asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will state the amount of Treasury Bills at present outstanding; if it is the intention to increase the amount or whether it is proposed to obtain the financial requirements by a new Loan; and, if so, when his proposals as regards this may be expected?

The amount of Treasury Bills outstanding on Saturday, 15th July, was £811,656,000. It would not be in the public interest to make any statement at present in regard to the second part of the question.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the amounts at present outstanding of Treasury Bills, Exchequer Bonds, War Expenditure Certificates, War Savings Certificates, and Treausry Notes, respectively?

The figures are approximately as follows:— £ Treasury Bills 811,656,000 Five per Cent. Exchequer Bonds, 1919, 1920 and 1921 295,000,000 War Expenditure Certificates 14,000,000 War Savings Certificates. 10,500,000* Currency Notes (including Currency Note Certificates) 124,680,000 *£1 Certificates or their equivalent.

The above figures show the position on Saturday, 15th July, except in the case of the Currency Notes which relate to Wednesday, 12th July.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that the Board of Customs and Excise has decided that the Queen's County Agricultural Show and the Ossory Agricultural Show do not fall within any of the exemptions from the Entertainments Tax; if he is aware that these shows are promoted not for the purpose of profit but for the express purpose of improving live stock, crops, and cottage industries and for general agricultural educational purposes, and are subsidised by the Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction for Ireland; and if he will state whether all other agricultural shows in Ireland will be dealt with in a similar manner by the Board of Customs and Excise?

I am informed by the Board of Customs and Excise that the two shows in question included dancing and horse-jumping competitions, and that on full consideration of the circumstances they were unable to regard them as entitled to exemption from the Entertainments Tax under Section 1 (5) of the Act. The question whether other agricultural shows in Ireland are entitled to exemption can only be decided by the Board on consideration of the circumstances of each case.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether he can furnish for the information of Members a list of the weekly provincial papers which have been selected for the publication of financial advertisements?

