asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he is in a position to make any statement with regard to the United States enactment that no tolls for the use of the Panana Canal shall be levied upon vessels engaged in the coastwise trade of the United States?

I cannot at present add to the answer given on this subject on the 10th of this month.

asked the right hon. Gentleman whether he has received any assurances from the Turkish Government on the continued opening of the Dardanelles to trade?

We are aware of the great injury that would be done to British shipping and commerce by the closing of the Straits, and we shall, as we have already done on a previous occasion this year, do all we can to secure that no impediments are placed in the way of the passage of innocent neutral trade, but before I could say definitely that there was no danger of the Straits being closed, it would be necessary to have an understanding with both belligerents.

Is the right hon. Gentleman now in communication with the Turkish Government on the subject?

I may point out to the hon. Member that it is not enough in a case of war, in a case of this kind, to communicate only with one of the belligerents. You must communicate with both. We have, as a matter of fact, been in communication with both belligerents. As the House will know, from what passed earlier in the year, it is very difficult to be quite certain of what will take place.

asked whether, in the event of a British ship being seized and condemned by a Prize Court of either Greece or Turkey, there will be any appeal to an impartial tribunal; and, if not, what steps the right hon. Gentleman proposes to take to secure such an appeal?

No tribunal exists to which appeals from any decision of the National Courts of the belligerents would lie. The establishment of an International Court of Appeal in Prize cases of the nature contemplated in the convention negotiated at the last Peace Conference at The Hague in 1907, is the only step that can be taken to secure such an appeal.

May I ask whether, seeing the extreme annoyance caused to British trade by the Prize Courts during the Russo-Japanese war, the right hon. Gentleman will not make some representations to Greece and Turkey as to the desirability of accepting a reference to The Hague Tribunal, before any captures take place?

I am afraid that the only remedy, as I have said, is the establishment of an International Court of Appeal. As my hon. Friend knows, we have been anxious to secure that, but until that is secured, I am afraid we cannot be certain of having any appeals.

Will the Naval Prize Bill be introduced this Session as promised?

I think the answer the Prime Minister gave was that we hope to introduce it next year.

asked the Prime Minister whether the attitude of His Majesty's Government in respect of the war in the Balkans is one of strict neutrality?

asked the right hon. Gentleman whether his attention has been called to a speech made by the Secretary to the Treasury in which he asked his hearers to sympathise with the Balkan States in having suffered for years through the murders and pillage of the Turks, and made other statements inconsistent with a profession of neutrality; and whether such statement was made with the knowledge or approval of the Government?

The answer to the first question is yes. This and the subsequent question, which stands in the name of the hon. Member for the Isle of Thanet Division (No. 48), were disposed of yesterday.

The question was put down before the answer was given yesterday.

I answered it in the affirmative.

Does the right hon. Gentleman consider it consistent with strict neutrality for the Chancellor of the Exchequer in a public speech to hope that as a result of the war the boundaries of freedom and good government would be extended?

Certainly. I understand my right hon. Friend to have expressed the hope that that would be the result whichever side was victorious.

Did the Chancellor of the Exchequer qualify his words by saying "whichever side was victorious"? If so, it is very unfortunate that he was not reported.

It was reported.

asked the right hon. Gentleman whether, under the terms of the Treaty of Ouchy, the Ægean Islands recently occupied by Italy are to be restored to Turkey; and, if so, whether he will use his influence in order to secure to those islands the right of self-government and to protect the inhabitants from the vengeance and reprisals with which they are reported to have been threatened?

I have not yet got the full official text of the Treaty, but I understand that the islands in question are to be in due course restored by Italy to Turkey, subject to certain guarantees as to their status, in which all the Powers are equally interested. There is no reason, so far as I am aware, to believe that the inhabitants of the islands are threatened with vengeance and reprisals.

asked whether the Russian Government consulted the British Government before dispatching the present Korostovetz Mission to Mongolia to dissuade the Mongols from their alliance to China; and whether a mission for that purpose is a breach of international law and of all the treaties made for the preservation of the integrity of China?

I am not aware that the object of the Russian Mission is what the hon. Member states. I have no reason to believe that it is intended to alter the status quo in Outer Mongolia.

asked why the statement cabled from Peking that the British Legation refused acceptance of the Crisp loan to China with the object of preventing a market quotation and damaging the interests of the bondholders remain uncontradicted; and, if that statement be true, in what respects the Crisp loan conditions fall short of the requirements of the British Government and of the secret conditions of the six-Power group?

The refusal of His Majesty's Minister at Peking to receive communication of the Crisp loan agreement simply indicated the inability of His Majesty's Government to assume any responsibility in connection with that transaction. The reasons were stated in a reply to the hon. and gallant Member for West Hampshire on the 9th instant, a somewhat lengthy reply which I will not occupy the time of the House by reading out again. It contains an answer to most of the hon. Gentleman's questions.

In the Papers to be laid on the Table, will the secret conditions referred to in the question be published?

