asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether an expedition to the South-East Sudan for the subjugation of the Annaks, Baris, and Nuers is projected?

I understand that the results of the expeditions undertaken early in this year by the Sudan Government are considered satisfactory, and that no further expeditions are now contemplated, unless fresh circumstances arise to make them necessary.

asked what is the position in Tibet as regards the practical maintenance of Chinese suzerainty?

The present position appears to be that the ex-Amban Len is on his way from Lhasa to India, and that the Chinese Government have appointed the general officer commanding their troops at Lhasa to be Amban in his place. The general, with a portion of his troops, has accordingly declined to leave Lhasa under the agreement recently concluded with the Tibetan Government whereby all Chinese officials and soldiers were to leave Tibet at once; and the Tibetans, regarding this refusal as a breach of the agreement, are holding him besieged in the Tengyeling Monastery.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if the Chinese Government has forwarded any reply to the recent British Memorandum regarding Tibet; and, if so, whether he will communicate its nature to the House?

The answer is in the negative.

asked whether an anti-opium law is to be passed at Peking imposing further restrictions upon the opium traffic; and, if so, what instructions have been given to the British Minister in this behalf?

His Majesty's Minister at Peking has reported the introduction of a Bill in the National Council, the object of which is to enforce China's domestic laws for the suppression of the cultivation and consumption of opium in China. The Bill has been referred back to Committee for revision. No instructions on the point appear for the moment to be necessary, but His Majesty's Minister has been requested to watch the matter.

May I ask whether the passing of this law will not further prejudice British merchants engaged in this lawful trade?

Have we not graciously permitted China to absolutely suppress the smoking of opium in that country by treaty on the 8th May last year?

In reply to the supplementary question of the hon. Gentleman opposite, I think it will be better to judge of the legislation when we see finally what it is. With regard to the supplementary question of my hon. Friend, I think the position between this country and China, as defined by treaty, is well known to the House.

Will the Foreign Office be able to intervene with any effect if we wait until the measure is passed before making any representations?

Are we not bound by treaty to permit China to absolutely prohibit the smoking of opium, which, of course, would destroy the whole trade?

I have said that His Majesty's Minister has been requested to watch the matter. It is well known that opinion has been cultivated to some considerable extent owing to the unsettled state of the country, and, of course, it is only carrying out what it has been always thought the Chinese Government would do, namely, that they would suppress the renewed cultivation as soon as they obtained power to do so.

asked whether the Chinese Government was consulted by the Governments concerned, or their financial representatives, as to the inclusion of the Kussian and Japanese groups in the international consortium; and whether the Chinese Government assented to this extension?

The answer is in the negative.

May I ask whether Japan or Russia obtains any political privileges by coming into the consortium?

Notice should be given of the question.

The purpose of the group being to lend money to China, and neither Russia nor Japan having any money to lend, may I ask—

The hon. Member must give notice.

asked whether the Chinese Government at any and what time after the Russian and Japanese groups entered the international consortium on 18th June, 1912, confirmed to the six-Power group thus constituted its then existing agreement with the four-Power group?

The answer is in the negative. The inclusion of the Russian and Japanese groups in the international consortium was a matter for the groups themselves, and was effected by them alone with the approval of their respective Governments. The new groups became ipso facto bound by the existing agreement, and, as was stated in reply to a question by the hon. Member on the 28th inst., its operation became retroactive. The Chinese Government, however, had on 17th May approved the proposed expansion of the old consortium and have never since questioned the validity of an extension of their agreement with it to the two additional groups.

asked whether the agreement of the 17th May, 1912, between the international group, then the four-Power group, and the Chinese Government was provisional or immediately binding?

The advance made on 17th May was a provisional advance, which was intended to be covered by a reorgani- sation loan, but the conditions as to supervision of expenditure applied to the money advanced, and became immediately binding.

May I ask whether the agreement is provisional in its terms in reference to advance?

I do not understand what is meant by a provisional agreement. There was an agreement made with regard to the conditions of expenditure of the advance. Those conditions became immediately operative; there was nothing provisional about them.

Was there any reservation contained in the agreement which would enable the position to be considered at a later time?

No; it was a perfectly definite agreement, and certain conditions as to the way the advance should be expended were agreed upon at that moment, and they came into operation at once.

Has the hon. Gentleman any objection to laying the agreement on the Table?

I will consult the Foreign Secretary.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that after the international group, then the four-Power group, had signed an agreement, on the 17th May, 1912, with the Chinese Government for an advance of £10,000,000, their representatives requested the Chinese Minister of Finance to spend no part of this advance on the defences of Mongolia and Manchuria; and will he say whether such a condition is financial or political?

