asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether the Estates Commissioners received in June, 1906, an application from James Russell, a tenant on the Maunsell property at Curraghfoile, Doon, county Limerick, asking for a separate inspection of his holding on the ground that a great portion of his farm was ruined by a mountain flood after the purchase of the estate had been completed; was his request acceded to; and, if not, will an inspector now be sent down to see the damage done by the flood and have the tenant recouped for the loss he has suffered before the purchase money is paid to the landlord?

Russell's application was received by the Estates Commissioners, and his holding was inspected. The Commissioners decided that it was security for the advance applied for, and the holding has been vested in the tenant purchaser.

asked the Chief Secretary if he will explain why the Commissioners of National Education, Ireland, allowed only one and a half hours at the July examination for the written test for the Irish certificate and at the same time allowed two hours for such subjects as English composition and English grammar; do the Commissioners intend to extend to teachers who sat for this examination and who were non-native Irish speakers the privilege that non-native Irish speakers are not expected to speak Irish with native fluency but to show signs of having made progress in the art of conversation; had the examiner in the oral test in Irish at the Limerick Centre instructions to examine orally in Irish orthography and recitation of Irish poetry; and will the Commissioners undertake to reexamine a candidate who failed in the oral test at the Limerick Centre and who passed a creditable written paper, if that teacher underwent a course in one of the Irish colleges immediately, which would enable such teacher to teach the Irish language in national schools for the coming year on the resumption of business after the summer holidays, especially as the school year is only in its infancy?

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that the time allowed for the written test in Irish has not been changed for years, and that they consider it sufficient to enable candidates to show their knowledge of the subject. The privileges specified in the regulations for the examination of King's Scholars were allowed to candidates who were tested at the July examination. The Commissioners do not think it desirable on educational grounds to say what instructions were issued to examiners; they cannot give any undertaking such as is asked for in the question, but if any candidate feels aggrieved by anything in connection with the examination they will investigate the matter if the facts are submitted to them.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that Patrick M' Bride lodged with the Estates Commissioners in October, 1907, a claim for reinstatement to a farm on the estate of G. C. Lendrum, Moorefield, Kilskeery, county Tyrone, from which his father was evicted in January, 1881, receiving the reply that the application had been received, but that, having regard to its date and the very large number of pending cases, the Commissioners were unable to say when the matter could be considered; is he aware that it was not until June of this year that a decision was communicated to M' Bride that the application was lodged too late; can he say why it took the Commissioners 18 months to send the information that the application was late; and will he make inquiries into the cause of such delay with the view of having M' Bride's case considered?

The Estates Commissioners tell me that M' Bride, who lives in Glasgow, was informed on 2nd June last, in reply to a letter received from him in May, that his application for reinstatement had not been lodged within the time prescribed by the Evicted Tenants Act, 1907, and could not be dealt with under that Act. He had been previously informed of this fact. The case is not one for reconsideration.

asked the Chief Secretary what is the cause of the delay in the distribution of the untenanted lands at Grange, county Limerick, on the De Salis property; and if the arrangements already made by Mr. West, inspector to the Estates Commissioners, regarding the allotment of this land will be adhered to?

These lands have not yet been acquired by the Estates Commissioners, and it would be contrary to practice to make any statement at this stage of the proceedings as to what arrangements may be approved for the allotment of the lands when acquired.

asked the Chief Secretary if the Estates Commissioners have taken any steps with a view to the purchase of the untenanted land on the Delmege estate at Garryspillane, Knocklong, county Limerick; and, if so, what has been the result of the negotiations?

Proceedings have been instituted for the sale of this estate under the Irish Land Act, 1903. It will be dealt with by the Estates Commissioners in order of priority, but its turn has not yet come.

asked the Chief Secretary if, in view of the fact that the majority of the district councils of Ireland have refused to put the Dairies and Cowsheds Act into operation on the ground that it is unnecessary and only creating additional taxation, the Local Government Board will withdraw legal proceedings which have been threatened against some such councils, and make the Order, heretofore compulsory, an optional one with the various councils as to whether they will enforce it or not?

I understand that only a very small minority of the district councils in Ireland have refused to put the Order in question into operation. Officers have already been appointed for nearly half the districts in the country, and additions are steadily being made to their numbers. Compulsory action has only been taken by the Local Government Board with respect to districts which are recognised as large milk producing areas, and in which the conditions attaching to the production of the public milk supply have been found on inspection to be unsatisfactory. The Board, therefore, see no reason whatever to withdraw legal proceedings as suggested. In the interests of public health it is necessary that every step should be taken to ensure that the Order shall come into operation throughout the country.

asked the Chief Secretary if any of the Irish Land Commissioners are to be asked to act as Commissioners under the Finance Bill if it passes into law; and, if so, can he give the names?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. The second does not arise.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury what is the gross assessment and net produce of the Income Tax for last year in England, Scotland, and Ireland respectively?

