asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that first-class examining officers of Customs at Hull, who have passed two severe Departmental examinations qualifying them for the highest positions in the Customs service, are not required to carry out the duties hitherto performed by employés of the lower grades, who have either not passed or failed to pass such examinations; if he will state whether there is any precedent for so reducing senior officers of long service and good character; whether the first-class examining officers who have suffered from retardation of promotion are to receive compensation for total loss of prospects, although all other grades have benefited by the amalgamation of the Customs and Excise services; whether the special consideration and treatment recommended by the Hobhouse Commission is not to be given to these officers; whether General Order 5/1912, which allows senior qualified officers of good character upon reaching their maximum salary to enter the new class of surveyor will be carried out, or will these officers be debarred from further progress in the service; and whether it is intended to reconsider the claims of such senior first-class officers as have acted for several years in place of surveyors and thus proved their fitness for promotion?

As I stated in reply to a question put by the hon. Member for Barrow on 14th December, 1911, I see no reason for departing from the recommendation of the Hobhouse Committee that first-class examining officers should be incorporated in the new grade of officer, and I do not admit that this class has suffered thereby either in dignity or prospects. The Committee also recommended that the properly qualified members of the class in question should be promoted to the surveyor grade without examination, but did not contemplate that their turn for consideration would arrive before they reached their maximum salary of £340. A concession which I announced in May of last year to a deputation on which the first-class examining officers were represented, has, however, greatly accelerated the rate of promotion, very much to the advantage of the properly qualified officers. Those not properly qualified have not been injured in any way, and the recommendations of the Hobhouse Committee and the provisions of the General Order 5/1912, based thereon have been more than carried out.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the valuation assistants serving under the Valuation Department of the Inland Revenue in the Home Counties, North District, are only granted fourteen days' annual leave instead of twenty-one days granted in other districts under the Regulations?

The twenty-one days' leave granted to valuation assistants extends to all districts alike. I understand, however, that in the year 1912 there were cases where, owing to a misapprehension in one of the Land Valuation Divisions, these officers were given fourteen days only. The question of granting them additional leave this year is under consideration.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether papers relating to the estate of Maria Goucher, deceased, who died on 23rd November, 1887, were submitted to the Board of Inland Revenue, Estate Duty Department (D.B. 1,105,797/ 13), several years ago; whether those papers are still awaiting the decision of the Board as to the amount of duty payable; if so, what is the reason for the continued delay in the matter; and whether he will give directions that the matter may be promptly dealt with and decided?

No trace can be found in the Estate Duty Office of such papers as are referred to by the hon. and learned Member. The other parts of the question, therefore, do not arise.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any of those who hold or have held any high judicial position, and are therefore eligible to sit on the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council or in the Appellate Court of the House of Lords, are given any remuneration for their services when they do so sit; and, if so, what is that remuneration?

No remuneration is given in the circumstances specified by my hon. Friend in addition to the salaries and pensions drawn.

asked the Chief Secretary, seeing that there are only three men in the Irish Constabulary Force now suffering financially and in the matter of promotion for the offence of having got married without permission, and that most of the suffering in both respects results from rules and not from Statute, whether he will consider the desirability of relaxing those rules to the extent of making some reparation to those three unfortunate men?

There are only three men in the position described in the question asked by the hon. Member on the 23rd June. I have nothing to add to my reply to that question.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury (1) the total receipts and total payments of the Irish Constabulary Force Fund during the term of office of each Inspector-General since 1836, showing the payments under three heads, rewards to members of the force, grants to head constables on promotion to district inspectorships, and payments to widows and children of subscribers; (2) the amounts of receipts and expenditure, respectively, of the Irish Constabulary Force Fund, reward branch, from 1st April, 1891, to 31st March, 1913, distinguishing in the receipts, fines and penalties, disciplinary fines, verification of weights and measures, and other sources, and distinguishing in the expenditure rewards to officers for good police duty, rewards to men for good police duty, rewards for freedom from unfavourable records, to cover, the expenses on retirement to head constables on promotion, and other charges; (3) will he state for the three years ended 31st March, 1913, the number of cases in which payments have been made out of the Irish Constabulary Force Fund, benefit branch, to the widows and children of officers and of men, respectively; the number of persons relieved; the maximum and minimum grants; the amounts contributed to the fund in those maximum and minimum cases; the total contributions and total grants in the cases of the officers and men, respectively; and (4), if he will state from the Annual Reports of the Irish Constabulary Force Fund the amount added to that fund as interest on investments every year from the 10th August, 1866 to 1891?

