asked the Secretary to the Treasury if he is now in a position to state how the expenses of insurance committees are to be paid in the cases where no levy will meet the requirements of the Sub-section?

I have nothing to add at present to the previous answers which I have given to this question.

asked the Postmaster-General whether any scale of payments to Post Office officials for their duties under the National Insurance Act of 1911 has been arranged, and, in particular, what annual amount is it proposed to pay for such duties to the postmasters of Irvinestown, Kesh, and Bellek, county Fermanagh, and Crossmolina and Belmullet, county Mayo, respectively?

In the case of offices staffed by persons in the direct employment of the Post Office additional work in connection with National Insurance business is met where necessary by the employment of additional staff. As regards scale payment sub-offices, I beg to refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a similar question by the hon. Member for North Derry on the 25th November last. It has not yet been possible to fix a rate of payment for the work of stocking and selling insurance stamps.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether a trade union will be able to pay the full unemployed benefit under Part II. of the National Insurance Act to a member who is in arrears to the union sufficient to prevent the member from having any claim to his trade union unemployed pay; and will the trade union have the right to reclaim from the State Unemployment Fund the full sum which the member would be entitled to receive from such fund had he not been a member of such trade union?

I presume that my hon. Friend refers to the case of a trade union which has made an arrangement under Section 105 of the National Insurance Act. There is nothing in the National Insurance Act to prevent such a trade union from paying to a member whose union contributions are in arrears an amount equal to any unemployment benefit to which he would have been entitled from the State had no such arrangement been made. If the rules of the trade union do not admit of this being done, it is open to the union to take steps to amend the rules. A trade union would be able to recover from the Unemployment Fund the full amount so paid provided that the total amount of the refund is not more than three-fourths of the aggregate amount of unemployment benefit which it has paid to its members compulsorily insured under Part II. of the Act.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any arrangements have yet been made for the inspection of drugs under the National Insurance Act; if so, how many inspectors have been appointed, and at what salaries, and whether those appointed are fully qualified chemists?

No, Sir. No such appointments have been made.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland what steps have been taken to reinstate Mrs. Julia Dunleavy in her lands at Kilderry, county Kerry, Godfrey estate; and whether, seeing that the present occupier of the lands is prepared to surrender them, steps will be taken to negotiate with him for that purpose?

No steps have been taken by the Estates Commissioners in this case. No application has been lodged with the Estates Commissioners, and not having been lodged within the period prescribed by the Evicted Tenants Act the case does not come within the provisions of that Act.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland what progress the Congested Districts Board have made towards acquiring the estate of Colonel Ormsby (late Marian Ormsby), in the parish of Kilfian, county Mayo?

The Congested Districts Board have made an offer for the purchase of this property which has not yet been accepted.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether there is any precedent for the appointment of an officer on the retired list as divisional officer of Coastguard; whether he is aware that such an appointment is in contravention of Article 6, Coastguard Instructions, 1911; whether, failing the supply of officers under Clause 1 of this Article who are required for other services, due consideration is given to the claims of chief officers under Clause 2 of the Article; and whether the Admiralty will consider the expediency of selecting Coastguard officers for these appointments in greater numbers than hitherto, giving them the rank of lieutenant, as in all other grades of His Majesty's naval service, and utilising the saving thus effected to increase the pensions of such officers?

No precedent can be traced for the appointment of an officer on the retired list as divisional officer of Coastguard beyond one such appointment just made. The appointment of a retired officer is, however, not a contravention of Article 6, Coastguard Instructions, 1911. The answer to the third part of the question is in the affirmative. With reference to the fourth part, while it is sometimes necessary to appoint a chief officer as acting divisional officer until a lieutenant may be available, it is not considered desirable to extend permanently the number of divisional chief officers' appointments.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty if he is aware that boys in the training establishment for the lower deck of the Navy are not supplied with overcoats such as are supplied to men and boys in the sister service and to boys in training establishments for the higher naval ratings; is he aware that, during the recent inclement weather during the Christmas holidays, boys were to be seen in the streets insufficientiv clad; and will he take the matter into his favourable consideration, with a view to the provision of proper apparel to guard against the elements?

