asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the concessions to on-licence holders in Ireland, he will consider the desirability of giving to on-licence holders in London conditions more favourable than those offered by the Finance Bill?

It is proposed to move Amendments to the First Schedule of the Bill, giving to the occupiers of licensed premises of over £500 a year annual value the option of being taxed at the rate of one-third of their compensation value, subject to a minimum. This provision, which will have no appreciable effect in Ireland, since the number of such licensed houses there is very small, is calculated to form a very substantial concession in the case of London.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that it is the practice in the Dublin sorting office to send out a number of service messages on Sunday morning summoning officers for duty that evening; whether he is aware that by this practice officers are made to perform duty every Sunday, though the duty chart provides that an officer shall have every alternate Sunday as a day of rest; will he see that the officers at Dublin have at least the rest provided for by the chart; and will he say how Dublin compares with large cross-Channel offices in the matter of Sunday duty?

The arrangement under which alternate Sunday relief is afforded to the officers of the Dublin sorting office is disturbed only when an American mail arrives on Sunday evening. On such occasions it is frequently necessary to summon men who were on duty the previous Sunday. I shall be glad to modify this arrangement if practicable. The incidence of Sunday duty at large offices depends entirely upon local circumstances, and no useful comparison can be made.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that the clerk employed at the Anglo and Commercial relays on night duty at Dublin (who is paid for by those companies) is frequently withdrawn from the relays to keep down delay on the Marconi and Post Office telegrams; whether such a proceeding is justifiable, seeing that the Anglo, Commercial, and Marconi are rival companies; will he see that an adequate staff is provided on night duty in order that the work can be disposed of in such a manner without making it appear that the Marconi Company is getting preferential treatment?

I have made inquiry into the matter. The staff arrangements for telegraph night duty in Dublin are not correctly described in the question, and there is no justification for the suggestion that preferential treatment is given to the work of one company to the detriment of the interests of others.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he will give a full list of smaller craft, scouts, torpedo destroyers, and so forth that are necessarily attached to the "Dreadnought" when it is in full commission, and state what was the capital cost of the "Dreadnought" and of all its attendant smaller craft; and what is the annual cost in maintenance, upkeep, and ammunition of the "Dreadnought," and of the scouts, torpedo destroyers, and so forth which are necessarily attached to it?

None of the vessels mentioned are necessarily attached to the "Dreadnought" when she is in full commission. The capital cost of the "Dreadnought," including guns and ordnance stores, is £1,968,083; the annual cost of maintenance and repairs is £52,500.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if the Commissioner to inquire into the recent disturbances in Liverpool has yet been appointed; and, if so, can he state on what date the inquiry will commence?

The Commissioner has not yet been appointed. I cannot make the appointment until I hear from the City Council that they are ready to make the arrangements for the inquiry. I hope the matter may be settled early next month.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he can state on what basis he now proposes to grant relief to ex-soldiers and other men in different branches of the service who have become charges on the Irish rates, both in the workhouse and out of it, after losing their health mostly on foreign service; whether he is aware that in ten recent applications made to him for relief in pensions or gratuities to such cases from county Long- every one of them was refused; and whether he can state if these cases came personally to his knowledge or were examined into by any competent authority at all?

The Army Pay Warrant provides for the grant of pensions to ex-soldiers who have lost their health through their military service, and I propose to adhere to this basis. The cases of other men—that is, civilians employed under the War Department—is governed by the various Superannuation Acts, and I have no power to supplement the gratuities or pensions awarded under those Acts. Applications for Army pensions are not arranged according to the county from which they come, and it is impossible, therefore, without prolonged search, to say whether ten recent applications from county Longford have been rejected. All such applications are examined by the Commissioners of Chelsea Hospital, who are charged under 7 George IV., cap. 16, with the examination of claims to pension, and empowered to fix the rate of pension, if any, to be paid.

asked the Secretary of State for War if his attention has been called to the recent medical examination of the 8th Hussars, leaving Colchester for India, during which 12 men were reported upon as having defective teeth, but that an expenditure of £3 per man would render them serviceable; whether, on permission being asked from the War Office for this expenditure, the War Office refused to provide the money, and insisted that the men must either pay the money themselves or else take their discharge; and whether 11 of these 12 highly-trained men, being unable to find the money, have in consequence left the Army?

written answer was in the same terms as one given orally in reply to a question by Mr. W. Thorne.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he can state when the recommendations made by the Forestry Commission respecting Ireland will be carried into effect; whether a large sum has been advanced to carry out reafforestation in England; and whether he will consider the possibility of appropriating the amount of quit and Crown rents collected in Ireland at once for this purpose?