So far as I am aware, no request of the kind indicated was made.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he is aware that the Eastern Bank, Limited, one of the banks in the Russian group of the six-Power group, is a British company; whether in February or March, 1912, that company approached the Foreign Office to ask for its support in regard to a loan to be concluded with the Chinese Government; whether the Foreign Office replied in terms suggesting that such support would be accorded; whether he is aware that the contract was concluded on 14th March, 1912, by the Eastern Bank and the Banque Sino-Belge, and that official recognition was then asked for; and whether official recognition was refused on the ground that the Foreign Office was committed to the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation?

The hon. Member will find replies to all parts of his question in the correspondence relating to the Chinese loan negotiations, which has just been published.

Will the hon. Gentleman inform the House what is the object of the Foreign Office in supervising these loans?

Will the hon. Gentleman say whether those conditions comprised any restriction on China in the administration of its own affairs?

They comprised conditions as to the expenditure of the money. If we did not make any conditions as to the expenditure of the money, we consider it might lead to bankruptcy in China, which is not desirable.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been drawn to the appointment of Mr. Stubbs, a junior first-class clerk in the Colonial Office, to the Colonial Secretaryship of Ceylon, on a salary of £2,000 a year; whether he is aware that Mr. Stubbs has little more than twelve years' service, and though he became a first-class clerk less than two years ago he is now ousting an officiating Colonial Secretary in Ceylon who has been in the Ceylon Civil Service since Mr. Stubbs was one year old; whether his attention has been called to the allegation that it pays men better now to join the Home Civil Service than either the Indian or Colonial Civil Service; whether, in order to maintain the high reputation hitherto enjoyed by the Colonial Civil Service, and to give confidence to those in it and to those now preparing to enter for it that their careers are not in future to be blasted by being superseded by men far their juniors serving in the Home Civil Service, he will lay down the rule that any transfer from the Home Service to the Colonial Service is to be balanced by a transfer back from the Colonial Service to the Home Service, and that he will thus transfer a man in the present case from the Colonial Service to fill a vacancy caused by Mr. Stubbs' promotion amongst the first-class clerks in the Colonial Office, and also take steps to see that the officiating Colonial Secretary of thirty-five years' service in Ceylon is compensated by promotion elsewhere for his supersession; and will he say whether Mr. Stubbs had any special claim to this promotion beyond the fact that he went to Hong Kong to inquire into the revision of Civil Service salaries, and has since helped to edit the Colonial Office List?

My selection for this very difficult and responsible post was made after a careful review of the merits of officers already in the Colonial Service, and I am unable to admit that the appointment involves injustice or hardship to any one whether within or without the Colony. The Colonial Secretaryship in Ceylon has not been filled by promotion in the Colony for fifty years; and while one of the higher local officials is, of course, generally appointed to act as Colonial Secretary in the absence of that officer, it is well known that such acting service gives no claim to the substantive post. Mr. Stubbs' special qualification for the office, is that for over twelve years he has served with marked ability in the department of the Colonial Office which deals with the affairs of Ceylon. As regards the third and fourth questions of the hon. and gallant Member, if he studies the rules governing admission to the Home Civil Service he will find that his suggestion is impracticable.

Are we to understand that there has been no promotion in the case of Ceylon except for ranks of the Home Civil Service and not for the Colonial Service to posts of that kind?

That is not what I said. What I said was that the Colonial Secretaryship of Ceylon has not been filled by promotion in the Colonies for fifty years.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that the senior officers of the Colonial Service are in absolute despair at the way they are being superseded?

I am aware that feeling is not one which is held in the Colonial Service.

May I ask whether the Royal Commission on Civil Service appointments may include the Colonial Service so that the very real apprehension of the Colonial Service on this question of promotion may be investigated, and if possible assuaged?

That is a question as to the terms of reference with which I am not familiar at the moment.

Will the right hon. Gentleman appoint a Commission to consider the matter under the presidency of the hon. Member for Leicester?

Will the right hon. Gentleman consider the interests of the people of Ceylon as the first matter?

The Colony is always the first consideration in appointments of the kind.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he has now been able to consider further the case of W. B. Jackson, late cook on the steamer "Ethiope," who on the 12th day of May last was sentenced by the Supreme Court of Jurisdiction of Southern Nigeria to four years' penal servitude for manslaughter of a Kroo boy; and whether, seeing that Jackson has always borne an exemplary character, he can see his way to review the sentence with a view to a remission of some portion of it?

asked whether he will have inquiries made into the case of W. B. Jackson, who on 12th May last was sentenced by the Supreme Court of Jurisdiction of Southern Nigeria to four years' penal servitude for the manslaughter of a Kroo boy on board the steampship "Ethiope," while lying at Lagos; whether he is aware that the act was unpremeditated, committed under provocation, and largely attributable to trying climatic conditions; and whether, seeing that Jackson has always borne an exemplary character, he will review the case with a view to the remission of some portion of the sentence, which is now being worked out in Maidstone Gaol?