Overcoats are included in the "optional" kits of the various naval ratings, and supplies are taken up on repayment. There are no gratuitous issues of overcoats. Boys in the training establishments are given two jerseys, two pairs of woollen drawers, and a woollen comforter on entry, and these have hitherto been considered to afford ample protection. No representation to the contrary has been made to the Admiralty. Boy artificers do not receive these articles of warm clothing, and if they wear overcoats (as is usual with the Class III. uniform) they take them up from the paymaster's stores on repayment.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty how many heavy armoured ships are being built in England for foreign countries, and by what firms?

supplied the following particulars:—

Country for whom Building.			Name of Ship.			Class.		Firm.
Japan	…	…	"Kongo"	…	…	Battle cruiser	…	Vickers
Chile	…	…	"Almirante Latorre"	…	…	Battleship	…	Armstrong
Chile	…	…	"Almirante Cochrane"	…	…	Battleship	…	Armstrong
Brazil	…	…	"Rio de Janeiro"	…	…	Battleship	…	Armstrong
Turkey	…	…	"Mahomed Reshad V."	…	…	Battleship	…	Vickers

Information has not been received that the "Almirante Cochrane" has been actually laid down, but material has been provided.

asked the Home Secretary if he will state in detail the methods of valuation by which it has been estimated that the life interests of the beneficiaries of the Church of England in Wales are the equivalent of £62,000 a year in perpetuity?

As I informed the hon. Member for East Nottingham on the 19th December, the calculation was made by taking the average age of incumbents in six counties (three rural and three industrial). The value of the life interests was then calculated on the basis of the expectation of life at that age and a rate of interest at 3 per cent. This explanation was given in reply to a question by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for the Hallam Division of Sheffield on 6th May.

asked the Prime Minister whether, on the demise of Queen Victoria, Section 51 of the Representation of the People Act, 1867, prescribing the duration of Parliament, was held to apply to Ireland as being part of the electoral law of the United Kingdom; whether Section 9 of the same Act, prescribing the use of the limited vote in three-Member Parliamentary constituencies, may similarly be held to apply to Ireland as being part of the electoral law of the United Kingdom; whether, as the method of voting to be used in the three, four, and five-Member Parliamentary constituencies set up by Clauses 9 and 13 of the Government of Ireland Bill is not set forth in any part of the Bill, he will, in order to avoid any possible ambiguity or doubt as to the construction or application of the existing electoral law of the United Kingdom, move Amendments on the Report stage clearly prescribing the method of voting to be used in these constituencies; and, if not,whether he will state for the information of the House what Statute of Statutes prescribe the method of voting to be used at the first elections in these constituencies.

Section 51 of the Act of 1867 applies in terms to the continuance of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Section 9 is confined to constituencies in England and Wales. Under Clause 9 of the Bill Members of the Irish House of Commons are to be elected in the same manner as Members returned by constituencies in Ireland to serve in the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

asked the President of the Board of Agriculture whether Mr. Cahill's Report on German Land and Agricultural Credit Banks is to be treated as a confidential document; and, if not, would he be willing to publish it for the information of Members of this House?

The Report to which the hon. Member refers will be laid upon the Table of the House as soon as possible.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India if he will furnish a statement showing the rate of interest per annum which it cost the Indian Government to carry forward contracts for the purchase of silver by Messrs. Samuel Montagu and Company at a loss, in some cases, of ⅛d. per ounce plus ⅛ per cent. brokerage, and in other cases of 3–16d. per ounce plus ⅛ per cent. brokerage, with the respective amounts so carried forward in each case?

