He pointed out that no substantial change was being made in the air ship programme, and expressed the opinion that two new airships The Secretary for Air concluded by saying that efforts were being! made to expand air knowledge by. means of the following:
(2) By the creation of auxiliary! and special reserve squadrons near: the great industrial centres, which, in the base of London, Edinburgh' and Glasgow were developing satisfactorily.
(2) By bringing the air pio-gramme more closely into contact} with science, as was outwardly expressed by the two new squadrons: at Oxford and Cambridge, (3) By bringing aviation within each of the ordinary citizen, in which connexion already 1,000 mem. bers belonged to five light acroplane clubs.
As regards present. aeronautical problems, Sir Samuel remarked that as a result of the trials of the new auto-giro—"the flapper of the ai—machines were being built to test its possibilities for civil and military] purposes, Winding up the debate on the air fores in the House of Commons, Sir Samuel Hoare promised to communicate to the premier weighty arguments Yrom all parts of the House in favour of a centralized: ministry of Defence. In the meantime he hoped to foster the closest ce-operation between the three chiefs of staff, He frankly claimed that the British Air Force to-day was the most efficient in the world, flying twice the number of any others, not including France, which had) the Biggest air force in the The estimates were agreed upon without a division—Reuter.
Bankruptcy to be Declared Fraudulent: Five of Staff Arrested Antwerp, Feb. 25.
Four menibers of the staff of the Banque clu Credit Foncier, of Ant" werp, have been arrested in con nexion with suspension of payment by the bank. The deficit is estimated at' Frs. 80,000,000. The Bank, which 100 branches, proposes composition of 40 per cent. to creditors, Later. arrests connexion with the There have been two further
Banque clu Credit Foncier. One is alleged to be a fraudulent debtor for Frs, 32,000,000 and the other an employee of the Bank. The Tribunal of Commerce has rejected the bank's petition for composition and will declare Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.