supplied the following list of provincial weekly newspapers in which financial advertisements will be published by the Treasury:— Aberdare Leader. Aberdare Post. Abergavenny Chronicle. Abertillery, South Wales Gazette. Aberystwyth Cambrean News. Aberystwyth Welsh.Gazette Abingdon, North Berks Herald. Accrington Advertiser. Accrington Observer. Accrington Gazette. Aldershot News. Alfreton Journal. Alnwick Gazette. Alnwick Guardian. Andover Advertiser. Arbroath Guide. Arbroath Herald. Ardrossan Herald. Arundel, West Sussex Gazette. Ashford, Kentish Express. Ashton Weekly Reports. Ashton Herald. Aylesbury, Bucks Advertiser. Aylesbury, Bucks Herald. 1206 Ayr Advertiser. Ayr Observer. Ayr Ayrshire Post. Bacup Chronicle Bacup Times. Banbury Advertiser. Banbury Guardian. Banff, Banffshire Journal. Bangor, North Wales Chronicle. Barnsley Chronicle. Barnsley Independent. Barnstaple, North Devon Herald. Barnstaple, North Devon Journal. Barrow Guardian. Barrow News. Basingstoke, Hants & Berks Gazette. Bath Chronicle. Bath Herald. Bath Keene's Bath Journal. Batley News. Bedford Standard. Bedford Times. Berkhamsted Gazette. Berwick Advertiser. Berwick Journal. Beverley Guardian. Beverley Recorder. Bideford, North Devon Gazette Birkenhead Advertiser. Birkenhead News Bishop Aucland, South Durham Chronicle. Bishop Stortford, Herts Observer. Blackburn Weekly Telegraph. Blackburn Times. Blackpool Gazette. Blackpool Herald. Blackpool Times. Bodmin, Cornish Guardian. Bolton Chronicle. Bolton Journal. Boston Guardian. Bournemouth Guardian. Bournemouth Visitors Directory. Bradford Weekly Telegraph. Brechin Advertiser. Bridgend, Glamorgan Gazette Bridgwater Independent. Bridgwater Mercury. Bridlington Gazette. Bridlington Chronicle. Bridlington Free Press. Brighton Gazette. Brighton Herald. Brighton South Weekly News. Brighton Standard. Bromsgrove Messenger. Burnley Express. Burnley News. Burton Chronicle. Burton Observer. 1207 Bury Guardian. Bury Times. Bury and Norwich Post. Bury St. Edmunds Free Press. Buxton Herald. Buxton Advertiser. Cambridge Independent. Cambridge Chronicle. Canterbury, Kent Herald. Canterbury, Kentish Gazette. Canterbury, Observer. Carlisle Journal. Carlisle Cumberland News. Carmarthen Journal. Carmarthen Weekly Reporter Carmarthen Welshman. Carnarvon Herald. Carnarvon North Wales Observer. Chard News. Chard Western Advertiser. Chatham News. Chatham Observer. Chelmsford County Chronicle. Chelmsford Weekly News. Cheltenham Chronicle. Chester Observer. Chester Chronicle. Chesterfield, Derbyshire Times. Chesterfield, Derbyshire Courier. Chichester Observer. Chorley Guardian. Chorley Weekly News. Cinderford, Dean Forest Mercury. Cirencester, Wilts Standard. Coleford, Dean Forest Guardian. Coalville Times. Colchester County Standard. Colchester County Telegraph. Colne Times. Consett Chronicle. Consett Guardian. Conway, North Wales Weekly News. Coventry Graphic. Coventry Herald. Coventry Standard. Crewe Observer. Cupar, Fife Herald. Cupar, Fife News. Cuper, St. Andrews Citizen. Darlington Times. Darwen News. Darwen Gazette. Derby Reporter. Derby Mercury. Derbyshire Advertiser. Devizes, Wiltshire Advertiser. Devizes, Wiltshire Gazette. Devonport, Western Independent. Dewsbury News. Dewsbury Reporter. 1208 Dingwall, Highland Leader. Dingwall, North Star. Dingwall, Ross-shire Journal. Doncaster Chronicle. Doncaster Gazette. Dorchester, Dorset County Chronicle. Dudley Herald. Dudley Chronicle. Dover Chronicle. Dover Express. Dover Standard. Dumbarton Herald. Dumfries Courier. Dumfries Standard. Dumfermline Journal. Dumfermline Press. Durham Chronicle. Durham Advertiser. Eastbourne Gazette. Eastbourne Chronicle. Eastbourne Sussex County Herald. Evesham Journal. Evesham Standard. East Grinstead Observer. Exeter Flying Post. Falkirk Herald. Falkirk Mail. Falmouth, Cornish Echo. Falmouth, Lakes Packet. Farnham, Surrey and Hants News. Folkestone Express. Folkestone Herald. Forfar Herald. Forfar Review. Gloucester Journal. Gloucester Chronicle. Goole Journal. Goole Times. Grantham Journal. Grimsby Times. Grimsby News. Guildford, Surrey Advertiser Guildford, Surrey Times. Halifax Courier. Halifax Guardian. Hanley, Staffs, Weekly Sentinel. Harwich Express. Harwich News. Heckmondwike Herald. Henley Standard. Hereford Journal. Hereford Times. Hertford Mercury. High Wycombe, Bucks Free Press. Hitchin, Hertford Express. Hitchin, North Herts Mail. Hexham Courant. Hexham Herald. Hexham Weekly News. Horsham, West Sussex County Times Horwich Chronicle. 1209 Huddersfield Examiner. Huddersfield W. Chronicle. Hull Times. Hull Weekly Echo. Hyde, N., Cheshire Herald. Ilfracombe Chronicle. Ilfracombe Gazette. Ilkestone Advertiser. Ilkley Gazette. Inverness Courier. Inverness Northern Chronicle. Keighley News. Kendal Mercury. Kendal Westmoreland Gazette. Kettering Guardian. Kettering Leader. Kidderminster Times. Kidderminster Shuttle. Kirkcaldy, Fife Free Press. Kirkcaldy, Fifeshire Advertiser. King's Lynn Advertiser. King's Lynn News. Lancaster Guardian. Leamington Spa Courier. Leamington Chronicle. Leicester Advertiser. Leicester Chronicle. Leicester Midland Free Press. Leicester Journal. Lewes, East Sussex News. Lewes East Sussex Express. Lincoln Gazette. Lincoln Leader. Lincoln Chronicle. Llanelly Guardian. Llanelly Mercury. Loughboro' Herald. Loughboro' Monitor. Loughboro' Times. Luton Advertiser. Luton News. Luton Reporter. Macclesfield Courier. Macclesfield Times. Maidenhead Advertiser. Maidstone, Kent Messenger. Maidstone, South-Eastern Gazette. Malvern Gazette. Malvern News. Mansfield Chronicle. Mansfield Advertiser. Mansfield Reporter. March, Cambridge Times. Margate Gazette. Margate Thanet Guardian. Market Harborough Advertiser Market Harborough Midland Mail. Melton Mowbray Times. Merthyr Express. Middleton Guardian. Montrose Standard. 1210 Morecambe Visitor. Morley Observer. Newark Advertiser. Newark Herald. Newbury Weekly News. Newmarket Journal. Newport, Monmouth Weekly Post. Newport, South Wales Weekly Argus. Newton Abbot, Mid Devon Advertiser Newton Abbot, Mid Devon Times. Northallerton, North Riding News. Northampton Herald. Northampton Mercury. Norwich, Norfolk Chronicle. Norwich, Mercury. Norwich, Norfolk News. Nuneaton Observer. Nuneaton Chronicle. Nuneaton Tribune. Oban Times. Oldham Chronicle. Oldham Standard. Ormskirk Advertiser. Ossett Observer. Oswestry Advertiser. Otley Observer. Oxford Chronicle. Oxford Times. Paignton Observer. Pembroke Guardian. Pembroke Gazette. Pembroke Times. Penrith Observer. Penrith Mid Cumberland Herald. Penzance Cornishman. Perth Advertiser. Perth Journal. Peterboro' Advertiser. Peterboro' Standard. Peterhead Buchan Observer. Pontypool Free Press. Pontypridd, Glamorgan County Times. Pontypridd, Free Press. Poole Herald. Portsmouth, Hampshire Telegraph. Portsmouth Times. Preston Guardian. Preston Weekly News. Pudsey News. Pudsey Advertiser. Ramsgate, East Kent Times. Ramsgate, Kent Argus. Ramsgate, Thanet Advertiser. Reading, Berkshire Chronicle. Reading Mercury. Reading Observer. Reading Standard. Redditch Indicator. Redruth Cornubian. 1211 Rochdale Observer. Rochdale Times. Rotherham Advertiser. Rotherham Express. Rugby Advertiser. Rugby Observer. Rushden Echo. Rushden Times. St. Albans, Herts Advertiser. St. Helens Newspaper. Salisbury Journal. Salisbury Times. Scarboro' Post. Scarboro' Mercury. Shipley Times. Skipton, West Yorks Pioneer. Skipton, Craven Herald. Southampton, Hampshire Advertiser. Southampton, Times. Southport Guardian. Southport Visitor. Spalding Free Press. Spalding Guardian. Stamford Guardian. Stamford Lincoln Mercury. Stanley News. Stafford Advertiser. Stafford Chronicle. Stirling Journal. Stirling Observer. Stockport Advertiser. Stockton Herald. Stourbridge Express. Stratford-on-Avon Herald. Stroud News. Swansea, Herald of Wales. Swansea, South Wales Post. Swindon, North Wilts Herald. Swindon, Advertiser. Swindon, Wiltshire News. Taunton, Somerset County Gazette. Tewkesbury Register. Tewkesbury Weekly Herald. Thurso, Caithness Courier. Torquay Times. Torquay Torbay News. Totnes, Western Guardian. Trowbridge, Wiltshire Times. Truro, West Briton. Truro, R, Cornwall Gazette. Truro, Cornwall County News. Tunbridge Wells Advertiser. Tunbridge Wells Courier. Wakefield Express. Walsall Advertiser. Walsall Observer. Warrington Examiner. Warrington Guardian. Warwick Advertiser. Warwick Times. Watford, West Herts Observer. 1212 Wednesbury Herald. Wednesbury Midland Advertiser. Wellington Journal. Weymouth Telegraph. Whitby Gazette. Whitehaven Advertiser Whitehaven Free Press. Wigan Examiner. Wigan Observer. Winchester Observer. Windsor and Eton Express. Wisbech Standard. Wisbech Advertiser. Wisbech Gazette. Wishaw Herald. Wishaw Press. Wolverhampton, Midland County Express. Worcester, Berrow's Worcester Journal. Worcester, Advertiser. Worcester, Chronicle. Worksop Guardian. Yarmouth Independent. Yarmouth Mercury. Yeovil, Western Gazette. York Western Chronicle. York Gazette. York Weekly Herald. ISLAND NEWSPAPERS. Jersey Weekly Post. Jersey Illustrated Weekly. Jersey Cronique de Jersey. Guernsey Advertiser. Guernsey Weekly Press. Guernsey Gazette de Guernsey. Cowes, Isle of Wight Herald. Newport County Press. Newport Island Star. Ryde, Isle of Wight Observer. Ryde Isle of Wight Times. Sandown Isle of Wight Chronicle.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether the Treasury have considered the recommendation of the Royal Commission on the Civil Service that specially qualified women should be eligible for appointment to administrative posts in the Board of Education, the Local Government Board, the Board of Trade, and certain other Government Departments; and whether they propose to take any action thereupon?

