asked the Secretary of State for War why Captain W. W. Shore, who was appointed by the War Office superintendent of the Taunton Remount Depôt, and held that position from the 29th November, 1914, until the 15th September, 1915, on which date it was transferred from civilian to military control, has been paid no gratuity for that period of his service, in view of the fact that it is clearly and definitely laid down in War Office Circular 116. Remounts Depôts, 373 (Q.M.G.4), that he is entitled to receive it?

I will look into the question.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that the Army Pay Office, who entered into occupation of the national ordnance factory, New Basford, Nottingham, six months ago, are hampered in their work by the fact that quantities of machinery still remain in the building; and whether he will give instructions for the immediate removal of the machinery in order that the work of the Pay Office may be concentrated on these premises and other premises in Nottingham still in the occupation of the military may be freed for industrial purposes?

Representations have been made to the Ministry of Munitions with a view to the removal of the machinery in the New Basford factory, and when this is done it will be possible for the Pay Office to vacate other premises in Nottingham. I am informed that 560 out of 600 machines have been removed during the last two months, and I understand that it is expected that the remaining 40 machines will be cleared at a very early date.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he can state the intentions of the Government in regard to East Fortune air station?

I have been asked to reply to this question. This station is being closed down and as soon as the stores have been removed it will be handed over to the Disposal Board.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether the establishment motor vehicles for the use of the Army and Royal Air Force for peace purposes have yet been laid down; if so, can the number be stated; and what is the number of motor vehicles and motor cycles now in use by the Army and Royal Air Force in Great Britain, in France, and in the occupied area?

The number of mechanical transport vehicles for peace establishments of the Army has not yet been finally laid down, but it has been decided to retain 6,855 four-wheeled and 1,516 two-wheeled mechanical transport vehicles in all theatres (except India) during 1920–21. There are in all theatres (except India) 16,421 four-wheeled and 6,562 two-wheeled vehicles still borne on War Department charge, but it is impossible to state the actual number in use in the various theatres.

As regards the Air Force, the peace establishment of mechanical transport vehicles will be approximately 1,176 four-wheeled vehicles and 348 motor-cycles. The approximate numbers in use in the countries mentioned are:

asked the Secretary of State for War if he proposes to take any action to prevent Army bands and bandsmen, who are paid for out of the taxes, from accepting private engagements at summer resorts and other places, having regard to the fact that, while their playing is a side line for the Army bands, they are throwing civilian musicians out of employment at Eastbourne, Hastings, Bath, and other places, and that such civilians, many of whom are discharged and demobilised service men, draw unemployed pay from the State?

I would refer the hon. Member to my reply to his question on the 4th November last, in which I stated that it was not proposed to alter the existing Regulations. As regard individual bandsmen, the Regulations do not interfere with the spare time of a soldier.

asked the Secretary of State for War if, in view of his undertaking that Army bands would not be allowed to undersell civilian bands and musicians, he will give the substance of the Report he received from the Eastbourne borough accountant in reference to the employment of Army bands and state whether he made any inquiries from the musicians' trade union concerned; and if he will give a list of the various sums paid to the individual bandsmen, so that hon. Members may be in a position to judge and to express an opinion as to whether the Fair-Wages Clause of the Eastbourne Corporation has been violated by the employment of Army bands to the detriment of civilian musicians?

The report from the Eastbourne Borough Accountant disproves the suggestion that Army bands have been engaged at Eastbourne because they can be obtained more cheaply than civilian bands; the figures show that Army bands have been paid higher rates. I shall be pleased to show the hon. Member the report, should he care to see it.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether a cable was sent to Mesopotamia in May last ordering the demobilisation of Captain R. Gillespie Smith, Royal Army Medical Corps; and if so, why was the order not carried out, and can he state if this officer is still in Mesopotamia?

