asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the reason for the difference of 2s. 8d. between the drawback of duty of 4s. 2d. granted on the exportation of British-made cigars and the Import Duty of 7s charged on foreign imported cigars?

Of the Import Duties on cigars 1s. was described as a "luxury tax" and was imposed by the legislation of 1898 and 1904. For the rest, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which my right hon. Friend gave to him yesterday in this House.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if he will state what was the total capital of the Constabulary Force Fund, Benefit Branch, for the three years ended 31st March, 1891–2, 1901–2, and 1911–12, giving the total receipts and expenditure, and balance in hand, for these years, and distinguishing the amount of interest received from the Commissioners of National Debt; whether the balances in favour of the fund each year since the passing of the Constabulary Act of 1853 have been returned to the Imperial Treasury or otherwise disposed of; how many officers and men serving, and on pension, are at present compulsorily subscribing to this, fund; if bachelors and widowers without families are compulsorily lapsed without benefits on retiring from the service on pension; if pensioners on becoming widowers, and afterwards, whose children have been provided for, are also precluded from any benefits from the fund; will he give the number of such men, single and widowers, who are at present drawing their pensions and were lapsed as set forth; and whether any statement of account of this fund has ever been issued to the Royal Irish Constabulary?

The capital of the benefit branch of the Constabulary Force Fund at the dates mentioned was as follows:—

		Consols.		Local Loan Stock.
		£		£
At 31st March, 1892	…	155,293	…	154,000
At 31st March, 1902.	…	218,108	…	154,000
At 31st March, 1912.	…	221,488	…	154,000

asked the Chief Secretary the number of male teachers who have been promoted to first-of-second and first-of-first grades without the corresponding increase of salary since 1st April, 1912, and when these teachers may expect to receive the increase of salary?

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that twelve men teachers who qualified for promotion to the first division of the first grade, and seventy-two to the second division of the first grade from 1st April, 1912, have not yet been awarded the salaries attached to their grades. These teachers will receive the increases of salaries according as vacancies arise.

asked the number of male teachers promoted to the first-of-second and first-of-first grades, respectively, during each of the financial years 1910 and 1911, who have not yet received the grade salary to which such promotion entitles them in accordance with Rule 105a?

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that three men teachers who qualified for promotion to the first division of the first grade, and four to the second division of the first grade from 1st April, 1910, have not yet been awarded the salaries attached to those grades. Six men who qualified for promotion to the first division of the first grade and twenty-four to the second division of the first grade from 1st April, 1911, are also awating vacancies in these grades.

asked the Chief Secretary if it is the intention of the Commissioners of National Education to defray the expenses of lady teachers who employed substitutes at their own cost in accordance with Rule 92 (j); and if those teachers who were fined for the non-observance of the rule will be refunded the money deducted, seeing that the rule is now so amended as to apply only to those teachers appointed after 30th June, 1911?

The cases of both of these classes of teachers will be considered, but I see great difficulties in dealing with them.

asked the Chief Secretary whether he is aware that, owing to the abolition of the maternity rule, a number of teachers have been deprived of the usual allowance for substitutes; and whether, having regard to the fact that teachers had to pay substitutes up to the end of last year, he will recommend to the Commissioners of National Education that such teachers should be allowed the amounts thus paid?

It is a fact that, owing to the operation of Rule 92 (j) of the Commissioners of National Education, a number of teachers have been obliged to pay for substitutes. This rule has been withdrawn so far as the teachers who were recognised prior to the date of its issue were concerned, but I see considerable difficulties in adopting the suggestion that the amounts paid for substitutes while the rule was in operation should be refunded.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether, in valuations in Ireland under the Finance (1909–10) Act, 1910, in the case of land not sold under the Land Purchase Acts, the total values are issued at the same figure as the gross value; if so, under what Section is this done without first ascertaining by means of Form IV. that there are no fixed charges; and under what Section is the onus of showing the total value separately, and hence of ascertaining the fixed charges, if any, beforehand transferred from the Commissioners of Inland Revenue to the owner?

No provisional valuations have been made in Ireland until after the issue of Form IV. except in a few cases, where "occasions" have arisen and the necessary information as to fixed charges and other matters relevant to valuation has been supplied in connection with the particulars delivered under Section 4 of the Finance (1909–10) Act, 1910. The onus of showing the total value separately has not been transferred from the Commissioners of Inland Revenue to the owner.

asked whether the application of Mrs. Breen, Killorglin, an evicted tenant on the Lansdowne estate, Glencar, has been considered; and, if so, whether she will be granted an equivalent farm or compensation in lieu thereof?