There is a further question on that to-day. I can only refer to previous answers. The question of the proper time at which they will be published is a matter for the six-Power group. It will not be done in the Papers we are going to lay.

asked whether the Chinese Government terminated their negotiations with the six-Power group in July, 1912, and repeated their notice of termination in August; and, if so, will the right hon. Gentleman explain why in the present month China was not free to enter into negotiations with others because those with the six-Power group were still in progress?

As regards the first part of the question, I must refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply returned to the hon. Member for Thanet yesterday. The Chinese Government were applying to the six-Power group for further advances as late as 21st September, and, though the negotiations have been in abeyance since the rejection of the Chinese proposals by the agents of the group on the 22nd of that month, His Majesty's Government do not regard those negotiations as definitely abandoned.

asked whether the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank is reputed in China to be more than half controlled by German influence; whether it would follow that, although the money invested through the six-Power group might be largely British, that group, consisting of this bank, fifteen German banks, nine French banks, four American banks, eight Russo-Belgian banks, one Japanese bank, and no exclusively British bank, the control would be non-British; whether any foreign control required by the Crisp group would be British; and what grounds there are for supposing that the interests of British investors would be safer under the non-British control of the former group than under the British control of the latter?

I believe that the suggestion contained in the first part of the hon. Member's question is quite erroneous, and I have no information which would enable me to reply to the remainder of it.

asked the right hon. Gentleman whether he is aware of the dissatisfaction caused by the fact that the six-Power group, while seeking to prevent China from procuring a loan otherwise than through houses authorised by the respective Governments of the group, will not make public the political and other conditions sought to be imposed by the six-Power group upon China in making a loan; and whether he will take steps to obtain the assent of the Governments concerned to the publication of the political and other conditions sought to be imposed by the six-Power group in the recent negotiations for a loan to China?

There were no political conditions, and the publication of the financial conditions is a question for the groups to decide.

Is it in the public interest to withhold information of transactions which tend to create a monopoly and which undoubtedly will affect British interests and fetter the freedom of foreign Powers?

There were not political conditions. If it is assumed that there were political conditions and the question was put to me as to whether such-and-such conditions of a political nature were actually included, I would reply in the negative. As regards the publishing of the actual financial proposals made by the groups, that is a thing we can hardly press financial groups to do until the negotiations are definitely abandoned.

asked whether Andres O'Donnell, a former manager in the employ of the Peruvian Amazon Company, has been arrested in Barbadoes; and, if so, whether he will be handed over for trial to the Peruvian Government?

lie was arrested in Barbadoes in June last, but released by the Colonial Court on application for writ for habeas corpus on the 5th instant. His Majesty's Government have not yet received a full report of the proceedings.

asked the right hon. Gentleman if his attention has been called to the loss of British trade with Ispahan owing to the closing of the southern roads; what force remains at Ispahan under British officers, and what purpose it is serving there; and if he is able to hold out any expectation that facilities for British trade will be restored in the near future?

The answer to the first question is in the affirmative; the answer to the second is that there is the usual Consular escort, consisting of one Indian officer and three non-commissioned officers and seventeen sowars, at Ispahan for the protection of His Majesty's Consulate; the answer to the last question is that the Governor-General of Shiraz is taking fresh measures, under the direction of a Swedish gendarmerie officer, to restore order, establish gendarmerie posts, and suppress the extortionate payment exacted from users of the road by brigands along certain portions of the road between Shiraz and Bushire. I trust that these measures will lead to some improvement.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that in consequence of the present state of affairs Manchester merchants are suffering very great loss?

I am quite aware that the interference with trade has been serious, and I sympathise very much with the difficulties, but to go beyond the measures which are at present being taken by the Persian Government, and for us to attempt to take the matter into our own hands and send a force to protect the routes would be a very serious and costly remedy, and would, of course, involve some large questions which go beyond commercial considerations.

Did not the right hen. Gentleman promise earlier in the year that the question of the protection of the routes would receive his attention?

Yes, Sir. It does continue to receive attention, but the object of my answer is to point out that the conditions of the question are such that though it would be possible for us to stop interference with trade by taking matters into our own hands, that would be a remedy involving consequences far more serious, perhaps, than the interference with trade itself. Therefore all I can do immediately is to encourage and promote as much as possible those measures which are being taken by the Persian Government and the Swedish gendarmerie to remove the impediments to trade.

Is there any ground for the suggestion that a small force remains at Ispahan because it cannot safely get away?

That is not so. The extra force which was at Ispahan has been withdrawn already, and has gone to Teheran.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he is aware that Mr. W. Joyce, J.P., of county Gal-way, is at present severely boycotted; how long this boycotting has existed; and whether anyone has been prosecuted for it?

Mr. Joyce has been boycotted since November, 1907. On 3rd April, 1909, three men were bound to the peace for unlawful assembly in connection with a hostile demonstration towards Mr. Joyce's housekeeper. I am informed that the boycotting of this gentleman may be considered as practically at an end, and that he is now on friendly terms with his tenants, and can get as much local labour as he wants.

Has anyone been prosecuted in connection with the wholesale intimidation and boycotting of working men in Belfast?

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that Mr. W. Jones, holder of a farm at Killeen, Newtownforbes, county Longford, is at the present time severely boycotted; will he say how long has this boycotting continued; and whether anyone has been prosecuted in connection with this case?

