§ MR. KNATCHBULL-HUGESSENasked the First Lord of the Admiralty, Whether, after consulting with his colleagues as promised, he has been able to make any, and, if so, what improvement in the pensions and pay of the sergeant majors, staff and other sergeants of the Royal Marines, so as to place them upon an equality with those who hold similar rank in the Army; whether he will take into consideration the propriety of extending to the Royal Marines the advantages of the Warrant rank recently given to the Army; and, inasmuch as sergeants of the Royal Marines are called upon to provide drill instruction for Militia Regiments, whether he will take steps to throw open to them the appointment of Militia quartermaster?
§ MR. W. H. SMITHSir, the question of assimilating the pensions of the non-commissioned officers of Marines to those of the Army is still under the consideration of Her Majesty's Government; but I am unable to say whether it will be possible to communicate to the House before the end of the Session the result arrived at. With regard to pay, and to the question of placing the Marines on an equality with the Army, I can only say that the two Services differ on very many points in regard to which the advantages are by no means wholly with the Army; that it is not intended to apply to the Marines the same rank and pay that may, from time to time, be given to the Army, as it is not possible to place them on precisely similar conditions of service. The latter part of the right hon. Gentleman's Question is a matter for the War Department.