§ MR. COBBI beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether he will grant a Return, if moved for, of all the cases of non-commissioned officers and men who have been punished by reduction to the ranks, or otherwise, either for allowing card playing or gambling to take 1056 place, or for taking part therein with those of inferior rank to themselves?
§ *THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (Mr. E. STANHOPE,) Lincolnshire, HorncastleThe Return could only be given by calling upon every corps in the Service to search through all the defaulters' sheets for an indefinite period, and I hardly think the value of the information would justify the labour involved in its collection.
§ MR. COBBI omitted in the question to ask for a Return for three years only. May I ask whether these punishments would not be mainly by court-martial; and whether it would not be easy to obtain a Return of them for three years?
§ *MR. E. STANHOPEThat is a new proposition. I will consider it.
§ MR. COBBI beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether he will consult with the Commander-in-Chief as to the desirability of calling the special attention of officers in the Army to those of the regulations which relate to gambling, and of informing them that in future they will be strictly enforced?
§ *MR. E. STANHOPEThe regulations upon this subject are well understood in the Army, and are strictly enforced, and I therefore see no necessity for an order calling special attention to them.
§ MR. COBBMay I ask whether I was right in understanding the right hon. Gentleman to say last week that in the case of one officer of very high rank the regulations were not understood, and that this caused him to commit an error in judgment?
§ *MR. E. STANHOPEThe order in question relating to gambling has not, I believe, been broken in any respect.