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that William Jones, of Killeen, has been dead for eighteen months? How can the hon. and gallant Gentleman tell whether he is boycotted now or not?

My information differs from that of the hon. Member. Mr. Jones has been boycotted since April, 1909, but I understand from the police that the boycotting is about at an end. In December, 1910, several persons were tried in Dublin in connection with this matter, but the jury disagreed.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that on the night of the 31st August last eight cocks of hay, the property of M. Dunleavy, near Corofin, county Clare, were burned; and whether anyone has been made amenable?

In the early morning of the 31st August some hay, the property of Michael Dunleavy, near Corofin, county Clare, was burnt. The police are pursuing their inquiries, but the information which they have obtained would not as yet justify the institution of criminal proceedings against any person.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that shots were fired into a house in Ennistymon, county Clare, on the night of 14th September last; whether a police patrol was on the street at the time; and whether any arrests have been made or anyone made amenable?

The police inform me that no shots have been fired into any house in Ennistymon.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that on the night of 9th September last a number of shots were fired outside the house of Martin Harte, near Athenry, county Galway; and whether anyone has been made amenable?

Martin Harte reported to the police on the 10th September that two gun shots had been fired outside his house on the previous night, but that no harm had been done. The police have visited and interrogated all suspected persons, but so far without result.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he will give a Return of the total number of persons now receiving police protection, either constant or by patrols, with names and districts in which such persons reside; and a Return of the number of persons now boycotted in any way, and the total number of extra police now employed in Irish counties, showing the number by counties in each case?

I will circulate the answer with the Votes. [See Written, Answers this date.]

Will the protection of these people be handed over as a new duty to the new Irish Parliament?

The hon. and learned Member is well acquainted with the Bill.

asked the Chief Secretary if his attention has been called to the case of slashing and houghing cattle and horses in which damages were awarded at the Loughrea Quarter Sessions on Tuesday; and if he will state why the perpetrators of this outrage have not been arrested?

Early in the morning of the 10th June last two young horses and two heifers, the property of C. Heagney were maliciously injured. The case is one of much barbarity and the outcome of a fierce family dispute. Two arrests were made, one man was discharged for want of evidence, and informations were refused against the other. The owner of the animals was awarded £60 compensation.

Can the hon. and learned Gentleman tell us anything of the composition of the bench?

No; but if the hon. and learned Gentleman himself had been on the bench, and had listened to the evidence then presented, I feel satisfied that he would have been unable to come to any other conclusion.

Why do the police arrest persons under these conditions? Is it merely to bolster up the general inactivity of the Chief Secretary?

Not at all. The people were arrested on what seemed a primâ facie case, but, as not infrequently happens, the evidence actually tendered before the magistrates differed in some very material respects from the evidence on which the police relied. The whole matter was a family contest, and one very difficult to get at the bottom of.

asked whether the Clements estate, Maam, Connemara, which appears to have been valued last February, has yet been purchased by the Congested Districts Board; if not, whether the failure to purchase is due to the action of the landlord or to any action on the part of the tenants; and whether the Berridge estate, Connemara, is yet purchased?

The Congested Districts Board will shortly make an offer for the purchase of the Clements estate. Negotiations are still proceeding for the purchase of the Berridge state.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he can state the date upon which the Act passed in 1908 for the purpose of compulsorily acquiring by the Estates Commissioners the lands from which tenants had been evicted in Ireland became law, and also the date upon which the Court of Appeal held that the Act failed to convey the necessary power; whether he can state the date upon which the Act of 1909 became law, conferring upon the Congested Districts Board the power to compulsorily acquire estates in Ireland, such as the Clanricarde estate; what practical steps the Board has since taken towards putting the Act into force upon that estate; whether he is aware that although for many years it has not been more difficult for farmers to make money than this, the majority of the tenants, particularly in the poorer districts of the estate, have been served with processes for payment of unreduced rents; and whether he can hold out any hope of relief in the near future to those people?

The Evicted Tenants (Ireland) Act, 1908, became law on the 1st August of that year, and the decision of the Court of Appeal—the purport of which is not correctly stated in the question— was given in June, 1909. The Irish Land Act, 1909, became law on 3rd December of that year, and the provisions conferring compulsory powers on the Congested Districts Board came into force on 10th January, 1910. Negotiations were opened with Lord Clanricarde's agent for the purchase of the estate in March, 1910, and these negotiations finally fell through in 1911. A valuation and survey of the estate was then completed, and a first offer made by the Board in December, 1911, and a final offer in January, 1912. Writs for injunction to restrain the Congested Districts Board and the Estates Commissioners from acquiring the estate were served by the landlord, and no further action can be taken pending the result of these proceedings.

Can the right hon. Gentleman give an approximate date when he thinks this estate will be purchased? It is a very important question, because the evicted tenants who are expecting to be reinstated in the homes from which they were thrown out a quarter of a century ago have been practically on the roadside ever since.

I am afraid we are all in the grip of the Law Courts, and until the question pending between Lord Clanricarde and the Congested Districts Board and the Estates Commissioners has been determined by the Court, which I hope will be very soon, the matter cannot be further proceeded with.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether it is the intention of the Government to extend the Evicted Tenants Act in view of the fact that it expires at the end of this year?