The answer to the first part of the hon. Member's question is in the negative. A cablegram was, however, sent to the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Mesopotamia, asking that Captain Gillespie Smith should be sent home as soon as his services could be spared. According to the latest information in the Department, he is still serving in Mesopotamia.

asked upon whose authority the figure of 11,000 men of the 32,000 troops at present in France are stated to be employed in handling, storage, movement, and guarding of surplus stores; whether, as far as the Disposals Board are concerned, 5,500 men are considered adequate; and of the remaining 21,000 troops, according to the War Office figures, how many are engaged in the work of graves registration, &c., find how many are engaged in the repatriation of railway material, road transport, &c., under War Office arrangements?

The figure of 11,000 men was given by the General Officer Commanding British troops in France and Flanders. A joint travelling Committee, on which the War Office and Ministry of Munitions are represented, are now at work verifying this figure. The second part of the question should be addressed to my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Munitions. As regards the last part, 15,000 men are employed on Graves Registration duties, and 770 men on the repatriation of railway wagons and other railway duties.

Can the right hon. Gentleman say when the paraphernalia of war between Calais and Lille will be disposed of?

That question should be addressed to the Ministry of Munitions, who are responsible for the Disposals Board.

asked whether the women telegraphists in the Queen Mary's Army Auxiliary Corps enlisted for the duration of war; whether he is aware that these conditions were precisely similar to those under which the men enlisted, and that members of the Voluntary Aid Detachment, nursing sisters, and Queen Mary's Army Auxiliary Corps' doctors received a retention bonus and gratuity on discharge; and whether, in these circumstances, he will explain the refusal to pay a retention bonus and gratuity on discharge to the women telegraphists who did such excellent service with the Queen Mary's Army Auxiliary Corps?

As regards the bonus, I must refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for West Bromwich on the 16th instant. As regards gratuity, no member of the Queen Mary's Army Auxiliary Corps is eligible for it.

asked the Secretary of State for War how soon the suspension of a soldier's right to purchase his discharge will be removed; and will he see that when this takes place, in cases where the time within which such claims should have been made has expired owing to this suspension, the soldier's right is not prejudiced thereby?

Purchase of discharge from the Army will be re-opened as from the 30th April, by which date the last conscript will have been released from the Army. The soldier's right to purchase his discharge under paragraph 392 (v) of the King's Regulations will not be prejudiced if he has given the requisite notice.

Could the right hon. Gentleman say whether the scale of charges is the same as pre-war?

Yes, Sir, unless any new notification is made on that separate point.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that British officers to the number of nearly 100 of the Labour Corps and from Siberia are detained at Shanghai unable to obtain passages to England before October next: that they are unable to obtain any pay at Shanghai, and that the detention allowances at the present rate of exchange are equal to only two dollars per day, while the lowest possible hotel accommodation in the British Concession costs seven dollars per day: whether he is aware that the likelihood of these officers becoming dependent on charity unless something is immediately done for them is considered by the British residents in Shanghai to be not only a hardship on the officers concerned, but a serious detriment to British prestige in China; and whether to meet the difficulty he will arrange for the officers in question to be moved to military quarters at Hong Kong, and authorise the local authorities to make advances at their discretion to these officers to meet their present needs?

This is the first intimation that the War Office has received of this matter. I will have enquiry made at once, and see what can be done.

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the telegram, copy of which I sent to the Secretary of State for War, has been received from an officer in His Majesty's Army holding high rank, who has been well-known as a prominent person in Shanghai for a great many years, and may be thoroughly depended upon?

I was not aware of the source of the cable, but the matter will be seen to immediately.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he can give any details as to the holding up of an Army motor lorry containing soldiers in Berkeley Road, Dublin, on the 12th February; and whether the soldiers were in possession of their rifles and ammunition at the time?