The Estates Commissioners received an application from Mrs. Nora Breen for reinstatement in a holding on the estate of the Marquis of Lansdowne, county Kerry, formerly occupied by her husband, Maurice Breen, deceased, and now in the possession of another tenant, and, after inquiry and consideration, decided to take no action in the matter.

asked the Vice-President of the Department of Agriculture (Ireland) the approximate amount and value of butter made in Ireland during 1911; how much of this in amount and value was made in creameries; and can he state the approximate amount and value of butter exported from Ireland in 1911, and the amount and value of this export butter made in creameries?

It is estimated that the total quantity of butter made in Ireland in the year 1911 Was approximately 1,247,000 cwts., and that its value was £6,648,000. The quantity of butter exported from Ireland in that year was 688,362 cwts., valued at £3,671,264. No official information is available, nor can an estimate at present be made as to the total quantity or value of creamery butter made in or exported from Ireland.

asked the Chief Secretary if the Estates Commissioners propose to acquire the lands of Portaliffe and Disart, near Killeshandra; are they aware that these untenanted lands are advertised for sale on the 29th November instant; and will he direct the Estates Commissioners to at once negotiate in these or other suitable cases with a view to acquiring land for the county Cavan evicted tenants?

The Estates Commissioners understand that the lands which the owner proposes to sell on the 29th instant comprise some forty-four acres in the immediate vicinity of Killeshandra, and that they are being put up for sale at the request of some of his tenants in the town and neighbourhood who require accommodation land. The Commissioners have no power to interfere with the proposed sale. There are now only nine county Cavan evicted tenants whose applications have been provisionally noted by the Commissioners who are in negotiation for the purchase of other lands, in the allotment of which these applications will be noted.

asked the President of the Board of Education whether he is aware that at Fossdene Road, the Dreadnought, Calvert Road, Halstow Road, Church Street, Glenister Road, Old Woolwich Road, Creek Road, Royal Hill, and Invicta Road schools, in Greenwich, children are being refused admission; and whether the lack of school accommodation in this district will shortly be supplied by the London education authority?

There is no school named Church Street in Greenwich. Some children under five years old have been refused admission to some of the other schools referred to, but my information is that no children over five are out of school. The Board have recently approved proposals for enlarging two schools in Greenwich and for erecting one temporary building. Other enlargements are proposed under the London scheme for the reduction of classes.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that on 7th November a young soldier, never previously charged, was fined by Mr. Israel Symmons, the Greenwich stipendiary, 40s. for assault on the police and 5s. for being drunk; that in default of instant payment this soldier, aged twenty, was committed to Wandsworth prison for one month, and released from this prison by a visiting justice paying his fine on 11th November; and whether, as this young soldier had a fixed address, he proposes to call this stipendiary's attention to his recent circular letter to magistrates relative to the desirability of always granting time for the payment of a fine to a first offender whose whereabouts is a matter of common knowledge?

The prisoner was guilty of a serious assault on the police. He was found early in the morning drunk and using filthy language to a woman. He was asked by a police constable to go away, but refused to do so, and struck the constable. Another constable then came to the assistance of the first, and the prisoner deliberately kicked the second constable on the jaw. He was very violent on the way to the station, and the officer whom he had kicked was on the sick list for several days. It is usual in cases of serious assault on the police to pass a sentence of hard labour, and this prisoner was only given the option of a fine in view of his previous good character. He was offered time in which to pay but refused, saying he was on furlough and did not want to send to his regiment for money.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his attention has been called to the number of deaths from burning through the use of inflammable flannelette; and whether the number of deaths is now so great as to justify the appointment of a Select Committee to inquire into this large and increasing number of fatal accidents?

Yes, Sir. My attention has been called to this matter, but except as regards the year 1904, for which a special Return was obtained from coroners and published in the Judicial Statistics for that year, the only official statistics as to the number of deaths resulting from the ignition of flannelette clothes are those given in the annual Returns of the Registrar-General, which are based on coroners' certificates. From the Return for 1910 it appears that the number of deaths from burning clothes in that year was 657, and in sixty-seven cases it is stated that the clothes were made of flannelette. I would remind the hon. Member that the Coroners' Committee inquired into and reported upon this question a little over two years ago, and in the circumstances I do not think that the appointment of another Committee is called for.

asked the amount of fines to motorists during the past year; and whether the money so raised by each county was available locally or pooled in a central fund?