The postponements were arranged so as to preserve secrecy and to keep down the market price. In this respect they had a financial effect not shown by the figures asked for in the question and given below. The figures are as follows:—

Amount Paid by India Office in first instance for Silver afterwards Sold with a view to Postponement of Delivery (approximate).	Period of Postponement.			Gross Cost of Postponement including additional Brokerage (approximate).
£	1912.			£
101,000	1st May to 1st July	…	…	595
76,000	Early May to early July	…	…	626
15,000	7th May to 7th July	…	…	89
10,000	About 4th May to about 4th July	…	…	58
20,000	4th May to about 4th July	…	…	163
47,000	8th May to 8th July	…	…	389
15,000	About 20th May to about 20th July	…	…	89
35,000	11th May to about 11th July	…	…	289
15,000	26th May to about 26th July	…	…	124
20,000	14th May to 14th July	…	…	600
53,000	14th May to about 31st July	…	…
6,000	16th May to about 18th July	…	…	798
10,000	17th May to about 18th July
35,000	18th May to about 18th July
46,000	20th May to about 18th July
11,000	18th May to about 18th July	…	…	254
5,000	27th May to about 27th July	…	…
15,000	28th May to about 27th July
70,000	22nd May to about 22nd July	…	…	574
15,000	29th May to about 29th July	…	…	124
41,000	14th August to about 14th October	…	…	142
Total, £661,000	Average period of postponement, about 2 months			£4,914

From the gross immediate cost of £4,914 must, of course, be deducted the interest obtained by the India Office on the additional money temporarily held in its balances as a result of the postponement of purchases. This interest, as stated in reply to the hon. Member's question of

asked the Under-Secretary of State for India whether, taking all the facts since 1888 into consideration, including those in connection with the silver corner in 1912, and considering that international gambling operations in silver, etc., have increased a hundredfold during the past ten years in India and in Lundon, he will, in the interests of the Indian and British Empires, co-operate with the Board of Trade and the Indian Government with the view of bringing about joint legislation in those two countries for the suppression of the bear and bull option and future gambling operations in fictitious silver as well as in finance in general?

If the Board of Trade wish to take action in the matter, the Secretary of State in Council will carefully consider whether he can co-operate. Similarly, if the Government of India, to whom the hon. Member's question of 10th December has been sent, submit any proposals for legislation in India, they will receive the careful consideration of the Secretary of State in Council.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether he is now in a position to say how many applications for land under the Smallholders Act have been made up to 31st December, 1912; how much land has been applied for; and how these applications have been dealt with up to the same date?

The number of applicants for land up to and including 31st December, 1912, was as follows:—

County.	Applicants for New Holdings.	Applicants for Enlargements.	Total Applicants.
Aberdeen	13	2	15
Argyll	532	232	764
Ayr	42	—	42
Banff	7	6	13
Berwick	6	—	6
Bute	20	50	70
Caithness	151	156	307
Clackmannan	—	—	—
Dumbarton	17	3	20
Dumfries	34	4	38
Edinburgh	25	1	26
Elgin	17	3	20
Fife	40	1	41
Forfar	12	4	16
Haddington	6	—	6
Inverness	980	662	1;642
Kincardine	11	8	14
Kinross	5	—	5
Kirkcudbright	21	1	22
Lanark	108	—	108
Linlithgow	7	—	7
Nairn	3	—	3
Orkney	60	84	144
Peebles	13	—	13
Perth	37	27	64
Renfrew	23	1	24
Ross-shire	758	211	969
Roxburgh	31	—	31
Selkirk	11	—	11
Stirling	12	1	13
Sutherland	166	226	392
Wigtown	29	3	32
Zetland	173	301	474
	3,370	1,982	5,852

It is not possible to say how much land has been applied for, as many of the applicants do not state any fixed amount, and in the Highlands many apply for common pasture.

asked the Secretary for Scotland what measures are being taken by the Scottish Education Department to promote the teaching of Gaelic in schools in Scotland, and, in particular, what Grants are made by the Department in connection with the teaching of that language?

