asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether any contracts have been entered into by the Admiralty for the construction of floating or other dry docks on the North-East Coast of England suitable for the docking of vessels of the "Dreadnought" type; and, if so, in what ports will they be placed, and when will they be ready to receive such vessels?

Tenders for two floating docks suitable for vessels of the "Dreadnought" type have recently been called for, but have not yet been received, and no date for their completion can therefore yet be given. A decision as to the port at which they will be placed will be given in good time for all necessary preparations to be made for their reception.

May I ask whether these are not the two dry docks that were intended for Chatham and Portsmouth, or are they the two docks intended for the North East Coast?

I have stated that "a decision as to the port at which they will be placed will be given in good time for all necessary preparations to be made for their reception."

Are these the two dry docks that we were told were to be ordered for Portsmouth and Chatham?

No; the hon. Member has never been told that two dry docks were to be ordered for Portsmouth and Chatham.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he will state the reasons for dispensing with the services of the two naval officers of the Naval Intelligence Department who were called before the Sub-Committee of Imperial Defence by Lord Charles Beresford, seeing that no specific reorganisation of the Department has yet been carried out?

A reorganisation of the Department is being carried out, and in consequence of the changes involved the services of the two officers in question will not be required after they have been carried into effect.

Is it a mere coincidence that one of these officers was ordered away the very day that the inquiry ceased?

Coincidence has nothing to do with it.

Then why was he ordered away?

No, Sir; the hon. Gentleman is in error. The officer in question was invited to take his holiday from the date. [Laughter.] I do not in the least desire to answer the hon. Gentleman.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether, in view of the Prime Minister's definite pledge that officers who gave evidence before this inquiry should not have their careers prejudiced in any way, he will take steps to remedy the unfortunate impression which will be created if these officers' careers at the Admiralty came to a termination under these circumstances?

No "unfortunate impression" will be created as the hon. Gentleman says. The services of the officer in question came to a termination with the Admiralty in the ordinary course, and he will be employed in the ordinary course when his turn comes.

Is it not the fact that the officer in question was responsible for the Admiralty manœuvres and was sent away just before they began?

I must decline to answer any further supplementary questions from the hon. Member.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty, if he will state whether the new scheme for the reorganisation of the Naval Intelligence Department, as a war staff, will be promulgated before the end of the Session; and whether it will involve an increase in the Naval Estimates?

As the date of the end of the Session is uncertain, I am unable to reply to the first part of the question. With regard to the second part—the increase in the Estimates, if any, will be small.

asked the Under-Secretary for the Colonies if he has seen the report of the inquiry about the wreck of the "Maori"; and if he intends taking action to carry out the recommendations of the Commissioners?

The report was received last Saturday, and the Secretary of State is in correspondence with the Board of Trade as to it.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, whether he can say if there have been many inquiries made as to the whereabouts of British subjects who were engaged in civil pursuits in South Africa during the period of the late war; can he say whether a record has been kept of all deaths from disease, wounds, or other causes of such persons during the same time; and, if not, will steps be taken to prepare such a list, seeing that insurance companies refuse, in the absence of a certificate of death, to accept circumstantial evidence of such deaths and put the relatives of such missing persons to the expense of asking leave of the courts to presume death?

Numerous inquiries have been addressed to the Colonial Office of the kind referred to by my hon. Friend, and the Colonial Governments have, at the request of the Secretary of State, readily assisted in endeavouring to trace missing persons. The Secretary of State does not, however, think that he can fairly ask them to incur the inconvenience and expense of preparing such a list, but inquiry will be made in any particular case which my hon. Friend may bring to notice.

asked the Solicitor-General for Ireland if he will say how many agricultural tenants in North Tyrone have not yet purchased their holdings; how many of these have, since the second reading of the Irish Land Bill, expressed their willingness to purchase at higher prices and a higher rate of interest than their neighbours who have purchased are pay- ing; and when and in what manner did they so express themselves?

The Land Commission, whom I have consulted, are unable to state the approximate number of tenants in North Tyrone who have not yet purchased their holdings, as the statistics of the Commission are not compiled according to Parliamentary Divisions. I have no information with regard to the matters referred to in the concluding portion of the question.

asked the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, if the Commissioner for the Board has concluded his inquiry as to the demand for small holdings at Newborough; if he is satisfied with the means and ability of the applicants; if the substance of his Report has been communicated to the county council of the Soke of Peterborough; if the council has given any indication to the Board that it is prepared to reconsider its decision not to supply small holdings to more than seven applicants; and, if no such indication has been given, what steps the Board now intend to take to supply small holdings to the men who have satisfied the Commissioner and for whom the council refuse to provide land?

asked the hon. Member for South Somerset if the Commissioner has reported to the Board on the inquiry as to small holdings at Newborough; if so, how many men has he interviewed; how many men is he prepared to recommend for small holdings; how many acres will be required to satisfy the demand by the men he is prepared to recommend; and as the county council for the Soke of Peterborough has declined to supply small holdings, what steps the Board of Agriculture intend to take to carry out the recommendations of the Commissioner?