I have no figures on the subject. The fines imposed on motorists, like the fines imposed on other persons, are paid into the county or borough funds, unless the Act under which they are imposed specially provides for their being otherwise allocated. The Motor Car Acts make no such provision.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persons were convicted for criminal offences last year in England and Wales?

The number of persons convicted as shown in the Judicial Statistics is 538,750; 10,645 were convicted on indictment, the rest summarily. The number of individuals concerned is probably much smaller, as the same person may have been convicted several times, especially in the case of such offences as drunkenness, begging, and solicitation.

asked the Home Secretary whether any systematic arrangement has been made by the Metropolitan Police authorities to provide refreshment for constables who are called away from their ordinary duty for long hours of special duty under exceptional circumstances; whether any inquiry has been made into this question since the time of the Sidney Street incident, in which constables were alleged to have been on duty for fourteen hours continuously without food, when the Home Office in consequence promised to look into the whole question; whether he has received complaints on such State occasions as Royal funeral processions, Coronation pro- cessions, and, more recently, the Investiture at Carnarvon, as to the insufficiency of the accommodation and commissariat for the constables engaged; what steps have been taken to meet those complaints; whether at the time of the recent London dock strike some constables paraded at 7.30 a.m. and were on duty till midnight, no food arrangements being provided, and that in some cases the constables were on duty as long as eighteen hours without food; whether it has been brought to the notice of the Home Office that on the occasions of flying trials at Hendon special service is required from constables, in some cases causing them to be on duty from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. without any provision for food, except in the cases of a few men within the limits of the aviation ground; and whether the Home Office will call upon the Receiver of Metropolitan Police for a Report as to the possibility of an emergency commissariat to be established and with a view to its inception at the earliest possible date?

I would refer the hon. Member to the detailed reply which I gave to a question by the hon. and gallant Member for South St. Pan eras on the 19th of this month. I have already assured the House that the question of refreshment for police employed on special duty is invariably the subject of careful consideration, and that directions are given and arrangements made suitable to the occasion. The condition of things at Carnarvon was dealt with by the Commissioner of Police, who was on the spot, to the satisfaction of the men. Ample arrangements for food and refreshment for police on duty were made in connection with the London dock strike, and on no occasion were police on duty for eighteen hours, or indeed for any prolonged period, without food. At the first meetings at Hendon, owing to the unexpectedly large attendance of the public, the local refreshment arrangements were severely taxed, and the police detailed for duty were in consequence largely dependent on the food they had been warned to carry with them in accordance with custom. The difficulty has long since been overcome, and I am told that this duty is a very popular one, for which there are many volunteers.

asked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that dissatisfaction is being expressed with the recent appointment of a gentleman unacquainted with the Welsh language as Governor of Carmarthen prison; and whether he will further consider the desirability of transferring him with a view to the appointment of a Welsh-speaking official?

I understand that dissatisfaction has been expressed, but I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to a question asked me on Wednesday last. It is essential that there should be Welsh-speaking warders in Welsh prisons, but in the case of the Governor there is not the same necessity for knowledge of Welsh, and it would not be in the interest of the service to allow this qualification in all circumstances to override others.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India, if it is usual for the India Office to accept contracts for the purchase of silver for delivery in about two months' time, instead of on a specific date, as in the case of £70,000 bought of Messrs. Samuel Montagu and Company, in terms of their letter of 22nd March, 1912?

The Secretary of State has ascertained that similar contracts are accepted on his behalf by the Bank of England when employed by him to buy silver.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if he will give copies of the replies of Messrs. Samuel Montagu and Company to the letters written to them by the India Office on 3rd September and 11th September of this year, which have been omitted from the correspondence asked for on 22nd November?

No reply was received from Messrs. Samuel Montagu and Company to the letter sent to them by this office on the 3rd September, but they informed the Chairman of the Finance Committee orally that the instructions contained in it would receive attention. I am circulating with the Votes a copy of the firm's reply to the letter of the 11th September, which was omitted by an oversight from the correspondence previously circulated.Letter from Messrs. Samuel Montagu and Company to the India Office, dated 16th September, 1912.

asked at what date the following firms were placed on the India Office list of approved borrowers, namely, Messrs. A. Beiderman, Messrs. B. W. Blydenstein, Messrs. A. Keyser, and Messrs. Haarbleicher and Schumann?

