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Tents, S.D.L., complete
Pails or buckets*
Tubs, washing, 3 gallons*
Axes, pick, helved, 64 lb. Shovels, universal Spades, N.P.
Hammers, miners', sledge, 14 lb.* Wedges, sawyers', 10′′*
Implements, butchers, sets, complete Blankets, G.S.
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f 1 for O.C., 1 per 3 company or squadron officers, 1 for 2 other officers, 1 per 15 N.C.Os. and men, and 1 for medical purposes. Nil for field service. For standing camps in peace only, and then only 1 per staff serjeants' tent, and 2 per tent for other N.C.Os. and men.
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11 of each per battalion; 16 pick-axes, 9 shovels, and 17 spades per cavalry regiment; but usually supplied as wangon stores only (1 of each per waggon).
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Nil for field service. For standing camps in peace only, and then 4 hammers and 8 wedges per battalion or cavalry regiments, and half these quantities for a smaller unit.
1 set per staff, and 1 set per mounted and dismounted unit.
per N.C.O. and man, or more if certified by P.M.O. as necessary, Officers provide their own.
18. Page 41, Table G (ii). Note.-300 rounds per man is much too small a reserve of ammunition for magazine rifles. The Committee are informed that the question of the reserve to be maintained is now under consideration of the War Office.
19. Page 47, Table G (vi).-" Stores for equipping Signal Stations" should show in a separate column what quantities, if any, of those in column headed "in Store" will be the minimum required, in addition to those in possession of the troops on mobilization. The store of some of these items seems low in some cases and high in others to meet probable mobilization wants.
20. Page 54, Fort Details, Craig's Battery.-Two G.G. Cs. are here told off for the 2—-9.2-in. B.L. guns, but in the authorized chain of command (dated 15th December, 1896) these two guns are shown as forming one group.
21. Pages 54 to 57 and 64 to 66, Fort Details.-The Battery Commander's staffs appear to the Committee to be very large. A total of 156 N.C.Os. and men are allotted to these duties and 495 to gun detachments apart from machine-guns and ammunition details, so that one man out of every four is employed in range-finding, orderly duties, &c. In some cases especially it is difficult to see why such large staffs are required. For instance, Amsterdam Battery has one group of 7-in. R.M.L. guns and is allotted 11 N.C.Os. and men for staff duties, 3 as a D.R.F. detachment, 1 tele- phonist, and one orderly; it should not require more than 5 or 6 men, or with a lamp man, if necessary, 6 or 7. Fort Wynyard has no less than 28 men on the B.C.'s staff, and all the staffs are greater than is found necessary at other stations. Of course local conditions may make this necessary, but this requires explanation. The numbers of infantry employed on purely artillery duties, which do not include manning machine- guns, is large, namely, 5 officers and 184 men, considering the small infantry garrison now available for the defence of the Peninsula. This points to the pressing need of an increase to the Colonial Garrison Artillery, and the Committee recommend that the special attention of the Cape Government should again be directed to this point.
The Cape Garrison Artillery, or at least its officers, appear to be held in somewhat low estimation judging by the allotment of gun group commands. An analysis of these shows that of the 7 groups of 9.2-in. B.L. guns 3 are commanded by infantry officers and the remainder by officers and N.C.Os. of R.A., all the groups of Q.F. guns by N.C.Os. of R.A., while of the 9-in. and 7-in. R.M.L. groups 6 are commanded by officers of the Cape Garrison Artillery, and 2 by officers of infantry; thus the least important guns are allotted to officers who are supposed to be artillery men, while nearly half of the most important are allotted to infantry officers. It is presumed that the latter are instructed in their duties as Gun-group Commanders in peace.
22. Page 58, Defence of Docks and Anchorage.—It is observed that the Inspecting Ordnance Officer is told off to command four 6-pr. Q.F. guns. He would probably not be available for this service as he would be required for ordnance duties.
23. Page 58.-Attention is called to the fact that the totals obtained by adding together the number of troops told off to Artillery and Fort Details and to Central Reserve differ from the totals given in the Table of Distribution of Troops on page 52. There are also discrepancies between the numbers on page 67 and the totals on page 62. 24. Page 59, paragraph 3.-In the middle of the paragraph the following words in brackets "these companies will at once execute the works. "do not agree with the last sentence of paragraph 11 on page 60, in which it is ordered that no work will be commenced without the specific authorization of the General Officer Commanding.
25. Page 68, paragraph 3.--According to the latest information available to the Colonial Defence Committee, the coast road from Simon's Town south stops near
* It is considered these should be allowed as asked for in Table G (i). †These are for mounted men for wrapping up their kit in.
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