The Assistant Commissioner reports that he interviewed 20 of the applicants, and that in addition to the eight applicants whom the county council have approved he considers there are 16 others for whom holdings should be provided. He estimates that 344 acres in all are required for the purpose. We propose now to communicate these facts to the county council with a view to their taking the necessary steps to carry out the requirements of the Act.

asked the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture (Ireland), having regard to the importance of agriculture, the small means of many undertaking it in Ireland under new conditions, and the necessity for protecting them against usurers, whether the Department will prepare a leaflet explaining the methods and advantages of a sound system of co-operative agricultural credit banks, and distribute this among purchasers of small farms and district councillors in all parts of Ireland?

The Department have already published a pamphlet on this subject. The Department's scheme under which assistance is given to agricultural credit societies is at present being considered with a view to revision. When the scheme is revised the question of issuing a leaflet will be considered.

asked the Lord Advocate whether his attention has been drawn to the case of William Norris, a boy of 14 years of age, who was, on the 2nd instant, sentenced by Sheriff-Substitute Baillie at Jedburgh to be birched for taking trout from Bowmont Water; whether the prosecution was a private one or was initiated by any official acting under the Tweed fishery laws; whether any sentences of birching have up to the present time been passed as regards offences against the Tweed fishery laws; and if The Probation of Offenders Act, 1907, is applicable to such cases?

Inquiry has been made, and it appears that the prosecution was not a private one or under the Tweed Acts, but was at the instance of the Procurator Fiscal for contravention of the Trout and Freshwater Fish Acts by taking 42 trout by means of wire snares. Two boys were prosecuted, both of whom pled guilty. Norris, being under 14 years of age, was sentenced to four strokes of the birch. The Probation Act is applicable, but I am informed that the boy had been previously twice convicted of malicious mischief, and had been repeatedly cautioned by the police.

Does not the hon. and learned Gentleman think that it is an atrocious punishment for a boy?

That is a matter of opinion.

Will my hon. Friend take steps to see that the penalty of birching shall not be inflicted on small boys for catching trout?

I am afraid the Act of Parliament says that birching may be inflicted in the discretion of the sheriff in certain cases, and here my hon. Friend will notice that the boy had been twice previously convicted.

To whom did the trout belong?

Was the boy assisted by any Probation officer at the trial, in the same way as is done in the Probation Count of Glasgow?

I cannot say; but I shall be very glad to inquire.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is aware that the contractors building the new police station at Barking have sub-let the stone work; if he will state whether this is a violation of the Fair Wages Clause; and if he intends taking action in the matter?

The contractors have sub-let the stonework at the new police station at Barking, and have done so without the Receiver's consent, as required by their contract. Full inquiry has been made in the matter, and it has been ascertained that the full trades union rate of wages has been paid. I am considering whether any further steps should be taken.

asked the Home Secretary whether he can now give a definite answer to the questions previously put in the House by the Member for the City of London, and also on a previous occasion by the Member for South Kensington, as to whether he has appointed a registrar to keep a roll of the baronetage, as recommended by the Report of his Departmental Committee made so long ago as 12th December, 1906?

Before the right hon. Gentleman answers the question, may I ask who is the Member for the City of London? There used to be two. Has the Tariff Reformer swallowed up the other?

I regret that I am not yet in a position to give a definite answer. The matter is not altogether under my control. Perhaps the hon. Baronet will take an opportunity of speaking to me about it.

When the roll is ready will the right hon. Gentleman consider the advisability of appealing to the Chancellor of the Exchequer to put a tax on baronetcies and hereditary titles?

asked whether it is intended to abolish the present system of examination whereby Civil Service candidates are appointed to Post Office clerkships (supplementary establishment); and, if so, will competitive examinations still be arranged to give Civil servants an opportunity of improving their position?

There is no intention of abolishing the system of examination referred to.

asked the Postmaster-General whether his attention has been drawn to an envelope which is being used by an anti-Socialist organisation, presided over by a Member of this House, and on which is printed in red ink the words socialism and murder; whether it is a breach of the Post Office regulations to make His Majesty's mails the vehicle for propagating an offensive innuendo against a political movement; and, if so, what action he proposes to take in the matter?

