§ Sir T. BRAMSDONasked the Secretary of State for War the approximately correct amount of money paid monthly to the Navy, Army, and Air Force institutes for rations, supplementary to those issued by the Government, supplied by the Navy, Army, and Air Force institutes to members of the Navy, Army, and Air Force serving in the United Kingdom, and the approximate tonnage represented by such money?
§ Sir L. WORTHINGTON-EVANSUnder the existing system a portion of the daily ration of the Army, including a fixed quantity of bacon, together with cheese, jam and margarine, or their equivalents, to a total value of 3.7d. a head is supplied to the troops by the Navy, Army and Air Force institutes and a further cash allowance amounting to 3½d. a head daily, granted to Commanding Officers for the provision of additional messing supplies such as milk, vegetables, etc., for the men of their units, is expended at the institutes under the same regulations as were in force during the "tenant" system. Having regard to the fact that while the Royal Air Force have adopted a similar procedure the messing of the Royal Navy is conducted on different principles from the above, to the fluctuation in feeding strengths owing to the movement of troops, reductions, etc., and to the great latitude permitted to commanding officers in the choice of commodities on which the cash allowance may be expended, any figures given as representing the total expenditure or the weight of the commodities purchased in any particular month would be entirely misleading.