there were several other points which were inquired into-one was the condition of the old adjutants-that is, officers appointed previous to the new system, under which Volunteer adjutants are officers on full pay of the Army. These officers had a grievance, and those grievances were fully inquired into and investigated. I will not detain your Lordships with further detail; all further information will be found in the Papers which are laid on the Table of your Lordships' House. There was one point in regard to the medical officers, and the formation of a new medical department, on which the Committee have made certain recommendations. I will conclude by saying that it is only right that the Committee should bear their willing testimony to the general sound and efficient condition in which they found the Volunteers. It is a Force which has increased from year to year, and has always answered cheerfully every call made upon it. Some of the proposals of the Committee involve an expenditure of public money; and therefore, of course, these proposals will have to be discussed in "another place" before they can be looked upon as finally agreed to. In conclusion, I wish to remark that the recommendations of this Committee have been approved in principle by my right hon. and gallant Friend the Secretary of State for War, who, however, wishes to reserve to himself, as regards the details, a wide liberty of action if it should be necessary to exercise it. Within the limits I have mentioned he has generally approved of the principle of the recommendations of the

are subjected during a period of some
days to military regulation; they are
under what practically amounts to mili-
tary law; in fact, they perform all the
duties of soldiers in camp, and learn to
do soldiers' work. They are on the spot,
and are available for drill at any time,
and there is a sort of military atmo-
sphere about the whole proceeding which
is extremely essential to their military
well-being; and, therefore, taking all
these matters into consideration, the
Committee are of opinion that if any
additional amount was to be given to
the Volunteers it ought to be given in
the way of encouraging camps among
them. The Committee have therefore
recommended that view to the Govern-
ment-subject, of course, to what may be
done in the matter in "another place
when the Estimates are presented; and
I think I may say that my right hon. and
gallant Friend the Secretary of State for
War is prepared to recommend the adop-
tino of the proposal of the Committee in
that respect. The proposal is that for every
man going into camp 28. a-day shall be
allowed, besides certain small travelling
allowances. What the aggregate cost
of this proposal will be it is impossible
to tell until it actually comes into opera-
tion; for we cannot tell how many men
will take advantage of the concession,
and of what size and what number the
camps will be. It is, however, a very
substantial addition to the present al-
lowance of the Volunteers in camp; and
I have reason to believe, by the expe-
rience we have gained in the sittings of
the Committee, that it will be a very
satisfactory one to the Volunteers them-
selves. There were two other items-Committee.

namely, "bands" and "interest on
loans." With regard to the first subject,
we thought it impossible directly to sanc-
tion bands, which are not recognized in
any of the other Auxiliary Forces. But
it is proposed to excuse bandsmen from
musketry drill, which I believe will give
considerable facility to the formation of
bands. With regard to the interest on
loans, under the new arrangement by
which the uniform will be paid for out
of the Capitation Grant, it is anticipated
that the necessity for borrowing money
for clothes will disappear, and conse-
quently the "interest on loans" will
disappear with it. I will not weary
your Lordships by recapitulating all the
recommendations of the Committee;

I have now only to apologize to your Lordships for having detained you so long, and to thank you for the patient and courteous hearing which you have given me.

VISCOUNT CARDWELL said, he had listened with great pleasure to the greater part of the statement just made by the noble Viscount, and during almost the whole of it he thought he could agree with everything that had been said. In his concluding remarks, however, the House was told by the noble Viscount that the Secretary of State reserved to himself perfect latitude in regard both to principles and details; and, if that were the case, he did not understand what had been the use or advantage of making the statement at all. He

noble Viscount what the Report was, he agreed with all the other recommendations of it; and he trusted that whoever might live another 20 years would see as favourable a result from their proposals as they now saw from those adopted 20 years ago from the Circular of General Peel.

EARL COWPER quite concurred with the noble Viscount that it would be a mistake to fix a limit to the numbers of the Volunteers. They had gone on steadily increasing, and it would be a damper now to tell the Force that no more of it was wanted-for that would be the practical effect of the recom