The Postmaster-General has authority to stop in the post any packet on which there appears words of an "indecent, obscene, or grossly offensive character." The inscription in question, however, whatever may be thought of its taste, appears to me too inept and devoid of meaning to be regarded as coming within these terms.

asked the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture (Ireland), if he will state the basis on which grants are allocated by the Department to the county committees for technical instruction; and whether he has received any resolution from the county Mayo committee on the subject?

The amount of the grants made in aid of schemes of technical instruction are fixed by the Department, with the concurrence of the Technical Board, having regard to the necessities of the district and the nature of the scheme submitted. A resolution has been received from the County Mayo Committee to the effect that the Department's grant in aid of the Mayo scheme should be increased. The Department are not at present prepared to accede to this application, as the Committee have a large unexpended balance on hand, which is more than sufficient for their present schemes.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if it has come to his notice that the Great Eastern Railway Company have given notice to the district council of Enfield that as from the 1st October next it is their intention to relinquish the passenger service on their Edmonton and Cheshunt branch lines, including the stations at Churchbury, Forty Hill, and Theobald's Grove; and whether, in view of the inconvenience that will be caused to those living and travelling in these districts, he will use his powers to prevent this being done?

The matter to which my hon. Friend refers is not one in which the Board of Trade has any jurisdiction, but I have communicated with the railway company thereon and have received a reply, of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been directed to the recent convictions before a London police magistrate of persons exhibiting and selling as Irish certain articles not of Irish origin or manufacture; and if he will say why the laws for the protection of British industries against such practices are not put in force by the Crown when the industries assailed in this manner are Irish?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. The Board of Trade are authorised by the Merchandise Marks Act, 1891, to undertake the prosecution of offenders under the Merchandise Marks Act, 1887, in cases appearing to the Board to affect the general interests of the country or of a Section of the community or of a trade, and are prepared at any time to consider applications to take such action, in accordance with the regulations framed in pursuance of Section 2 (1) of the Act of 1891. Their readiness to take action is not affected by the question of whether the industries involved are English, Welsh, Scottish or Irish. I may add that the Irish Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction are receiving the assistance of the Board of Trade in connection with prosecutions of the nature in question.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will state, for the Prussian State railways and the British railways respectively, for the years 1906, 1907, and 1908, the amount of net profit and the percentage of profit on the capital employed?

I will have such information as is available printed in the Votes.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will make such arrangements for the appointment of officials to the new Labour Exchanges as shall altogether preclude Members of Parliament from either nominating or being asked to nominate persons to fill the situations?

I have already explained the procedure which I propose to adopt in order to fill the appointments to be made in connection with Labour Exchanges in the reply given on 9th September to the question of my hon. Friend the Member for the Market Harborough Division. No nomination by a Member of Parliament is necessary, and I would suggest to my hon. Friend that the most convenient form of answering such requests would be to refer the applicants to the committee of selection who have been appointed, and who will deal impartially with all applications which reach them through the Secretary of the Board of Trade.

May I ask whether in this, as in some other cases of appointments, the applicant should not be disqualified for bringing undue pressure?

No, I do not think that is necessary at all. I think the Committee will make their own rules for sifting the different applications, and will deal with them in their own way. I do not see why Members of Parliament should not have the right to make the same recommendations as others.

What is the object of nomination by a Member of Parliament?

There is no nomination of any kind. The applications, which are sent to the Secretary of the Board of Trade, will be submitted to investigation upon a definite principle.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that in connection with nominations for sub-postmasterships, any recommendation of a Member of Parliament disqualifies the applicant on whose behalf it is made, and whether it would not be a good rule to apply in this case also?

I do not know that that is the practice of the Postmaster-General.

Other things being equal, will people who apply from the locality have first consideration?

I have put the matter in the hands of a Committee, and I think that is much the better way. I will be bound by what the Committee do.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if his attention has been directed to the fact that Sir Francis Oppenheimer's Consular Report from Frankfort of 1909 states that a German trader can send 5,000 kilos of rails from Frankfort to Constantinople for a through freight rate, including railway and steamship, of a little over 2s. per 100 kilos, 220 pounds; and if he can state how much a British trader would have to pay for a similar service?

The answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. I will endeavour to obtain some information on the point referred to in the last part of the question and will communicate with my hon. Friend.

Is it not part and parcel of the German system of assisting trade at the public expense? What would be the charge for goods of a similar weight carried for the same distance within the German Empire?

I could not answer that question off-hand.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether, in view of the fact that the trader can only appeal to the Railway Commissioners when a railway company proposes to increase rates, he will propose such legislation as will enable a trader to appeal to the Commissioners for a reduction of existing rates, which, in his opinion, and in new circumstances which may have arisen, are excessive and a hindrance to legitimate trade?