The Treasury are in consultation with the heads of Departments in regard to the matter.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty whether he is aware that the experience of the War has shown that acute mental cases cannot be adequately treated in general wards; and whether the fact that mental cases are distributed in the wards means that there are no acute mental cases in the Royal Navy?

Cases of neurasthenia and acute mental cases are quite distinct, and are treated by quite different methods. Cases of the former are treated in general medical wards, with excellent results up to the present. Acute mental cases are treated in the special-mental wards that are provided in our three large naval hospitals. The increase in the percentage of acute mental cases in the Navy since the War began has not been very great.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty for what length of time are mental and neurasthenic patients treated in naval base hospitals before being invalided out of the Service as incurable?

No definite time can be stated for which mental and neurasthenic patients are treated before being invalided as incurable. The time of treatment depends entirely on the type of case, and, as regards insanity especially, the question arises whether a patient is not more likely to recover in Yarmouth than in a general hospital. Generally speaking, it may be said that patients are not invalided until there is no chance of recovery within a reasonable time, or until it is evident that hospital treatment is doing no good.

asked the First Lord of the Admiralty what provision is made in the case of those who have been sent home to their relatives with so-called nervous breakdown, or neurasthenia; and whether consideration is given in cases where there is a relapse which necessitates closer supervision than relatives are able to give?

If the disability is attributable to the Service, a pension under the War disablement scale is awarded in accordance with the assessment of earning incapacity when discharged (if totally incapacitated the rate is 25s. a week), with allowances in respect of children and the usual additions for badges, medal, and petty time. If not attributable, the pension or gratuity to which the man is entitled in respect of his service is awarded—a life pension being awarded for over ten years' service. As to the second part of the question, if the disability is attributable, urgent cases in which the treatment required is of a temporary nature are received again into a naval hospital.

asked the Secretary to the Treasury whether recently any conscientious objectors have been engaged for work at Somerset House or are about to be engaged?

I am not aware of any cases.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether his attention has been called to the announcement of the first reported casualty in the Non-Combatant Corps; can he state the man's name and the cause of death; and whether the man was a resisting concientious objector or a willing member of the Non-Combatant Corps?

Private D. McDonald, No. 1471, 1st Scottish Company, Non-Combatant Corps, was, I am informed, found dead on the railway in France. There is no record of this man being a resisting conscientious objector. A report on the circumstances is being furnished.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that the military authorities in Sheffield have posted throughout the city the name of Albert Dowker, 6, Robinson Road, Park, Sheffield, as an absentee under the Military Service Act; that this action, taken without the slightest investigation or inquiry at his house, is in respect of a skilled fitter holding a badge and certificate: that despite his protests and explanations this man has had military papers served upon him three times and has been warned that he would get into trouble unless he reported for service; whether he is aware that this workman has an assurance from the Minister of Munitions that he is exempt from being called up unless and until his certificate is withdrawn by that Department; that when he left Sheffield to go to work at Derby his railway fare was paid by the Ministry of Munitions, which is now granting him 2s. 6d. a day subsistence allowance; that before leaving Sheffield he again notified the military authorities of his position; why, in these circumstances, the man has been publicly posted throughout the city as an absentee; whether, in view of the annoyance to which he has been subjected for months, the War Office and the Ministry of Munitions will now cease their prolonged struggle for his body; and what action will be taken?

