§ SIR GEORGE CAMPBELLI beg to ask the Secretary of State for War if it is true that, owing to the expense of the regiments of Life Guards, young men who have passed for the Army in the regular way cannot be got to accept commissions in those regiments; whether it is contemplated to get over the difficulty by giving commissions to inferior candidates, who have not passed an examination enabling them to enter other regiments; whether cavalry regiments generally have been obliged to accept the lowest passed candidates, who cannot get into other regiments; whether 1423 in those regiments promotion has been abnormally accelerated owing to young Officers being led into expenses greater than they can bear; and whether he will consider the propriety of taking steps, in concert with the Commander in Chief, to make those regiments less expensive rather than commit regiments which cost the Country so dear to inferior Officers?
§ * THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (Mr. E. STANHOPE,) Lincolnshire, HorncastleThere is no dearth of candidates for the Household Cavalry. It happened, however, recently that none of the nominees for these regiments qualified in the examination; and the vacancies which had occurred were then filled up by other properly qualified candidates. The qualification is the same for cavalry and infantry. It therefore becomes unnecessary to answer the two last questions.
§ SIR G. CAMPBELLWhat is meant by qualified candidates? Is it that the candidate has passed a competitive examination, or that he has passed a qualifying examination?
§ MR. E. STANHOPEThe candidate must pass a competitive examination.