I have received a report on the case referred to. The question of a possible remission of a part of the sentence is under consideration by the Governor.

Can the right hon. Gentleman give us any indication as to when he is likely to be in a position to inform the House as to his decision?

As soon as a decision has been arrived at I will communicate it to the House or give the hon. Member an opportunity of asking about it.

May I ask if the right hon. Gentleman has seen a testimonial given to this man by his late captain?

All those essential matters are under the consideration of the Governor.

asked whether Mr. Easmon, M.B., B.S. London, M.R.C.S. (England), L.R.C.P. (London), and until recently house surgeon to the Huntingdon County Hospital, has recently applied for an appointment in the Gold Coast medical service; and, if so, whether this gentleman's application has been rejected because he is a person of native African descent?

Dr. Easmon recently applied for an appointment in the West African Medical Staff. My hon. Friend is correctly informed as to the reason for his not being selected, as only candidates of European parentage are eligible under the Regulations.

asked whether Great Britain alone amongst the West African colonising Powers refuses to accept fully qualified medical men in Government service on the ground of colour?

I am not aware on what grounds my hon. Friend suggests that other West African colonising Powers do not refuse to appoint medical men of African descent; but he is under a misapprehension with regard to the British Colonial Administration in West Africa, two of which do employ medical men who are natives of the Coast.

If that is so, is there any reason why it should be so in the Gold Coast?

I think there are special circumstances which apply there.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies (24) whether he has had under review the action lately brought in Southern Nigeria by the Government of the Colony claiming £39,000 from a firm of traders for an infringement of the Customs Ordinance of 1908; whether he is aware that the Chief Justice of the Colony gave it in his judgment that the action ought never to have been brought, and gave judgment against the Government with costs; whether the Government of the Colony has been called on for an explanation of these circumstances; and what action will be taken to prevent such occurrences in future; (25) what were the total legal costs incurred by the Government of Southern Nigeria in connection with their action against John Holt and Company, Limited, in which a claim for over £39,000 was set up, but in which judgment was given against the Government; what official or officials were primarily responsible for this lawsuit being brought; whether they are still in office; whether they have been suitably warned against the dangers of reckless litigation; and (26) whether he has considered the dictum of the Chief Justice of Southern Nigeria in a recent case that the Customs Ordinance of 1908 had been a source of difficulty in the past and is likely to cause more difficulty in the future unless it is amended and made easier of comprehension; and whether any action is contemplated in order to relieve the traders of the Colony of the difficulties admitted to exist?

asked if he had given his consideration to the action recently brought by the Attorney-General against Messrs. Holt, merchants of West Africa and Liverpool, and the remarks of the Chief Justice thereon; and, if so, would he bring under the attention of the Governor the necessity of amending the Customs Tariff Ordinance of the Colony, so that such frivolous and vexatious actions will not be brought in the future?

asked whether his attention had been called to the remarks of the Chief Justice of Southern Nigeria upon the Customs Ordinance of 1908 and the injustice inflicted upon merchants by its provisions; and if there is any intention to amend it?

It is the fact that the Government of Southern Nigeria caused an action to be brought against Messrs. John Holt and Company, Limited, for infringement of the Customs Law of the Colony with intent to defraud, and that judgment was given by the Chief Justice for the defendants with costs to be taxed. He found that mistakes had been made by the defendants or their servants, but not with fraudulent intent. It is not the fact that the Chief Justice expressed the opinion that the action ought never to have been brought, but he did state that the Customs Ordinance had been a source of difficulty in the past, and was likely to cause more difficulty in the future, unless it was amended and made easier of comprehension. I have asked the Governor for a statement of the circumstances in which it was decided to take action in this case, and also of the costs incurred by the Government, and I will give careful consideration to this report when received. I am not prepared to admit that the action taken was frivolous or vexatious. I have also requested the Governor to inform me whether he considers that the Customs Ordinance, which was only passed after very careful consideration, requires amendment, and, if so, in what manner.

Will the right hon. Gentleman, when the reply is received from the Governor, consider whether it is within his province to convey some expression of regret to Messrs. Holt?

I will consider what action is proper to be taken when I receive the reply.

Is the right hon. Gentleman open to receive suggestions of traders with regard to any alterations he may think fit to make?