A report on this case was asked for by telegram, but it has not yet reached the War Office. If, as appears probable from the facts stated, there has been a mistake, it shall, of course, be put right.

asked the Secretary of State for War if the War Office have considered the advisability of issuing a special badge, as is done in the French Army, for length of service in the trenches?

Yes, Sir; this suggestion has been considered, but it has not found favour.

asked the Secretary of State for War why Private Albert Harden, M 39,626, has not received his final discharge?

A personal application for discharge was received from this man and was forwarded to his commanding officer to be dealt with in the usual course under the King's Regulations. The result of this would not be reported to the War Office, and I would venture to suggest to the hon. Member that if Private Harden has not received a reply he should write again to his commanding officer.

asked the Secretary of State for War what sentences were passed at the second court-martial on the following conscientious objectors now at Gos-port: G. B. Robert (court-martialled 26th June), of 6, York Gardens, Bristol; Dan Huxstep (court-martialled 5th July), of 130, City Road, Bristol; Stanley Oxley (court-martialled 5th July), of 65, Ashley Road, Bristol; whether Stanley Ashman, of 11, Chester Park Road, Fishponds, Bristol, Ormond Pink, of 9, Dewkerry Road, Victoria Park, Bristol, and E. W. Roe, of 123, North Street, Bedminster, Bristol, who were severally court-martialled on 23rd, 27th, and 8th May, are now awaiting their second court-martial at Gosport; when these will take place; whether the following four men were court-martialled at Horfield Barracks and sent to military detention barracks lately, namely, Henry Coker, of 107, St. George Street, Bristol, sent on 8th or 9th July to Hereford, T. S. Peckover, of Gloucester, sent 11th or 12th July to Hereford, and W. Harding and W. Pope, sent to Devizes; will these men be transferred to a civil prison; and when or will some work of national importance be assigned to them outside the military administration, to which they object?

I think the best thing I can do in answer to this question is to restate briefly the position in regard to conscientious objectors. The case of every conscientious objector who has been sentenced to imprisonment will be submitted to the Central Appeal Tribunal. The conscientious objectors at the present moment undergoing detention fall into two categories, those who, while under detention, are obeying the military commands given to them, and those who refuse to obey the military commands. The latter are being brought to trial by court-martial, and they will, if convicted, be transferred to civil custody, and their case will be dealt with by the Central Appeal Tribunal. Conscientious objectors who, whilst undergoing detention, obey military orders will not be placed in a worse position than those who are disobeying orders, and their cases also will go to the tribunal. I hope that the hon. Member will excuse me from going into the position of all the men mentioned in the question severally. They will be dealt with on the general lines I have stated, but the War Office is not in possession of information as to how each and all of them stand to-day. General instructions having been issued, it is not the duty of commands to report as to how individual cases are dealt with from day to day under these general instructions.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether a time-expired man in the Mechanical Transport Service who is over forty-one years of age can be compelled to enlist for another period?

If I understand correctly what kind of case the hon. Member has in view, the answer is in the negative.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he has invited attested married men in Groups 44 to 46 to offer themselves for special war-service work and, if so, how many and at what rate of pay; and whether, in confining his invitation to attested married men, he has considered the position of those unattested married men whose sole reason for not attesting was that in joining the Army they would expose their families to serious distress by reason of the impossibility of maintaining their families on the pay and separation allowance to which they would become entitled as soldiers?

Yes, Sir; about 1,200 men have been taken for special War Office work at rates of 8½ and 9½ d. per hour, and they have been selected from amongst the later married groups, which were selected as including the most suitable men. To have considered the men mentioned in the last part of the question would have involved an excessive amount of investigation and consideration of individual cases, if entirely equitable treatment were to be secured.

asked the Secretary of State for War (1) if he is now in a position to state why the Crowndale Road Medical Board passed A. G. Hopkins, of Charlotte Street, Islington, for general military service, notwithstanding the fact that he is suffering from consumption and is a patient at Mount Vernon Hospital, Hampstead; why, when he produced a certificate as to his state of health, his examination was postponed, although he was informed that the doctor who attended to consumptive cases had left; and (2) if he has now received a report with reference to the examination of W. H. Spong, of Highbury Hill, by the medical board sitting at Crowndale Road, who was passed by them for general military service, notwithstanding the fact that he has had a severe fracture of the skull which has been stitched up, that he has a fractured arm, and further that he is totally deaf in one ear; and will he state why, when the Islington Tribunal asked for a special examination of this man to be made and the medical board appointed the 30th June, at nine o'clock, for Spong to attend no further examination was made?

I cannot at present add anything to the answer I gave to the hon. Member on the 11th July about this question and the next.

asked the President of the Local Government Board whether the new Regulations relating to the calling up for military service of men who are, respectively, sole proprietors of their businesses are regarded as a sufficient reason for a rehearing of the cases of such men which were decided by the tribunals prior to the issue of the Regulations in instances where men have not actually been called to the Colours?

I do not think that tribunals need regard the new provision as necessarily constituting a ground for rehearing in such cases. Each application must be considered by the tribunal on its merits.

asked who are the members of the Committee now dealing with the enlistment of alien friends in the British Army?

