asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that the Denbighshire Insurance Committee are deducting 1½d. per insured person per quarter from the capitation fees paid to panel practitioners, and that such deduction is being made against the wishes of the majority of panel practitioners in the county after the vote had been taken by two methods, at a meeting of county panel practitioners and after a postcard vote had been taken at the special request of the committee, this being also followed by the presentation of two petitions objecting to the deduction, one being from Wrexham and district and the other from Colwyn Bay; and what steps the Treasury intends taking to protect medical practitioners ore the panel who are prepared to carry out their duties according to the arrangements made for them by the Commissioners?

The Welsh Insurance Commissioners have not sanctioned the deduction referred to, and, as a result of complaints received from certain medical practitioners on the panel, they are making inquiry into the matter.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is now able to give a favourable reply to the statement of grievances sent to him by the surveyors of Customs (old grade), the receipt of which was acknowledged on the 3rd of February, and supplemented by a statement which was transmitted to the Financial Secretary to the Treasury on 14th July, both of which showed, inter alia,. that in the opinion of the surveyors the Chancellor's Grant of £50 to the maximum salaries of the old second and third classes has been practically nullified by the issue by the Board of Customs and Excise of General Order 54/1912?

The statement in question has been considered, but I see no reason to disturb the amalgamation settlement in the case of these surveyors. I certainly cannot accept the suggestion contained in the last paragraph.

asked the Chief Secretary how many assistant teachers in Irish national schools have been promoted to second grade in each of the past five years?

The Commissioners of National Education inform me that no ordinary assistant teacher was promoted in 1908 or 1910. One was promoted from 1st April, 1909; one from April, 1911; 89 from April, 1912; and 12 have so far been promoted from April, 1913.

asked the Chief Secretary if he will state for the year ending 31st March last the amount paid to schools in Ireland in charge of nuns from national education Grants, intermediate education Grants, and industrial school Grants, respectively?

The total amount paid from national education Grants to the teaching staffs of schools in charge of nuns during the year ended 31st March, 1912, was £184,926. Particulars of the amount so paid during the last financial year are not available. The total amount paid by the Intermediate Education Board to such schools for the year ended 31st March, 1913, was £9,911. During the same year the amount of the Treasury Grant paid to certificated reformatory and industrial schools in charge of nuns was £55,117.

asked the number of nuns employed as nurses, matrons, and teachers in workhouses and other Poor Law institutions under the Local Government Board in Ireland?

The numbers asked for by the hon. Member are as follows:—Nurses, 369; matrons, 36; teachers, 45—Total, 450.

asked the Secretary for Scotland as regards the 5½ acres of land at Invergordon of which the Admiralty recently took a feu for oil storage purposes at an annual Feu Duty of £74 17s., if he can say what was being taken as the annual value for rating of these 5½ acres at the date of the feu, or, if they formed a portion of a larger property, by how much the valuation for rating of that larger property was reduced by reason of the severance of that portion?

I am informed that the land referred to by my hon. Friend formed part of a larger subject let for£5s. 9d. The annual valuation of that subject, by reason of the severance of the feu for oil storage purposes, has been reduced by £11 1s. 9d.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether engines for airships, aeroplanes, and waterplanes can be, and are being, constructed in this country; whether firms making such craft are in receipt of regular orders front the War Office; whether there is any factory in this country in which a rigid or other airship can be, and is being, constructed; and whether, in time of war, aircraft or parts thereof can be imported into the United Kingdom?

The answer to the first three parts of the question is in the affirmative; to the fourth part that in time of war aeroplanes and their component parts and accessories are regarded as conditional contraband under Article 24 of the Declaration of London.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that it is. proposed to set up a monopoly for Army supplies, and that a fund of £80,000 in the hands of the trustees of the South African Soldiers' Institute is to be utilised for the purpose of forming a trust; whether the War Office is cognisant of this proposition; and what action it intends to take in respect to such proposal?

I must ask the Hon Gentleman to refer to the full statement which I made on this subject during the Debate on Army Estimates on Wednesday. 30th July, to which I have nothing to add.

asked the President of the Board of Education when the annual Reports on universities and university colleges will be published?

The Reports from Universities and University Colleges for the Session, 1911–12, are being laid upon the Table of the House to-day, and will be published in about three weeks' time.

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he can state, for the last year for which statistics are available, the number of men and of boys killed and the number injured by accidents in the coal mines of Great Britain and in those of the county of Staffordshire?

The following are the figures for mines under the Coal Mines Act for the year 1912—

asked the Home Secretary whether the Metropolitan Police regulations permit of money being collected on the occasion of street processions on behalf of bonâ tide philanthropic objects provided no obstruction is caused?

The regulations permit of money being collected on the occasion of street processions provided the conditions laid down therein are complied with. The principal regulations provide that no collection shall be made in any part of the carriageway of any street, or on the footway so as to cause any obstruction thereof or any annoyance to foot passengers; and that not more than two persons shall act as collectors at the same collecting place, and that they shall occupy a stationary position on the footway along the route of the procession.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he is aware that the Government of South Africa, through the local Government. of Natal, granted in 1911 a concession for twenty-five years to tap and cut down all the Tirucalli rubber forests in Natal, covering some six or seven hundred square miles; that the concession was sold to an English company, which is reported to have spent large sums of money in exploiting these forests; and that, as a result, the natives, the original owners of these lands, cannot legally, under the terms of the lease so granted, cut down any of the euphorbia trees, and consequently are prevented from extend- Ins their farming operation; and if he will take any steps in the matter in the interest of the natives?