I am always open to suggestions.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether his attention has been called to the statement of Mr. Thurley, late Excise Commissioner of Ceylon, that the Commissioner's Report, Sessional Paper No. 1, of 1911, Ceylon, to which his name was attached, was not the Report he presented to the Ceylon Government; that his Report had never been published; that the Ceylon Excise Bill differed for the worse in several material respects from the Madras Excise Scheme on which it was supposed to be modelled; that the Ceylon Government, in issuing over 1,000 new toddy licences, was acting on imperfect information as to the existing consumption of toddy; and that he was not allowed to explain his views personally to the Governor, although he requested permission to do so, as he had been held publicly responsible for what he did not recommend; and whether, in view of these statements and the opposition in Ceylon from all classes of the community, he will suspend the operation of the Excise scheme and appoint a committee of inquiry to investigate the whole circumstances concerning the production and probable effects of this Excise Bill?

I have seen a report in a Ceylon paper of an alleged interview with Mr. Thurley, in which he is said to have made these statements, but in the absence of confirmation from Mr. Thurley I am not prepared to say that the report is accurate. I am not prepared to take the course suggested in the last part of my hon. Friend's question.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware that the two Excise Commissioners of Ceylon, Mr. Horsburgh on his return from circuit, August 29th, and Mr. Thurley on the eve of his recent return to Madras, stated that complete information as to the sale and consumption of arrack and toddy is even yet not in the hands of the Ceylon Government, but that they are still instituting inquiries; whether he is aware that Mr. Thurley stated that this necessary information, which took the Government three years to acquire in Madras, would not be available in Ceylon before the end of the year; and, if so, whether he will suspend the use of the new toddy licences until full inquiry has been made?

I am not aware of the facts stated in the first two parts of my hon. Friend's question. It was, however, always recognised that the actual requirements in regard to the number of toddy licences to be issued could only be finally ascertained by experience. Licences are only issued for a year, and any which experience shows to be unnecessary will, of course, be discontinued. It is impossible to suspend licences which have already been issued. I may add that arrangements are now being made for the establishment of local committees to advise as to the issue of licences in each district.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that the War Office authorities have given official sanction for Sunday rifle practice; if he has received any protest against the same from the Free Church Council; and if he intends taking any action in the matter?

Members of the Territorial Force are permitted to carry out rifle practice on Sundays under certain stringent restrictions which I have already explained to the House. Yesterday I had the advantage of a full discussion of this question with the members of deputations from the Wesleyan Methodist Church and the National Council of the Evangelical Free Churches.

Is not the practice of rifle shooting on Sundays condemned by those who prostitute the pulpit by preaching Radicalism?

That is a question the hon. Member can ask himself and give his own answer. It has nothing whatever to do with the question on the Paper.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India what steps the Government is taking to stamp out plague in India which, last year, caused 842,000 deaths, and which has, during the last six teen years, swept away 8,000,000 victims.

The Plague Investigation Commission is continuing its valuable labours, and in the light of its discoveries and of past experience, preventive and remedial measures are being steadily pursued. They include the destruction of rats, the provision of special hospitals and travelling dispensaries, preventive inoculation, the purification of plague-infected sites, and the general sanitary improvement of urban and rural areas. Plague mortality during the present year is much less than in the corresponding portion of 1911.

Is not the mortality from fever ten times that for plague?

asked what number of bales of cotton were grown in India in the last year for which the Government has a record; and what precentage of such cotton was used in India?

The Indian cotton crop of the year 1911–12 is estimated at about four million bales. The Indian consumption of raw cotton in mills and hand-looms, excluding imported cotton, is estimated to amount to rather less than two million bales.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether he is aware of the opinion of the cotton spinners of the world that an increase in the production of cotton is an absolute necessity; and has he any official information showing that India, with its fertile soil, suitable climate, and skilled agriculturists, offers facilities for an increase in the raw material?

It is generally allowed that India has natural facilities for an increased production of cotton. But as it has equal faciltiies for increased production of other staples, the extent to which the cotton-growing area can be extended is not capable of exact computation. The hon. Member is referred to the answer given to a somewhat similar question asked by him on the 5th August.

asked if, seeing that America is getting within measurable distance of the time when she will need all the cotton she can produce for her own mills and to clothe her own people, and seeing that we cannot expect during the present generation to see any really substantial extra contribution from the new cotton-growing districts of Africa towards meeting the present needs, and the annual increase of over two million spindles, the Government will consider the advisability of fostering the growth of cotton in India, which is capable of vastly increasing the amount of cotton output?

The Government of India are already engaged in fostering and improving cotton cultivation in India, and their efforts in this direction will not be relaxed. The hon. Member is probably aware that the Secretary of State received a deputation of cotton-spinners and manufacturers on this subject in July last. Their views and proposals are now receiving the careful attention of the Government of India.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that after the last full supply of American cotton steps were taken to restrict the growth so as to keep up the price?

That does not arise out of this question, but I have no doubt it has been considered.

Does it not prove that cotton is going?

