asked the Prime Minister whether His Majesty's Government has agreed to indemnify the Government of the United States against claims by British subjects against that Government in respect of the use by that Government during the War of British patents and other proprietary rights relating to aircraft; whether any reciprocal liability has been undertaken by the Government of the United States towards the British Government; and what is the estimated or ascertained measure of the financial liability of the British Government under this indemnity?

The British Government has accepted certain responsibilities and the American Government has given certain undertakings. The extent of the liability to be accepted by both Governments still forms the subject of consideration. The financial aspect of the matter cannot at present be gauged inasmuch as the responsibility of the respective Governments has not been clearly defined and the claims to be dealt with thereunder have not yet been investigated.

asked the Prime Minister whether British soldiers have been, or are being, employed at Danzig to unload goods for Poland; if so, why British soldiers are used to break a strike of dock labourers in Danzig; and whether these troops were sent to Danzig in connection with the plebiscite?

As I have already stated, the British troops are in Danzig to support the authority of the temporary Administrator pending the completion of the organisation of local forces and administration. I am informed that the British troops have assisted in unloading certain ships in the harbour carrying Polish stores, as it is considered desirable that the port should be kept open for the purpose.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether the Government has accurate figures of the total number of Irish soldiers dead in the War, and their respective religions?

No, Sir; Irish regiments did not contain Irishmen only, and many Irishmen enlisted in British regiments and corps.

asked the Secretary of State for War if he is aware that Private R. L. Evans, No. 91,959, Royal Welsh Fusiliers, was given furlough to work on his father's farm at Trawsfynydd, Merioneth, in September, 1919; that before the expiration of the furlough an application was formally made for an extension of leave and that no reply was received; that the soldier remained at Trawsfynydd till June last without hearing anything from the military authorities until an application was made for his discharge; that thereupon he was arrested, taken to Wrexham, and that he is now detained at Limerick; and whether, in view of the termination of the demobilisation period and having regard to the fact that, although the soldier's unit was in possession of his home address, no steps apparently were taken to post him as an absentee or to order him to rejoin, he will issue instructions for the soldier's immediate discharge from military service?

In view of all the circumstances of this case, the trial of Private Evans has been dispensed with, and he will be demobilised as soon as the necessary documents have been obtained and completed.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether he is aware that the credits due upon the estate of the late Private C. R. Skeels, No. 226,354, 2nd Battalion, Suffolk Regiment, killed in action on 30th August, 1918, have not yet been paid; and, in view of the fact that this soldier has left an orphan son, whether he will cause payment to be made to the next of kin, Mr. C. Skeels, 12, River Terrace, Wisbech, without further delay?

The amount due on the settlement of this soldier's accounts, namely, £5 7s. 3d., was issued in January, 1919, to Mrs. Neve, his mother-in-law (who had charge of his child and who was, and is still, receiving pension on the child's account), on an undertaking to devote the same to the benefit of the latter, and a sum of £15 10s. 0d. on account of War Gratuity was also paid to that lady on similar conditions in November, 1919.

asked the Secretary of State for War whether his attention has been drawn to the case of Mrs. R. Martin, Bow Brickhill, Bletchley, Bucks, whose son, Private F. C. Martin, No. 125,568, 8th Battalion, Machine Gun Corps, Gough Camp, Secunderabad, Central India, has been making her an allowance of 3s. 6d. per week from his pay, to which allowance the local pen- sions committee have been adding first 6s. 6d. and then 10s. per week; if he is aware that Mrs. Martin lost her husband in July, 1918; that she is entirely dependent on Private F. C. Martin and another son, Mr. G. W. Martin, who served for four years in the Army; and that she has now been informed that all this money has now been stopped; and if he will cause investigations to be made and the allowance to be restarted and so prevent Mrs. Martin from having to turn out to work or starve?

The allotment of 3s. 6d. per week is still being issued. The grant of 10s. per week was a supplementary grant paid by the Special Grants Committee. Any question relating to the discontinuance of such grants should be addressed to my right hon. Friend the Minister of Pensions.

asked the Undersecretary of State for the Colonies whether he is aware that James Stanley Baines contracted tuberculosis while serving as a sapper (regimental No. 255) in the Ceylon Engineers during the War; that he was discharged as medically unfit for further service and is still an invalid, and has been informed that he is not entitled to a pension; and the reasons for this decision and instruct the Ceylon Government to grant a pension?

