§ THE EARL OF ELLENBOROUGHsaid, that before putting the Question of which he had given notice, he wished to say a few words, in order to make it intelligible. Their Lordships were aware that in 1858 the Government of India by Directors of the East India Company was abolished, and was transferred to the Government of Her Majesty in Council. During the government of the East India Company the Directors wore in practice of conferring about one-third of the cadetships in the Indian army on the sons of persons who had 490 served in India in a civil or military capacity. It was apprehended when the change took place in the Government that the cadetships would not be given to the sons of Indian servants in the same degree as formerly; and, to meet that contingency, a proviso was inserted in the Act providing that one-tenth of the military cadetships, other than those in the Artillery and the Engineers, should be given to the sons of persons who had served in India in the civil or military service, whether in the service of Her Majesty or of the East India Company. Last year, as their Lordships were aware, an Act was passed which put an end to the separate existence of a local European army in India. Persons who took an interest in the matter advised, while that Act was under discussion, that a proviso should be introduced into it continuing this advantage, and accordingly a proviso was introduced to the effect that the same or equal provision for the sons of persons who had served in India should be maintained in any scheme for the organization of the Indian army. That Act put an end altogether to the Indian army as a separate force, and it was, therefore, impossible to make the same provision for the appointments which had been secured to these persons by the Act. The words in the Act were the "same or equal" provision; but how "equal" provision was to be made he was at a loss to understand; and, therefore, the Question he had to put was, What Measures have been taken for the Purpose of carrying into effect the Provisions of the Act of the last Session, cap. 100, in favour of the Sons of Persons who have served in India?
EARL DE GREY AND RIPONsaid, he could assure the noble Earl that Her Majesty's Government fully intended to carry out the provisions of the Act of last Session, not in the letter only but in the spirit, but as at the present moment certain things in the general arrangements for admission to the army were in contemplation he could not do more than assure the noble Earl that when the new arrangements were made known—as they would be ere long—it would be found that the Government had taken means to provide amply for the claims of the persons to whom the noble Earl alluded.
§ THE EARL OF ELLENBOROUGHasked whether it was intended to admit those persons as Cadets in the Queen's army?