§ Mr. JOYNSON-HICKSasked the Post master-General in what year the office of Engineer-in-Chief to the Post Office was created; what was the initial salary attached to the office; in what years and by what amounts the salary has been in creased; and the number of the staff and the value of the plant now under his control?
§ Mr. PEASEThe office was created in 1870 with the scale £1,000-£50-£1,200. The scale was reduced to £900-£50-£1,100 in 1878, and raised again in 1887 to £1,000-£50-£1,200. It now stands at that level, with the addition of the usual war bonus. The staff under the Engineer-in-Chief's control numbers 24,500, including 2,900 still on military service, and the value of the plant, as new, at pre-war costs is estimated at £42,000,000, excluding plant constructed for war purposes.