Service in the Ceylon Engineers, which is not part of the permanent establishment, is not pensionable under the Ceylon law. As an act of grace the Ceylon Government granted Mr. Baines a gratuity of Rs. 500. An application from him for further assistance has been referred to the Ceylon Government.

asked the Minister of Pensions what provision has been made for the motherless children of men who lost their lives during the War; how many are at present inmates of workhouses in the United Kingdom; whether it is possible to have them placed in the care of relatives and others interested in them under the supervision of his Department; and what sum per head is payable to the workhouse authorities in respect of such children?

Where the father's death is due to service in the War, pension is issuable at the rate of 12s. a week for the first child, reducible where more than one child is maintained in the same household to 11s. for each child after the first. Additional grants can also be made for the benefit of those neglected children for whom I am responsible under Section 9 of the War Pensions (Administrative Provisions) Act, 1918. I have no information as to the number of motherless children who are inmates of workhouses, but the number must be very small, as, apart from those undergoing treatment in the infirmary, nearly all children in the care of Poor Law authorities are provided for outside the institutions. Some 510 children of men who lost their lives in the War (including children whose mothers are alive, but have been found unfit to have the care of them) have already been removed from the Poor Law authorities. As regards 205 other children, I have decided that it would be absolutely incompatible with their interests to remove them. There remain some 600 cases in which inquiries are not yet complete, but, wherever it can be done, these children will eventually be placed with private families, or, if for special reasons this is not possible, in institutions not under the Poor Law. It is not desirable to separate children of the same family, and it is not easy to find suitable homes for three or four brothers and sisters. The Poor Law authorities receive the pension issuable in respect of the children under their care, and in most cases where I have decided that it is in the interests of the children that they should remain the full cost of their maintenance is paid.

asked the Minister of Pensions when payments will be issued, under the award of pension and allowances, to George Gammond, late 7th Manchesters, of 40, Mawson Street, Ardwick Green, Manchester, such award having been finally passed on 8th July from regional headquarters, 13, Piccadilly, Manchester, to Awards Branch, Burton Court, Chelsea?

I am glad to say that payment of this award, and all arrears due, was authorised on the 29th instant.

asked the Minister of Pensions how many ex-service men are inmates of asylums in the United Kingdom; whether they are treated in the same manner as pauper lunatics; what is the cost to the country of such ex-service inmates; and whether it is possible to provide separate establishments wherein those who are suffering mental disability as a consequence of the War can receive the best possible treatment?

The number of disabled ex-service men, classified as service patients is about 5,000. As the charges for maintenance of these patients vary considerably in different parts of the country, it would entail more work than I feel justified in imposing on my staff to ascertain the total cost to the country. As regards the second and last part of the question, I would refer my hon. and gallant Friend to the reply which was given to the hon. Member for Frome (Mr. Hurd) on the 28th June last, of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that Mr. L. S. Brown, an employé of the Midland and Great Northern Railway Companies, at Tydd St. Giles Station, has received notice from the traffic manager at King's Lynn; that this man worked three years for the Company before enlistment and served two and a half years in the Army; that he is given an excellent character by the station master; and whether he will make representations to the Company that any reductions of staff should begin with the dismissal of temporary civilian workers, and not ex-service men?

I am making inquiries, and will let the hon. and gallant Gentleman know the result.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many years would be needed for the subscriptions to Treasury Bonds at the present rate of subscription to provide for the funding of the whole of the floating debt; and whether he contemplates proposing any further measures for funding it?

I do not suppose that anyone ever anticipated that the response to the Treasury Bond Issue would absorb the whole floating debt. The object of the issue was to make such moderate progress in that direction as might at the present moment be possible. I regret that larger amounts have not been forthcoming, but I cannot at present make any further announcement on funding.

asked the Minister of Labour whether his attention has been drawn to the information contained in Appendix 2 of the Balance Sheet 1920–21, issued by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 19th April, to the figure of £25,369,000, Expenditure of the Ministry of Labour; the details which account for this figure, showing separately the actual cost of the administration of the Ministry of Labour; the cost of civil demobilisation, out-of-work (soldiers) pay, training of soldiers and officers; and grants for reinstatement to civil life?

I assume my hon. and gallant Friend refers to the figures given in the footnote to page 5 of House of Commons Paper 70 of 1920. The details of the sum of £25,369,000 will be found in the Estimates for the Year (Civil Service Estimates, Class VII., Vote 7), but I will repeat them for my hon. Friend's convenience:—

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer the estimated number of men to be retained in the fighting forces of the Crown, the estimated cost of which in a normal year will be 135 millions (see Command Paper 779, of June, 1920); and the number, separately, in the Navy, Army, and Air Forces?