The information asked for is not yet available.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury why men promoted to the establishment in His Majesty's Customs are allowed to count for pension only half their unestablished service, seeing that their unestablished service is exactly similar in character to their established service following; that the practice of the Treasury is to count unestablished service for pension in such circumstances; and whether he can see his way to act in their case on the ordinary practice of the Treasury?

The cases referred to have been dealt with strictly in accordance with the principles explained in the answers which I gave to the hon. Member on 28th June and 27th April last.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will explain why an assistant surveyor, whose maximum scale of pay was £525, was appointed postmaster of Portsmouth at a salary of £675; and whether, seeing that he had previously been passed over for promotion to a surveyorship and had been passed over for promotion to a surveyorship every time a vacancy had occurred during the last three or four years, he will say why he was not promoted in his own class instead of being promoted over the heads of ail postmasters throughout the country?

The officer referred to is in my judgment well qualified by ability, experience, and industry for the important postmastership to which I appointed him. It is a misconception to speak of him as having been promoted over the heads of other postmasters. The post in question was one open to all officers of the Post Office.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, when the valuation of land was made in Ireland under the Valuation Act of 1852, any portion of the cost was charged to the landowners; and, if so, how much was so charged?

The cost of the valuation of land in Ireland was met by a charge on the local rates. It was, therefore, largely paid for by the landowners.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will state what was the yield from the Estate Duty for the relief of local taxation under the provisions of section 19 of The Finance Act, 1894, in the last year for which the figures are available; and what does he estimate will be the increased sum thus available in the coming year for the relief of local taxation under the new rates of Estate Duty proposed in the Finance Bill?

The last year for which the figures are available is the year ending 31st March, 1908, in which year the yield was £4,480,869. It is not estimated that there will be any increased sum available in the coming year under the new rates of Estate Duty proposed in the Finance Bill.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he could state what would approximately be the loss on the spirit tax if a return were allowed of the additional duty on spirits which are largely employed in the preparation of drugs and on brandy prescribed for the use of patients to public hospitals, in- firmaries, and dispensaries established and mainly supported by voluntary contributions for the relief of the poor and indigent; and if he has any reason to suppose that the officers of those institutions could not be relied upon to make an accurate return of the spirits so used?

My right hon. Friend has no data which would enable him to give the information required by my hon. Friend. Except in the case of drugs prepared on the premises, he does not see how the officers of the institutions in question would be able to make an accurate return of the amount or strength of the spirits used.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his estimate of an increase in revenue of £1,600,000 from the new Spirit Duties for the current year is corroborated by the Trade Returns for the month of June?

Nothing has come to-the notice of my right hon. Friend which would induce him to modify his estimate of the revenue to be derived from the additional duty on spirits in the year ending 31st March, 1910.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the sale of spirits during the month of June; and if the figures confirm the estimate that the licensed victuallers are making a profit at the rate of £4,000,000 a year?

I have no means of furnishing the hon. Member with the information asked for in the latter part of the question. The amount of duty received on spirits paying duty in the month of June is given in my right hon. Friend's reply to the hon. Member for Inverness on the 7th inst.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that clay excavated during the construction of docks and other works is subject to a royalty when used for the purpose of making bricks or cement; whether un-gotten clay will be subject to the Ungotten Mineral Tax; and, if so, in what way will the quantity of such ungotten clay be arrived at?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the negative. As regards the second part, I may refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend on the 16th ultimo to the hon. Members for the Holborn Division and for Darlington.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if building or road stone is to be regarded as mineral, and subject to the ungotten mineral or any other tax?

I must refer my hon. Friend to the reply which I have just given to the hon. Member for Newcastle-upon-Tyne.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, seeing that the double valuation of land under the Finance Bill to ascertain the fee simple value and the site value is intended to supply an elaborate and highly accurate record of every element of value in the land separately, and having in view the want of authority in an unprofessional and interested valuation made by an owner, he will consider a valuation by Government officials; whether he can state what would be the probable cost of such a valuation of the 32,000,000 acres of tillage and pasture land in Great Britain, and of the buildings, timber, fruit trees, fences, drains, etc., in, on, and under its surface; and whether he will explain how such a complicated valuation could be arrived at, at a cost, on the average, of less than 20s. per three acres?

I am afraid that I cannot give my hon. Friend the information for which he asks, but I can assure him that these points have received the careful consideration of the Government.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether Mr. J. Grant Lawson, Secretary to the Local Government Board, in April, 1905, made an estimate to the effect that a valuation separating the value of the site from the value of the buildings on it would cost for Great Britain at least 18 millions sterling; and whether this estimate included agricultural land?

