§ 18. Sir WALTER de FRECEasked the Secretary of State for War whether, seeing that the Army Regulations provide that when the band of the Coldstream Guards is hired for public purposes the 2029 full complement of 35 performers should be sent, he will investigate the circumstances under which the band of the Coldstream Guards recently appeared at Norwich with only nine performers; and whether he will take steps to prevent such a reduction of numbers in future?
§ Sir L. WORTHINGTON-EVANSThe rule is that the band of a regiment must consist of at least 25 musicians if engaged for an outdoor performance and of at least 20 musicians for an indoor performance. But smaller combinations of musicians from the band are permitted to play provided that they are not described in such a way as to suggest that they represent the full regimental band. I understand that at Norwich, by an error for which the military authorities were not responsible, a description appeared in one advertisement which did not comply with this condition.