Whatever be the merits of the suggestion of my hon. Friend, its adoption would obviously involve a new departure of a serious kind, as it would virtually make the Railway and Canal Commission a rate-fixing authority within the Limits of the maxima prescribed by Parliament I do not think that the propriety of such legislation can be satisfactorily discussed in an answer to a question, but I can assure my hon. Friend that the Board of Trade are fully alive both to the importance and the complexity of the whole matter, and that his suggestion will be duly noted.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that the recent increase in the United States tariff took effect upon British goods the moment the Bill was signed, that German goods will not pay the advance till February, nor Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch till August next year; and that upon French goods six months' notice, antedated to April last, has been given; and whether he has made, or proposes to make, any protest against such preferences in the interest of British manufacturers?

No, Sir. The statement in the question is not correct. With the exception of spirits and one or two articles of no importance to British manufacturers, which were included in reciprocal agreements requiring notice of termination of varying lengths, the new rates came into simultaneous operation, and all British goods imported into the United States are at present subject to the same rates of Customs duty as those imported from the other countries named in the question. With reference to the temporary continuance of the discrimination against British spirits, I beg to refer the hon. Member to the replies given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs to the questions addressed to him on 2nd and 13th September by the hon. Member for Worcester, to which I cannot add anything.

Is it not the fact that in the case of lace goods from Nottingham our manufacturers have to pay a higher rate to go to America than Germany and one or two other countries?

That is a question which is out of my jurisdiction.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been drawn to an apparatus for the automatic coupling of railway trucks called the Boirault coupler; whether he is aware that the French Minister of Public Works stated at a sitting of the Chamber of Deputies on 29th May, 1909, that it had given very favourable results after extended trials, and that this coupler has also been successfully tried in September, 1909, by the Swiss Federal Department of Posts and Railways and the general managers of the Swiss Federal Railways; and whether he will take steps to have the suitability of this coupler investigated with a view to its adoption on English railways.

The apparatus came under the notice of the Board of Trade some time ago, but I am not aware of the recent developments in regard to it to which my hon. Friend refers. The whole question of automatic couplings is discussed in a Memorandum prepared by Colonel Yorke, the Chief Inspecting Officer of Railways, of which I am forwarding my hon. Friend a copy.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if his attention has been directed to the fact that, in the annual statement of trade of the United Kingdom, in the tables showing consignments from Germany a very large quantity of articles obviously not the produce of Germany are included, such as caoutchouc, cocoa, coffee, cotton, gutta-percha, jute, tin, ivory, etc., and if it is possible to classify separately such imports from Germany as are German special trade or German native produce or manufactures?

I do not think it would be practicable to adopt my hon. Friend's suggestion. Such a re-classification could not be confined to consignments from Germany; it could not be carried out completely even for Germany; and it would take no account of the manipulation in Germany of products originating elsewhere. The question of the countries to which imported goods should be accredited in the Official Trade Accounts was fully considered last year by a Departmental Committee, of which Sir Robert Giffen was chairman, who unanimously reported in favour of showing in the accounts the country from which the goods were consigned, irrespective of whether or not that country was the actual country of origin or manufacture.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been directed to the fact that the following articles are included in the import list of the Board of Trade Returns among the articles classified as wholly or mainly manufactured, namely, tin, copper, zinc, piglead, quicksilver, indigo, barks for tanning, leather, skins and furs dressed, oil-seed cake, paraffin wax, and stone slabs and marble rough-hewn; and whether, in order to obtain a more accurate division of imports, these articles could be transferred to Schedule 2, raw materials or articles mainly manufactured?

My hon. Friend will remember that on 24th April, 1907, he addressed a similar question to my right hon. Friend the present Chancellor of the Exchequer. I am sending him a copy of the answer then given, to which I have nothing to add.

In view of the fact that the right hon. Gentleman himself has stated that we import £142,000,000 worth of manufactured goods, is it not time the Schedule was altered?

It is not a very easy matter to draw a distinction between the different grades of manufactured, partly manufactured, mainly unmanufactured goods and raw materials, and admittedly there are many cases in the classification to which exception might be taken. But we have not only to think of drawing the classifications accurately. We have also to think of the importance of comparing the statistics of one year with another, and the desire to keep a continuity of statistics which will enable comparisons to be made between one year and another, which has prevented those re Forms in the form of presenting statistics, which are no doubt highly desirable.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland why the Local Government Board have refused to sanction the plan of cottages submitted to them by the Mitchelstown (No. 2) District Council; and, in view of the fact that the labourers as well as the ratepayers are at one as regards the suitability of the plan submitted by the district council, will steps be taken to have the plans submitted approved of, and thus allow the building of the cottages to go on?

