14. Captain HALLasked the President of the Board of Trade if steps will be taken to alter railway regulations which compel certain classes of goods to be conveyed in the railway's own wagons and thus enabling consignors of certain of these goods to make use of and convey them in their own private wagons?
§ The PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY to the BOARD of TRADE (Mr. G. Roberts)I do not think that any increased use of private wagons for traffic usually conveyed in railway companies' wagons is likely at the present time to be to the public advantage.
15. Captain HALLasked the President of the Board of Trade if, in view of the shortage of wagons on the railways, permission can now be given, as a war measure, for the use, subject to specification, of many hundreds of wagons without spring buffers, whose use was prohibited on the railways shortly before the War and which, since the commencement of railways until then had been in constant use on the railways without any large percentage of accidents?
§ Mr. ROBERTSI understand that the point raised by the hon. and gallant Gentleman has already received consideration, but that it is not considered desirable to allow the use of dead-buffered wagons.