The motor van was conveying two officers and three men from Ship Street Barracks to Marlborough Barracks. The officers were members of a Court Martial and were returning from the trial. One of the men was in arrest and the other two composed the escort. None of the officers or men was armed. The officers were seated beside the driver, the three men being within the van. On arriving at the junction of Blessington Street and Nelson Street, a small hand truck, with long ladders and scaffold poles, was suddenly run across the street, blocking all traffic, and compelling the driver of the motor van to pull up. The van was immediately surrounded by 25 or 30 men all armed with revolvers, three of whom jumped on to the steps of the van pointing revolvers at the faces of the officers, whilst another man got into the van. The officers were told to stop in the car, but they got down and went to the back to see what was happening, and found the three soldiers surrounded by armed civilians. A shot was fired and a man, believed to be one of the assailants, fell to the ground. Both officers heard some of the civilians say, "He is not here," and they were then told they could go on. Both officers, who are men of proved courage, state definitely that they were not ordered to hold up their hands and that they did not do so.

May I ask the Secretary of State whether any orders are now being issued that when the military move about on escort or any other duty in Dublin they should be armed?

That was the con elusion that occurred to me on reading this account, but I have not sufficient knowledge of local conditions to form a final opinion. I have directed this morning that a letter should be written to the Irish command enquiring whether regulations to that effect should not immediately be issued because I entirely agree with the hon. and gallant Gentleman that insults to the King's uniform cannot be tolerated.

Was the escort armed with ball cartridge or merely with side arms?

They were not armed at all.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what regulations now control the issue of passports to Finland, Esthonia, Sweden or Denmark; whether the Passport Office ever declines to endorse passports to any of these countries; and for what reason?

Applications for passports are considered on their merits and passports are issued for the countries referred to in cases where a satisfactory reason for travelling is established and where it is not considered to be contrary to the public interest that they should be granted.

Before granting these passports are any guarantees extracted from the applicants that they will not proceed to Russia or any other country?

As I said in my answer, applications are considered on their merits, therefore each individual case is considered on its merits.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether any treaties or agreements were entered into between His Majesty's Government and the self-constituted governing body presided over by the late Admiral Koltchak; and what, in view of Admiral Koltchak's decease, is now the position of these agreements?

No treaties or agreements were entered into between His Majesty's Government and the Government of the late Admiral Koltchak, unless the hon. and gallant Member refers to the well-known exchange of notes which took place in May, 1919, which may be considered to have lapsed with the disappearance of the Government with whom they were exchanged.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs how many British subjects have remained in Odessa and district since its occupation by the Soviet army; how many of these have remained of their own free will; and whether arrangements were made for their evacuation before the arrival of the Soviet army?

The total number of British subjects who remained in Odessa was 43, and my information is that all stayed of their own free will. The answer to the last part of the question is in the affirmative.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs on what date the Government gave de facto recognition to the dependent republics of Georgia, Armenia (Eriwan), and Azerbidjian; whether, in accordance with such recognition, official representatives have been exchanged between this country and those republics; whether the boundaries of these, three States have been fixed provisionally; and will he have placed in the Tea Room of the House a map showing the provisional boundaries of these States?

Instructions were sent to the British Chief Commissioner for the Caucasus on January 10th to inform the Georgian and Azerbaijan Governments that the Allied Powers re presented on the Supreme Council had decided to grant de facto recognition to Georgia and Azerbaijan, but that this decision did not prejudge the question of their respective boundaries; a similar telegram regarding the Eriwan Republic of Armenia was sent on January 21st. There has been no change in representation as a result of this recognition; as before, His Majesty's Government have a British Chief Commissioner for the Caucasus with headquarters at Tiflis, and the three Republics have their accredited representatives in London. The boundaries of the three States have been provisionally fixed between themselves, but a great deal of territory is in dispute. A map will be placed in the Tea Boom showing approximately the provisional boundaries of the three Republics.

asked the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if an agreement has been arrived at with regard to the exchange of prisoners with Russia; if so, will he arrange for the agreement to be laid upon the Table of the House; if the agreement is in similar terms as regards the classes and numbers of British and Russian prisoners, respectively, to be exchanged; and if he will state whether it provides for the cost of the repatriation of Russian prisoners in neutral countries to be borne by Great Britain?