I gather that my hon. Friend refers to the speech made by Sir J. Grant Lawson on the second reading of the Land Values (Assessment and Rating) Bill of 1905. I have no means of saying what his estimate included, or on what it was based.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether persons who make a business of buying and selling land are at present charged for Income Tax under Schedule D at 9d. in the pound on the next result of these transactions, which is treated as earned income; and whether, under the Finance Bill of 1909, the same persons will be charged a tax of 4s. in the pound on those of their transactions which show a profit, on the assumption that those are unearned increment; and, if so, whether he will present to the House some typical cases showing how much income will be left to such persons?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative if the total income of the persons referred to does not exceed £2,000 per annum. As regards the second part of the question, liability to Increment Value Duty on land in any particular case will depend on the circumstances of that case, and has no analogy with the taxation of earned income derived from the business of dealing in land. I cannot undertake to construct "typical cases," but I may remind my hon. Friend that four-fifths of all increment value will still remain in the owner's hands.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, as it is not intended to treat offices, flats, and chambers on the upper floors of a building as an interest in the land, and that no distinction will be drawn between offices, etc., on the ground floor and the other floors when let separately, it is to be assumed that the ground floor also is not to be treated as an interest in the land?

The answer is in the affirmative.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether all the Lee-Metford and Lee-Enfield long rifles have been, or are being, converted into short rifles; and, if not, what has been, or going to be, done with them?

One hundred and nine thousand Lee-Metford and Lee-Enfield rifles have been, or will be, converted to short rifles, and 300,000 will be converted to long charger loading rifles for the Territorial Force. The remainder are either unserviceable or unsuitable for conversion.

asked the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether he will state the number of applicants for small holdings up to date in South Berkshire, how many have been approved by the county council and how many rejected, how many of those approved have received land and the acreage of such land, what amount of land has been obtained by the county council under the Act of 1907, and whether voluntarily or compulsorily; and what steps are being taken, either by the Board or the county council, to obtain land for those approved applicants whose claims are still unsatisfied?

109 applications for land have been received. Sixty-three have been approved, 42 have not been approved, and 4 are under consideration. Five of the applicants have been supplied with 61 acres, which represents the amount of land acquired voluntarily—none has so far been acquired compulsorily. I may add that 319 acres have been offered to, but declined by, applicants, and the county council are in negotiation for other land for satisfying the demand.

asked why the Return as to the daily average number of inmates in poor-houses, which used formerly to be given in the annual Report of the Local Government Board for Scotland, has been omitted since 1907; and whether he can see his way to have it included in future Reports, as the information is of considerable value to governors, and the poor-house officials are still required to furnish a return of their daily averages to the Local Government Board?

The Table of Average Weekly Cost of Poor-house Inmates, in which was included a column showing average daily number of inmates, was found to be misleading in some respects, and was temporarily withdrawn from the Board's Report. A form of poor-house accounts was subsequently prescribed to enable the Board to compile trustworthy information as to average weekly costs, and it is the intention of the Board to re-introduce this table, which will include the average daily number of inmates, in their Report for the current and future years. It may be pointed out that the number of inmates in poor-houses throughout the half-years ended 30th June and 31st December and the number on 1st January and 1st July has been published in the Board's Report for many years.

asked the First Lord of the Treasury whether it is the intention of the Government to introduce and pass a measure in aid of the blind; whether he is aware that such provisions exist in Continental nations; and whether he will consider the desirability of adopting the example of other countries in assisting the blind to earn a living?

The Government will be glad to consider any representations that may be made to them, but I am not in a position to give any undertaking as to the introduction of legislation on the subject.

asked the President of the Local Government Board if he has recently received a petition relating to the supervision of children boarded out by guardians within the limits of the Union; and, if so, will he, before taking action to carry into effect the objects of the petition, be willing to allow boards of guardians, through the Association of Poor Law Unions or otherwise, to express their views on the matter?

I received a deputation on this subject from the council of the association on the 1st instant, and they expressed to me their views with regard to it.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether ho has received any communications expressing dissatisfaction as to the mode of procedure to be adopted re the conciliation scheme of 1907; and whether he will consider the point of view put forward by the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants?

I understand that the hon. Member refers to a question which has arisen as to the method in which applications for alterations in the conditions of employment should be made on the Great Northern Railway of Ireland. The scheme of 1907 provided that such applications should be made "in the usual course," and the question in this case is what was the usual course on this railway. A meeting was held at the Board of Trade on 25th May between representatives of the railway company and employés, when it appeared from the arguments and evidence submitted by the parties that the usual course that had been followed in the past and been by petitions signed by a reasonable number of employés of the class affected, and the view of the Department to that effect was expressed at the meeting.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he can state the number of Chinese sea- men engaged through the Mercantile Marine Office at Poplar during the quarters ended 30th June, 1908, and 30th June, 1909, respectively?

The number of Chinese seamen of all ratings who were engaged through the Mercantile Marine Office at Poplar during the quarters ended 30th June, 1908, and 30th June, 1909, was 115 and 493 respectively. In order to avoid misapprehension I should like to add that Taking the figures of the engagement of the figures for Poplar are quite exceptional. Chinese seamen at the principal ports of the United Kingdom for the first six months of the present year, and comparing them with those for the first six months of last year, it appears that there is practically no increase, the total being 2,173, compared with 2,122.