No, Sir. The hon. Gentleman knows that it has not been included in the Expiring Laws Continuance Bill.

That was because of an undertaking that it should be done separately.

Is it not a fact that more than half a year was spent in negotiation with Lord Clanricarde in direct opposition to the advice of those who knew the circumstances and were acquainted with his method of dealing with his tenantry?

The Congested Districts Board have to proceed according to recognised methods. One of those methods is that they negotiate first.

asked whether the Dyas estate, situate at Spandaw, near Kells, county Meath, was offered for sale to the Estates Commissioners; and, if not, whether, having regard to the local unrest caused by some events in connection with the working of the property, the Commissioners will approach the owner, with the view of acquiring it to meet the urgent needs of small holders in its vicinity?

The Estates Commissioners had a preliminary inspection made of some 460 acres of untenanted land situated at Rathcore on this estate and communicated to the owner their preliminary estimate of the amount which they would be prepared to advance for the purchase of these lands if formal proceedings for their sale were instituted by the owner. The owner was not willing to sell at the estimated price and the Commissioners, after inquiry and consideration, decided to take no further action in the matter.

asked whether, notwithstanding the numerous applications from local and deserving occupiers of uneconomic holdings, the Footestown property, near Ardee, county Meath, is promised to a lady who is to be brought from a distance; and, if so, whether, having regard to the failure which has attended previous efforts to transplant people from a distance to the county of Meath amongst residents with whom they are alien in sentiment, notably the case of Cumming, who was brought to Nobber in opposition to the majority of the local population, the Commissioners will discontinue the practice?

The Estates Commissioners have agreed to allot portion of the lands to a tenant on the Crookenden and Casey Estate, county Cavan, who is surrendering a large holding on this estate which is urgently required for the relief of congestion in that district. The reply to the second part of the question is in the negative.

asked the cause? of the delay in the vesting orders being granted to the tenants on the Dennis estate of the townlands of Berose, Upper Lisaroush, and Rushfield, in the parish of Morraugh, in the West Riding, county Cork, the purchase agreements being lodged as far back as June, 1906?

This estate is the subject of proceedings for sale direct by the owner to the tenants under the Irish Land Act, 1903, and is not yet in priority for payment. Having regard to its position on the principal register of direct sales (all cash), and the claims of other estates, the Commissioners are not at present in a position to say when it will be reached.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he can say whether the Estates Commissioners have yet purchased the untenanted lands of Ballynorth, near Askeaton, in the county of Limerick, on the O'Grady property; and, if so, will he say when they will be apportioned among the deserving applicants in the district?

The owner has accepted the Estates Commissioners' estimated price for these lands, and has instituted formal proceedings for their sale to the Commissioners, who hope to be in a position to deal with them at an early date.

Is the right hon. Gentleman in a position to name the date?

I would rather not name a date.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he can Bay whether the Estates Commissioners have yet acquired any untenanted land for John Dorgan, of Castletown Conyers, Ballingarry, county Limerick, in lieu of the farm from which he was evicted; and whether, as he has been out of his holding for a considerable number of years, they will make provision for him without further delay?

The Estates Commissioners have noted Dorgan's name for consideration in the allotment of untenanted land acquired by them, but they are not yet in a position to provide him with a holding.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he is aware that the Estates Commissioners have had this matter before them for the last seven or eight years, and whether they will get land at an early date for this evicted tenant?

I am sure they will do their best.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he can state whether the Estates Commissioners have received a petition from the occupiers of houses in the village of Mount Collins, in the county of Limerick, who are tenants On the Mahony state there, with the object of having them included in the sale of the estate; and what action do they propose to take in the matter?

The Estates Commissioners cannot from the particulars given identify the petition referred to in the question.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he can say whether the Estates Commissioners have taken any steps recently to acquire the untenanted lands at Ballylin and Glenville, county Limerick, on the Massey estate; and, if so, whether there is any likelihood of a purchase of these lands in the near future to relieve the congestion in the district?

The Estates Commissioners have communicated to the owner their estimate of the price which they would be prepared to advance for these lands if formal proceedings for sale are instituted under the Land Purchase Acts. The owner, who is understood to be abroad, has not instituted such proceedings up to the present.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether as it is a considerable time since the tenants on the Mahony estate, at Mount Collins, Abbeyfeale, in the county of Limerick, signed their agreements to purchase, he can say what is the cause of the delay on the part of the Estates Commissioners in carrying out the report of their inspector with regard to the making of improvements on the estate, which has been scheduled as a congested one; and whether, as there is a scarcity of employment among the small farmers and labourers in the district at the present time, the Commissioners will consider the advisability of carrying out the suggested improvements without further delay?

The Estates Commissioners have considered the report of their inspector, but are not yet in a position to say whether his recommendations can be carried out.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say when the Estates Commissioners will carry out the Report of their inspector?