The question of the extent to which Gaelic shall be taught in schools in Scotland is one for determination primarily by the school board of each district, who in this matter it is presumed will be guided by the wishes of their constituents, but the Code and other Regulations of the Department offer the following specific encouragements to the teaching of Gaelic: (1) Under Article 19, B 7, of the Day School Code a Grant is made for infants and younger children who are taught by a Gaelic-speaking teacher not required for the purpose of the minimum school staff. (2) A Grant of £10 is given for a Gaelic-speaking teacher employed in instructing children who come to school with an imperfect knowledge of English. (3) Gaelic is one of the subjects of the leaving certificate examination. (4) Some secondary education committees in the Highlands give a preference to Gaelic-speaking candidates in appointing junior students. (5) Gaelic may be counted as one of the subjects of the supplementary course. (6) A Grant is allowed for classes in Gaelic under the Continuation Class Code.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that the two men who died from small-pox in Kirkcaldy this year prior to the 24th October, and whose condition as to vaccination was returned as doubtful, had been entered in the birth registers as successfully vaccinated; and whether he will have the official records of this epidemic amended accordingly, and take steps to ensure that before cases are entered as doubtful the registers shall be searched in order to prevent such inaccuracies as have been brought to light in the present instances?

My attention has been drawn to the fact referred to by my hon. Friend. I am informed that after the two men referred to had been carefully examined by the medical officer of health he could find no trace of any vaccination mark. It was no part of his duty to search the register for certificates of vaccination, and from his observation he was justified in returning the cases as doubtful. I am calling the attention of the local authority to these cases, and suggesting that they should make the necessary alteration in any official records of the outbreak; but I do not consider it necessary or practicable to prescribe any general rule of the kind referred to in the last part of my hon. Friend's question.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether he is aware that Andrew Nicholson, aged eighty-six years, of Kirkcaldy, was vaccinated on 23rd October, although suffering from heart disease; whether in Scotland vaccination is permissible on persons already suffering from other diseases; whether he is aware that Nicholson became dangerously ill three days after the operation and remained bedridden till his death on 22nd November; that the evidence of the activity of the vaccine disease throughout Nicholson's last illness was irrefutable; and whether he is in a position to cause the register to be corrected by the insertion of vaccination as one of the contributory causes of the man's death?

I am informed that Andrew Nicholson was vaccinated, with his own consent, on 23rd October, in view of his having been in contact with a case of hemorrhagic small-pox, it being

Year.				Cost of Inspection, etc., of Secondary and Intermediate Schools and of the Leaving Certificate Examinations, less for each year £300 met from the Vote.			Sums received from Schools, as fixed by the Department under Section 19 of the Education (Scotland) Act, 1878.			Net Cost to Funds other than the Vote.
				£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1902–03	…	…	…	6,507	10	4	356	15	5	6,150	14	11
1903–04	…	…	…	7,266	1	2	467	4	10	6,798	16	4
1904–05	…	…	…	7,707	16	1	468	6	5	7,239	9	8
1905–06	…	…	…	7,869	8	4	448	18	9	7,420	9	7
1906–07	…	…	…	8,177	11	10	395	19	1	7,781	12	9
1907–08	…	…	…	8,335	4	6	432	5	0	7,902	19	6
1908–09	…	…	…	8,476	4	4	595	17	1	7,880	7	3
1909–10	…	…	…	8,653	6	0	242	0	9	8,411	5	3
1910–11	…	…	…	8,918	15	5	230	9	0	8,688	6	5
1911–12	…	…	…	8,811	9	11	266	7	7	8,545	2	4

asked the Secretary for Scotland the amounts for the last ten, financial years, respectively, of the sums paid as expenses of the inspection and examination of secondary and intermediate schools, and of conducting the leaving certificate examinations, in so far as such expenses are not provided for from moneys voted by Parliament?

As the information desired by my hon. Friend cannot conveniently be given within the limits of an oral answer, I will have a statement printed and circulated with the Votes.