No, Sir. I have no information on this matter.

asked the President of the Board of Agriculture whether he is aware that in January last the corporation of Glasgow gave him (the President) an undertaking that the charges for cattle landing at Merklands would not exceed 2s. 6d. per head; whether, after giving this undertaking, they continued to charge 3s. per beast; and whether he will state what steps he is going to take to compel the corporation to refund the excess charges levied from owners of live stock and arrange that the amounts overcharged to importers subsequent to the date of his announcement will be returned?

I cannot say that any undertaking was given as suggested in the hon. Member's question. On the 31st January last the corporation of Glasgow submitted, and the Board provisionally approved a rate of 2s. 6d. per head for Irish cattle detained in the lairages at Merklands Wharf, but the corporation did not bring that rate into force, and continued to charge at the rate of 3s. per head. The Board have no power to compel the corporation to refund any excessive charges which may have been made.

asked the Secretary for Scotland what was the amount of the Education (Scotland) Fund paid to each burgh and county committee for the year 1912–13; how much would each of these burgh and county committees have received if the amount available had been divided according to the scheme in force in 1911–12; and what was the rate of division under Section 17 (11) of the Education (Scotland) Act, 1908, in all counties and burghs for the year 1912–13?

I would refer the hon. Member to my answer to his question of the 11th July.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether he can state, with reference to the years 1912 and 1913, the number of candidates for group-leaving- certificates in Scotland, and the number who were successful; the number who took geography as a part of their group, and the number of those who were successful; and the total number of candidates presented for the geography examination, whether as an individual subject or as part of a group, and the total number of those who were successful?

The information desired by the hon. Member is as follows:—

asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the approaching adoption of lower tariffs in America in respect of meat, wheat, and flour, and of resulting higher prices in Great Britain, and in view of the far larger purchases in future by the United States of meat from Argentina and Australasia, His Majesty's Government proposes to take any steps to counteract the effects of a further rise in the cost of living following upon the increases already experienced as the result of recent legislation?

My right hon. Friend has asked me to answer this question. The earlier part of it is hypothetical, and with regard to the latter part I am not prepared to admit that the recent increase in the cost of living has resulted in any degree from legislation in this country. On the contrary, it has been world-wide, and in most commercial countries it has exceeded the rise in the United Kingdom.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he is aware that an inquiry was held by Captain Munroe at Porthcawl, on the 29th May, 1913, regarding the removal of large quantities of gravel from a bay near there known as Traeth Treco; whether anything has yet been done in this matter; whether he is aware that the removal of this gravel is contrary to the wishes of the inhabitants of Porthcawl; and whether he will order the Barry Sand and Gravel Company to stop the removal of the gravel?

My right hon. Friend is aware of the circumstances of this case, and he is, and has been, giving them most careful consideration in conjunction with his legal advisers. One of the difficulties is that the removal complained of takes place on private property above the line of high-water mark. It is proposed to introduce a Bill in the near future to make better provision for the protection of the coast from erosion, and to confer powers upon the Board of Trade which will enable them to deal with cases of this kind more expeditiously than they can at present.

asked the Postmaster-General the number of rural postmen in the village of Newport, Essex; whether any, and, if so, how many, of these live in cottages provided by the Post Office authorities; and whether he is aware of the fact that some of these postmen now occupy cottages wanted by the agricultural labourers?

I will have inquiry made and will inform the Noble Lord of the result.

asked the hon. Member for St. George's-in-the-East, as representing the First Commissioner of Works, when the Report of the Departmental Committee, of which Sir George Holmes is chairman, will be completed, and whether the Report will be submitted to Parliament?

I understand that the Report of the Committee will probably be signed next month, and, when it is submitted to the Treasury, the question of publishing it shall be considered.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in compliance with the assurance of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Government will now star the Development and Road Improvement Funds Bill which was introduced by the hon. Member for the Wilton Division, and which authorises the appointment of two additional Development Commissioners (unpaid); and whether he will afford facilities for its passage into law this Session?

The Government will star the Bill, but its further progress must depend on whether there is general agreement.

asked the Prime Minister the reasons for the delay in appointing an Advisory Committee to deal with the appointment of magistrates in Dumbartonshire; and if he can state when the Committee will be appointed?

The Lord Chancellor hopes to appoint the Advisory Committee for Dumbartonshire within a very few days. A number of these Advisory Committees throughout England, Scotland, and Wales is about 360, and the difficulty involved in appointing so large a number has unfortunately in a few instances led to inevitable delay.

asked the Chief Secretary how many evicted tenants in county Cavan have been reinstated as purchasers on estates sold, or proposed to be sold, through the Estates Commissioners; are there any other evicted tenants in county Cavan reinstated; if so, how many; and will he state under what circumstances?

So far as the Estates Commissioners are aware, 103 Cavan evicted tenants have been reinstated or provided with holdings; of these eighty-six have been reinstated as purchasers on estates sold or proposed to be sold through the Estates Commissioners under the Irish Land Acts of 1903 and 1909; the remaining seventeen tenants have been reinstated by their landlords, but so far as the Commissioners are aware, the holdings in which they have been reinstated are not the subject of proceedings for sale under the Acts of 1903 and 1909.