The dates were as follows:

Messrs. A. Biederman	1903
Messrs. B. W. Blydenstein	1889
Messrs. A. Keyser and Co.	1900
Messrs. Haarbleicher and Schumann	1904

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if he will give a statement showing the total cash transactions during each of the last four years, with each of the private firms of borrowers on the approved list, including transactions on account of the gold standard reserve, where such transactions exceeded £1,000,000?

A statement giving particulars required is appended:—

Name.	New Loans	Repayments.
1908.	£	£
Alexanders and Co.	950,000	1,100,000
Biedermann and Co.	650,000	600,000
Brightwen and Co.	1,350,000	1,100,000
Gillett Bros. and Co.	550,000	600,000
Hohler and Co.	1,200,000	1,100,000
Hopkins and Giles	850,000	850,000
Lazard Bros. and Co.	700,000	750,000
Reeves, Whitburn and Co.	1,000,000	950,000
Samuel Montagu and Co.	2,150,000	1,950,000
Sheppards and Co.	1,300,000	1,150,000
Smith, St. Aubyn and Co.	800,000	800,000
Wedd, Jefferson and Co.	1,900,000	1,600,000
1909.
Alexanders and Co.	1,300,000	1,000,000
Brightwen and Co.	1,500,000	1,500,000
Bristowe and Head	650,000	500,000
Cunliffe H., Sons and Co.	850,000	750,000
Hohler and Co.	1,100,000	1,200,000

Name.	New Loans.	Repayments.
	£	£
Hopkins and Giles	1,550,000	1,200,000
Laurie, Milbank and Co.	650,000	500,000
Lazard Bros, and Co.	1,250,000	1,150,000
Mullens, Marshall and Co.	1,150,000	900,000
Reeves, Whitburn and Co.	850,000	800,000
Samuel Montagu and Co.	2,200,000	2,100,000
Sheppards and Co.	1,350,000	1,250,000
Smith, St. Aubyn and Co.	550,000	550,000
Wedd, Jefferson and Co.	1,550,000	1,400,000
1910.
Alexanders and Co.	1,000,000	1,000,000
Brightwen and Co.	1,500,000	1,350,000
Bristowe and Head	550,000	550,000
Cunliffe, R., Sons and Co.	1,400,000	1,200,000
Hohler and Co.	1,550,000	1,450,000
Hopkins and Giles	1,100,000	1,200,000
King and Foa	700,000	600,000
Lazard Bros, and Co.	850,000	750,000
Mullens, Marshall and Co.	2,900,000	3,150,000
Reeves, Whitburn and Co.	1,400,000	1,200,000
Samuel Montagu and Co.	1,800,000	1,550,000
Sheppards and Co.	1,050,000	1,050,000
Smith, St. Aubyn and Co.	750,000	550,000
Wedd, Jefferson and Co.	1,850,000	2,000,000
1911.
Alexanders and Co.	1,300,000	1,100,000
Brightwen and Co.	850,000	800,000
Bristowe and Head	750,000	800,000
Cunliffe, R., Sons and Co.	1,000,000	900,000
Hohler and Co.	1,200,000	850,000
Hopkins and Giles	1,400,000	1,300,000
Reeves, Whitburn and Co.	1,500,000	1,400,000
Samuel Montagu and Co.	1,900,000	1,950,000
Sheppards and Co.	900,000	750,000
Wedd, Jefferson and Co.	1,000,000	1,000,000

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if the Secretary of State has satisfied himself that, when the Government were buying silver from or through Messrs. Samuel Montagu and Co., instead of through the usual channels, in order to keep the fact that they were buying a secret, the bullion brokers did not actually report on several occasions that the Government were buying?

The Secretary of State cannot trace any such report until early in August last, when nearly £2,500,000 of silver had been bought for the Government of India, and was being shipped to India. The purchase was made through, not from, Messrs. Samuel Montagu and Co.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if he will lay upon the Table of the House a copy of the agreement between the India Office and the Bank of England entered into in 1906 regarding the future purchases of silver?

