§ MR. LYON PLAYFAIRasked the Secretary of State for War, Whether it is true that, on the last occasion, only eleven candidates offered to compete for the vacancies in the medical service of the British Army; how many vacancies there are to fill; and, whether it is true that the first of the eight successful candidates in the late competition had only 84 marks beyond the last of the twenty successful candidates in the competition for the Indian Medical Service?
MR. GATHORNE HARDY, in reply, said, that the first part of the Question was perfectly correct, as stated by the right hon. Gentleman. With regard to the second part, there were now no vacancies to fill, there being seven in excess of the numbers upon the establishment. It was also quite correct that the last successful competitor for the Indian service was only 84 marks behind the first in the competition for the British service; but he was instructed by the examiners to state that the gentlemen selected were all qualified for the posts they had to fill. Upon other examinations, the reverse had been the ease. The last candidate in the competition for the British service in 1873 had 2,318 marks against 2,195 of the first in the Indian competition. The numbers varied at times; but he admitted that they were generally to the advantage of the Indian competitions.