asked the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, if he can say for what reason the States of Jersey have put an embargo on potatoes from the United Kingdom; for how long will it continue; if there are any other countries who have done the same; and, if so, which?

The action taken by the States of Jersey is due to the existence of wart disease in this country. The prohibition is said to be provisional, but no indication is given as to when it will be withdrawn. The States of Guernsey have made similar regulations.

asked the hon. Member for South Somerset, as representing the President of the Board of Agriculture, if he can state how many vaccine farms there are in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland; if there is one, or more, in Scotland; and in what locality is each vaccine farm situated?

Perhaps I may be allowed to answer this question. So far as I am aware there are only two "vaccine farms" in England and Wales, one belonging to the Local Government Board at Hendon, and the other belonging to the Lister Institute at Elstree. I believe that there is one in Ireland belonging to the Irish Local Government Board, and that there is none in Scotland. So far as relates to the two last-mentioned countries, however, the matter is rather one for the Secretary for Scotland and the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant, respectively, than for me.

asked the hon. Member for South Somerset, if he will state the reason why the erection of the houses it is proposed to build in Park-street, Windsor, is not being proceeded with; and if he can state when it is proposed to commence building operations?

The plans are under consideration, and I am unable to say when building operations will be commenced.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if his attention has been called to the practice commonly in vogue on the Midland Railway of coupling two goods trains together irrespective of their length or the nature of the load; and whether, in view of the danger to life and limb connected with this practice, he will make representations to the company with a view to the discontinuance of the practice?

My attention has been called to this matter, and I am in communication with the railway company. I will inform the hon. Member of the result in due course.

asked the President of the Board of Education what is the total amount of the superannuation allowance and annuity on which Mr. Michael Enright, of All Souls Roman Catholic school, Liverpool, has been retired; and at what age such retirement took place; and after what number of years' service as a certificated head teacher in public elementary schools?

I must refer the hon. Member to the answer which I gave to the hon. Member for the Oswestry Division of Shropshire on 26th October last.

asked the Postmaster-General if he will consider the advisability of recommending that in future all applicants for the position of assistant postman or other temporary position shall be medically examined on appointment, so that the difficulty may be avoided, for those who are found medically unfit for established service after serving 12 months or more in unestablished positions, of finding work with other employers owing to their medical disqualification by the Post Office?

The question to which my hon. Friend refers has already been considered, and I have arranged that persons selected for employment as assistant postmen shall be medically examined at the time of selection. There does not appear to be any necessity to require all applicants for temporary employment to undergo a medical examination.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether the Estates Commissioners have taken all the circumstances of the case into consideration before lodging the writ of f1. fa. with the sub-sheriff in the matter of Daniel Curtin, estate of the assignees of D. F. Leahy, county Cork, S. 34956/9; are the Commissioners aware that, though Curtin signed the purchase agreement in June, 1907, it was conditional on his receiving a grant for stocking the holding; that, though the Reverend Father Dwyer, C.C., Freemount, applied several times to the Commissioners, the grant was not given to Curtin until May, 1909, and that he was therefore not in a position to work the holding to any advantage; and whether, having regard to all the facts of the case, the Commissioners will withdraw the writ and accept payment of interest on foot of his purchase undertaking from May, 1909, the date upon which the grant was given to him?

The Estates Commissioners inform me that the reply to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. Curtin had a second-term judicial rent fixed in January, 1904, in respect of a holding of 120 acres in county Cork, and such rent was confirmed on appeal. The Commissioners, after inspection, fixed the price of the holding at £1,150, which is only 20.1 years' purchase of this second-term rent, and Curtin signed an undertaking to purchase the holding from them at this price, and contracted to pay interest in lieu of rent at the usual rate of 3½ per cent. from 27th April, 1908, on which date the property was purchased by the Commissioners and vested in them by the land judge. Curtin owed 3½ years' rent on that date, which was forgiven, and he has not paid the Land Commission any interest in lieu of rent since that date. The Commissioners sanctioned in his case a free grant of £100 for the purchase of live stock and a loan of £100 for farm buildings, to be repaid as part of his purchase annuity, and when the buildings were completed the grant for stock was expended. The reply to the concluding paragraph of the question is in the negative. The Commissioners consider that Curtin, who has paid neither rent nor interest in lieu thereof since September, 1904, and whose rent is a second-term rent confirmed, on appeal, has been most considerately dealt with.