No, I really cannot. I am sure that they will act as quickly as they can.

asked the Chief Secretary whether, seeing that the parish priest and public men are agreed that the late Michael O'Sullivan, Dooks, county Kerry, was an evicted tenant whose representatives are entitled to consideration and, further, seeing that all the tenants on the estate who would benefit by the subdivision of his holding refuse to touch it, saying that Mr. O'Sullivan's representatives are entitled to it, he will say on what grounds the Estates Commissioners refuse to deal with this case,- and will he state whether a second inspector was sent because the first inspector had reported in favour of the reinstatement of Mr. O'Sullivan?

I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to his question on this subject on Tuesday last, to which I have nothing to add.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he has received any report from the constabulary with reference to the assault on Canon Atkinson whilst on his way to the post office at Limerick on the evening of Thursday, 17th October, shortly after six o'clock? whether he is aware that Canon Atkinson was then attacked with stones and filth, and also received several blows, one of which knocked him down; and whether any person or persons have been arrested in respect of this assault?

On the morning of the 11th October Canon Atkinson informed the county inspector that he had been attacked by the crowd when returning from the meeting held in the theatre on the previous evening and had to take refuge in the post office, but that he was not hurt. Proceedings are being taken in connection with this occurrence, and, as the matter is sub judice, I cannot make any further statement at present.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether his attention has been called to the fact that a large number of responsible persons in the city of Limerick have made a public statement to the effect that the whole disturbance was caused by the county inspector of police letting loose a body of horse police on a peaceable crowd?

Well, I do not believe it.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that the holder of licensed premises in Limerick, the windows of whose public bar were broken on the night of 12th October, on Monday, 14th October, placed a notice in his window to the effect that, in spite of his name, he was a Roman Catholic, was married to a Roman Catholic in a Roman Catholic church, and that his children were baptised Roman Catholic, and giving the name of his particular church, and that, by exhibiting this notice, he prevented further damage to his property; and whether he will state what protection is afforded to the occupiers of premises who have not this means of securing immunity from attacks on their property?

A notice, to the effect mentioned in the question was seen by the police in the window of a small unlicensed eating house in Limerick, in which one pane of glass had been broken on the night of the 10th instant. They are doing everything in their power to protect property in the city.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he will explain the cause of the dismissal of Mr. Mansfield, vice-president of the National Teachers' Organisation; and whether he will immediately appoint a Committee to inquire into all the circumstances surrounding this case?

asked the Chief Secretary whether he will explain the cause of the dismissal of Mr. Mansfield, vice-president of the National Teachers' Organisation, by the National Board of Education; and whether he will immediately appoint a Committee to inquire into all the circumstances surrounding this case?

I will answer these two questions together. I have asked the Commissioners of National Education for an explanation of the cause of the dismissal of Mr. Mansfield, but I have not yet had before me particulars of the language which he is said to have used. Until I get the information it is impossible for me to say whether anything further should be done in the case.

Has the right hon. Gentleman any control over the National Commissioners of Education?

I have no control, except that as the Parliamentary representative in this House I am bound to find out the facts and to inform hon. Members.

When does the right hon. Gentleman expect to get information from the Board?

I cannot say. I am in communication with them about the matter now.

May I ask whether it is a fact that Mr. Mansfield, who was at one time president of the National Teachers' Association, and is one of the best teachers in the country, has been dismissed by the Board because he refused' to withdraw a statement with regard to one of the inspectors, which statement is the absolute truth?

I cannot say as to the truth of the statement. He has been dismissed, I understand, in consequence of refusing to withdraw the statement. I believe it was in reference to an inspector. That is all I know at present.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he is not aware of the fact that this matter has aroused the greatest indignation in Ireland, not only amongst the national teachers, but in the county councils, district councils, and other public bodies; whether he will take immediate steps to satisfy himself as to the circumstances, and whether a genuine and open inquiry will be held? This is a serious matter.

I cannot take immediate steps for an open inquiry. In the first place I have to ascertain what has happened, and I am bound to form some judgment of my own on the subject. So far I have communicated with the National Commissioners over whom I have no control.

Can we not have this gentleman reinstated, unless there is something shown with respect to his conduct which would impair his efficiency as a teacher?

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland what practical knowledge and experience the medical inspectors of the Local Government Board of Ireland possess regarding the erection, equipping, and administration of sanatoria and tuberculosis dispensaries; in what recognised sanatoria and tuberculosis dispensaries in Great Britain or on the Continent did they acquire their experience; whether, in view of the fact that the Local Government Board require a six months' special course for medical superintendents of sanatoria and tuberculosis medical officers, he can state whether the medical inspectors of the Local Government Board have had a similar training; and, if not, whether the Local Government Board will afford their medical inspectors an early opportunity of obtaining such training?

The medical inspectors of the Local Government Board have been closely associated with the erection and administration of sanatoria established by public bodies in Ireland, such as Heatherside Sanatorium in county Cork, Crooksling Sanatorium to county Dublin, and the Abbey Sanatorium near Belfast. They have by personal inspection become familiar with the construction, arrangements, and methods of management adopted in other sanatoria and tuberculosis dispensaries in Ireland, as well as in similar institutions in England and Scotland. There is no necessity for the medical inspectors to undergo the special course of instruction referred to by the hon. Member seeing that they are not, in the discharge of their duties, called upon to engage in the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis.