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware of and has authorised the practice of the Income Tax Commissioners to require people to furnish information of their business transactions which the Commissioners are not authorised by law to demand, and, in the event of neglect to furnish such information, to assess such people at an excessive scale and to leave them to the remedy and expense of an appeal; and whether he will give instructions for its discontinuance?

I am not aware of the practice to which the hon. Member refers, but if he will give me particulars of an actual case, I shall have inquiry made into the matter. I may state that on an appeal the Commissioners for general purposes of the Income Tax have power to require from the appellant a schedule containing such particulars as they shall demand.

asked by what authority, if any, the Income Tax Commissioners now refuse to allow the deduction from the profits of trading concerns of the fees and expenses paid in procuring grants of letters patent; whether, until the present year, such fees and expenses have not been regarded as proper trading expenses; and whether the Income Tax Commissioners have any authority to surcharge in respect of deductions made and allowed in previous years' accounts?

The fees and expenses referred to are not admissible deductions under the Income Tax Acts, and it has been the practice for many years past to refuse to allow them. Where there has been an undercharge in any assessment, there is power to make an additional assessment within the limit of time prescribed in the Income Tax Acts.

asked what is the estimated expenditure on Scottish services for the year 1912–13, corresponding to the estimated expenditure on Irish services for the same year given in Appendix (C) of Cd. 6154?

I have had an estimate framed of the anticipated expenditure on Scottish services in the year 1912–13 on the same basis as the estimate of Irish expenditure referred to by my hon. Friend. The total is £9,425,500.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of his opinion that, under Section 25 (4) (b) of the Finance (1909–10) Act, 1910, Government valuers in arriving at the site value of agricultural land are precluded from making allowance for improvements which only enhance the value of the land for agricultural purposes, he will introduce legislation at an early date to deal with this state of affairs?

It is not my intention to introduce legislation to enable Government valuers to make in the original valuation the allowance referred to by the hon. Member, as the present effect of such allowance would be prejudicially to affect the taxpayer in the matter of Increment Value Duty and to duplicate a deduction already made in calculating Undeveloped Land Duty.

Is any Increment Duty payable on this land when it becomes building land?

When it becomes building land, of course it is.

When it becomes building land, will the owner be entitled to make the deductions then?

We had a lengthy discussion on this subject in the House; the hon. Gentleman spoke for about an hour, and my right hon. Friend replied to him.

I have never yet received a reply.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether in view of the returns from the two duties, Increment Value Duty and Undeveloped Land Duty, for the purposes of which a scheme of land valuation was set up by the Finance (1909–10) Act, 1910, and in view of the cost to the State and owners of land of such valuation, he will introduce legislation providing for the discontinuance of this system of valuation?

The answer is in the negative.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will include in the financial provisions of the Inebriates Bill a Clause to impose upon the Treasury the payment of con- tributions for persons detained in reformatories, to meet the cost incurred upon local authorities by the new compulsory provisions to largely increase the number of persons to be sent to the inebriate institutions?

If the hon. Member will look at Clause 32 of the Inebriates Bill, he will see that provision is made for the Treasury to contribute towards the expenses of persons committed to certified inebriate reformatories. The Treasury will make a Grant—as under the existing law—in respect of each person committed by the Courts. I must, however, guard myself from accepting the suggestion that the Bill will largely increase the number in detention. Some of its provisions will have an opposite effect.

Is it not left entirely to the discretion of the Treasury? It is not compulsory.

I think the ordinary practice will be followed under this Bill as under similar Bills.

asked the President of the Board of Agriculture the amount of common, waste, and moorland inclosed under Acts of Parliament from 1800 down to the present time in the counties of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire; and would he give the date of the passing of each Act, the acreage, the parish in which the land was situated, the names of the families benefited by such inclosures, and the number of acres allotted in each case?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the general answer which I gave yesterday to three questions on this subject addressed to me by the hon. Member for the Louth Division. According to the Return made in 1843 (H.C. 435), eighty-four Acts authorising inclosures in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire were passed from 1802 to 1841, but eight of these do not state the acreage dealt with, and in other cases the acreage stated may have been subsequently altered by the awards. Two similar Acts were passed in 1843–5, and under the Inclosure Act, 1845, seventeen Provisional Orders were made. It is possible to obtain the particulars desired in respect of inclosures made since 1845, but only at the cost of much laborious research, and I am doubtful whether such an incomplete Return would serve the purpose which my hon. Friend has in view.

asked the President of the Board of Agriculture whether he can now state if he will create a separate area for South Wales in reference to the distribution of the development Grant?

The arrangements to be made with regard to the expenditure of the Grant for farm institutes in Wales, which is the Grant to which I assume the hon. Member to refer, are still under consideration.

asked which port the thirty-four sheep from Ireland were landed at in England which were found suffering from sheep-scab; is it known from what part of Ireland they came from; where were these sheep slaughtered; has the ship which brought them been disinfected; and had these sheep passed through any examination in Ireland?