The agreement is contained in the following correspondence:—"Sir James Mackay to Governor of Bank of England, dated 29th Hatch, 1906."The Secretary of State accepts the arrangement which we came to yesterday regarding commission and brokerage on the purchase of silver. As it is usual in making arrangements of this kind to settle them for a definite term, he would propose that the period be made five or seven years, whichever of the two is more agreeable to you. I enclose a copy of the note agreed between us yesterday. It is understood that you are free to make your own arrangements with the brokers so far as their remuneration is concerned, provided the total charge paid by the Secretary of State does not exceed the quarter or eighth per cent. as the case may be.""[Enclosure.]"The inclusive charge for brokerage, commission, etc, in respect of silver purchased for the India Office to be as follows:—One-quarter per cent. on the first two millions purchased in any financial year (1st April to 31st March); one-eighth per cent. oil any further amount purchased. The payment made under this agreement to be divided between the Bank of England and the bullion brokers as may be arranged by them without the intervention of the India Office.""Governor of Bank of England to Sir James Mackay, dated 2nd April, 1906."I am much obliged for your note of the 29th ultimo, from which I was glad to learn that the Secretary of State had approved of the arrangement regarding the commission and brokerage for the purchase of silver for India at which you and I had arrived. I assume that you do not suggest that any change be made as regards the commission so far as the two orders not yet finally settled and the order now in course of completion are concerned, and I would therefore propose that the wording of the 'Note' should run as follows:—'One-quarter per cent. on the first two millions ordered to be purchased in any financial year (1st April to 31st March); one-eighth per cent. on any further I amount purchased.'""India Office to Governor of Bank of England, dated 12th April, 1906."I am directed to inform you that your correspondence with Sir James Mackay regarding the charge for brokerage and for the remuneration of the Bank of England in connection with the purchase of silver has been laid before the Secretary of State for India in Council, and he agrees to the following arrangement

for five

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the Egyptian Government contemplates extending the representative system and enlarging the General Assembly which in 1910 rejected the Suez Canal contract; and, if the answer be in the affirmative, whether the advisers of His Highness the Khedive are in favour of such action; and whether he will explain why the present occasion is taken for moving further in this direction?

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to his question of 21st November, in which I stated that no scheme of reform of the nature here indicated is before me at the present moment.

asked the President of the Local Government Board what counties and county boroughs have through their councils submitted schemes for dealing with tuberculosis which have been approved by the Local Government Board?

The following Councils of counties and county boroughs have submitted schemes the general lines of which the Board approve:—

COUNTY COUNCILS.
Cornwall	Leicestershire
Cumberland	Holland (Parts of)

Derbyshire	Kesteven (parts of)
Dorsetshire	Lindsey (parts of)
Durham	Middlesex
Essex	Somerset
Gloucestershire	Surrey
Kent	Worcestershire

Yorks (W. Riding).
COUNTY BOROUGH COUNCILS.
Birkenhead	Ipswich
Birmingham	St. Helens
Bradford	Sheffield
Brighton	Stockport
Chester	Stoke-on-Trent
Derby	Wallasey
Eastbourne	Worcester
Gloucester	York.

asked the President of the Local Government Board if his attention has been called to the fact that on the 12th January, 1911, the Hampstead Borough Council made, under the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act, 1909, a closing order against Mr. William Arlidge in respect of No. 83, Palmerston Road, Hampstead, N. W., and that arising thereout there have since been appeals and two local public inquiries; whether he is aware that a further appeal made in the matter, on the 28th May last, has not yet been dealt with by the Board; and whether, having regard to the delays and difficulties which the proceedings disclose, he will consider the advisability of amending the appeal provisions of the Act?

I am fully aware of the facts in the case referred to, but I do not think that they suggest the need for any serious amendment of the appeal provisions of the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act, 1909.

also asked the President of the Local Government Board whether his attention has been called to the fact that, on the 18th April last, the Divisional Court granted Mr. William Arlidge an order nisi directing the Local Government Board to show cause why an order made on the 26th February, 1912, in connection with the proceedings relating to the closing order in respect of No. 83, Palmerston Road, Hampstead, should not be quashed, on the ground that such order was made without giving the appellant an opportunity of being heard by the President or other authorised person who actually made the order, whether he is aware that, although the Motion was set down for hearing on the 23rd April last, it has not yet been heard, notwithstanding the fact that the case has in the interval been reached and passed over; and whether he can say who is responsible for the delay in preventing the rule nisi being brought on for argument?

I am aware that the Motion has not yet been heard, and I am anxious that it should be heard without any unnecessary delay. As the Noble Lord knows, the Law Officers have been very much pressed with other urgent work, but I hope that it will be found possible to get the case heard during the present sittings.

asked whether the Metropolitan Asylums Board have an institution at Littlehampton set apart entirely for tuberculosis cases and a portion, if not the whole, of another home at Margate used for a similar purpose?

