare estate will, as in other cases, be ultimately recovered. Every purchase agreement contains an agreement to pay the interest in question. Pursuant to section 35 of the Act of 1896 the Land Commission pay the interest to the persons entitled thereto when received by them.

Will the right hon. Gentleman say upon whom the liability falls if the interest is not recovered?

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if he could ascertain from the Estates Commissioners on what ground they allowed the sale of the evicted farm of Denis Healy, on the Coltsmann estate, county Kerry, to be sold to the grabber who was in possession of it, although authorised by the landlord himself, even as well as others, to endeavour to secure the reinstatement of Healy?

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to his question of 25th June, 1908, on the same subject.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, who was the officer of the Congested Districts Board that inquired as to the purchase of the congested districts of the Kenmare estate, county Kerry; whether hundreds of holdings on this estate were uneconomic; and whether he could explain how the Board could undertake the purchase of an adjoining estate while at the very same time they declined to negotiate in this case on the ground of want of funds?

No officer of the Congested Districts Board ever inspected the Kenmare estate or any portion of it. As I have already informed the hon. Member, the terms on which the congested portion of the estate was offered to the Board were not such as they could have accepted even had money been available for the purpose. As regards the concluding portion of the Question, negotiations for the purchase of the Ventry estate, to which the hon. Member presumably refers, had begun before it was decided that, pending an increase in their income, the Board would not undertake any further purchases.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he is aware that on the estate of S. G. Wallis Adams, at Cockhill, Millstreet, county Cork, a tenant named Patrick Kelleher, and another, have been kept outside the purchase which was arranged some two years ago with the other tenants; that Kelleher was a non-judicial tenant who never had a fair rent fixed in court, whilst the owner and agent sought to compel him to purchase as a second-term tenant; whether he is aware that he has since been harassed in various ways, and served with a writ for the hanging half-gale in the early months of this year; will the circumstances of this man's case and these methods be inquired into before the purchase-money is advanced to the owner; is he aware that, since the introduction of the Land Bill, the agents, Messrs. Hussey and Townsend, Cork, wrote in reply to a request for a reasonable purchase that the second-term tenants on the estate had purchased at 22 years, and that as Patrick Kelleher did not agree to these terms he will now have to pay 24 years' purchase to make up for the loss of £9 per cent. bonus; and, seeing that on various estates tenants have been excluded from the general purchase on unreasonable or unjust grounds, will he introduce a clause into his Land Bill providing that in all such cases of exclusion the tenants shall have the benefit of a special inspection and valuation by the Estates Commissioners?

The Estates Commissioners inform me that no purchase agreement has been lodged for the sale of this holding, and when the estate is being dealt with in its order of priority due inquiry will be made as to the circumstances under which the tenant has refused to purchase.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he is aware that the farm of Lyrogue, on the Hopkins estate, Errill, Ballybrophy, Queen's County, was, prior to 29th April, 1905, untenanted, and let by the 11 months to a grazier named Joseph Mole, and that, subsequently to that date, namely, on 1st August, 1905, Mole lodged an agreement to purchase as an occupying yearly tenant of this farm, claiming an advance of £3,275; and whether, seeing that under the Act of 1903 the advance is limited to £500 in case of a tenancy created after the 1st January, 1901, he will say what course the Estates Commissioners propose taking in this case?

The Estates Commissioners have refused to make the advance applied for in this case.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he will state, for each of the years 1906, 1907, and 1908, the number of claims made for compensation for malicious injury in Ireland, the total amount awarded in compensation, and the number of cases in regard to which claims for compensation were made in which individuals were made amenable under the Criminal Law?

As regards 1906 and 1907, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given on my behalf to a question asked by him on 6th April, 1908. The number of claims made, and the amount of compensation awarded in 1908 are given in the Return ordered on his Motion on 18th February. The number of cases in which persons were made amenable in 1908 cannot be ascertained without local inquiries. If the hon. Member wishes to move for a Return I will give it.

asked the number of pension claimants in Ireland who put in their claims two months ago, and the number who put them in six weeks ago, and whose ages have not yet been received from the Census Office?

There are no statistics available which will give the information asked for.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he has received a copy of a resolution passed by the committee of management of the Donegal District Asylum, Letterkenny, and by com- mittees of management of other district asylums, urging an increase of the capitation grant in aid to the district asylums from 4s. to 6s. 6d. per week, since at the time the estimate of 4s. per head was arrived at it was based on the assumption that it meant half of the maintenance of each patient, whereas owing to the increased price of the necessaries of life the average cost per head is far in excess of what it then was; and whether any, and, if so, what steps have been or will be taken to carry out the objects of the resolution?