All the sheep in question were landed at Birkenhead, and were slaughtered there at the wharf. All vessels conveying animals from Ireland are required to be cleansed and disinfected. The enforcement of this requirement rests with the local authority. The Board have communicated to the Irish Department the names and addresses of the consignors of the sheep with a view to inquiry being made as to the parts of Ireland from which they came. The last part of the question should be addressed to my right hon. Friend the Vice-President of the Irish Department.

Was any official notification left with the sheep, seeing they were diseased?

I am not quite sure as to a formal notification; I should have to have notice of that. We understood that these animals had passed an inspection in Ireland.

asked the hon. Member for St. George's-in-the-East, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether he has received com- plaints of the ventilation of the Strangers' Smoking Room; and whether the First Commissioner will make an alteration in the present form of ventilation in that room?

No complaints of the ventilation of the Strangers' Smoking Room have been received in recent years, and the First Commissioner does not contemplate any alteration of the present system.

Is it a fact that workmen have been engaged during the last few days in that room making some alterations in respect to the current of air now coming from under the seats?

I am not aware that anything has been done.

Will the hon. Gentleman make inquiries?

Certainly.

asked the Home Secretary whether he will have inquiries made into the case of John Carless, who, on Monday, 30th September, was convicted and sentenced to one month's imprisonment for an assault on the police while in discharge of their duty; whether he is aware that the alleged assault took place when Carless was acting under great excitement, having been engaged, at considerable danger to himself, in rescuing horses from a fire; and whether he will review the case, with a view to favourably considering the remission of the sentence?

I have made inquiry into the facts of this case and regret that I do not feel justified in recommending any reduction of the sentence passed on the offender.

asked the Home Secretary whether the work discharged by the Manchester Ship Canal police is not as arduous and important as that discharged by members of a borough police force; and whether, assuming there are members of the Manchester Ship Canal police force duly qualified on the ground of long and meritorious service, he will take the claims of such members into consideration with a view to their receiving the Coronation medal or any similar distinctions awarded in the future?

As I explained to the hon. Member a week ago, the medal was intended only for the public police forces of the country, namely, the Metropolitan, county, and borough police. I do not doubt that many members of the Manchester Ship Canal police and many other persons in the private employment of railway or canal companies have performed long and meritorious service and discharged duties which are both arduous and important; but they do not come within the class for whom His Majesty instituted the medal.

Would the right hon. Gentleman give me an answer to the last few lines of my question: Whether the matter will be taken into consideration in relation to similar distinctions in the future?

Oh, certainly. In any similar distinctions that may be created hereafter those mentioned will certainly be taken into consideration.

In the case of a body of police not on the same footing as the Manchester Dock police, would they receive the decoration?

I must have notice of that question.

asked the Home Secretary what has been the cost, including the salaries, of the recruiting staff of the Metropolitan Police during the recent visit to Scotland; and how many recruits were then obtained?

Fifty-eight recruits were obtained at a cost of £150, exclusive of the pay of the permanent recruiting staff.

asked the Home Secretary the number of police who have voluntarily resigned from the Metropolitan Police force during each of the years 1909, 1910, and 1911, and how many have resigned voluntarily during 1912?

The numbers are as follows:—

asked the Home Secretary if he can say what is the reason for the recent police order offering 5s. gratuity or commission to pensioned police officers for each recruit obtained by them and accepted for the Metropolitan police; whether there is a scarcity of suitable recruits; and, if so, can he assign any reason for such scarcity?

No difficulty is experienced in keeping the force up to strength; but an abnormal number of recruits are required at present for the augmentation to give the force one day's rest in seven, necessitating a total recruitment of some 1,600 men per annum, and therefore special measures have to be taken.

If there is a scarcity of recruits, will the right hon. Gentleman not consider the question of taking on a few extra soldiers?

My answer indicates that there is no scarcity of recruits.

How near is the right hon. Gentleman to giving this one day's rest in seven to all the men?

I should have to look up the figures; perhaps the hon. Member would give notice of the question.

asked the Home Secretary if he is aware that the Local Government Records and Museums Committee of the London County Council recommended that the accommodation which the standing joint committee deter mine to be necessary for London Quarter essions be provided on the site belonging to the council at Newington, subject to his approval, and that this recommenddation was agreed to by the council on 2nd July, 1912; can he say whether the qualification in the recommendation requiring his approval was based on a wrong interpretation of his powers and is unnecessary; has any application been made to him in pursuance of the adoption of the recommendation by the council, and what action, if any, has he taken or does he propose to take in the matter; and will he withhold his approval, if not already given, on the ground that his sanction is not required for locating the proposed new Sessions House at Newington?

