Sir ROBERT BORDEN (Prime Minister) moved:

That on and after Monday the 6th day of May next, until the end of the present session, the House shall meet at eleven o'clock in the morning of each day except Sundays, and that in addition to the usual intermission at six o'clock, p.m., there shall be also an intermission every day from one to three o'clock, p.m., and that on . .and after Saturday, the eleventh day of May next, and on eaclh Saturday thereafter until the end of the present session the House shall meet on (Saturdays and that the order of business shall be the same as on Fridays.

It has also been suggested. to me that' the following should be added, to which I at once assent if it meets with the view of the House:

-and that the various 'Committees of the House be at liberty to sit during the sessions of the House.

As far as the business to he proposed by the Government is concerned, it will all 'be on the Order Paper on Monday or in the Votes and Proceedings of that day.

I do not think that anything which has yet to he brought down can he regarded as other than of a minor character, and I do not think it will be controversial. There are certain reasons which make it highly desirable that ministers should be relieved from their duties in Parliament at no very distant date, and we have our choice between two alternatives: One is to ' work a little harder and get through within the next ten days or so, and the other is to have an adjournment and for the House to meet again during the summer. I am convinced that the vast majority of the members of the House would greatly prefer the first alternative, and personally I certainly should prefer that.

Sir WILFRID LAURIER:

The Prime Minister may rest assured that we on this side of the House have no objection to prorogation in time to allow the ministers to attend to the business that may call them elsewhere. I would observe, however, that there are a great many items which might be cut out of the sessional programme. We are engaged at the moment on the Budget debate; which is always important, and especially so on this occasion, in view of the circumstances with which we are confronted. The debate which has proceeded now for three days has been very interesting, and not a minute I think has been lost. The whole debate has been conducive to the public interests. There is also on the programme to-day the Inspection and Sale Act, which is important on account of the information it elicits; I suppose that Bill cannot be left over, but if we go on with it, it will take some time, though perhaps not very long. The Minister of Trade and Commerce has another Bill on the Order Paper for controlling exports and imports. I do not know exactly what it is, but it may lead to a very important discussion. Then there is the Civil Service Bill, which is largely technical, and will take one or two sittings to dispose of. The Consolidation of the Railway Act is also a very important and voluminous Bill, and if it is gone on with this session it will take a very long time. Perhaps the Government would let that stand over for another session. Then there is the Canadian Northern Railway Bill. I do not know exactly what it is, but it is important and will require a full explanation and a good deal of consideration. Then there are the

main estimates which, however, are largely advanced, and the supplementaries. So, on the whole, there is still a pretty big programme. I understand, however, why the Government wish to press for an early close of the session, and I can assure them that we on this side of the House shall do nothing except to facilitate business as much as we can.

The only suggestion I would make to the Prime Minister with reference to his motion is that he amend it so that we would commence morning sittings on Tuesday, the seventh o'f May, instead of on Monday. The reason T ask this, is that many members are absent and could not be notified in time for Monday morning's sitting.

Sir ROBERT BORDEN:

I shall certainly assent to that at once. With regard to the programme on the Order Paper, I shall go over it carefully to see what might be omitted. I hope we shall be able to pass the Railway Bill. It went through this House last session, but did not pass the Senate. This year it has passed the Senate, and if it should fail to pass this House, I am afraid the people of the country might reach the conclusion that we were only humbugging with it.

Mr. LEMTEUX:

It is a new House this session, and many of the new members would like to study this legislation-

Sir ROBERT BORDEN:

They would

have to studiy it, of course, but it was very carefully considered by a special committee of this House last session, and the Bill which has come down to us from the Senate is practically the same as when it left this House, with one or two exceptions. One of those exceptions, I think is rfi -sunre ';:>ipor:anc-e.

Mr. MURPHY:

The Bill lias been

amended in the Senate.

Sir ROBERT BORDEN:

There is one

amendment of considerable importance, but I do not think the others are of first-rate importance. I hope very much that we shall be able to pass the Bill this session. The Civil Service Bill is founded very much on the present Act, except for the addition of necessary provisions to bring the Outside Service under the rules which have heretofore prevailed with regard to the Inside Service. I hope it will not he controversial .and that it will not occupy a very long time. With respect to the Inspection and Sale Act I shall confer with the Minister of Trade and Commerce. I am informed from my hon. friend, the

Acting Minister of Finance (Mr. A. K. Maclean) that the resolution, item, 23 on the Order Paper, is of importance and he would like very much to have it advanced a stage to-day if that should be possible. There is nothing more to say at the moment about the other items. I therefore beg to move the motion as amended making the first morning sitting of the Houise on Tuesday next, instead of on Monday.

Motion as amended agreed to.

Mr. E. LAPOINTE (Kamouraska):

Mr. Speaker, I ask the hon, the Minister of Militia and Defence (Major-General Mew-burn) if the Order in Council affecting all unmarried men who- were twenty, twenty-one or twenty-two years of age at the time of their registration last fall applies equally to those who have since married after having obtained their exemption. The Order in Council refers to unmarried men without mentioning whether it applies only to those iwho' were actually unmarried or also to those who were unmarried on the 6th of July, 1917.

Major-General MEWBURN: The Military Service Act provides that every man who was married after the 6th of July, 1917, will 'be considered asi unmarried, and I think that still holds good in regard to this.

Hon. A. K. MACLEAN (Acting Minister of Finance) moved:

[DOT]

That order No. 13 be discharged and that Bill No. 62 to amend the Insurance Act, 1917, be referred to the committee on Banking and Commerce.

He said: It is desirable that this Bill be referred to the committee on Banking and Commerce, and I hope the House will accept this motion.