That is not the point specifically raised. It is a point in regard to the wife. On that point she may become eligible, in the event of illness being aggravated by subsequent service. Another point is that of the seven years: The Liverpool Memorandum suggests an amendment of the Warrant, and apparently this amendment would take the form of the removal of the time limit of seven rears altogether from Article 11. The seven years' time limit is a provision of old standing in the Pension Warrant before the days of the Ministry, and was adopted for two very good reasons, namely:

1. (a) That the grant of compensation at the special rate of one-half (or in some cases two-thirds) of the maximum rate of the man's disablement pension, which is now given by Article 11 of the Warrant, was intended only for those cases in which the death of the officer or man either occurred in action, or within such a limit of time in cases of disease, as made it pretty clear that the death had resulted directly from the officer's or man's service; and
2. (b) because, with the lapse of time from the man's discharge from service, it becomes increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to disentangle the other conditions of his civil life, work and personal habits, from the effects of the disability in bringing about death.

The original time limit was two years, and this was later extended to seven years. That answers to some extent the point made in the Liverpool Memorandum that owing to the greater resources of medical science the man may live longer. The time limit was extended to seven years in order to allow the fullest margin of time within which the man's death could really be certified to be due to his service. We are assured by our medical advisers that in very rare eases earl it be said, after the seven year period, with any degree of accuracy, that the death is wholly duo to, service. To do away with the time limit of seven years, in Article 11, altogether would mean that widows of men who have themselves never claimed a pension during their lifetime would be able to claim a pension under Article 11, although the death might have occurred 10 or 20 years after the discharge from service. Moreover, it would mean giving pensions to widows of men who had merely developed some complaint during service which had nothing whatever to do with their service, when the men themselves were not entitled to pension during their lifetime. Finally, the proposal would mean a very large, steadily increasing addition amounting to many millions to the annual cost of widows pensions not justified by any real connection with the War. The eases which the Liverpool Memorandum has in view are already dealt with by way of pension under Article 17 of the Warrant, but that Article in its present form does not in our opinion deal satisfactorily with some of the cases which merit special consideration. We have been working at this steadily, and it is a much more difficult problem than it would appear to those who have not gone carefully into the question, because we want to relieve those who are most deserving, and not to open the door so wide as to admit men who have no claim against the State.