The plans submitted to the Local Government Board by the Mitchelstown (No. 2) Rural District Council did not comply with the Board's general standard of requirements cither as to cubic content or the height of the rooms in the cottages. On the 22nd ultimo the rural district council forwarded a new plan to the Board, which they are prepared to approve of subject to some slight amendments which they require the council to carry out.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if he will say how many agricultural tenants have been evicted in Ireland since 1903?

I am informed by the constabulary authorities that the total number of Irish agricultural tenants evicted between 1st January, 1903, and 30th June, 1909, was 1,296.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether the Estates Commissioners can see their way to enter into communication with Mr. John J. Therry, junior, Mooresfort, county Tipperary, regarding his expressed willingness to give up the lands formerly in the occupation of Miss Clahane and other evicted tenants on the Grehan estate, Kildorrery, county Cork, with the view of their reinstatement as tenant purchasers, if the Commissioners can arrange to provide him with land of equivalent value elsewhere, and seeing also that the owner will place no difficulty in the way of the acquirement of these lands by the Commissioners?

I have nothing to add to the reply given by my right hon. Friend to the question on the same subject asked by the hon. Member on 15th October last.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether, in view of Mr. Therry's expressed willingness to sell, the Estates Commissioners will make inquiry in the matter?

The answer my right hon. Friend gave was that the Estates Commissioners were not aware that Mr. Therry was willing to surrender the farm, but that they were prepared to consider any representation he might make to them.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if he will say whether the Estates Commissioners or the Congested Districts Board propose to open negotiations for the purchase of the property of Mr. Austin Freely, situate at Course, Ballyhaunis, county Mayo, with the object of enlarging and improving the holdings on the property?

If the owner institutes proceedings before the Estates Commissioners for the sale of this estate it will be dealt with in order of priority, but up to the present no such proceedings have been instituted, nor has the property been offered to the Congested Districts Board. That Board are not in a position to open negotiations for the purchase of any further estates owing to the want of funds for effecting improvements.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland whether the Congested Districts Board have opened negotiations with Mr. Michael Delaney, of Ballyhaunis, for the purchase of the Carrownedin farm, in the county of Mayo, for the purpose of enlarging the very small holdings in the district in which the Carrownedin farm is situate?

The farm in question has not been offered for sale to the Congested Districts Board by Mr. Delany.

Will the right hon. Gentleman represent to the Estates Commissioners the desirability of approaching this gentleman with the object of purchasing the property, seeing that the holdings in the neighbourhood are steeped in congestion?

I will mention the matter. The hon. Gentleman knows that the Estates Commissioners have no power at present to make an offer themselves. They can only purchase if an owner is willing to sell.

I would suggest that in order to hasten the matter the Congested Districts Board ought to be asked to approach him.

Of course, the hon. Gentleman is aware that under the Act as it stands there is no money to improve the lands. All depends on the passing of the Bill which is now before Parliament.

asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland if he has received a resolution from the Belmullet Rural District Council urging that the construction of the Collooney—Belmullet Railway should be proceeded with without delay; if he will say what are the obstacles that stand in the way of the construction of this railway, seeing that the county councils of Mayo and Sligo have passed resolutions, agreeing to the necessary guaranties; and that the Collooney and Blacksod Bill has received the Royal Assent?

My right hon. Friend has not received the resolution referred to. I am not aware that there are any obstacles to the construction of the railway, except the want of money. The promoters of the undertaking are in; correspondence with the Irish Govern- ment and the Treasury as to the conditions to be fulfilled before Government assistance can be given towards the construction of the line.

asked the Chief Secretary if he will say when the Congested Districts Board propose to proceed with the distribution of the Cloona Castle grazing farms, near Ballinrobe, in the county of Mayo, among the local landholders?

The Congested Districts Board have not up to the present been able to secure the possession of all the grass lands referred to. They have recently got possession of part of one farm, but the purchase is not completed, and they are not yet in a position to divide the land.

asked the Chief Secretary if he will state whether he has received a resolution from the Mayo County Council protesting against the issue of a licence for the building of a whaling Station at or near Blacksod, in the county of Mayo; and if he proposes to take any action in the matter?

My right hon. Friend has not received the resolution referred to, but he has been made aware of its tenour. The answer to the concluding portion of the question is in the negative. The licence to the Blacksod Whaling Company was issued after careful consideration of all the circumstances of the case, and the question cannot now be opened.

Has the Department of Agriculture in Ireland any power to revoke a licence once issued?