Why do the Local Government Board require more efficiency in these superintendents than in their own inspectors?

It depends on the nature of the duty. It is one thing to consider the construction and arrangement of a sanatorium and another thing to deal with this disease.

Was this regulation made by the right hon. Gentleman himself or by the Vice-President of the Department?

It was made by my consent. It was submitted to me and, I believe, bears some traces of my pen upon it.

asked whether and to what extent applications have been made to the Irish Land Commission for an extension of time for the payment of annuities under the Land Purchase Acts in consequence of the losses entailed by the cattle embargo; and, having regard to the difficulties in the financial situation of the Irish farmers caused by this national calamity, whether His Majesty's advisers contemplate such arrangements as will allow of the situation being dealt with either by extension of time for payment of the accruing annuities or otherwise?

Several applications to the effect stated in the question have been received, and the Irish Land Commission have replied that they are bound to enforce the payment of land purchase annuities and have no power to grant an extension of time.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that there have been very serious losses incurred by Irish farmers owing to the embargo on Irish cattle, and that the payment of annuities becomes due in a few days to the Irish Land Commission, and will he undertake on behalf of the Government that the Land Commission will not institute legal proceedings against these farmers within a reasonable time, say two months after the normal course of trade has been re-established?

No. That would require legislation.

Will the right hon. Gentleman use his influence with the Irish landlords to bring the judicial and non-judicial rents now due to them to the same level as the annuities?

I am afraid I cannot use any influence.

In considering this matter will the right hon. Gentleman keep in mind the fact that people who have no money have no power to pay?

That fact has been brought home to me on many occasions.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that farmers in the South of Ireland for months past have been unable to sell their cattle, and consequently they cannot make money to pay their annuities; and would he ask the Commissioners to postpone their demands for the present half-year until Christmas?

No. If I were to do that, if it were legally possible, the only effect would be to throw it immediately on the country.

asked the Prime Minister, whether the recent out breaks of foot-and-mouth disease in Irish cattle in districts so distant from the only previous sources of infection in that country, and having regard to the fact that suspected cases were notified just as Ireland was entitled to be declared free from the disease, and taking into account the annual trade between Great Britain: and Ireland, the growth of half a century of commercial interchange to the advantage of both countries, and to the fact that it is now threatened with extinction, to the loss of Great Britain and the possible ruin to the industry in Ireland, he will appoint a Royal Commission to inquire into the probable origin of the first and succeeding outbreaks of the disease in Ireland, and report what course should be adopted in the interests of both countries?

I must refer the hon. Member to the answer which I gave to a similar question put by him yesterday.

I did not put a similar question to the Prime Minister yesterday.

The hon. Member asked yesterday whether I would: consider the advisability of appointing a non-party Committee, and to-day he-asked whether I will appoint a Royal Commission. The answer to both is in the negative.

asked the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture (Ireland) whether he has as yet arrived at any decision as to the conditions under which cattle from one non-infected area in Ireland will be permitted to be carried by raid to another non-infected area in cases where the railway line over which these cattle are carried passes through an area scheduled as infected; and, if so, will he outline the regulations governing such cases?

The Department's Orders provide that any restrictions imposed on movement of animals shall not apply to movements through a restricted area by railway from a place outside such area to another place outside the area without unnecessary delay and without the animals being untrucked within the area.

asked whether by the terms of the present restriction Order in connection with the foot-and-mouth outbreak at Mullingar, the town of Edgeworthstown, which is 19 miles by rail and 17 miles by road from Mullingar, will be deprived of its great annual fair of the 4th and 5th proximo; and whether he will have this portion resealed with a view to allowing these fairs to be held?

The town of Edgeworthstown is within the scheduled district. It is about sixteen miles in a direct line from Mullingar. The infected places, however, are not all confined to the limits of the latter town. In view of the serious situation as regards foot-and-mouth disease at Mullingar, and of the possibility of further outbreaks occurring, it would be premature to contract the boundaries of the district.

Having regard to the fact that this is outside the radius, can the right hon. Gentleman see his way to reconsider the matter?

No, Sir. The hon. Gentleman takes Mulingar as the centre, but the affected places are outside that centre.

asked whether, in drawing a circle around the infected source on the occasion of the recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease near Mullingar, the Vice-President confined it to a radius of fifteen miles, in accordance with the general practice in England; whether, had he confined the prohibited areas to a similar radius on the occasion of the first outbreak at Swords, he will state approximately what parts of county Meath the circumference would have touched; what number of animals would have been outside that area and transferable to market but within the larger area prohibited by the Order of his Department and not moveable; whether the port of Drogheda would have remained open; will he state the number of days that the animals were subject to the standstill Order between the small circular cordon and the larger irregular area; and whether, in future, having regard to the precautions which he took to inspire confidence in his administration in British agriculturists and to the failure which attended his efforts, he will devote himself to safeguarding the interests of Irish stock owners by not imposing restrictions more drastic than those imposed in England?

