§ SIR HERBERT MAXWELLasked the Secretary of State for War, If he cannot mitigate the hardship inflicted on 903 Staff Paymasters, who are to be compulsorily retired on 30th September next, by allowing those whose period of five years' grace (secured by Royal Warrant of 22nd October 1877) expires in 1882, to complete that term of service, and thus, in some cases, to complete 25 years' service, and to become thereby entitled to a higher pension; whether he has considered the hardship suffered by those who were (in terms of Royal Warrant of 1st May 1878) gazetted "Staff Paymasters" (the highest rank then granted to officers of the Army Pay Department, all senior Paymasters who joined the Department being gazetted with that rank, according to seniority), and who were superseded by the establishment on 23rd December 1880 of the higher grade of "Chief Paymaster," to which junior officers were appointed; and, whether it is not in his power to grant to Staff Paymasters similar advantages of extra pension on compulsory retirement which is secured to Chief Paymasters by Paragraph 7, Clause 2, of Royal Warrant of 23rd December 1880?
§ MR. CHILDERSSir, the hon. Member is really a little unreasonable. On the 4th instant I answered a Question on this subject, put to me by the hon. and gallant Member for Maidstone (Captain Aylmer), and I said that I would look into it. I have every desire to mitigate any real grievance; but this is not a question of the New Warrant giving any officer less retired pay, but of pressure to obtain for certain officers larger boons than those granted in 1877. Considering that these matters involve careful discussion between Departments of the Government, it is really out of the question that, especially at a busy time of the year like this, they can be dealt with in a week. If the hon. Gentleman will repeat his Question some time hence, I will endeavour to give him an answer.