§ MR. COBBI beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether he will grant a Return, if moved for, of all non-commissioned officers who have during the last three years been punished either for allowing gambling or card playing to take place or for participating in it; whether he is aware that, among other cases, a non-commissioned officer named Duckworth, now a sergeant in the Ordnance Store Corps, was reduced in rank for permitting gambling in the barrack room at Bermuda, and Sergeant Baskett, now canteen sergeant in the Ordnance Store Corps, was also punished for permitting gambling in the mess at Aldershot, and a raid was made upon the mess premises and several non commissioned officers were arrested and tried; and whether such a Return could be obtained from the sheets of Courts Martial and regimental and company defaulters?
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (Mr. E. STANHOPE,) Lincolnshire, HorncastleA Return of minor punishments could only be given by throwing great labour on all regiments. A Return of punishments by sentence of Courts Martial could, of course, be given; but 1584 it would be unfair to give the names, and, on the whole, I think that no object would be served by giving it. The cases referred to by the hon. Member do not appear to have been reported to headquarters.
§ MR. COBBWill the right hon. Gentleman, without giving the names, give a Return of the number and dates of Courts Martial with the nature of the offence?
§ MR. E. STANHOPENo, Sir; I do not think that any object would be served by so doing.
§ MR. SUMMERS (Huddersfield)Will the right hon. Gentleman give roughly the number of cases?
§ MR. E. STANHOPEThat could be done only by most exhaustive inquiries in connection with every regiment.
§ MR. COBBWill the right hon. Gentleman give the number of Courts Martial for offences of this kind?
§ MR. E. STANHOPEI will consider whether that is possible. It may be.