The Metropolitan Asylums Hoard have an institution at Rustington, near Littlehampton, which provides accommodation for 120 early cases of pulmonary tuberculosis among pauper children. They have also an institution at Margate with accommodation for 130 pauper children, in which a certain number of surgical cases of tubercular bones and glands are received.

asked the President of the Local Government Board whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that at a meeting of the Royal Sanitary Institute, held at Doncaster on the 23rd November, the opinion was generally expressed, in view of the rapid development of the coalfield in that area, that the ordinary town-planning procedure would hardly meet the case, and that the needs of the district demand special intervention of the Government with some simpler and more expeditious method which will protect the area by a general allocation of open spaces, limit the number of houses per acre, and regulate the settlement of the main lines of traffic; and whether he intends to intervene with the object of making special provision for this rapidly developing area?

I have not seen a full report of the proceedings, but I gather from a brief report which I have seen that some such opinion as that quoted was expressed, but I cannot myself see any reason why the provisions of the Housing, Town Planning, etc., Act should not meet the needs of the particular case. It is very regrettable that so much time has already been lost, but I hope that the local authorities concerned are now becoming alive to the need for immediate action in the direction of the preparation of schemes. I am anxious to expedite matters as much as possible and will gladly consider any suggestions to this end that may be made.

asked information as to the extent and nature of the epidemic which occurred at the Foundling Hospital during last summer; whether such epidemic is now over; and what steps have been taken to prevent its recurrence?

The epidemic referred to was an outbreak of diphtheria of a mild type. The disease appeared in August last, and there have been in all seventy cases, all of which were removed to the isolation hospital. There has been no fresh case since 6th November, and all but nineteen of the cases have returned from the hospital. None of the cases have been fatal. The Governors of the hospital communicated at the beginning of the outbreak with the medical officer of health of St. Pancras, who is satisfied with the methods adopted for dealing with the outbreak.

asked the President of the Local Government Board whether the inspector of the Local Government Board who interviewed the Bedford Board of Guardians on the 23rd August last with regard to the loss of fees sustained by the vaccination officer in that union in consequence of the Vaccination Act and Order, 1907, was able to show to the members of that board that the officer's loss up to that date, not including the gratuity of £15 that he had received, amounted to £91; whether the Local Government Board have refused to sanction further gratuities which this board were willing to pay to their officer; whether the Local Government Board suggested to this board of guardians that they should pay to this officer a fixed salary of £100 a year in addition to a gratuity; if so, what was there in the inspector's report for him to come to the conclusion that no further action on his part was called for; whether he is aware that this officer's income in the year 1905 was £120 9s. and for the year 1911 was only £60 9s., and up to September last for the nine months amounted to only £44 10s. 6d.; whether, in consequence of this officer's loss of £140 up to Christmas, 1911, he is aware that this officer is in very serious difficulties; and, if so, whether he will give this case further consideration?

The facts are generally as stated in the question, but the officer's income in 1905 was above the normal, and his average annual receipts for the years 1903–7 were about £101. The guardians objected to pay the compensation suggested by the Board because they contended that the work of the office of vaccination officer did not occupy the officer's whole time, and I sent my inspector to ascertain whether this was so. He came to the conclusion that it was not necessary that the vaccination officer should give his whole time to the work of that office in this union.

also asked the President what is the result of his further inquiry into the case of the lodging of strike breakers on the premises of Henry Livesey and Sons, of Blackburn; whether the use of a factory as a dwelling-house constitutes the factory a new dwelling-house under Section 159 of the Public Health Act, 1875; whether such premises have been approved as a new dwelling-house by the local authority as conforming to their by-laws; and, if not, is it intended that the Local Government Board will exercise the powers that they have under Sections 293 and 299 of the Public Health Act, 1875, to inquire into this matter concerning the public health of the borough and to enforce the observance of by-laws?

As a result of my inquiries I am informed that the medical officer of health of the borough states that there is no overcrowding at the works referred to. The question of the application of the local by-laws to the premises is one for the town council, and I have no power to enforce the observance of the by-laws, even if they are applicable.

asked the President of the Local Government Board whether his at- tention has been called to the fact that, although the final Reports of the 1911 Census for Scotland and Ireland have both been published for some months, the final Report for London has not yet been issued; and can he give the date when the volume for London will be ready?

