§ MR. DARBY GRIFFITHasked the Secretary to the Treasury if he was will- 1258 ing to furnish the names of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury who were personally present at the meetings of the Board at which the Treasury "Minutes of the following dates were adopted, and who gave orders for their transmission to the authorities of the War Office as answers to their communications:—Treasury Minute of the 21st day of June, 1858, and Treasury Minute of the 21st day of January, 1859; and the dates of the meetings of the Treasury Board, and the names of the Lords Commissioners who were present who gave orders for the transmission of the following letters from the Treasury to the War Office: letter, dated Treasury Chambers, the 24th day of December, 1859, signed S. Laing; and letter, dated Treasury Chambers, the 31st day of January, 1860, signed Geo. A. Hamilton.
§ MR. LAINGsaid, it was impossible for him to give a literal reply to the question put by the hon. Member, because in the course of the business of the Treasury records were not kept of the names of the Members of the Board who might be personally present on each occasion. Even if such records were kept, he doubted whether it would be consistent with his duty to disclose them. He could state, however, that where a letter went out in the usual official form, signed by either the Secretary or Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, in the name of the Lords Commissioners, the entire body were responsible for it.
§ Motion agreed to.