§ MR. HOYLE (Lancashire, S.E., Heywood)asked the Under Secretary of State for India, if his attention has been called to the fact that the Government contract in Madras, for the supply of goods to the Army Clothing Department for the year 1888–9, included the following items:—Cotton, grey, 36 inches wide, 35,778 yards; cotton, white, O R, 1,964 yards; braid, tubular, worsted, white, 10,219 yards; cord, royal, worsted, yellow, 6,167 yards; lace, worsted, scarlet, ½ inch, 7,000 yards; tape, stay, 29,333 yards; drill, Kakee (or dyed cottons), 350,000 yards; lace, worsted, white, ½ inch, 12,090 yards; tape, worsted, scarlet, Þ inch, 75,362 yards; serge, blue, 48,805 yards; serge, red, 33,299 yards; serge, scarlet, 1,806 yards; and, were the conditions of the contract such as to prohibit the manufactures of 1739 Lancashire and Yorkshire from competition; and, if so, on what principle did the Department obtain its supplies, of high quality, and on terms most economical for the Government?
§ THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE (Sir JOHN GORST) (Chatham)I can add nothing to the statement I made on this subject last week. The rule of the service is fair competition between articles of Indian and European manufacture, and the Secretary of State will see this rule effectively carried out. The Secretary of State has, as I stated last week, already taken steps to inquire into the allegations of the hon. Member with reference to the order of stores in Madras.