I would refer the hon. and gallant Member to the answer I gave on the 26th ultimo to the hon. Member for Louth (Mr. Wintringham), of which I am sending him a copy.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, considering the anxiety throughout the country, especially amongst the smaller taxpayers, of the necessity of retaining the local commissioners of the several districts, as they are the only people to which the taxpayer can appeal with any hope of securing equitable adjustments, it has yet been decided that these local commissioners be continued as heretofore?

There is no intention of disturbing the position of the local Commissioners as a body to whom the taxpayer may appeal for the purpose of obtaining adjustment of his liability.

asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury the names of the present trustees of the National Gallery and their Chairman?

The present trustees of the National Gallery are as follow:—

The Right Hon. the Marquess of Lansdowne, K.G., G.C.M.G., G.C.S.I., G.C.I.E. (Chairman).

J. P. Heseltine, Esq.

The Right Hon. Earl Brownlow.

The Right Hon. the Earl of Plymouth.

The Right Hon. the Lord Ribblesdale.

The Right Hon. the Lord D'Abernon, G.C.M.G.

The Right Hon. the Earl Curzon of Kedleston, K.G., G.C.S.I., G.C.I.E.

Robert H. Benson, Esq.

R. C. Witt, C.B.E.

The Right Hon. the Earl of Crawford and Balcarres.

asked the President of the Board of Trade what amounts had been paid by German and Austrian debtors to British firms, through the Clearing House for enemy debts, up to 15th July instant; whether claims for stocks of British firms sold by Germans or Austrians have been admitted; whether the value of those stocks is being left entirely to the German and Austrian authorities; and what safeguards to protect the interests of British creditors it is proposed to take in this matter?

As regards the first part of the question, no such amounts have yet been paid, but notice of the admission by Germany of British debts to the amount of nearly £200,000 has now been received, and these will be paid by the British Clearing Office during this month. An announcement will shortly be made as to the method of dealing with Austrian claims. In reply to the remainder of the question, accounts have now been received from Germany of the proceeds of a considerable number of sales, and upon their being credited through the Clearing Office in accordance with the Treaty, the amounts will be paid to the persons entitled, who will be able to make a claim before the mixed Arbitral Tribunal for compensation in so far as any damage suffered may be greater than the proceeds of sale.

asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will appoint a committee representative of the House of Commons, of the Association of Bankers, and of the Chambers of Commerce, and to act after 15th August, with a view to discovering means of speeding up the disbursements to British creditors by the enemy debts Clearing House and the Reparation Claims Department, which now employs 615 persons housed in ranges of offices in Stamford Street and the neighbouring thoroughfares; and whether he is aware that claims lodged at Stamford Street in January last were not sent to the German clearing house before, at earliest, 15th May owing to the British authorities having to await the convenience of the German authorities?

Payments can only be made after due compliance with the terms of the Treaty of Peace and there has been, and will be, no avoidable delay. I do not think a committee such as is suggested would be able to give any assistance in expediting matters. As regards the last part of the question, the German Clearing Office was established within the period stipulated by the Treaty, and the first batch of British claims was delivered in Berlin within a few days of that date.

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any and, if so, what advances have been made during the last three months by his Majesty's Government to the French Government or to the German Government, or to anybody on behalf of those Governments, on the security of promissory notes or otherwise; and whether during that period His Majesty's Government has agreed to make any advance to either of those Governments?

No such advances have been made in the last three months; but under the arrangements for carrying out the Treaty of Versailles made at Spa the Allied Governments will make advances to Germany for food purchases based on deliveries of coal. The British share of such advances is 24 per cent., and a Vote has been presented to the House for the necessary authority.

asked the President of the Board of Trade when the Special Commission will be appointed to consider ex-gratia payments to people who, uninsured, have suffered from air raids: and whether he will announce the method under which applications are to be submitted?

It is not proposed to appoint the Commission until sufficient payments on account of reparation have been allocated to the Exchequer of the United Kingdom over and above prior charges such as cost of Armies of Occupation. The method of applying for grants will be a matter for the Commission when appointed.

asked the President of the Board of Trade the quantity of Govern- ment wool that has been sold or allocated between 1st December, 1919, and 30th June, 1920, under the following heads: allocated sales, sales to Allies, auction sales, sales through brokers, and otherwise disposed of?