The Committee to which I suppose my hon. Friend refers is an interdepartmental one for settling administrative arrangements. It is not usual to give the names of the members of such Committees which form part of the ordinary administration. The War Office, Home Office, and Local Government Board are represented, and a member of the Central Appeal Tribunal is chairman.

asked the President of the Local Government Board (1) on what principle the Military Service (Civil Liabilities) Committee deal with applications for relief; (2) whether applicants for relief under the Military Service (Civil Liabilities) Committee, who fail to secure the supplementary rent allowances from the local War Pensions Committee, can apply to the Military Service (Civil Liabilities) Committee again; and (3) whether, as applicants for relief from civil liabilities are in certain circumstances referred to the War Pensions Committee (Statutory), he will consider the possibility of defining a standard of income for the purpose of determining to which Committee applicants should apply?

The Military Service (Civil Liabilities) Committee deal with applications for assistance in accordance with the Regulations made by them and approved by the Treasury. The Regulations limit the grant of assistance to cases where serious hardship is involved by the necessity of meeting certain defined contractual liabilities. If the grant of a supplementary rent allowance is sufficient to remove the case from the category of serious hardship the applicant would be referred to the local War Pensions Committee. I think this is preferable to the reverse procedure suggested by my hon. Friend. The question of defining a standard of income for the purpose of determining to which Committee applicants should apply will be considered.

asked the Secretary of State for War how many German military officers and men have been taken prisoners by us; and how many of ours have been captured by the Germans?

I stated on the 18th July, in reply to the hon. Member for Bethnal Green, that the number of German combatant prisoners taken by His Majesty's forces was 21,535, of whom 458 are officers, but that those numbers did not include the prisoners reported as having been captured in the recent communiqué s of Sir D. Haig. The number of British officers and soldiers remaining in the hands of the Germans, after those repatriated, transferred to Switzerland, etc., have been deducted, is 25,350, of which 721 are officers.

asked the Secretary of State for War what decision has been arrived at with reference to bands, including pipe bands, of third line units of the Territorial Force?

It has been necessary to obtain further information from commands. No decision has yet been reached.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, in making provision for further hospital accommodation, he will devise some method of payment of architects and builders other than that which encourages them to squander public money?

I should naturally wish to avoid any such arrangement, and my hon. Friend must not understand me to admit that it has been adopted in the past.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he proposes to keep the House of Commons authoritatively informed as to the progress of the War in all its phases; and whether, with this object in view, he will at regular intervals make a full statement to the House and on occasion, when it is considered necessary, in Secret Session?

I hope to be able from time to time to make statements in the House as to the course of the campaign, but I should like to be allowed to consider further how and when this can best be done.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the approaching harvest, he will, as far as possible, subject to military necessities, arrange that as many farm hands as are wanted to get in the crops shall have special leave?

Instructions have already been issued that soldiers may be given what is called agricultural furlough on certain conditions. I will send my hon. Friend a copy of a pamphlet embodying the conditions. This pamphlet has been circulated widely both by commanding officers and also by the Board of Agriculture, but I fear that the demands of farmers for labour for the harvest cannot be fully met by the military labour which is available. Soldiers who are under orders for abroad, or are being trained for drafting abroad, can, of course, not be sent on agricultural furlough.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he has received statements forwarded by solicitors and others respecting the case of Mr. George Ewing, who was. killed, and Mr. Joseph Hayes, who was wounded, in North King Street on 29th April last; whether he is aware that there is an expressed desire on the part of their relatives and others that a public inquiry be held; and whether he will arrange to have such an inquiry held in connection with those two specific cases?

I have seen statements with reference to a Mr. Joseph Hayes and to a Mr. George Ennis. On the subject of an inquiry I can only refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister in answer to the hon. Member for Westmeath on 11th July, and to the hon. Member for East Mayo on 17th July.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, seeing that he has already fixed maximum prices for hay, clover hay, wheat and oat straw, and wool, which are the finished articles produced by farmers, he will take steps to fix maximum prices for artificial manures and for feeding-stuffs such as cakes, bran, sharps, meals, maize, etc., which are the raw materials used by farmers in such production?

I am afraid that I cannot see my way to adopt my hon. Friend's suggestion. The prices of the articles mentioned have not been left out of account in fixing the prices for the War Office supplies.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether his attention has been drawn to the persecution of one of the recent witnesses called before the Air Inquiry Committee; and if any steps have been taken to reassure one of these witnesses from the Royal Aircraft Factory, Mr. Valentine, that in spite of what has happened he has nothing more to fear as a result of the disparaging re- marks made in his hearing, and in the hearing of others, when he returned to the Committee room for his papers, by Colonel O'Gorman, director of the factory, to Captain Green, to the effect that he, the witness, was known to be an adventurer?

The hon. Member has probably not seen the full answer I gave about this case yesterday to the hon. Member for North Kensington. I can assure him that Mr. Valentine has nothing to fear on account of his having given evidence.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether, as the War Office itself set up the Air Committee to inquire into certain allegations made against the administration of the Air Services in this House, he will say if the recruiting officer concerned received an official or unofficial message from the War Office to issue a warrant for the arrest of one of the principal witnesses giving evidence before the Committee as an unattested man; and whether, as the hon. Member for East Herts had been medically examined and placed in a class for Home defence, he will give an assurance, so as to prevent any possible misunderstanding, that the question of issuing such a warrant at such a time was not intended in any way to prevent any evidence being given, but that it was purely a matter of indiscriminate routine?

I cannot find that any warrant for the arrest of the hon. Member for East Herts was ever issued or contemplated. He was called up automatically, and any suggestion that there was any departure from the usual procedure or that there was any interference of any sort or kind by superior authority in this case, is without foundation. As a fact, what took place was, as the hon. Member suggests, "a matter of indiscriminate routine." The House, and also the hon. Member for East Herts, will, I am sure, agree in desiring that no discrimination should be made in this matter in favour of Members of the House.

asked the Secretary of State for War what steps are being taken, if any, to grant leave to officers and men serving with the forces at Salonika, seeing that a number of them went to Salonika from France and have not received any leave since they left this country?

