CO885-5 — Page 76

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED. PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO

C.O. 885/5 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

Third Roport, paragraph 16.

Third Report,! paragraphs 4-8.

Third Report, Faragraphs 10-14

should be defended, and the Commission believe that in the ultimate resort the Cape Peninsula must be defended, even if the whole burden should fall upon Imperial funds.

The cost of the necessary defences, including the defence of Hout's Bay, is estimated at 297,410l., of which the Commission consider that the Colonial Govern- ment should bear some appreciable part, inasmuch as the defence of the peninsula will add materially to the prosperity and value of Cape Town as a commercial port. On the other hand, they think that there are special reasons, political, commercial, and military, for treating Cape Town in an exceptionally favourable manner. They therefore propose that the Colony should provide any land that may be required in the peninsula, the unskilled labour (valued at 15,000.) for the works in and around Cape Town; and should complete the railway between Cape Town and Simon's Bay as soon as possible, With these exceptions they think that the cost of the defences should be borne by the Imperial Government.

The defences which the Commission recommend in the peninsula will require a garrison of 4,000 men, of which the Colony will probably be able to contribute 1,000, leaving 3,000 to be supplied by Imperial troops. These numbers ought to be kept up at all times.

The defence of Port Elizabeth, the chief commercial centre in South Africa, has been advocated. This, like the defence of other places of exclusively commercial importance, is a matter rather of local than of Imperial concern. There can be no objection to the colonists defending Port Elizabeth, if they think it worth while to incur the expense of constructing fortifications and maintaining a garrison; but the Commission are unable to recommend any Imperial outlay upon this place, inasmuch as it is not, and cannot be, a station for Her Majesty's ships. They consider, moreover, that the true defence of Port Elizabeth and of the whole South African seaboard lies in making Cape Town and Simon's Bay secure as bases for the flect.

Sierra Leone.

The Cape of Good Hope is 6,000 miles from England-a distance which no ship-of-war can accomplish under steam without coaling on the way. Of the six intermediate coaling-stations now in use, Gibraltar alone is fortified, while three, including St. Vincent, are in foreign territory. It is essential that a substitute should be found for St. Vincent, which occupies a commanding position half-way between England and the Cape, and near the junction of two great lines of trade. The only place in British territory which fulfils the necessary conditions is Sierra Leone, and the Commission recommend that the harbour of Free Town should be defended as a coaling-station and port of refuge. The proximity of the French port of Dakar affords an additional reason for fortifying a harbour in this locality. Large sums have lately been spent upon the defences of Dakar, which is favourably situated for supporting operations directed against British trade. The estimated cost of defending Sierra Leone is 253,0001, the whole of which must fall upon Imperial funds. A regular garrison of 1,350 men will be required, and might consist largely of coloured troops.

St. Helena,

The Island of St. Helena is situated midway between Sierra Leone and the Cape. Of late years 30,000l. have been spent upon the fortifications. An additional expenditure of 7,000l. would complete them sufficiently to give security to a store of coal, and the works could be held by a garrison of 200 men. The Commission do not contemplate the establishment of a first-class coaling-station at St. Helena, but considering the distance (3,300 miles) between Sierra Leone and the Cape, they think it would be useful to keep a limited supply of coal there.

The Island of Ascension is now used as a coaling-station, and contains a small Admiralty depôt and a Sanitorium; but the defence of the depôt would cost 50,0001. and require a garrison of 410 men, and the existing defences are obsolete and useless. The Commission sum up their views upon St. Helena and Ascension as follows:-

"We think it unnecessary to fortify and garrison both St. Helena and Ascension. In point of shelter there is little difference between the two; but as a commercial coaling-station St. Helena would appear to be the more convenient. The works

necessary to defend the coal stores already exist, and are capable of being com- pleted at small cost; and assistance towards the necessary garrison may be looked for in the Colony. At Ascension there are neither works for defending the coal supply, nor population from which to draw a part of the garrison, and the only institution of importance is the Sanitorium, which might be conveniently placed at St. Helena. In these circumstances we are of opinion that it would be desirable to store the supply of coal necessary for the fleet at St. Helena, and to remove thither the Admiralty Establishment now maintained at Ascension, leaving at the latter place only a few men to take charge of the water-tanks. The cost of removal would doubtless be considerable, but the alternative is a large and continuous expenditure at Ascension, where, so long as the coal and stores remain, adequate defences are indispensable."

Mauritius.

The position of Mauritius, nearly half-way between the Cape of Good Hope Third Report, and Ceylon, marks it as a convenient place for a coaling-station. British trade to paragraphis 17-27. the value of many millions a-year passes Mauritius; the trade of the Colony is valued at 6,000,000l. a-year; in the event of interruption to the Suez Canal route, Port Louis would become an important port of call on the way to India; and there are other reasons why Great Britain should maintain a firm hold of this dependency. The island was captured from France in 1810 because of the loss inflicted upon British commerce by French ships cruizing in the neighbourhood, and of all foreign Powers France is still the most formidable in the Indian Ocean. three good harbours in and about Madagascar, a Settlement near Aden, and other She has Settlements in the Red Sea and in India. Her principal stronghold is the Island of Réunion-distant 115 miles from Mauritius-where she maintains a large garrison, and is spending 3,000,0001. upon artificial harbour works. induced the Commission to recommend the defence of Port Louis as a first-class These considerations coaling-station and port of refuge. Port Louis is a good harbour, but the existing defences are inadequate, and the existing garrison of 460 men is insufficient. The Commission recommend the strengthening of the present works, and the construc- tion of new works at an estimated cost of 186,4701., and, looking to the Imperial character of the work, they think that the whole cost should be defrayed by the Imperial Government. They further recommend that the strength of the garrison should be raised to 1,690, the expense of which will be partly borne by the Colony. Mauritius pays an annual military contribution, of which the maximum is fixed at 45,000l. The amount of the contribution is calculated at a fixed rate on the number of Imperial troops serving in the island, and this number has been so reduced that little more than 30,0007. has been paid of late in any one year. The Commission do not suggest that the existing arrangement should be dis- turbed; but, looking to the proposed increase of the garrison, they think that the Colony should pay the maximum amount yearly. A large proportion of the gar- rison ought to be stationed in the island at all times. distance from England and in close proximity to French possessions. Of the white "Mauritius is at a great population, numbering 20,000, a large proportion are of French extraction, and could not be depended upon in the event of war with France. There is, moreover, at present no postal or telegraphic communication between the Colony and the mother country,"

by British vessels. The only regular communication with Mauritius is by French paragraph 28. The Commission urge that regular postal communication should be established Third Report, ships, and the Commission point out that the British Government may find itself on the outbreak of war deprived of all communication with the Colony.

The Colonial Government advocate the extension of the telegraph to Mauritius, Third Report, and the Eastern Telegraph Company have offered to do the work in return for paragraph 29. a subsidy of 25,0001, a-year continued for twenty years. The Colony is prepared to contribute 10,000l. a-year, it is believed that the French Government would contribute 8,000l. a-year, and it would remain for the Imperial Government to subscribe 10,000l. a-year. but they considered that there was no sufficient justification at present for so This question was specially referred to the Commission, large a subsidy from the Imperial Government; and added that the cable would be almost useless in a military sense if laid, as proposed, to Réunion and thence to Mauritius.

[250]

D