I have been asked if, I will be prepared to approve a scheme for holding Sessions at Clerkenwell while a new Sessions House is being built at Newington, and I have replied in the affirmative. I shall also have to approve a scheme for the holding of the Sessions at Newington when the new Sessions House is complete. In this sense, and in this sense only, the decision of the London County Council with regard to the matter is subject to my approval.

Do I understand that they are going to build before they have obtained the approval of the right hon. Gentleman?

No, Sir. If the hon. Member reads my answer he will see that I have given him a complete reply to his question.

asked the Home Secretary if he has received a letter from Mr. F. E. Green, solicitor for George Runnacles, in connection with an appeal case which came before the Essex Michaelmas Quarter Sessions at Grays on Friday, 25th October, 1912, and if he intends taking any action in the matter?

The case is under my consideration, and I will communicate with my hon Friend as soon as I have completed my inquiries.

asked the Home Secretary where Miss Helen Craggs is imprisoned; whether she has adopted the hunger strike; and whether she is being forcibly fed?

This prisoner was in Holloway Prison. She refused to take her food and had to be fed artificially. As her general health is weak, and as serious consequences might ensue, she is being discharged to day.

asked the Home Secretary whether he has knowledge of a meeting in Trafalgar Square, on the 13th October, at which allegations were made as to abuses and injustices in the administration of the Metropolitan Police; if any action is contemplated in respect of these public allegations, or is it intended to allow them to pass unchallenged; if the meeting at which they were made was held by permission of the Commissioner of Police; if permission has been applied for to hold another similar meeting on the 10th November; and will such permission be given?

I have received a copy of resolutions stated to have been passed at the meeting referred to. In view of the obvious falsehood of the allegations made at the meeting, and of the antecedents of the person by whom they were made, I do not consider any action to be called for in respect of them. The meeting was held after due notice had been given in accordance with the Regulations; and, if due notice is given of the meeting proposed for 10th November, and no prior application for the use of the Square has been received, the meeting will no doubt take place.

asked the Home Secretary whether, in view of the Criminal Law Amendment Rill, he will in form the House why certain European countries, which are well known to be interested in the subject, were not represented at the Congress which signed the International Convention of Paris, 1910; whether they were invited to send representatives; and, if so, did they refuse, and on what grounds?

I do not know to what countries the hon. Member refers. The invitations were issued by the French Government, and if there were any refusals I am not aware of the grounds for refusal.

Will the right hon. Gentleman accept a list?

I shall be much obliged to the hon. Member.

asked the Home Secretary when the Regulations as to winding engine-men's eight hours' shifts, under the Coal Mines Act, 1911, will be issued as finally adjusted?

As proposals for modification of the draft Regulations have been received both from the owners and from the men, the matter will have to be referred to one of the Referees under the Act, and I am not in a position therefore at present to say when they will be finally settled.

asked the Home Secretary if his attention has been called to eight motor omnibus drivers being fined at the Stratford Police Court for excessive speed driving; if he is aware that the bench were of opinion that the company should provide their men with some means of knowing the pace at which they were driving, and that they also suggested the desirability of having speedometers fitted; and if he intends taking any action in the matter?

My attention was not drawn specially to these particular cases or to the remarks of the magistrates, but I stated recently that a large number of motor omnibus drivers have been prosecuted this year by the police for exceeding the speed limit and other offences connected with driving. As regards speedometers, my right hon. Friend the President of the Local Government Board said, in answer to a question earlier in the Session, that he did not find that a sufficiently reliable instrument had been devised to justify his making the use of it compulsory on motor vehicles generally. In the case of motor omnibuses there are special difficulties in the way of this proposal which prevent its adoption.

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that if he was to forbid the use of hooters on these omnibuses that would materially reduce the speed of driving through London?

Yes, Sir, but I am afraid it would have another effect as well —increase of accidents.

Could not these omnibuses be so geared that, they could not exceed a certain speed?

Yes, that also has been considered, but it has not been found practicable so far.

Does the right hon. Gentleman think that any good is likely to arise by merely prosecuting the drivers? Does he not think that what is really wanted is some drastic step taken against the directors of the company?

Is it not the case that in the opinion of the police the majority of accidents in connection with omnibuses arise when the speed is less than ten miles an hour?

No, Sir, I am not prepared to say that. Certainly it is true that the majority of accidents appear to occur when the omnibuses are not going exceptionally fast, but I should be sorry to limit myself to the exact statement made by the hon. Member opposite. With regard to the hon. Member for Bedford, I understand him to suggest that the directors of the company should be proceeded against for an offence which is not an offence against the law.

Make it one.

That means legislation.

asked in what respects the powers of the police for regulating motor omnibus traffic are deficient; whether he intends to ask for further powers; and, if so, what legislation is required?