Full discretion has been given to the Commanders-in-Chief of the distant theatres of war to give leave to officers and men if and whenever they can see their way to spare them, but the circumstances are such and the distances so great that leave can, of course, only be granted in exceptional circumstances, and there can be no question, I think, of allowing a fixed percentage of the strength to be constantly away on leave.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he has any information that German prisoners taken in the recent operations in France have stated that they had been informed by the German military authorities that the British refused to take prisoners; and will he adopt the same means as taken by the Russians last year of distributing pamphlets by aeroplanes over the German lines stating that men who surrender are treated generously by this country?

No, Sir; there is no official information in the sense of the first part of this question. The proposal made in the last part of the question is primarily one for the consideration of the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, the British Armies in France, but his attention will be drawn to the matter.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether the War Office Order 1,186, of 13th June, 1916, relating to the disposal of soldiers whose discharge is applied for on account of being under age, is applicable to Canadian boys under age; and whether he is aware that his announcement on this matter was published in the Canadian papers, and that the parents of such boys living in Canada desire to know to whom application should be made for their sons to be treated in the same way as boys recruited in this country?

The age and terms of enlistment of Canadian soldiers are not settled by the Imperial Government, and the point raised in this question is entirely within the discretion of the Canadian military authorities. I am not aware that any announcement on this subject has been published in the Canadian Press.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether it is permissible for buyers and brokers of wool, commonly known as wool buyers, to purchase wool as formerly and store it in their wool-lofts pending delivery to the Government; whether it is proposed to set up market committees in Ireland to assist the Government in the purchase of wool; whether the farmers in each district will be represented on the committees; and whether he can now state definitely what price the Government propose to pay for wool?

The Central Advisory Committee for Ireland, which has been appointed in consultation with the Irish Department of Agriculture, is meeting in Dublin to-day, in order to complete the arrangements for handling the Irish clip. As soon as their deliberations are concluded, details of the scheme will be published. In the meantime, purchase of wool by wool merchants and brokers is prohibited. The maximum price to be paid for Irish wool will be 35 per cent. above the prices ruling in June and July, 1914. A list of fixed prices will be published in each district as soon as purchasing operations are started.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office whether, in view of the price which the farmers in the Overseas Dominions are obtaining for their wool, he will reconsider the price proposed to be paid to the farmers in this country for their 1916 wool crop?

The relative prices of Colonial and Home-grown wool were carefully considered before the price to be paid for the 1916 clip of wool was finally settled at 35 per cent. over the prices ruling in June and July, 1914. Although the different qualities of the wool are not strictly comparable there is no doubt that the farmer in this country has realised a higher price owing to the increase in freight from the Overseas Dominions. The price for Colonial wool ruling on the London market does not, therefore, represent the amount obtained by farmers in the Dominions.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office the result of his inquiries into the wages and conditions of service of the scrubbers and cleaners employed at the Tooting Military Hospital, and as to the fact that these women have suffered a reduction by transfer from the employment of the board of guardians?

No, Sir. I am still awaiting a report on the matter.

asked why men employed in the Government engineering works at Shoeburyness did not receive double pay for working on Whit-Monday and the King's birthday holidays, respectively, when other Departments received such extra pay?

Under the Regulations under which these men serve and in accordance with the statement made by the Prime Minister on the 12th July last, these men will receive a holiday in lieu at a later date.

asked the Secretary of State for War (1) whether, in view of the necessity for economy and of the approaching need for further hospital accommodation, he will consider the advisability of using suitable large Poor Law schools for this purpose; and (2) whether, in the interest of accommodation for wounded soldiers as well as in the interests of economy, he will ask the Local Government Board to appoint committees of women to find suitable homes in which the children now herded in the great Poor Law schools of London may be boarded out, in order that these institutions may be used as hospitals; and whether, in converting them to this use, he will appoint someone to supervise the necessary changes who knows how to extemporise without squandering public money?

My right hon. Friend, with whose Department mine has been in close touch in this matter from the first, has asked me to reply to these questions. A very large amount of Poor Law accommodation—amounting to some 40,000 beds—has already been placed at the disposal of the War Office for military hospital purposes. Schools are less suitable and less economical than other institutions for these purposes. In the circumstances, I see no advantatge in adopting the hon. and gallant Member's suggestion.

asked the Minister of Munitions if any contracts for Government supplies have been given to and are now being carried out by firms of German origin whose proprietors or directors are now limited to the 5-mile area?

I have no knowledge of any such case; certain firms of German origin whose work is necessary or useful to us are being dealt with by the Board of Trade in such a way as to get their control and management transferred to safe hands. If the hon. Member has any particular case in his mind and will furnish me with the necessary details I will have inquiries made.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether recently some men died and others collapsed through being overcrowded and through lack of proper arrangements when being sent by train from Karachi to Northern India; and, if so, if he will state how many men died and how many collapsed, and who was responsible for this unnecessary suffering and loss of life.

asked the Secretary of State for India whether his attention has been called to the fact that nine Territorials recently died from heat apoplexy, while thirty more were seriously ill, in one troop train in Sind; and whether he will give instructions for the maximum consideration to be shown to those units of the British Army who, under entirely novel conditions, are serving their country in India?