The reply to the first three parts of the hon. and gallant Member's question is in the affirmative. As regards the fourth, His Majesty's Government have undertaken to render every possible assistance so far as sea transport is concerned, if it should become necessary to do so for the repatriation of Russian Nationals who are at present either prisoners in, or unable to leave, various neutral countries, subject to the consent of those Governments.

asked on what grounds war gratuities, although granted to members of Queen Alexandra's Im- perial Military Nursing Service and to members of voluntary aid detachments serving in military hospitals, should be refused to members of the Military Massage Service, a corps of trained women performing services in hospitals in every way equivalent to those mentioned?

I cannot add anything to the reply which I gave to the hon. and gallant Member for Moss Side on the 12th instant.

asked the Financial Secretary to the War Office what outfit allowance and what gratuity has been granted to chaplains on the British establishment employed on service?

The amount of outfit allowance and gratuity varies according to the terms of service. The particulars are lengthy and, with the hon. and gallant Member's permission, I will circulate a statement in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

asked the Prime. Minister whether the case concerning the men of K Company, Royal Engineers, has been brought to his notice; whether he is aware that the Holt Parliamentary Committee reported unanimously in favour of the men being allowed to count the whole of their Government service for pension purposes; whether the Treasury have so far declined to carry this recommendation into effect; and whether, having regard to the hardship which is threatened to the men concerned, he will personally investigate the claim put forward on behalf of the men?

After the very fullest consideration it has been decided that this proposal cannot be accepted, and I can hold out no hope that the decision can be reversed. Service in K Company was military service, and the men of the company were in receipt of military pay and allowances. In these circumstances it cannot be admitted that the men have any equitable claim to reckon this service for civil pension, and it could not be so reckoned without further legislation. His Majesty's Government see strong objection in principle to reckoning military service for civil pension, which would confer on the ex-soldier who enters the Civil Service a benefit not enjoyed by his fellow soldiers who enter private employment, and they are not able to propose such legislation to this House.

asked the Prime Minister whether he will consider the position of the pre-war pensioners by increasing the pensions to these old soldiers and sailors who served in the Army and Navy previous to the last War, and whose pensions have not been increased notwithstanding the high cost of living?

I cannot add anything to what I said yesterday in reply to supplementary questions arising out of a question by my right hon. Friend the Member for West Fife.

Will the right hon. Gentleman consider the advisability of giving increased pensions to those people who are receiving pensions under £100 a year?

The Government, like everyone else, have great sympathy with these people, but it is all a question of what the taxpayer can afford to pay. Although the hardship is great it is not greater than that of many others in civil life.

Does the right hon. Gentleman not think that these men have done something to deserve the gratitude of the country, and that it is a shame, and great disadvantage to recruiting for the new Volunteer Army, that old soldiers should be left in a condition of absolute poverty?

I have already said that I do think it a great hardship, but it cannot affect recruiting, for there has certainly been no breach of any undertaking in regard to these men. The difficulty is that it is quite impossible to give increased pensions to one class, even soldiers, without extending it to the whole

If the right hon. Gentleman is approached by a sufficient number of Members of the House will he give a date for the discussion of the question of pre-War pensioners?

I do not think I can do that. There are many opportunities, and there have been many opportunities when this has been discussed.

Do not we owe exactly the same debt of gratitude to the old soldiers and sailors who fought in the Great War?

We all owe the same debt of gratitude to the civilians also, yet we have not tried to raise the rates of pensions of these classes.

Were not these pensions granted for services rendered in order that the pensioners might live properly in retirement, and, in view of the enormous increase in the cost of living and the depreciated value of the pension, cannot the Government take into consideration the whole of these pensions?

That is really more a matter for argument.

asked whether Germany has yet complied with the pro- visions of the Peace Treaty under which she is called upon immediately to reduce her Army to 200,000 and subsequently to 100,000; if not, will he state what is the number of men which it would at the present time be possible for Germany to equip and place in the field; what steps are being taken to enforce this important part of the treaty; and will he state whether under the treaty the Allies possess any and, if so, what powers of inspection of armament and munitions works in Germany to ensure that she shall not be in a position at any time to provide equipment in excess of that required for the reduced Army allowed by the treaty?