My attention has been called to the resolution in question. The capitation grant, when fixed in 1875 at 4s. a week, was, I understand, intended to represent approximately half the cost of maintenance. I am informed that the average cost of maintenance is considerably less now than it was then. The grant of 4s. a week is fixed by Statute, and I am unable to hold out any hope of legislation to increase the amount.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he is aware that at the Ballinasloe Petty Sessions on the 1st instant, Constable McDonnell and Constable Collins were prosecuted for assaulting Terence Doland, Michael Doland, and Joseph Egan; that these constables were convicted by a bench consisting amongst others, of two resident magistrates, and fined £2 and 5s. respectively; whether he is aware that these constables are on special duty on the Potts estate, in county Roscommon; and whether, in view of complaints made against these and other constables so engaged, and the finding of the magistrates in the case in question, these policemen will be continued in discharge of such duty in a district in which they are a source of irritation?

The Inspector-General of the Royal Irish Constabulary informs me that the facts of the case are correctly stated in the question. The two constables who were fined by the magistrates will be removed from the district as soon as possible?

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether it is proposed to subsidise or assist in any way the religious and social university which is being established by Mrs. Annie Besant in India?

The Secretary of State has no knowledge of the project referred to in the question.

inquired of the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will lay upon the Table of the House a copy of the Convention entered into between Lord Selborne, as Governor of the Transvaal, and the Portuguese Government with reference to the employment of Mozambique natives in the Transvaal mines, and also any correspondence that has passed between the Home, the Transvaal, and the Portuguese Governments with reference to the matter?

The Convention shall be laid, but it is not proposed to lay the correspondence, which is mostly confidential.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the petition, dated 14th September, from the natives of the Orange River Colony has yet been presented to the King; and whether he can now state the cause of the delay in forwarding it to the Colonial Office?

No, Sir, but our telegram will produce a reply, and I expect to hear from the Governor very shortly.

asked the Prime Minister whether he can say when the Foreign Office Vote will be taken, in order that the House may have an opportunity of discussing the Annual Report of Sir Eldon Gorst, which raises issues of political importance both to Egypt and to Great Britain

I am prepared to put down the Foreign Office Vote when it is asked for by the Opposition on any allotted day devoted to Supply.

asked the Prime Minister when the second reading of the Secretary of the Board of Agriculture Bill will be taken?

If this Bill could be regarded as non-controversial, I should be prepared to move the second reading on an early day; but if the Bill is to be debated on the second reading I cannot name any date before Whitsuntide.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the officials who collect the income tax are instructed or allowed to add an item to a taxpayer's return without consulting the taxpayer or informing him that they added such an item?

The attention of the taxpayer is duly directed to the particulars in respect of which his return may be incorrect, before an effective assessment is made by the responsible Tax Commissioners?

Can the right hon. Gentleman answer me more directly as to whether there are no definite instructions given to the collector, that he must not add any item to the return without letting the taxpayer know?

Yes, that is what I said; that is undoubtedly correct. The attention of the taxpayer is only directed to particulars in respect to which his return may be incorrect. No addition can be made to the return without the taxpayer being made aware of the addition or correction.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the total number of gallons of spirits manufactured in Ireland in the year ended March, 1908, the number of gallons of spirit exported from Ireland and the duty paid on it, and the number of gallons of spirit consumed in Ireland and the duty paid; and what would be the extra duty paid by Ireland during the coming year on the assumption that the same quantity of spirits was consumed.

Assuming that the word "spirit" as used in this Question is intended by the hon. Member to mean spirit manufactured in Ireland, the number of proof gallons of spirit distilled in Ireland in the year ended 31st March, 1908, was 11,653,513, but as Irish-made spirit is not separately distinguished in the official accounts I regret that I am unable to give the remainder of the information asked for by the hon. Member.

If the figures are not separated in the Return how can they be worked out by the officials?

I do not know, but if the hon. Member will put a question down I will try and find out.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that the brewers' licence duty of 12s. per 50 barrels, as proposed in the Budget, will be approximately a tax of 3d. per barrel manufactured; and if he proposes to give a corresponding rebate per barrel upon beer exported from the United Kingdom, as is now done in the case of the beer duty of 7s. 9d. per barrel?