I will read the telegrams which I have received from the Viceroy on this subject. On the 15th June the Viceroy telegraphed as followsWe regret to report fifty cases with twelve deaths from heat stroke occurred amongst drafts ex hired transport 'Ballarat' on the railway journey between Karachi and Lahore, Troop train left Karachi 5th, June with thirteen officers and 1,013 men. On reaching Rohri thirty-two men were removed to Civil Hospital, Sukkur, suffering from heat stroke, of whom twelve died, and eighteen more cases occurred, before train reached Lahore. Train carried three medical officers, had two second class carnages fitted up as hospitals with fans and was provided with coffee shop and good supply of ice; no overcrowding, thirty men in four wheelers and sixty in bogies; normal carrying capacity for troops is thirty-six and seventy-two, respectively. Arrangements have been made to send to hill depots all men who have been suffering from the rail journey. Orders have been issued stopping all further movement of troops by rail from Karachi to Northern India. A complete report of the occurrence will be furnished at an early date. A further telegram, on the 19th June, added that the total number of heat stroke cases was 136, with fifteen deaths. All sick reported doing well. On the 15th July, in reply to a further inquiry, I received the following telegram: In reply to your inquiry, dated 11th July. Karachi was selected as the port of disembarkation as the majority of the drafts on board the 'Ballarat' were for units in the 4th, 1st, and 2nd Divisions, namely, Quetta, Peshawar, and Rawal Pindi. Drafts for the Lucknow and Mhow Divisions disembarked at a later date. To-day I have received a further telegram as follows: With reference to the inquiries in your telegram dated 14th July, the case is being investigated by a Senior Officer from Army Headquarters and a specially selected medical officer. They left for Karachi on the 7th instant with instructions to visit all stations along the line where fatalities occurred, collecting evidence and submitting a full report as soon as possible after their return to Simla about the 28th instant.

asked the Home Secretary whether, under the new lighting regulations, a bicycle must be furnished with lights when it is being pushed but not ridden?

I am advised that this is the effect of the present Orders. The question whether a relaxation can be allowed in the case of bicycles which are being wheeled will be considered when the Orders are revised.

asked the President of the Local Government Board whether he can give any comparative statistics of the number of able-bodied paupers in the various workhouses of the country and passing through them, as compared with 1914; and whether, if there is any considerable number of able-bodied inmates of both sexes or of persons who resort to the casual ward, he will consider recommending to the local authorities to give powers to the masters of the workhouses to find employment for these people in connection with farms and market gardens as a condition of relief during the War?

I have no very recent statistics on the subject, but, according to the information in my possession, there are practically no able-bodied paupers in the workhouses at the present time, and it is often difficult to find sufficient inmate labour to carry on the necessary work of the institution. Any men who are at all able to work would be found employment by the guardians.

asked the Secretary to the Local Government Board whether he is aware that Bombardier J. Mills, No. 63,118, V Battery, Royal Horse Artillery, now serving in France, lost his father on 14th June, 1915, leaving his mother, Mrs. Mills, of 66, Rochester Avenue, Rochester, a widow; that the son, on hearing of his father's death, allotted his mother 3s. 6d. a week, now increased to 7s., out of his pay, but the widow receives no separation allowance; that on the 12th May last the case was represented on her behalf to the War Pensions Statutory Committee and separation allowance asked for; that beyond a printed acknowledgment the Statutory Committee appear to have done nothing; and will he at once take steps to see that separation allowance, with arrears, be issued to Mrs. Mills?

The grant of a separation allowance in a case of the kind referred to is a matter for the War Office. It has not, I believe, been their practice to grant separation allowances in such cases, but they have been approached on the subject by the Statutory Committee, and they are giving consideration to it. As regards Mrs. Mills, the facts appear to be as stated in the question, except that her case has received attention from the Statuory Committee. They have been in communication respecting it with the Soldiers' and Sailors' Families Association, who, pending the taking up of their duties by the local committee, have been carrying on the work. They are informed that, in addition to the allotment of pay from her son, Mrs. Mills receives 7s. a week from her daughter, and that she does laundry work herself. She does not seem to be in need of help at the present time, but arrangements have been made by the Soldiers' and Sailors' Families Association for giving her assistance should the need for it arise.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that Henry M'Evoy, of Meelick, Mary-borough, Queen's County, has only been awarded a pension of 5s. a week in respect of his son, Private Joseph M'Evoy, No. 7849, Irish Guards, killed in action, although he has been in receipt of 12s. 6d. per week until recently; if he is aware that Private M'Evoy's mother and two young brothers were dependent on the deceased; if he is aware that deceased contributed 12s. per week in cash to the family and also supplied food, clothes, and extra money contributions; if he is aware that the family now have to depend on the 5s. a week pension; and whether, under the circumstances, a full adequate pension will be granted to the family?

This is the maximum admissible, since the father was not totally dependent on the soldier.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that owing to the omission of Private J. Downey, No. 9320, Irish Guards, to sign Army Form O 1838 his mother, who is totally dependent on him, was not granted a dependant's allowance; if he is aware that before his enlistment Downey allowed his mother 26s. per week out of his wages, and that she is now suffering from privation owing to the cutting away of this allowance and the non-granting of a dependant's allowance in lieu thereof; and whether, under the circumstances, he will consider the advisability of altering the Army Order to meet such cases as the foregoing and enable a dependant's allowance to be granted?

I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave to him on the 22nd June, to which I regret I am unable to add anything.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office whether L. M. Wilson, who was discharged from the Army last May, on account of varicose veins, has been refused a pension; whether he received from the hon. Member for Mansfield, last May, a certificate from the general manager of the Sherwood Colliery, Mansfield, that this man had worked for eight years at this colliery, that he had regularly attended his work, was a sober and steady workman, and that the only time he had been absent from his work owing to illness was for three and a half weeks owing to an injured thumb; whether he is aware that this man at the present time is a cripple; and why, therefore, is a pension refused, seeing that the man was employed doing heavy work in a mine prior to the time of his enlistment?