It would not be convenient to make a statement on this subject within the limits of a reply to a question. If I come to the conclusion that the police ought to be entrusted with greater powers, I shall not hesitate to ask Parliament to grant them as soon as time can be found.

Would the right hon. Gentleman not think it advisable to appoint a Select Committee?

No, Sir. I will, of course, consider the suggestion of my hon. Friend, but I would remind him that a Select Committee usually takes a certain amount of time.

As the right hon. Gentleman has already consulted with representatives of the omnibus companies, will he now consult with the local authorities, who have to maintain the roads within their districts?

Yes, we are in constant communication with the local authorities.

asked what number of acres of land have been acquired under the Small Holdings Act; how many applications for land have been received; how many men have been provided with small holdings; in which counties; and how much land in each such county?

Up to the end of last week the Board had received schemes providing for the voluntary acquisition of 141,667 acres, and, in addition, Orders had been made for the compulsory acquisition of another 16,151 acres, making a total of 157,818 acres. The latest available information as to the other matters to which the hon. Member refers is contained in the Board's Annual Report for the year 1911, of which I shall be glad to send him a copy.

asked the President of the Board of Agriculture whether he will keep the special facilities of Heysham Harbour before him when arranging for the opening of further English ports to Irish cattle?

The answer is in the affirmative. One of the officers of the Board has visited Heysham with a view to ascertain whether accommodation for the reception of Irish cattle could be provided there, and communications are passing between the Board and the Midland Railway Company. I hope that it may be possible for the necessary arrangements to be made very shortly.

asked the amount at the end of June last of the fund out of which owners of animals in Ireland slaughtered by order of the Agricultural Department are paid; whether the fund is a growing one; by what means an abnormal draw upon it is met; and from what source the fund is subsequently replenished?

The balance on 30th June last to credit of Cattle Pleuro-Pneumonia Account of General Cattle Diseases Fund, which account is supplied by moneys voted by Parliament and from which compensation is payable for animals slaughtered by order of the Department, was £4,428. The amount to credit of the General Account of the General Cattle Diseases Fund, which can also be drawn upon to defray this expenditure if the moneys provided by Parliament are insufficient, was £11,713 on 30th June. The fund is not a growing one. A Supplementary Estimate will be presented at the proper time for the purpose of obtaining funds from Parliament to meet the exceptional expenditure on account of foot-and-mouth disease.

Will the right hon. Gentleman say how soon after the slaughter of the beasts their owners receive any payment?

I had no notice of that question, but I know that £16,000 has already been paid.

asked whether the Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis of London has issued an Order to the effect that palmists and other practitioners of psychic arts within the area of his jurisdiction must remove all words such as palmist, clairvoyant, or astrologer from their door-plates, window-signs, and other public advertisements; and whether he will state under what Act such action has been taken?

The police notified to palmists, clairvoyants, astrologers, and similar persons that any advertisement by them that they were carrying on their calling would be held to bring them within the purview of Section 4 of the Vagrancy Act, 1824, for the purpose of proceedings.

asked what grounds were given by the stipendiary magistrate at Pontypridd in dismissing the case of the Glamorganshire police against the Radical club at Blaenllechan, Rhondda Valley; and whether he has power to order an inquiry into the whole facts of the case or to reverse the decision of the stipendiary?

I understand that the Court over which the stipendiary magistrate presided dismissed the application because they were unanimously of opinion that the prosecution had failed to establish any one of the alleged grounds for striking the club off the register. I have no power to take any steps in the matter.

asked whether Mr. Stanhope Bedding, the chemist's assistant who rendered such plucky service in assisting to capture the man Titus, who perpetrated the murders at the Horseshoe Hotel, Tottenham Court Road, received injuries which have precluded him following his occupation since, and that in consequence Mr. Bedding is now out of employment; and if, in these circumstances, some compensation will be made to him?

I have received a report from the Commissioner of Police as to the circumstances of this case, and I will inform the hon. Member as soon as a decision can be arrived at.

asked whether long-barrelled pistols, with cartridges of great projectile force, are being manufactured in Birmingham and recommended by public advertisement as evading the legal restrictions of the Pistols Act, because they differ from the legal definition of a pistol contained in that Act; whether he is aware that two children in a Durham village have been shot, at about 140 yards distance, by one of these long-barrelled pistols; whether his attention has been called to the fact that a youth of seventeen years of age is now in custody, charged with manslaughter, by reason of the use of one of these weapons; and what steps can be taken to protect the public against this evasion of the law?

I am well aware of this defect in the Pistols Act, and I have received reports of the case referred to. The only remedy is an amendment of the law.

Would the right hon. Gentleman make inquiries to see whether a Bill to increase the powers of (he Homo Office could not be brought before this House as a non-contentious matter?