I must refer the hon. Member to what was said on this subject by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the course of the Debate on Tuesday.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in the case of English and Scotch applicants for old age pensions, a comparison has been instituted by the Treasury between the baptismal certificates of the ages of these pensioners and their ages as recorded in the Census of 1841 and 1851; and, if so, whether serious discrepancies have been revealed between the ages of the applicants as recorded in the Census Returns which, in some cases, differ from each other in the baptismal certificates; and whether, under these circumstances, the Treasury will insist on treating as conclusive evidence of the age of Irish applicants the Census Returns in the absence of baptismal certificates?

We have no information that the discrepancies suggested in the question do in fact exist.

But do not discrepancies exist in the baptismal certificates, compared with the other evidence such as it is?

No; I should not think there is any suggestion in the figures made with regard to the pensions paid that discrepancies do exist.

So far as the evidence of the census goes it has only been applied to Ireland, and not to England and Scotland?

No; where necessary it is applied in both cases.

But it is very necessary in Ireland!

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that little, if any, reliance can be placed on the census records of 1841 and 1851 in reference to the accuracy of the ages of persons therein recorded, and that these records are faulty and incomplete, since the investigation was made under circumstances which made accuracy impossible; whether, at the passing of the Pension Act, from the knowledge that the census returns were not reliable in the matter of ages, regulations were issued by the Treasury enabling pension officers and pension committees to accept, where applicants for the pension could not procure baptismal certificates, certificates from clergymen, magistrates, and others who had known the applicants for a long period as sufficient proof that they were of ages to render good their claims; whether the effect of the new regulations is that the fate of all who have made claims will hang on whatever the census returns of 1841 and 1851 disclose unless baptismal certificates are forthcoming, and since Irish Catholics cannot produce certificates of baptism, because no records of baptisms and marriages were kept by their Church at that time, members of that communion alone will feel the effect of these new regulations; and whether, under these circumstances, certificates from the census of 1841 and from the census of 1851, which frequently differ from each other as to the age of the same individual, should not be pressed on pension committees by pension officers as conclusive evidence of the age of applicants, nor held on appeal to the Local Government Board as conclusive?

Any record of age contained in the Census Returns of 1841 and 1851 must depend upon the accuracy of the person who made the statement, and it is quite possible that these records are not wholly dependable, but, in addition to information obtainable from these sources, any reliable documentary evidence is admitted beside baptismal certificates. It must rest with the pension committee and the Local Government Board respectively to decide what is final and conclusive evidence.

Can the hon. Gentleman say, when the pension officer makes these investigations, he has to take the census of 1841 and 1851, and compare the two censuses as to whether there are discrepancies in the ages of the same individual?

Is it not a fact that the 1841 census in Ireland is inaccurate; that there are streets in towns which do not appear, and that, application having been made to the Registrar-General in Dublin for information, has been refused?

No such information has been brought to my notice.

May I ask the hon. Gentleman whether he is aware that these Census Returns are inadmissible as legal evidence in any court? If he has any doubt about it, let him ask the Law officers at his side.

Where the evidence consists only of the birth certificate or the Census Return, may I ask the hon. Gentleman if instructions have been given for any other evidence except these two to be received?

As I pointed out in reply to the hon. Gentleman the Member for South Donegal, any reliable documentary evidence is taken into consideration.

In the case of Irish Catholics it is almost impossible for them to furnish such evidence. They do not enter the births up in the family Bible like they do in Great Britain—is that fact taken into account?

That is the very reason why other documentary evidence is accepted.

Will the right hon. Gentleman receive any evidence except certificates of birth, which are unobtainable in many parishes in Ireland, from applicants for pensions, and who are unable to produce any documentary evidence?

They must produce some evidence as to age.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the fact that there are 162 distilleries in Scotland, as against nine in England and 30 in Ireland, that the average output during the last three years in Scotland has been very nearly equal to that of England and Ireland combined, that about four and a-half millions of the new tax on whisky, out of a total of a little over nine millions, would fall upon a Scottish industry, and that no Scottish Member has had any opportunity of giving expression to the widespread feeling in Scotland as to the unfair and unjust incidence of this tax, he will reconsider the expediency of imposing a tax which will bear so heavily upon that Kingdom?

My right hon. Friend does not see his way to reconsider the proposals in this particular, but he does not admit the accuracy of the figures quoted by the hon. Member.

Does the hon. Gentleman know that these figures were taken from the Abstract which appeared in the Votes and Proceedings the other day?

