MR. POWELL-WILLIAMS (Birmingham, S.)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether the reductions which have taken place in the necessary expenses of officers have been such as to enable officers in all branches of the service to meet such expenses without recourse to their private means; and, if not, by how much the pay of officers still falls short of the necessary outlay incident to the rank which they hold in the several branches of the service to which they belong.
*MR. BRODRICKThe proposals connected with field kit, furniture, and the provision of chargers as laid down in Army Order 1 of 1903, will have the effect of considerably reducing the initial outlay for officers entering the Army. In the junior ranks, however, as in most other professions, it is not expected that it will be possible for officers to live entirely on their pay, although it is to be hoped that the amount of private means requisite for cavalry as well as for infantry will be reduced to very moderate sums.