§ 66. Sir C. KINLOCH-COOKEasked the Under-Secretary of State for War when 372 it was decided to make recruiting general for the Public School battalions; whether in some regiments the commanding officer promised the original members of his battalion to obtain commissions for them if they so desired; that this promise has not in all cases been fulfilled, and in other cases only fulfilled on condition that the applicants first procured recruits to take their place in the battalion; and whether he can make any statement on the subject?
§ Mr. TENNANTThe action referred to in the first part of the question was taken at the end of April. I am not aware of any promises which may have been made by the officers commanding these units, nor of the extent to which, if made, they have or have not been fulfilled. I do not think the practice of requiring a soldier to obtain recruits as a condition of a recommendation for commission being given is desirable, and it has been stopped where it has been known to exist.