I will consider how far the information asked for in these four questions can usefully be included in the statement which I propose to publish when the Actuarial Inquiry into the position of the fund is completed. In the meantime, I do not think that any useful purpose would be served by publishing the various items asked for by the hon. Member.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he has received a copy of the resolution of the Waterford County Council calling attention to the loss to secondary education in Ireland which would be caused if the annual Grant of £40,000 promised by the Treasury is not at once secured; and whether he will take steps to make the Grant available during the current year?

I have received the resolution referred. As regards the concluding paragraph of the question, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply which I gave to-day to the oral questions of the hon. Members for East Down and South Tyrone on the same subject.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland if the Land Commission will take steps to acquire the land immediately surrounding the houses of Bushy Park and Fort Moy, on the Clarke estate, county Tipperary, with a view to dividing the land amongst the people who have not obtained any in the recent division?

The reply is in the negative.

asked whether the Johnston estate, Castlefin, county Donegal, has been inspected yet by the Congested Districts Board; and, if so, has an offer been made to the owners?

The Congested Districts Beard cannot identify the estate referred to from the information given in the question.

asked the Chief Secretary when the tenants on the Galway estate, Ballybeg, Dingle, county Kerry, may expect to have their holdings vested in them, seeing that their purchase agreements were signed in 1907.

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

asked the President of the Board of Education whether any complaint has been recently received from the managers of the Bryncoch non-provided school, respecting the reduction that has been made in the salary of the head master solely on the ground that the Glamorgan local education authority has had to place all assistant teachers at the school under the scale of salaries obtaining in the council schools under Glamorgan County Council administration; and, if so, what steps will the Board take to enable the head master to retain the salary he has been paid for nine years?

The answer to the first part of the lion. Member's question is in the affirmative. I am asking the local education authority for their observations with regard to the complaint.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether, in the case of prisoners having been conveyed from one town to another, the fares of such prisoners to the towns they originally came from are paid by the prison authorities; and, if such is not the case, by whom are they paid?

The fares of such prisoners are paid by the prison authorities.

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether the employés of his Department are forced to retire from active service at any fixed age; and, if so, at what age?

The rule for persons employed in the Foreign Office is the same as that for civil servants in general, being contained in Article 15 of the Civil Service Order in Council of January 10th, 1910, which reads as follows:—

"It shall he competent for the head of any Department to call upon any officer of such Department to retire at any time after reaching the age of sixty On such pension as by the length of his service he is qualified to receive. Retirement shall be compulsory for every officer on attaining sixty-five years of age. But in special cases the Treasury may, at the instance of the head of a Department, extend an officer's employment for a further period, not exceeding five years, on being satisfied that such officer's retirement at sixty-five would be detrimental to the interests of the Public Service."

asked the President of the Local Government Board if he is aware that Mr. Weeks stated at the last meeting of the Lewisham Union Board of Guardians that he could prove that Dr. Toogood, medical superintendent of the infirmary, was obliged to give whole time; whether, seeing that he recently stated that Dr. Toogood was not a full-time officer, he will cause further inquiry to be made; and whether the Local Government Board sanction medical officers using the status gained by their public service to practice on behalf of companies undertaking workmen's compensation insurance and devoting Sundays to this employment?

I am aware of Mr. Weeks' statement, but, on looking into the matter again, I can only say that Dr. Toogood's position seems to be as -stated in the reply to my hon. Friend's previous question on the 2nd June.

asked the Postmaster-General whether he has received a memorial from the people of Teiveclogher, Castlederg, county Tyrone, praying that their letters should be delivered from Laughtmorris; whether he has considered the advantages of the proposed change; and whether he finds it possible to accede to the prayer of the memorial?

I am having inquiry made and I will communicate with the hon. Member.

asked the hon. Member for St. George's-in-the-East, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, whether the whole of the boats on the Regent's Park lake are the property of the watermen licensed or authorised by the Office of Works; if these boats are available to the public generally; whether boats can be kept for the exclusive use of any persons; and whether residents on the banks of the lake can own boats and be free to use them?

The licensee for the boats in Regent's Park has eighty boats, and these are all available for the use of the public. There are, however, a small proportion (about seven) of light boats which are only let to those who are competent to make use of them, and are not let at all when the lake is crowded. No boats can be kept by the licensee for the exclusive use of any persons. Residents on the banks of the lake can only keen a boat on the lake with the Board's authority.