The scheduled district round Mullingar covers, roughly speaking, an area having a radius of about fifteen miles from the infected places. The boundary is not a geometrical circle. The area includes well-known rural districts and electoral divisions. The larger part of Meath would not lie within fifteen miles of the place of the first outbreak of the disease in Ireland, nor would Drogheda; but in view of the outbreaks that subsequently occurred, the whole county would have had to be scheduled in any case. The Department cannot supply the statistics as to animals asked for. Movements within or into the district (except into or within the small prohibited cordons) were, in suitable cases, allowed on licence of the Department soon after the declaration of the scheduled district, but no movement out of the district was permitted. The Department must hold themselves free to impose such restrictions as may, in their opinion, be best calculated to arrest the spread of the disease.

asked whether the right hon. Gentleman's attention has been drawn to the fact that the outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in Leinster occur near military barracks or camps, as in the case of the outbreak at Ballysax, in the county of Kildare, which is near the Ourragh Camp, also the two cases in Wicklow, the one at Logatrina was within one quarter of a mile of the railway station at Dunlavin, the other within half a mile of it; whether the first outbreak occurred while the stores and forage were being brought to the Glen of Imaal Camp from Dunlavin railway station for the autumn manœuvres; if the stores and fodder were drawn by horses belonging to farmers in the neighbourhood; whether, in consequence of this outbreak, the manœuvres were abandoned; and if, in consequence of the suspicion of the disease having been imported from these sources, he will have a rigid scrutiny over the disposal of forage and packing materials in the neighbourhood of barracks and camps in the future?

The Department have no reason to believe that there was any connection between military stores and forage and the outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in county Wicklow. The Department asked the military authorities not to bold manœuvres near the infected centres as a precautionary measure against the possible risk of spread of disease through movement of animals, and the military authorities acceded to this request. The military authorities have also consented at the request of the Department to destroy packing materials; and the Department are satisfied the military authorities are exercising every care in this respect.

As the military authorities are co-operating with the Government in this matter, may I ask what kind of inquiry the right hon. Gentleman is holding into the real cause of the outbreak in Ireland? Is it not the case that an outbreak of anthrax a year or two ago was absolutely proved to have come from compressed hay?

Yes, I think the hon. and learned Gentleman is right. In the case of every outbreak of disease inspectors are sent to find out all the circumstances attending it, and to ascertain everything that takes place in the district.

As this is likely to be a most serious matter in regard to the future, can the right hon. Gentleman let the House have an opportunity of seeing any documents, in the shape of a Blue Book containing the collected information, as to the cause of this outbreak of disease in Ireland?

The Department will have no objection to supply that.

Is it true that foreign fodder for the Army is imported?

Under the law foreign fodder cannot be imported at the present time, but fodder may be imported from the United States, Canada, Norway, and the Isle of Man.

Seeing that Ireland has been free from disease for thirty years, have the Department formed any opinion or made any inquiries as to whether this disease has been imported into Ireland from a foreign source?

All these questions about the origin of the disease are very difficult to answer. It is almost impossible, it is entirely impossible to prove it; and I ask the House to believe that whilst we are struggling with the disease and endeavouring to stamp it out, we are not losing any opportunity which is afforded to trace the course.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether the county Meath Coisde Ceanntair, through their secretary, communicated with the Board of National Education in Ireland, with the view of ascertaining certain facts regarding the particular number of schools in which Irish was being taught in one form or another; whether the information asked for was refused; whether further letters on the same subject reached the Commissioners to which no satisfactory reply was given; whether he will state upon what grounds the Commissioners refused the courtesy of a reply upon a purely educational question to a recognised educational body; whether he will state if any or the whole of the correspondence came before the Commissioners sitting as a body or any of their number entitled to act on their behalf by delegated authority; if so, will he state their names or whether the correspondence was dealt with by a permanent official with or without consultation with any one of the Commissioners; if so, what was the rank of the official who took upon himself the responsibility of ignoring the request of the Meath Coisde Ceanntair; and whether he will state generally what qualifications, if any, are possessed by the Commissioners for the position they hold?

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that on 15th July last they received a letter asking for information about instruction in Irish in National schools in county Meath. The information was not at the time available, as all the reports on the schools had not been received from the inspectors, and the writer was so informed. Further letters were received on the subject, which were duly acknowledged, and when the information became available it was supplied on the 22n.d instant. There does not appear to be any ground for the suggestions of want of courtesy or undue delay contained in the latter part of the question.

The information was not supplied until this question was put on the Paper.

The information was supplied as soon as it was available.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland when he proposes to have the promised amount of £40,000 per annum voted for secondary education in Ireland; and the conditions attaching to the grant?

I am not yet in a position to say what modifications, if any, may be necessary in the draft scheme for the distribution of this grant which has been published. Pending the settlement of the scheme the question of voting the money does not arise.

asked the First Lord of the Treasury, if his attention has been called to the fact that a person recently addressed a letter to the hon. Member for Mansfield in which he stated that he was empowered to make confidential inquiries about land on behalf of the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer; and if this person has any authority from him for making such a statement?

I have no knowledge of the communication referred to. I have given no such authority.