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether it is proposed that earned income shall be aggregated with unearned in assessing for supertax?

I must ask the Noble Lord to wait for this information until the Finance Bill is in the hands of the House.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether it is his intention to continue, as heretofore, the exemptions and abatements on their small Home incomes to Indian civil and military officers resident on duty in India who are in receipt of salaries from the Indian Government?

My right hon. Friend does not intend to exempt Indian civil and military officers resident in India and receiving salaries from the Indian Government from the proposed obligations on persons resident abroad to pay full income tax.

Seeing that these officers are compulsorily resident abroad in the execution of their duty, is it fair—simply for the convenience of the Treasury, for such it really is—to deprive them of a right to which by law every other subject of His Majesty is entitled?

Considering the very great disabilities those Indian officers suffer, will the Government not reconsider this matter?

I have just given the decision of my right hon. Friend.

And I have just asked you to reconsider it.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will furnish a list showing the number of old age pensions of 1s., 2s., 3s., 4s., and 5s., respectively, which have been granted per county in Ireland?

My right hon. Friend finds that the number of pensions actually being paid in each county can only be ascertained by obtaining returns from pension officers, the preparation of which at the present time would involve considerable labour, and would seriously impede the more pressing work of dealing with outstanding claims.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that in some cases, at least, in Ireland all the figures asked for, and a great many more, have already been given to the local newspapers, and is he also aware that all the figures asked for are actually in the office of the pensions officers in Ireland, and that it only requires an addressed envelope and a penny stamp to get the information?

I am afraid the hon. Member takes a rather optimistic view.

Does not the Treasury know, by the amount of money it pays away, whether it be for 1s., 2s. or 5s. pensions, the number of each of these classes of pensions?

I can assure the hon. and learned Member there is no unreadiness or unwillingness to communicate this information, but it would entail a very considerable amount of labour, which at the present time would have the effect of postponing the consideration of future claims.

Is there not somebody at the Treasury to-day who knows the amount of money being paid from week to week, and who must have vouchers in the Treasury representing these claims?

It is quite true the amount of money paid out is accurately known by the accounting officer of the Treasury, but it is not so easy to split that large sum of money into the small amounts necessary to give the detailed accurate information required. The information required for newspapers is not necessarily, though very nearly, accurate, and what would pass in that respect would soon be challenged in this House.

Are the Treasury not in the habit of requiring many details as to the nature of the pensions before they send the money in a lump sum?

Of course they do.

Arising out of the original answer, is not the stress of work on the pension officers now nearly over?

I wish it was, but I am afraid it is not.

Could not the hon. Gentleman suggest to the Chancellor of the Exchequer the desirability of postponing the Budget until these questions are answered?

Is it not a fact that every county council in Ireland has before it a list of the pensions paid out in the various grades—1s., 2s., 3s.—and that they could let the Chancellor of the Exchequer have the information without any labour?

No; if I had known that was the case I would produce the information.

Will the hon. Member make inquiries as to whether it is a fact or not, and if it is will he produce the figures?

Certainly.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any record is available of the interchange of beer and foreign duty-paid spirits between Ireland and Great Britain; and, if not, how is the annual contribution of Ireland to the total revenue of the United Kingdom calculated as regards Customs and Excise?

The total quantity of foreign spirits removed from Great Britain to Ireland, and vice versâ, after payment of duty is recorded, and the quantity so removed in the years 1906, 1907 and 1908 is included in the totals given in reply to a question of the hon. Member for North Meath on the 10th instant, of spirits imported into, and exported from, Ireland, The quantity of each kind of foreign spirit so removed is not recorded separately. No record is kept of the quantity of beer interchanged, but the consumption in England and Wales, Scotland and Ireland respectively, is estimated, as explained in the Annual Parliamentary Return of Revenue and Expenditure, England, Scotland and Ireland (House of Commons Paper 216 of 1908), as regards beer made in the United Kingdom on the basis of transit statistics obtained in the year 1903–4, and as regards foreign beer on the basis of the respective populations.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the estimate of the present taxable capacity of Ireland as compared with that of Great Britain on which his proposals for taxation are founded?

My right hon. Friend's proposals are not founded directly upon any estimate of the taxable capacity of Ireland as compared with that of Great Britain, but, as explained in his Financial Statement, upon the taxable capacity of individuals and classes of individuals as compared with that of other individuals and classes of individuals irrespective of the part of the United Kingdom in which they may reside.