I have been asked to answer this question. The quantity of wool that has been sold or allocated between 1st December, 1919, and 30th June, 1920, is as follows:—

asked the Minister of Transport whether, in connection with recurring railway collisions, any consideration is given to the fact that in many places the signals are not placed to the best advantage; and whether careful inquiry will be instituted as to the extent to which the collisions occurring on railways are attributable to the bad position of the signals?

At all inquiries into railway collisions conducted by the inspection staff of the Ministry full consideration is given to the situation and height of the signals and to the bearing of such conditions upon the case. Recommendations for the improvement of these conditions have frequently been made to and adopted by railway companies.

asked the Minister of Transport whether, in view of the additional charges in prospect for railway users, he will cause rigid economy in, personnel to be enforced by the railway companies; and whether he is aware of the prevalent opinion among railway users that railway stations are largely overstaffed?

I am not aware that the opinion that railway stations are largely overstaffed is prevalent among railway users, but if the hon. and gallant Member will furnish me with particulars of specific cases of overstaffing, I shall be glad to have inquiry made. I have no reason to doubt that the companies are conscientiously making all economies in staff which they can detect.

asked the Minister of Transport whether, in view of the desirability of lessening the additional charges to be borne by railway users, he proposes to take any steps to expedite the carrying into effect of his scheme for railway co-ordination; what is the earliest date at which the scheme can become effective; and what estimated saving will be effected thereby?

The scheme referred to will necessitate fresh legislation, and the present state of affairs, which is the result of the guarantee of net receipts given by the Government to the railways in 1914 and extended in 1916 to two years after the War, comes to an end on 15th August next year. The details of the scheme are still under consideration, and until these are settled no useful estimate of the prospective savings can he compiled.

asked the Minister of Transport how workmen's tickets will be affected under the coming increase of railway rates; whether there will be simply a pro rata increase in the amounts now charged or whether they will be assessed on an entirely different basis from that now existing; and whether, in the latter case, he will consider representations on the subject before changes are made?

I would refer the hon. Member to the Report of the Railway Rates Advisory Committee and to the statements recently made in the House on the subject.

asked the Minister of Transport whether, in assessing the increased revenue necessary to pay the same dividends as were paid before the War, the railway companies are taking into consideration the identical capital issues upon which these pre-War dividends were paid; and whether any variation is, in view of the diminished purchasing power of money, being made in the amount of such dividends?

The guarantee given to the railway companies in 1914 and extended in 1916, to two years after the War, is for net receipts, and therefore the question of dividend does not arise.

asked the Minister of Transport whether he will publish the figures of the financial position of the railways relating to the current year upon which the decision to raise passenger rates has been based?

I would refer the hon. Member to Command Paper 815, which contains the information asked for.

asked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he is aware that the Irish prison warders have not yet received any notification of the recent award of the National Whitley Council as granted to all branches of the Civil Service; if these officials are entitled to this award; and, if so, when payment is to be made?

The reply to the first part of the question is in the affirmative and to the second part in the negative. The question of the future scales of pay of Irish prison officers is at present under consideration it having been decided to assimilate the scales to those at present in force in the case of prison officers in England.

asked the Minister of Health whether the number of Housing Commissioners for Wales has been increased from one to two; and, if so, what extra cost the new arrangement involves and upon what grounds he considers the division of Wales into two regions advisable?

In view of the magnitude of the housing problem in Wales and the difficulties of communication, I am satisfied that the establishment of a separate office, and the appointment of a second Commissioner for North Wales is necessary for efficiency. The additional cost is £983.

asked the First Commissioner of Works whether his Department is undertaking or contemplating the erection of houses in Barrow-in-Furness; and, if so, whether he will give details of his plans?

My Department has undertaken the completion of a scheme commenced some time ago by the Ministry of Munitions for the erection of 250 houses on the Abbotsmead Estate at Barrow-in-Furness.

asked the Minister of Health whether the appointment of a clerk to the Erpingham Board of Guardians has now been made; and, if so, whether it was effected with his sanction?

Yes, Sir.

asked the President of the Board of Education how many teachers (secondary schools) have received superannuation allowances and annuities during the year ended the 31st March, 1920, together with the age of the teacher, the length of teaching service, and the amount of superannuation allowance and annuity?

The figures would have to be specially extracted, and I doubt whether they would be of such usefulness as to justify the expenditure of the considerable time and labour which, would be involved.