The plan of publishing Census results by counties in advance of the results for the country as a whole is not being followed as regards England and Wales on the present occasion. The method of publication is explained in the first volume of the final Report on the Census of England and Wales, containing population statistics of administrative areas, which was published in July last; two further volumes containing respectively population statistics for Poor Law and Registration Areas and Parliamentary Areas have since been issued, and a fourth volume (Ecclesiastical Areas) will be issued in a few days. It is not possible at present to state when the County Volumes, which will be collated from the several subject volumes, will be issued.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that the Midland Railway Company officials at Sheffield are organising and supporting a union known as the National Union of Free Workers, the ostensible object of which is to break up trade unionism; and further, having regard to the fact that officials of this company are openly informing the men that if they want promotion the only means open to them is by joining this organisation and leaving their trade union, and whether, seeing that this intimidation, if not discontinued, will lead to a definite stand being made by the organised railwaymen to protect themselves against such methods, he will take steps, in the interests of peace between the railwaymen and the company, to ensure that no preferential treatment of this character is allowed?

I have asked the railway company for their observations on my hon. Friend's question, and will communicate with him when I receive them.

asked the President of the Board of Agriculture, whether he is aware that quantities of grapes, tomatoes, and cucumbers from Belgium and the Netherlands are imported into this country and sold as English produce; and whether he will take some steps to check the growth of this fraud upon both the English producer and the English consumer.

The Board would be willing to take proceedings under the Merchandise Marks Acts in the circumstances to which the hon. Member refers if sufficient evidence to support a prosecution is forthcoming. Perhaps the hon. Member would supply me with any information on the subject which may be in his possession.

I—FISHERY GRUISERS.
Rank.	Salary.		Victualling (in kind).			Good Conduct Money.			Uniform.*			Total.
		£	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
Masters	Minimum	180	25	1	10	2	5	8	4	15	0	212	2	6
	Triennial increment	15										15	0	0
	Maximum	240										272	2	6
First mates	Minimum	108	25	1	10	2	5	8	4	5	0	139	12	6
	Triennial increment	12										12	0	0
	Maximum	132										163	12	8
Second mates	Minimum	78	25	1	10	2	5	8	4	0	0	109	7	6
	Triennial increment	9										9	0	0
	Maximum	96										127	7	6
First engineers	Minimum	132	25	1	10	2	5	8	4	0	0	163	7	6
	Triennial increment	12										12	0	0
	Maximum	180										211	7	6
Second engineers	Minimum	96	25	1	10	2	5	8	3	15	0	127	2	6
	Triennial increment	6										6	0	0
	Maximum	108										139	2	6
Boatswain	Minimum	57	25	1	10	2	5	8	2	15	0	87	2	6
	After 2 years	60										90	2	6
	After 3 years	63										93	2	6
Cooks and stewards	Minimum	54	25	1	10	2	5	8	3	5	0	84	12	6
	Annual increment	3										3	0	0
	Maximum	63										93	12	6
Leading A.B.'s		51	25	1	10	2	5	8	2	15	0	81	2	6
A.B.'s		48	25	1	10	2	5	8	2	15	0	78	2	6
Ordinary seamen		27	25	1	10	2	5	8	2	15	0	57	2	6
Boys	Minimum	18	25	1	10	2	5	8	2	15	0	48	2	6
	Annual increment	3										3	0	0
	Maximum	24										54	2	6
Leading fireman		57	25	1	10	2	5	8	—			84	2	6
Fireman (with 3 years' service)		54	25	1	10	2	5	8	—			81	2	6
Fireman (with less than 3 years' service)		51	25	1	10	2	5	8	—			78	2	6
* The value or uniforms varies according to current contract prices.

On the fishery cruiser "Vigilant" the first mate gets a salary of £120, and the second mate £66, rising after two years to £72. The chief engineer is rated and paid as shown above for second engineers, and the second engineer is paid £60, rising after two years to £66. The other ratings

asked the Secretary for Scotland what are the scales of pay, table-money, and other allowances, including particulars as to uniform, victualling, and superannuation, for masters, first and second mates, and first and second engineers, respectively, and also for boatswains, carpenters, stewards, cooks, seamen, and firemen, respectively, on vessels in the service of the Fishery Board of Scotland?

The scales of pay and other allowances for the officers and crews on vessels in the service of the Fishery Board for Scotland are as follows:on the vessel are paid on the scale shown above.The master of each fishery cruiser is allowed a sum of £12 per annum as entertainment money.There is no rating of carpenter on the Board's vessels.

asked the hon. Member for St. George's-in-the-East, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether, in consequence of the increase of motor traffic in Piccadilly since the advent of the Automobile Club and the increasing flow of motor traffic from St. James's Street and Piccadilly through the narrow passages at Marlborough Gate, he will consider the expediency of opening a level road from the Crimean Monument in Waterloo Place to the Mall by removing the staircase, and, if necessary, the Duke of York's Column some thirty or forty yards north of its present position?

