§ MR. PICKERSGILL (Bethnal Green, S. W.)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury whether any decision has been arrived at with reference to the memorial forwarded by the established messengers of the Customs last year for an amelioration of their condition; whether the messengers, upon their promotion to the first class, receive no increment for twelve months, although they may have been at the maximum salary of the second class for over 12 years; and if so, will he remedy the grievance complained of; whether one messenger has obtained a separate appointment as doorkeeper to the Board of Customs, and has been taken off the class of messengers and given increased pay, thus reducing the number of first class messengers to 16, instead of 17 (in accordance with the Treasury Order); whether another messenger has been called upon to give (whenever required) an additional hour's attendance after 4 p.m. without remuneration, although hitherto the messengers of the Customs have always received the payment of 8d. per hour for overtime after 4 p.m.; and whether the last vacancy occurred as far back as January 1890; and if so, will the appointment thereto be antedated to that time?
§ THE SECRETARY TO THE TREASURY (Mr. JACKSON, Leeds, N.)No decision has yet been arrived at in regard to the memorial of the established messengers of the Customs, new points, having been raised by the memorialists last month, but the Report of the Board of Customs on the whole subject is now before the Treasury. No increment is received by the messengers upon promotion to the first class until after one year from promotion; the practice is well known and constitutes no grievance. There have been no doorkeepers since 1882.