Are we to understand that the Chancellor of the Exchequer has left out of consideration the special exemptions and abatements guaranteed to Ireland as to her taxable capacity by the Act of Union and again in 1817?

No, I do not think the hon. Member has any right to assume that.

Why has the Chancellor in bringing in his Budget ignored the findings of the Royal Commission?

My recollection is that my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer pointed out in the course of one of his speeches that the proportion of taxation for Ireland under the Budget is less than before.

Yes, but he did not say how it was—

Order, order, the hon. Member is arguing.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if his attention has been called to the low death rate among the old age pensioners in Ireland compared with the death rate among the pensioners in England, Scotland, or Wales; and if the Treasury authorities have any information to the effect that this is owing to some extent to the average age of the pensioners in Ireland being less than the average age in England?

It appears to be the fact that the death rate among Irish pensioners is lower than that in England or Scotland, but it would be unsafe to draw any general inference from this fact, having regard to the short period for which the Old Age Pensions Act has been in force.

With regard to the reply, may I ask did not previous answers given by the Chancellor of the Exchequer show that there was doubt as to the ages of these, and is not that primâ facie evidence they are younger?

I do not think it is.

Why do they live so long at all?

asked the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether his attention has been called to refusals of landlords, based on section 11, sub-section (a), of the Agricultural Holdings Act, 1908, of compensation to tenant farmers for unreasonable disturbance when they have received notice to quit on account of their holdings being required for small holdings and allotments; and whether he will take steps, by legislation or otherwise, to deal with such cases?

No specific case of the kind to which my hon. Friend refers has been brought to our notice. The President has no intention of introducing legislation on the subject.

asked the hon. Member for South Somerset whether about 100 acres of land was offered to the Kent County Council at Wrotham and have been declined; and, if so, can he state the reason for the county council not accepting the offer?

The county council are not prepared to make an offer for the farm to which my hon. Friend refers, inasmuch, as I understand, they have not received any applications for small holdings in the parish of Wrotham.

Are they not in possession of a large number of applications from Wrotham neighbourhood?

I will inquire.

asked the First Lord; of the Admiralty whether his attention has been called to the death of a man named T. Albert as the result of an accident while removing coal from the "Mercedes" in Portsmouth Harbour; whether any report has been received upon the subject at the Board of Admiralty, and, if so, does it contain statements that the machinery was defective, and had been so for a long time; that such defects had caused many injuries to the men employed; and, if so, whether, under these circumstances, he will prevent the use of this faulty apparatus, and otherwise take all necessary steps to protect the workmen employed in this branch of his Department?

A report on the subject has been received. The machinery in use at the time of the accident has been examined by representatives of the Admiralty, the engineering manager of the dockyard and the contractors, who report that it was in perfect condition and working order. There is no record of any previous accident having been caused by defect in the machinery. Coaling is necessarily an operation attended with some degree of danger, but all possible precautions are taken to ensure protection to the men employed in connection therewith.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the verdict of the jury was that the accident was caused by defective apparatus?

No; I was not aware of that, but I will inquire into the statement of my hon. Friend.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if his attention has been called to the action of the firm of Armstrong, Whitworth and Company, Elswick, in not paying a number of fully-qualified engineers the rate of wages which obtain in the district; and whether this firm is supposed to conform to the Fair Wages Clause passed by this House?

There is no trace of any case as alleged in the first part of the question. The answer to the second part is in the affirmative.

Will the right hon. Gentleman be prepared to receive a statement from the committee of the engineers?

Oh, certainly; if my hon. Friend will write to me generally I will look into the matter, but I have been unable to trace any case.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he can now say whether a decision has been arrived at respecting the complaint of the executive council of the Electrical Trades Union against the firm of Armstrong, Whitworth and Company, Elswick, not paying the fair wages due to certain electrical wiremen according to contract?

No decision has yet been arrived at. This matter has been the subject of considerable correspondence with both the firm of Messrs. Armstrong and the secretary of the Electrical Trades Union, with a view to elucidate the correct facts of the case. The last action was a letter dated 17th April last to the Electrical Trades Union, asking for further information, to which no reply has as yet been received.

I desire to ask the the First Lord of the Admiralty how many officers of the Royal Navy are qualified as interpeters in German; how many of those so qualified are at present unemployed; and how many are employed respectively in the Mediterranean Fleet, Atlantic Fleet, and the First (North Sea) Division of the Home Fleet?