The opening of the Mall through to Trafalgar Square has proved a considerable advantage to the traffic which formerly used Marlborough Gate and Pall Mall. It is considered that there are great objections to a new road from Waterloo Place to the Mall at the point suggested by the hon. Member as this would cross both Pall Mall and the Mall at right angles.

asked the Postmaster-General whether the masts proposed to be erected under the Marconi agreement at each of the wireless stations, and which are a speciality of the Marconi Company, both as regards design and mode of erection, come under the heading of Marconi patents, which under the definition clause mean all patents, inventions, processes, and improvements, whether or not patented or protected, to which the company are entitled or which may be used by them?

The masts are not the subject of patent but they form part of a Marconi installation, and no doubt make use of some of the inventions, processes, and improvements whether patented or not belonging to the Marconi Company, which are comprehensively described in the interpretation clause of the agreement as "Marconi Patents." The Government will be entitled under the agreement to the use of all such inventions, processes and improvements, but under Clause 16 (2) the royalty payable under the agreement is to cease if and whenever no use is made of "any valid and still unexpired patents owned exclusively by the Marconi Company." The meaning given to the words "Marconi Patents" in the interpretation clause does not apply to the words "valid and still unexpired patents" in Clause 16 (2), which, of course, refers only to actual patents.

asked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that in 1897 the Treasury entered into a contract with the London and North Western Railway Company, granting a subsidy of £5,150 to accelerate the Irish night mail trains by half an hour; is he aware that during the month of October the down night Irish mail train on no occasion reached Holyhead pier at the schedule time; that on one occasion it was over an hour late, and on two others nearly an hour, the average daily lateness being seventeen minutes, part of which was due to the detention of the train at Holyhead station on account of the Greenore traffic; and will he continue to allow them to receive the subsidy paid for the accelerated service whilst they thus ignore the terms upon which it was agreed to be granted?

The statement in the first part of the question correctly represents the fact. As regards the second, the train in question arrived to time on two occasions in October, and was but one minute late on another. As regards the third, two of the three delays quoted were due to fog, and the third to the late arrival of trains for which the Irish train has to wait in the interests of the mail service. The average daily late running was fifteen minutes, and the average daily detention at Holyhead station was one minute. As regard the fourth, I do not think that the company ignores its obligations. The representations which I made last month have resulted in a running to time this month on nine out of nineteen occasions, and an average daily late running of four minutes only.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he will consider the advisability of allowing free postage and telegrams to Members when on duty in the House of Commons from the House post office only?

As regards letters, I beg to refer the hon. Member to my reply to a similar question asked by the hon. Member for North Leitrim on 6th November, 1911. With regard to telegrams, the existing law contains no authority for permitting their transmission by Members of the House of Commons free of charge. I do not contemplate introducing legislation in the matter.

asked the Postmaster-General the reason for the recent shifting of the postal staff in the Western district from one post office to another; whether he is aware of the inconvenience caused to the staff by these changes; and whether it is proposed to apply this system of moving the staff to other Metropolitan districts?

I assume that the hon. Member refers to the recent exchange between the female counter clerks and telegraphists employed in the instrument room of the Western District Office and the male counter clerks and telegraphists at the Oxford Street branch office. That change was made in order to get rid of the necessity for changing staff at the Western District Office in the evening at the hour when women go off duty. As the two offices are but a few minutes' walk from each other, and each possesses good accommodation for the staff, I do not think that inconvenience has been caused. Similar changes have been made, and will be made elsewhere in London when they appear expedient; no general change is in contemplation.

asked the Postmaster-General whether the rate of remuneration for time-expired men of the Navy and Army who are allowed to enter the postal service is fixed at 14s. 6d. per week; and, if so, whether, having regard to the circumstances in which they enter the service, he will consider the propriety of fixing the I initial rate on a standard more nearly approaching to a living wage?

A man paid at 14s. 6d. a week would be doing only a part-time duty. For a full-time postman, the initial rate in the case of ex-soldiers and sailors is considerably higher. In I London it is 24s. 6d.; in Edinburgh, 23s. 6d. As the hon. Member is no doubt aware, the whole question of Post Office wages is now under the consideration of a Select Committee of this House.