did not see that their Lordships had much to thank the Government for; for all the questions that had been glanced at were questions exclusively for the other House of Parliament, which alone had jurisdiction in matters of finance. He understood, however, that, in so far as they had any power, their opinions would be asked. He would assume that the Committee had very carefully considered the question-that their recommendations would be communicated to their Lordships, and the grounds on which they were made; and, assuming that the opinions of their Lordships were to have some force, he was happy to agree with almost every-mendation. He regretted that it was thing that the Committee appeared to decided the Volunteers should go into have approved. As regarded the Force scarlet. They had worn gray for 20 years, itself, he was happy to say that, in pro- and had become attached to it; and, at portion as the Volunteers had had de- the same time, it should be rememmands made upon them, they had most bered that the Regulars might not be cheerfully responded. He had said well pleased to see the Volunteers premore than once, in "another place," that senting themselves in the professional when Englishmen undertook a duty colours of regularly trained soldiers. they wished it to be a reality; that the Moreover, there were many men who Volunteers did not want to play at looked very well in gray who would not soldiers; and that to make their service look well set up in scarlet. He was of substantial would be, not to diminish opinion it would be better to proceed the inducement, but to increase it. cautiously in the consolidation of adThey were a growing Force, and one of ministrative battalions. Some of them which the country had reason to be were composed of companies very far proud. He rejoiced extremely that the apart, and the internal arrangements, noble Viscount was proceeding on the particularly the finances, were better lines of the localization system which managed by the captain on the spot he found before him. He did not than by the colonel at a distance. He think that a limit should be fixed to was sorry to hear there was to be no the Establishment of the Volunteers. increase in the grant, as officers at preWhat would have happened if they sent had to be chosen for their pecuniary had placed a limit to the number of rather than for their military qualificaof the Force 20 years ago? It was still tions; but he was pleased that the a growing institution, and it would be position of Volunteers as a part of the wise not to place a limit. He could not defensive Force of the country was now avoid referring to the death of General regularly recognized, not only by the Peel, of which they had just heard, of public, but by the Government. which he might, in some sense, be considered the originator. Twenty years ago, General Peel wrote to the bench of magistrates, of which he (Viscount Cardwell) was a member, asking their support in the first formation of Volunteer Force. One of those was the questeers. Who could have imagined, 20 years ago, that from the beginning, then so small, they would have seen in the first 20 years the present noble Force? He regretted General Peel had not lived to hear the approval given by Her Majesty's Government to the continuance of the Force. So far as he had collected from the statement of the

LORD TRURO said, there were several points in the Report of the Committee which had been referred to that did not give anything like universal satisfaction to the friends of the Volun

tion of uniforms. Again, he thought the recommendation of the Committee on the subject of drills was not satisfactory. He thought many would be deterred from joining the Force if they were compelled to undergo 30 drills in two successive years; for it would be too great an interruption to their regular occupations. From all that he had

heard from the noble Viscount that which would in any way render the evening, he could come to no other conclusion than that the recommendations made would not, on the whole, be advantageous to the numerical force or to the military efficiency of the Volunteer Force.

that he was under a misconception with respect to the Correspondence. Well, he did not like to return the compliment; but the noble Lord had failed to show in what respect he had misconceived it. It was true that in Sir Bartle Frere's despatch, dated the 14th of September, stating that General Thesiger thought two regiments of infantry "necessary, he added that one regiment of cavalry would be of "enormous advantage ;" but in a despatch written on the same day by General Thesiger-namely, the 14th of September-and which was not included in the Blue Book, being a despatch to the War Office, which would be in their Lordships' hands immediately, the General detailed the forces he would require, and requested that two regiments of infantry might be sent; but he made no mention of cavalry. It was true that the Government did not at first see fit to send out the reinforcements, but did send the special officers demanded. A further request was made in a Memorandum written by Lord Chelmsford, and dated the 28th of September, which concluded by stating that

fused, in the first instance, to give any assistance to the Colony of Natal; but they subsequently complied, and gave two regiments for its protection. But what had they done now? Although they gave a limited amount of troops as compared with the number demanded for the purpose of defending Natal, they changed their policy and waged war against the Zulus, and that without waiting for additional reinforcements. It was said by the noble Earl that they had now sent a more than ample force, probably excessive reinforcements; but that they did after the disaster had occurred in the first instance, they refused to send any troops whatever. As to the regiments going out, their Lordships knew the condition in which regiments were sometimes sent, and that to make up their full strength they were obliged to have 200 or 300 volunteers from other regiments; who, therefore, would have to fight under officers to whom they were not accustomed. They were, therefore, inefficient for immediate active service, however excellent as soldiers the volunteers might be, as they ought to be known by their officers, and know and have reliance in their officers. He hoped that the noble Earl would give their Lordships some information as to the calibre of the guns which had been and were about to be and he added that a battalion of the sent out to South Africa. For his part, 24th Regiment was already available, he could not help thinking that the and requested that the remaining two public mind would not be satisfied that should be sent from England. No it was not until repeated applications request was then made for a regihad been made and pressure had been ment of cavalry, and the two regiput upon the Government by able, pru-ments of infantry were sent out. The dent, and cautious men, that they complied with the demand for reinforcements, and then sent fewer than had been demanded, and that at a time of great emergency, and when there was a possibility of the dire calamity happening which had since taken place.

EARL CADOGAN said, that the noble Lord (Lord Truro), in putting and answering his Questions, had endeavoured to draw him into a discussion on the general merits of the war which was now raging in South Africa. He most respectfully declined to be drawn into any such discussion. He would do his best to answer the noble Lord, although he could not promise that his answer would differ very much from that which he had given on the same subject last night. The noble Lord seemed to think

"For offensive purposes alone the Natal and Transvaal Colonies require three battalions of infantry in addition to the forces we have already got,"

noble Lord asked the date at which they were despatched. He was sorry he did not know the exact date, but he thought they were sent the first week in December. The Papers, however, to be furnished by the War Office would answer the noble Lord's Question. With regard to the last part of the Question, he had only to state that if the noble Lord moved for a Return of the nature of one which had already been moved for on the same subject in "another place," there would be no objection to its being granted.

LORD TRURO, referring to the question of reinforcements, said, he should have thought that the desire for a cavalry regiment so distinctly and energetically expressed by Sir Bartle Frero in one of his earlier communications

would have been sufficient to have in- | thus imputed to him, he entirely accepted duced the Government to have supplied the disavowal. the want without hesitation.