I would like notice of that question.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that at a meeting in Dublin on Sunday last, attended by many thousands of people, a resolution was unanimously adopted protesting against what appears to be an injustice in connection with the results of the intermediate examinations in Irish, and demanding that the papers be re-examined by other examiners; whether he has received any communication from the Board of Intermediate Education on the subject; and, if so, whether such communication will be laid before the House?

I see by the newspapers that a resolution to the effect stated in the question was adopted at a meeting held in Dublin on Sunday last. My right hon. Friend has not received any communication from the Board of Intermediate Education on the subject.

Has he asked for any communication?

No; he has no locus standi to ask for it.

Would he ask the Board of Intermediate Education what they intend to do in the matter?

I do not think that the Board of Intermediate Education can be approached in that way. They are not under the control of the Irish Office.

asked the Chief Secretary if he can say what is the cause of the delay on the part of the Estates Commissioners in giving to James Dore, of Curraghnadeely, in the county of Limerick, evicted tenant on the estate of Lord Southwell, the grant to stock his holding which they promised him on signing the agreement to purchase his holding?

The Estates Commissioners inform me that they have sanctioned a grant for the purposes mentioned in the question, and an inspector has been authorised to supervise its expenditure.

Will the man be given the grant to spend or will it be spent for him?

I cannot answer that question.

Is it the custom to give the grant to the evicted tenants to buy the cattle themselves?

I think that they sometimes adopt one course and sometimes the other. As a rule I think they give the money to the tenant.

Why do not they do either one or the other?

For the purpose of stocking the farm will the right hon. Gentleman see that the Commissioners send an inspector to buy cattle, or give him the money to buy them at once?

We really have no control over the Estates Commissioners in this. They do their own business, and we cannot be interfering in the details of the cases.

Will he represent this matter as a matter of urgency?

It is no more urgent than other matters of the same kind.

Has the right hon. Gentleman or the Chief Secretary any control in Ireland over any body at all?

My right hon. Friend has control over the police.

asked the Chief Secretary if he can say whether the Estates Commissioners will take any action to adjust the financial relations between a landlord and his tenants who signed agreements to purchase their holdings between 1st November, 1908, and 1st January, 1909, on the basis that the landlord was to get a lesser bonus than 12 per cent., and who increased the purchase price to make up for the loss in bonus?

The Estates Commissioners have no power to make any such adjustment as is suggested in the question.

What is the position of the tenant who is paying 7 per cent. more on his annuity in order to make up for the loss which it was understood would be caused the landlord by the reduction in the bonus, and will the Commissioners take some steps to see that, if the landlord is now getting 12 per cent. bonus up to 1st January, 1909, the tenants are not charged the extra amount which was to be paid?

The bonus to the landlord has nothing whatever to do with the annuity the tenant has to pay. He will have to pay whatever he agreed to pay.

asked the Secretary of State for War what sum per week the Poor Law guardians can claim from an old soldier in a civilian hospital, that soldier having a life pension of eight-pence per day?

The Poor Law authorities can claim the amount of parish relief advanced or expended on a man's account, provided that the amount is calculated at rates not exceeding the ordinary rates for pauper inmates and that not more than the daily rate of pension is claimed in respect of each day for which relief has been administered.

May we take it for granted that the Poor Law guardians would be wrong to charge more than a man's pension?

Yes. I do not think that they can charge more than the man's pension.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the shortage of horses for military purposes, he has considered the advisability of retaining in this country for the British Government some of the numbers of thoroughbred horses which, having been found unsuitable for racing, are sold in the autumn months, such horses being principally bought for military purposes in France, Germany, and Belgium, and for breeding and other purposes in South America?

As there is no present shortage of horses for military purposes it does not appear necessary to consider the possibility of carrying out the hon. Member's suggestion.

Do not foreign Governments pay more for their horses than we?

Yes. They buy very largely a type of horse which is no use to us at all.

Would not these horses which are suitable for foreign Governments be equally suitable for the British Government?

We obtain a perfectly adequate supply of those that we want at a reasonable price.

asked what number of rifle ranges suitable for shooting under the new conditions for rapid firing are at present available for the Territorial Forces in the county of Northumberland; and where such ranges are suitable?

There are nine rifle ranges at present available in Northumberland for the Territorial Force shooting under the new conditions. The ranges are situated at Allendale Moor, Alnwick, Bellingham Moor, Chillingham Park, Hawkhope, Moor Laws, Whitley, Woodburn, and Wooler Common. As the Whitley range is used by the Regular troops, it has been closed to Territorials from May to August inclusive during the present year.

Were these nine ranges in Northumberland already closed on account of the closing of others, and is it not the fact that there are no adequate facilities for the Territorials to carry out their firing?