Will the right hon. Gentleman, to uphold the dignity of his office, take steps to have this person, who made so insolent and fraudulent a use of his name, prosecuted?

asked the Prime Minister whether he is aware that confusion as to the intentions of the Government in regard to future legislation and as to the attitude of the Government in domestic and foreign affairs has been occasioned through the expression by Ministers of views personal to themselves and not shared by the Government as a whole; whether the expression of personal views in such circumstances by Ministers is in accordance with constitutional precedent; and whether he will take steps to avoid similar confusion being created in the future?

I am not aware of the existence of any such confusion aft is suggested, and I see no necessity for taking any action in the matter.

Does the right hon. Gentleman recognise that it is in accordance with all constitutional practice-for all Members of the Government to speak with one voice?

I am afraid I must ask the Noble Lord to consult the pages of history, and he will find that that is not at all a proposition that can be sustained.

Is it not the practice of Ministers who express an opinion contrary to that of the Government of the day to resign?

The rule is perfectly clear. It is not competent for Members of the Government to express any opinion in the way of hostility to or criticism of the declared policy of the Government, but in regard to matters which do not form part of the declared policy of the Government it has always been the practice to allow large latitude or liberty, and I think possibly this has been taken advantage of more parsimoniously by the present Ministry than: by their predecessors.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he can now state the number of natives killed by the recent expedition in Northern Nigeria arising out of the murder of Mr. Campbell; and whether any judicial inquiry preceded the expedition or formed part of it?

The number of casualties among the natives, according to a report recently received, is estimated at 179. I may add that certain aspects of the matter have appeared to me to require further explanation, and I am again communicating with the Governor on the subject.

Can we take it from that answer that the right hon. Gentleman feels that an expedition involving the loss of 179 lives is not the best way of maintaining British justice in a case of this, kind?

I do not see for the moment how I can answer that. I am making further inquiry.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that Mr. Campbell, who was murdered, was universally respected by the natives and whites in that country?

I am fully aware of that.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the natives became frightened of the expedition when they saw a number of flags stuck in the ground all around, and that this was one of the causes of their distrust?

Was not the cause of the natives' discontent Single Tax?

asked the hon. Member for St. George's-in-the-East, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether he can give the House any information concerning the statue, supposed to be of a certain monarch, recently erected in Westminster Hall over the door leading to the Members' entrance?

The attention of the Commissioner of Works has been drawn to three stone statues of kings in the Tufton Street Museum, which had been removed from Westminster Hall. They are well-preserved works of the end of the 14th century, but in the absence of any symbols or accessories it is not possible to say what kings they represent. The First Commissioner now proposes to bring them back, and he has had one set up experimentally in Westminster Hall.

Why has such a lofty position been chosen, where this beautiful statue cannot be seen?

There is no doubt that the statue was intended for a position about twenty feet above the spectator. It was originally placed on the north wall, about that height.

Was it placed in an external and not an internal position?

No, Sir; from the report of an examination of the statue which has been made it appears that its position was probably internal.

asked what are the questions submitted to the Committee appointed to consider the proposed rebuilding of Regent Street and the Quadrant; and if it was made a condition of the rebuilding that the height of buildings to be erected shall not exceed that of the present structures, so that the sunshine and light and air of the street shall not be interfered with?

The Committee's terms of reference are as follows:—"To consider the design to be adopted for completing the rebuilding of the Quadrant, Regent Street, due regard being had to esthetic considerations, commercial requirements, and the interests of the land revenues of the Crown." The point raised in the last part of the question will no doubt be considered by the Committee.

Can anything be added to that in order to allay the anxiety which is shown in many quarters in reference to the height of the buildings and the permanent damage which might be caused by the proposed change?

I think it is fully covered in the terms of the reference.

asked the cost, separately, of the following Commissions, namely, Ancient Monuments (Scotland), Ancient Monuments (Wales and Momouthshire), and Ancient Monuments (England); and whether he can state when the various Commissions are likely to complete their labours?

The net expenditure of these Commissions to the 31st March last was:—

Has the right hon. Gentleman any power to limit the expenditure?

Will the right hon. Gentleman bear in mind that Ireland will gladly co-operate in this expense, which we think most desirable?

I understand that is so, and I am glad to hear it from the hon. and learned Gentleman.

asked what was the amount of salary and fees paid by the Treasury to the Attorney- and Solicitor-General respectively for the year 1911?

The salaries of the Attorney-General and the Solicitor-General are £7,000 and £6,000 a year respectively, and the fees paid to them for contentious business in the financial year ended 31st March, 1912, were approximately £4,700 and £2,900 respectively.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that there is the greatest dissatisfaction with the system of payment by salaries and fees; and will he induce the Government to fix an adequate salary and do away with fees?

Is it not the fact that the fees paid to those two Gentlemen are about half the amount they earned before they accepted the positions?

I believe that is so. There was a long controversy, and many systems have been tried, but I think this is found to be the most satisfactory.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the sum he has stated is economical, and that in the last year of the Boer war the Law Officers of the Crown divided a sum of £31,000 between them?

It is perfectly true the new system devised many years ago has resulted in a large reduction.

Are the fees settled by counsel themselves, and is this the only instance where the counsel settle their own fees?

The fees are settled by the Treasury. I know that to be the fact.