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The second is similarly to provide accommodation for and quarter, at St. Helena, the two additional companies required for its war garrison.
It would also be desirable to bring the battalion now in Natal down to the Cape, but the Committee are informed that there are Imperial reasons which would render it difficult to do this at present. They therefore refrain from recommending this for the moment, but they think that the three companies for St. Helena would be better found by this battalion than from the Cape, especially as there are other Imperial troops in Natal in no incon- siderable strength.
In addition to this, the battalions at the Cape, Natal, and in the Mauritius should be raised to the higher establishment of about 1,016 men, as fixed for India, the Straits Settlements, and Hong Kong.
If these recommendations be adopted, the following would be the peace distribution of the Imperial infantry in the Cape command:-
Corps.
Establishment.
Distribution.
Companies. Men.
No. 1 Battalion
No. 2
Cape Town
Mauritius
8
1,016
1,016
"
5 Companies, Natal
5
686
No. 3
"
3
""
St. Helena..
3
330
And there would also be a cavalry regiment and a mountain battery in Natal.
On war becoming imminent the following moves would take place :—
No. 3 Battalion No. 4
*
5 Companies 686 men
•
3
330
"
""
Natal to Cape. England to Cape.
The necessity for even these two moves is much to be deprecated, as no Scheme can be considered safe which involves the conveyance by sea of reinforcements on the outbreak of war. What the Committee would prefer would be an arrangement by which the whole war garrison for the Cape should be stationed in peace time at the Cape, or at any rate at the Cape and Natal; but if Her Majesty's Government are not prepared to do this, then the Scheme now suggested should be carried out. It would at least minimize the danger to which our most important coaling station is exposed under the present Scheme by more than doubling the infantry of its garrison when at its lowest, and by reducing the numbers to be trans- ported by sea in time of danger. It would also reduce the number of detachments and of different corps in each command, and would have the incidental advantage of simplifying the ordinary reliefs by allowing of inter- change of battalions on the Colonial and Indian rosters.
2. Page 5, paragraph 4 of the Governor's covering letter, raises the question of command as between officers of the Imperial and Colonial forces. This is a similar question to that which lately arose in the case of Halifax, and to which the Colonial Defence Committee directed attention in their remarks of the 30th June last on the Halifax Scheme of Defence of 1894. The difficulty as regards artillery officers has been temporarily evaded in the present case by the clause contained in paragraph 6, p. 37 of the Scheme, by which it is arranged that increase of rank will be granted locally to Royal Artillery officers. This arrangement cannot, however, be regarded as a satisfactory expedient, and Volunteer officers might naturally resent being superseded in such cavalier fashion. The Committee are of opinion that this important matter should be put on a more satisfactory basis, and that the direction in which a solution of the difficulty is to be sought is that of not
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