There are nine ranges. If the hon. Member indicates to us the places where ranges can be acquired at a reasonable price it will be considered.

asked whether the 11 soldiers who were discharged during the week ending 19th September, 1909, at Colchester, on account of bad teeth, were discharged from the Army entirely, or only discharged from the colours to the first-class Army Reserve?

Thirteen men of the 8th Hussars, who are under orders for service in India, were rejected as medically unfit on account of defective teeth. The sum of £1 per head is granted for dental treatment of men with defective teeth, but as the cost of such treatment was assessed at a larger sum for these men, they were given the option of paying the extra amount required to make their teeth sound or of being discharged as medically unfit for further service. Three men elected the former course and 10 the latter.

Were these men discharged entirely or relegated to the Army Reserve?

They were discharged as medically unfit.

I understand that these men had passed through the earlier stages of their training, and would it not have been better, in consequence of these men being efficient soldiers for the Government to pay the necessary expenses and retain their services?

The military authorities attach great importance to soundness of teeth, particularly when men are going on foreign service. If a man cannot get his teeth made sound it is very much better, especially considering the large number of suitable recruits coming forward at present, not to retain him.

They have lost the services of 11 men for the sake of £33?

Yes.

Is the only reason for the rejection of these men the fact that it would have involved a certain amount of expense to the public to retain them?

We do not think it justifiable, considering the other expenses we are put to, to pay more than £1 towards the expenses of putting a man's teeth right. If the teeth are so bad that the expenditure of that sum would not put them right, we prefer to dispense with the man's services.

Have you taken into consideration the amount of public money spent on these men to make them fit for service?

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the Indian Government already have complained of the cost of the capitation charge, and that a soldier without good teeth is no use for India, as he cannot chew the tough mutton?

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the fact that many complaints were made, both by officers and men as to the food, insufficiency of fuel for cooking, and scarcity of water at the camp of the Gordon Territorials at Aultmore this year, he will cause an inquiry to be made as to the reason for these complaints?

No complaints from this brigade in regard to food, fuel, or water have reached the War Office. I have already fully dealt with questions put by the hon. and gallant Member on the subject of food and water, and I do not propose to make any further inquiries.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the water was so short that many of the men had to shave with lemonade; and if things of that sort occur will it not have a very bad effect on recruiting?

I do not think so. The only source of information in this matter is the hon. Member. I think that if affairs had gone wrong seriously we should have heard of it from the men themselves or their officers.

Will the hon. Gentleman not inquire in view of the fact that my information was straight from the camp itself?

The hon. Member will remember that I gave a long answer previously, and the matter is by no means so bad as he would have us understand.

Does the hon. Gentleman understand that the reply was extremely unsatisfactory?

Is it not the fact that if a man shaved with lemonade instead of water, the lemonade would take the edge off the razor?

I do not doubt it.

asked whether, in the case of an officer who had passed his captain's examination and was superannuated since the new scheme came in until this year, the grant of £20 will be given in order to meet the expense of the change of uniform?

A supernumerary officer when absorbed in the force becomes eligible for a grant on the usual conditions to meet the cost of necessary replacements of serviceable volunteer uniform, which he has to discard, up to a maximum of £20.

If an officer is superannuated who has passed his captain's examination, and is taken on again, and he expends a sum of money, will he not be allowed the £20 in that case?

I do not think we have any system of superannuating people and then taking them on again.

moved to leave out the word "double" ["double those specified"], and to insert the words "one-half of."

I wish to make an appeal to the Government in respect to this duty. The Section doubles the Stamp Duty on all sorts of property, except stocks and shares. The Chancellor of the Exchequer in has speech on the Budget expressly said that he intended extra taxation to fall on landed property; and, in fact, it is quite clear that it will. If you except stocks and shares, by far the larger part of transactions are transfers of landed property, and therefore there is an extra tax being put upon landed property. In the first place, all economists are agreed that this is the worst form of getting your tax, because it will restrict and hamper the transfer of property. In this Budget we have already increased the tax on land, and now we are going to put a further tax on transfers of land. The Stamp Duty will be paid by the purchaser of land. Take the case of a small purchaser. In the first place, I quite agree that the exemption of £500 is something, but it does not go far enough. There are a great many small transactions which go over that limit.

