§ 53. Mr. MORISONasked the Under-Secretary of State for War whether, while the various Volunteer training corps are mainly composed of men over the military age, there are a considerable number of members enrolled under that age, who are married, who hold responsible positions in business from which they could ill be spared, and that amongst these men there is a very considerable amount of doubt, regarding clause 7 of the Army Council's letter to Lord Desborough, as to the actual liabilities incurred in their signing the form agreeing to the conditions contained in that letter; whether he is aware that, unless some official definition of clause 7 be given, a large number of these men will not feel themselves able to sign and their services will thus be lost; and whether the Government will give an official interpretation of the meaning of the word "recruit" in paragraph 7 and of the phrase in the same paragraph—"whose presence in the corps is not accounted for by some good and sufficient reason"?
§ Mr. TENNANTI understand the facts to be as stated in the earlier part of the hon. Member's question, but whether many men of military age have withdrawn from the corps from doubt as to the meaning of clause 7 of the letter referred to or in consequence of their appreciation of the conditions of membership, I am unable to say. The term "recruit" in clause 7 means the enlistment of a member after having been called on by the recruiting officers to serve in the Army in accordance with the obligation which he undertook when joining the corps. No precise definition can be given of the phrase "good and sufficint reason" in clause 7. Each case must be judged on its merits.