Under Article 163 of the Peace Treaty the German Army has to be reduced to 200,000 men by the 10th April, 1920. A gradual reduction to this figure is now in progress. There is no provision in the Peace Treaty calling for an immemediate reduction to 200,000 men. On the recommendation of Marshal Foch, the Supreme Council have decided and notified the German Government that the subsequent reduction to 100,000 men must be effected by the 10th July, 1920.

At the present time only the Regular Army (Reichswehr) of 250,000 men is completely equipped and in every way fit or ready to take the field. The reduction of the German Army is being supervised by the Military Inter-Allied Commission of Control, which entered upon its functions on the 10th January, 1920. The execution of the Air Clauses is being controlled simultaneously by the Aeronautical Inter-Allied Commission of Control. Ample powers are given to these Commissions in the Peace Treaty, Articles 203–210. Articles 204 to 208 provide for the inspection of all armament and munition works in Germany, and for the reduction of war material to the scale allowed by the Treaty. The manufacture of arms, munitions and war material, is dealt with in Article 168, the effective control if which is one of the duties of the Military Inter-Allied Commission of Control.

Under the circumstances, may the country feel satisfied that the arrangement entered into by the Peace Treaty for the reduction of the German Army and the compliance with other Sections of the Treaty, are being strictly adhered to, and that the Government will carefully look after the matter?

Broadly speaking, I think that is so. Of course, the whole subject has to be watched from day to day, and the Military Inter-Allied Commission, with Marshal Foch at the head, is far and away the best instrument that could be devised for watching the execution of the Treaty Clauses.

Can the hon. Gentleman say what steps are being taken to look after the small arms and artillery of the German Army as it is being demobilised, and will the fact be borne in mind that these are trained men, and that if these arms are available for them there is not much use in demobilising them?

I cannot, without full notice, answer questions of that detail in regard to a Treaty which is being administered under the Inter-Allied Commission; but I think the House would be justified in putting its confidence in the action of the Commission, which is presided over by the most distinguished soldier of the Allied Armies.

Are the Supreme Council taking special precautions against the secret building of war planes or parts of war planes?

I cannot answer that without notice, but I feel confident that the Inter-Allied Commission will safeguard the full execution of the Treaty. I am bound to say that we have not seen so far any recalcitrant disposition on the part of the German Government who are, in fact, carrying out a great many clauses which must be obnoxious to them to the best of their ability.

May we understand that the Government are taking particular care to see that the civilian forces, or forces of a civilian nature, are not being trained and banded together and provided with arms in order that they may, in the event of some remote emergency, be practically on all fours with trained soldiers?

Yes, those are matters which fall within the scope of the Commission's duties, and if the Commission does not deal adequately with them it will have been guilty of a great failure.

asked the Under-Secretary of State to the Air Ministry whether the Air Ministry are now employing women in any area to discharge the duties formerly carried out by the Women's Royal Air Force?

About 300 women are at present employed on work of a character similar to that formerly carried out by members of the Women's Royal Air Force. The employment of women is restricted to cases where, in view of the temporary nature of the work, the expense and delay of training male personnel to replace them is not considered justifiable.

Is it intended to continue the employment of these women in these posts; and, if so, for how long?

The shortness of time makes it of very little good to attempt to employ disabled soldiers, who would lose their work shortly after they had found it

asked the composition and size of the British Air Force Missions and units now in Poland; and what duties they are carrying out?

The answer to the first part of my hon. and gallant Friend's question is that there are no British Air Force Missions or units in Poland. The second part of the question, therefore, does not arise.

Are we to assume that there are no volunteers, either officers or men, serving in the Polish army?

