CO129-313 - Governor Sir Blake - 1902 [10-12] — Page 406

Sub Enclone

Sub-Enclosure No. 1 to Snclosure 1 In Confidential

Despatch of the 25th. November, 1902.

*****************

From 0. 0. S. H.,

To 0. R. 3.

A.

3. Company Hongkong Volunteers.

402

Tellington Barracks,

27th. January, 1903.

sir,

I beg to enclose for your information a correspon- dence which has recently passel between this Office and the Comman- lant Hooghong Volunteer Corps about the strength of 8. Company, Hong- hong Volunteers. It will be seen that there are only eight rank and file trainel in the Corps sal Fifteen anlee instrucùion, excluling the two officers.

This shows a great leakage as many more than this number bave been trained and is seens desirable to reconsider the conlitions of services training, if the Company is to be retainel or as I hope increasel.

It has been suggested to me that improvement might

be effecbel, if arrangements could be male for training the N.3.0.s and men at Kowloon in the same way as the Artillery Company are trainal, but this would require some extra plant and expenditure which would only be justitied by some certainty of a successful increase of ef- ficiency.

It is also possible that the coalitions of service as regards drill etc., may be unnecessarily severe in the case of a Jompany which in time of war woull be split up into small detachments, but of this I have ao serbain knowledge.

I would therefore suggest that a meeting might be arranged between myself, the Commandant 8. I. Vol. Corps and the 0. 0. "8" Company, to see if any improvements in these or other respects are possible and lesirable with a view to placing this valu- able portion of the local corps on a satisfactory fooling and establish -ing a better system of communication between the Volunteers and the 0. 0, S. M.

I am etc., (Sa.) 7. Baker Brown,

Kajor, R. 3., 0.0.S.M.

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