As the result of the Report of the Departmental Committee on Forestry a sum of £6,000 has been provided in the Estimates for the current year, which have been laid before Parliament to enable the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction to purchase, by means of annuities under the Land Purchase Acts, suitable areas of woodland and of lands adapted for forestry comprised in estates which are being sold under those Acts. Under this arrangement the Department are in negotiation with the Estates Commissioners with a view to purchase in the more urgent cases. The Irish Office have no means of knowing what money, if any, has been provided for reafforestation in England. If the hon. Member wishes for information on the subject I would suggest that he should apply to the Minister concerned. As regards Crown and quit rents, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to his question on the same subject on 10th April, 1906, namely, that any question of planting in Ireland would have to be considered on its merits without regard to the Crown land revenues.

asked the Chief Secretary whether the Estates Commissioners have yet acquired the untenanted land on the estate of Mr. Abel Buckley, Galtee Castle, Mitchelstown, county Cork; and, if so, how soon may it be distributed?

The Estates Commissioners inform me that this estate, which is being sold as a direct sale under the Irish Land Act, 1903, cannot be dealt with by them for some time, having regard to the prior claims of other estates. When it is reached in order of priority, due inquiry will be made as to the untenanted land referred to in the question.

asked the Chief Secretary whether the Estates Commissioners, having declined to entertain the applications of James Butler and James Mulcahy for reinstatement to their old holdings on the Bevan estate, at South Camars, near Bruff, intend to provide them with an equivalent on the untenanted lands now in their hands, or, in lieu thereof, will the Estates Commissioners compensate those men in a manner proportionate to the loss they sustained through reason of their eviction?

As I have already informed the hon. Member, in reply to the questions asked by him on 21st and 29th July last, the Estates Commissioners have decided to take no action in either of these cases.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether any rules have yet been made under th Tuberculosis Prevention (Ireland) Act, passed last Session, with a view to the guidance of local authorities who wish to enforce this Act; and, if so, where may such rules be procured?

Under Part I. of the Tuberculosis (Ireland) Act, the Local Government Board have made (a) The Tuberculosis (Conditions of Notification) (Ireland) Order, 1909, and (b) The Tuberculosis Regulations (Ireland) Order, 1909. These Orders were issued in June last to all local authorities and medical officers in Ireland, together with a Memorandum explanatory of the objects and provisions of the Act. Copies of these documents have been furnished to any persons who have applied for them, and the Board have made arrangements for placing them on sale as Stationery Office publications.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that, in the case of Joseph and Bridget Mullooly, evicted tenants, of the parish of Rathcline, county Longford, who were refused relief under the Evicted Tenants Act because it was alleged that they held 100 acres of land already, there are six sons of Bridget Mullooly waiting for their portion of these 100 acres, which would leave them a comparatively small area each; and will he in such circumstances refer their case to the Estates Commissioners with a view to providing for some of them equivalent holdings elsewhere?

I have referred this question to the Estates Commissioners, who have nothing to add to the statement contained in my reply to the question on the same subject asked by the hon. Member on 22nd June, 1908. The Estates Commissioners were already aware that the evicted tenant had six sons.

asked the Chief Secretary whether any, and, if so, how many, applications have been received by the Estates Commissioners for allotments on the Clonfin (county Longford) Thompson estate; and whether in this case an inquiry will be held by an inspector before any scheme is devised?

The Estates Commissioners have received a number of applications, which will be inquired into when the property is being dealt with in order of priority under the Irish Land Act, 1903.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he will give the names of the various local registrars of title in Ireland and the salary or fees paid to each?

The following is a list of the local registrars of title in Ireland. The salaries assigned to the several posts will be found on page 332 of the Estimates for the current year which have been presented to Parliament:—

asked the Chief Secretary whether the Estates Commissioners will consider the necessity of serving notice on the owner to acquire compulsorily the holding of Mr. Patrick Myles on the estate of Mrs. Catherine Bourke, Kilworth, county Cork, in order to bring about the reinstatement of the evicted tenant, which otherwise will be delayed for years in consequence of the opposition of the landlord?

The Estates Commissioners will consider whether proceedings should be instituted in this case under the Evicted Tenants Act.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if it is the intention of the Secretary of State to invite any expression of opinion from Mr. Ali Imam, during his visit to this country, upon the reforms or any part of the reforms about to be set up in the system of government in India; and, if so, will he say if the Government regard Mr. Ali Imam as an accredited representative of the Mahomedan community in India?

As the Noble Lord is aware, the task of framing Regulations under the Indian Councils Act rests primarily with the Government of India. They are in close consultation with the representatives of the various interests concerned, and report to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State does not consider it proper or usual in such circumstances to make statements as to the per-State. The Secretary of State does not intend, to invite an expression of opinion.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what is the present position of the application of the Bradford Dyers' Association to register the letters B.D.A. as a cotton mark; and whether he will be able to give his decision before Parliament rises?

Communications are still proceeding between the Board of Trade, the Bradford Dyers' Association and the Manchester Chamber of Commerce. I am not at present able to forecast how soon this matter will be decided, but every effort will be made to expedite the decision.