The hon. Member can assume that the question is correctly answered. If he wishes to raise a different point, he had better put the question down.

asked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the diminished duties of the Ministry of Food, he will consider the possibility of attaching this section of his administration to some other Department, so as to lessen the number of Ministers and decrease the employment of a large and expensive staff?

As I stated yesterday, no decision has yet been taken on this matter.

asked the Secretary for Scotland whether funds have been provided to enable an exhaustive inquiry into the subject of an improvement in the methods of preserving fish, as suggested in the Thirty-seventh Annual Report of the Fishery Board for Scotland?

This matter, as well as others connected with the development of the fishing industry, is at present receiving consideration on the initiative of the Fishery Board for Scotland, by the Development Commission and the Treasury.

asked the Food Controller whether, in arranging for the distribution of sugar for jam making, consideration will be given to the requirements of women's institutes which are largely engaged in that industry, and who may now be said to represent the industrial women in the rural districts?

I have been asked to reply. The Sugar Commission allotted 50 tons of sugar last year to this Department for distribution to the Women's Institutes for jam-making, and I understand they propose making a similar allotment in the forthcoming season. The value of the work of the Women's Institutes is fully appreciated by the Ministry, and in view of the remarkable increase in the number of Institutes, it is hoped that it may be possible for the Sugar Commission to increase this allowance proportionately.

asked the Food Controller if he was aware of the discontent generally and specifically with local food control committees due to the very low-sugar ration, which they maintain is unnecessarily low if the supplies of sugar at present in ports and docks were dis- tributed; and what steps are being taken to get the stocks of sugar distributed so that the domestic ration can be increased?

The Food Controller is aware of the unpopularity of the diminished sugar ration, and regrets the necessity which led to its reduction. An increase will be effected as soon as circumstances permit. In gauging the extent to which stocks already in the United Kingdom may with safety be drawn upon for this purpose, regard must be paid to the prospects of supplies and requirements not only in the immediate future, but at later periods, since any lack of caution now might later on necessitate drastic reductions or forced purchases at abnormal prices.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture whether there is likely to be a shortage of potatoes prior to the 1920 crop being available for use; and whether, in view of the probable further shortage of the 1920 crop, he will consider the desirability of modifying the Wart Disease Order so that potato growers may plant King Edwards, Arran Chiefs, and Up-to-dates in clean and non-infected land in the coming season?

I have ascertained, in consultation with the Ministry of Food, that there probably will be a shortage of home-grown potatoes prior to the 1920 crop becoming available, but it is hoped to reduce the shortage as much as possible by importations from abroad. It is not possible at the present time to give any estimate of the 1920 crop which will depend on the acreage planted, and the weather conditions prevailing during the growing period. No alteration of the Wart Disease Order is contemplated which will affect in any way the varieties of potatoes planted during the coming season, but the Technical Advisers of the Ministry are giving careful consideration to the question of an alternative policy which may give certain concessions to the grower without endangering the further spread of the disease.

Is it not the fact that general indications show that there will be very much less acreage of potatoes planted this year?

I do not think we have got data at the present moment to come to that conclusion.

asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture whether he is aware that the Cantley Sugar Factory has now been acquired by an English company, and is being equipped with the most up-to-date machinery in readiness to deal with this year's crop; and whether he will draw the attention of farmers throughout East Anglia to the importance of this new-industry, so that at least 10,000 acres may this spring be sown with beet?

The Ministry have not received any information as to any change in the ownership or equipment, of the Cantley Sugar Factory. Perhaps my hon. and gallant Friend can supply me with the necessary information. With regard to the latter part of the question, the Ministry are anxious to encourage the growth of sugar beet, provided that they are satisfied that it can be successfully handled on commercial lines.

If the information which I shall send to the right hon. Gentleman convinces him that this factory is the most up-to-date in Europe, will he take practical steps to draw the attention of the farmers of East Anglia to the very great opportunity which is offered to them?

That would depend entirely on the nature of the information which my hon. Friend sends.

Would it not be possible to institute inquiries to ascertain?

Certainly; we propose to do so.