Take the case of a man who buys a few acres of land and spends a thousand pounds on it. He has now got to pay £5 taxes, and, if this Clause is passed, it is increased to £10 for Stamp Duty. When you think of what happens, it is a very large proportion to the money that passes. Of that £1,000 the man will borrow the bulk of it on mortgage to the bank, and all the money that passes is £100, so that the tax you are imposing is 10 per cent. on the cash he has got to find. Surely all parties in this House wish to cheapen the transfer of land, and now you are going, in face of that fact, to impose extra taxes on the transfer. All it brings you in is about three-quarters of a million, and for that very small return you will do a vast amount of harm. What we want is to make the land pass freely from hand to hand, while this tax will very greatly restrict that operation. All economists, without exception, say that the worse time to collect a tax is in the form of a stamp on sale. I will quote one who is an authority. The hon. Member for Blackburn (Mr. Snowden) quite recently published an interesting book, "The Socialist Budget," in which he proposed very drastic changes in the fiscal system. Amongst those changes he proposed to take off the whole of the £8,000,000 of stamps, because he said it is a tax on business. I think, when you get opinions in all quarters against the tax, that it does give ground for inquiry. In my opinion the tax is too high already, and it is a suicidal proposal to double it. It does not affect the big landowner, the big buyer who can afford to pay the tax, but it falls very hardly on the small landlord, on the man who buys land for a £1,000 or so. I am afraid after what the Chancellor of the Exchequer said last night that we cannot expect a concession on this, but I do hope the Government will consider it. I believe they do want to cheapen the transfer of land, and I am perfectly certain that this is a bad way of doing it.

The proposal of the hon. Gentleman, if carried, would halve the already existing charge on transfers of land. As the hon. Gentleman knows as well, if not better, than any Member in the House, the charge has existed in its present form and to its present extent for more than half a century—since 1850. I think it was imposed in the time of Sir Charles Wood, who was Chancellor of the Exchequer, and it has remained at that rate ever since that time. Though a great number of Ministers followed each other, and though great fluctuation in the price of land has occurred, no Government on either side has ever reduced it. I think it would be necessary for the hon. Member to make out a very much stronger case than he has done not to prevent the rising, but to diminish the duty to one-half. His main arguments were these, that you are raising the charge upon land by this Clause, but you are not raising the charge in respect of stocks and shares. That is true so far as this Clause is concerned, but it is not true in so far as the rest of the Stamp Clauses are concerned, because there the Stock Exchange transactions have a very considerable increase placed upon them. Therefore those who deal in stocks and securities have an increased charge placed upon them, just as those who deal in land have a somewhat larger charge placed on them. I think he has also omitted—quite unintentionally, I am sure—to point out to the Committee the relief that is proposed to be given by the Amendment, which will be accepted by my right hon. Friend, with regard to transfers under the value of £500.

I did mention that.

I do not think it was enforced, and that it is very important he will at once admit. He has entirely omitted to mention that there are very substantial concessions, not to those who pass land from hand to hand, but to those who hold land, made by the Bill by the alteration which has been promised in respect to Schedule A, and certainly by the relief which is given to local authorities for rating purposes by the transfer to them of half of the Land Duties we realise under this Bill. In addition to that there is the likelihood, which will eventually come to pass, of relief in respect to the charge for the aged poor. I think, having regard to those circumstances, that really no case has been made out for halving the duty, which baa been continued by every Government of whatever political complexion for more than half a century. In view of all those facts, the hon. Gentleman will see that it is impossible for the Government to accept the Amendment.

I understand my hon. Friend has moved this Amendment really more with a view to raising the general question than with the idea of any expectation of the Government accepting the proposal. I myself think perhaps it would be better to reserve any general remarks I have to make on this particular Clause until the question, "That the Clause stand part." I regard the reply to my hon. Friend as extremely inadequate, and I can only give the impression it made on me, and as having some little practical acquaintance with land, I am bound to say that all those benefits which we are to receive, with the exception of that as to Schedule A, are illusory. I cannot help again pointing out, and I do hope we shall not again have it repeated, how is it possible to claim at one and the same time that this amount which is going to be given to the local authorities out of the Motor Tax, which is to be solely devoted to new roads for motorists, how that at the same time is to benefit the taxpayer? [An HON. MEMBER: "The Land Taxes."] It is to be in respect of the share of the Land Taxes, but that is a very small matter, and I think it will take a long time to filter through to the owner of land. I note the admission of the right hon. Gentleman that the burden of the rates and taxes does ultimately fall on the owner. I take it that that must be implied, because unless the burden of the rates, to which this relief is to be given, does fall indirectly on the owner, there can be no possible connection between the two items. With regard to old age pensions, I think the right hon. Gentleman will admit that we have a right to ask that the benefit shall be actual before the return that he asks for is made operative. So far I have not become aware of any benefit gained by local rates through old age pensions. I do not think it is possible to prove financially that any such advantage does arise. Unemployment has increased, and is increasing throughout the country, and any advantage obtained through the operation of the Old Age Pensions Act is more than compensated for by that increase of unemployment, which throws a heavy burden on the ratepayers.