My hon. Friend will recollect that I have written letters to him about this soldier on 16th May and 13th July. His claim to pension has been considered by the Commissioners of Chelsea Hospital. The medical board which invalided him from the Army consisted of five medical officers. Its opinion, endorsed by the Director-General of Army Medical Service, is to the effect that Mr. Wilson's disability was neither caused nor aggravated by his service as a soldier. Special inquiry has been made from the regimental authorities and from Mr. Wilson's former commanding officer, and it appears that Mr. Wilson was employed on light duties and always worked indoors as office cleaner and in the dining-room, and that he was not subjected to any special hardship or strain. In these circumstances I am afraid that no disability pension is admissible.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office if he will arrange for the issue of a new regulation providing that all soldiers and sailors discharged from the Army and Navy on the ground of ill-health or disablement shall be entitled to continue to receive the amounts of their pay and separation allowances until the date on which the pension commences to be payable, or on which a pension is refused?

In order to meet the case of men whose pension is not assessed by the date of discharge, a special allowance of 10s. a week, or 20s. if the man has a wife or other dependants, has been introduced, payable weekly from the date of discharge. With this assistance to the men it is not considered necessary to continue pay and separation allowance as suggested. The Admiralty has a similar arrangement for sailors.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that Private Charles Bretts, who enlisted in Sligo, on the 13th of November, 1915, in the 10th Battalion Dublin Fusiliers, No. 25,114, made the usual allowance out of his pay to his mother, as she was depending on him; and that his mother, who lives at Sracrenan, Glencar, Sligo, has received no further allowance; and whether, as her son is now in Rathmines Hospital, Dublin, her claim will be considered and an allowance granted?

Inquiry will be made, and the hon. Member informed of the result in due course.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that Private Charles Bretts, who enlisted in Sligo, on the 13th of November, 1915, in the 10th Battalion Dublin Fusiliers, No. 25,114, made the usual allowance out of his pay to his mother, as she was depending on him; and that his mother, who lives at Sracrenan, Glencar, Sligo, has received no further allowance; and whether, as her son is now in Rathmines Hospital, Dublin, her claim will be considered and an allowance granted?

Inquiry will be made, and the hon. Member informed of the result in due course.

asked the Prime Minister whether the Government will take steps, or is taking steps, to ascertain the views of the chambers of commerce and of the business interests of the country on the resolutions adopted by the Economic Conference of the Allies in Paris?

The Prime Minister has asked me to answer this question. His Majesty's Government will always be glad to receive statements of the views of the commercial and industrial interests of the country on the resolutions of the Paris Economic Conference. These statements could most usefully be addressed either to the Committee which has just been appointed by the Prime Minister or, in so far as they relate to specific industries, to one or other of the Trade Committees which have been appointed by the Board of Trade.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether it is the practice of chambers of commerce in this country to admit members who are not British born; and whether, in view of the new economic conditions created by the War, he will ensure that confidential documents tending to the promotion of British trade do not fall into the hands of those whose commercial interests are bound up with other countries?

I understand that the answer to the first part of the question is in the affirmative. As regards the second part of the question I have no doubt that the chambers of commerce do all in their power to prevent the improper use of any confidential information supplied to them by the Board of Trade.

asked the President of the Board of Trade if he will appoint a private trader on the Food Prices Committee, more especially in view of the fact that the co-operative societies appear to be already represented by two of their leading supporters and workers?

I am afraid I can add nothing to the replies which I gave on 3rd July to questions asked on this subject by various hon. Members.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture if it is the intention of the Board of Agriculture to reconsider the recent Maintenance of Live Stock Orders, 1916, next month as regards calves?

Yes, Sir. The matter will receive special attention as soon as a preliminary tabulation and summary can be made of the returns of live stock which were made last month. I hope this will be before the end of this month.

askd the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture if there are 14,000 acres of vacant uncultivated land in and around London; is he aware that the Vacant Land Cultivation Society is prepared to secure its cultivation if assisted to possession by tenure of long or short leases, by the Government; and whether, seeing the good work in the same direction already accomplished by this society, he will put himself into communication with that body with a view to the productive use of land now derelict?

The Department have no particulars of the acreage of vacant land in and around London. The last report of the Vacant Land Cultivation Society shows that in 1915–16 it was able to deal with the cultivation of 37 acres, and in order to assist them to extend their work a Grant of £100 from the Development Fund has been made to them on the recommendation of the Board. The Government is not in a position to assist the society to possession in the manner suggested, but my Department will be glad to continue in communication with them and further-help them by any means in their power.

asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he will give any explanation of the case of Mr. D. C. Lewis, of Welikada, Colombo, who, after acquittal by the District Court of Colombo, was rearrested and compelled to purchase his release by giving a bond for the bond for the payment of Rs. 5,000 in five instalments of Rs. 1,000 each; whether he has seen the receipt for this bond, dated 10th August, 1915, signed by C. V. Brayne, Special Commissioner; by whom this Commissioner was appointed; whether he is now in the service of the Government of Ceylon; and what has been done with this and the other money obtained in the same way?

I have received no separate report on this case; but the system under which assessments were made by Special Commissioners is explained, and the names of the Commissioners are given on pages 32 and 33 of the correspondence presented to Parliament. Mr. Brayne is now in the service of the Government of Ceylon. All sums received under these assessments have been employed in the payment of compensation to the Mahomedan sufferers in the riots.