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stationed in Natal should not be moved thence under these circumstances, and that no reinforcements should be sent from England.
10. Page 15. Colonial Forces.This Table will require revision when the Government of the Cape Colony have decided on the reconstitution of the local forces now under consideration. The Committee desire, however, to point out that it should now be possible to maintain these forces within the Peninsula at sufficient strength to do away with the necessity of bringing troops from other parts of the Colony to aid in the defence of Cape Town and Simon's Town. The troops with head-quarters outside the peninsula would then be available for the defence of Port Elizabeth and East London, and to watch the northern frontier of the Colony should this be necessary.
The Colonial Defence Committee regret to note that in the last important operations in the Cape Peninsula, in spite of two and a-half months' previous notice, the attendance of the Colonial Corps was indifferent, and much diminished their practical value.
11. Page 17. First Paragraph.-The Colonial Defence Committee concur in considering it advisable that electrical communication should be laid between Wynberg Camp and Hout's Bay, and between Simon's Town and Slangkop. They are of opinion, however, that it would be better to lay the lines perma- nently in peace than to provide the equipment proposed in the foot-note to p. 17, and in Table G (iv), Chapter III, p. 42, for erecting the lines on mobilization.
12. Pages 17 and 18. Modes of meeting various Attacks-See paragraph 7 of these Remarks.
13. Page 21.-Under the heading "Action to be taken by Staff and Depart- ments," a specific reference should be made to the notification that will be sent to the Governor instructing him to put the Defence Scheme partially or wholly into force. The notification will be in the form communicated in Lord Knuts- ford's Circular despatch dated the 2nd July, 1891, and it is of vital importance that the simple code laid down in the Circular should be understood and acted on immediately on its receipt.
The Defence Scheme should also lay down the action to be taken on receipt of above notification, in accordance with clause 2, section 189 of the Army Act, with regard to making the forces in the Colony temporarily subject to that Act as if they were on active service.
14. Page 25. Last Paragraph.-The reference to obtaining transport for an ammunition column "if a movable column is organized" is not understood. No such column (apart from the Wynberg Field force) appears to be contem- plated in the Scheme for the defence of the Cape Peninsula. If required for other purposes, no reference need be made to it in the Scheme for that defence.
15. Page 28, paragraph 3.-Attention is called to the fact that the words "of equal rank" in the third line of this paragraph do not occur in paragraph 1 (d), section 2, Q. R., which provides that "field officers of the regular forces in a Colony or dependency shall have precedence of and command over field officers of the permanent, Militia, and Volunteer forces there if so ordered by the Governor."
16. Pages 30, 31, 32, Table (D).—The details of the engineer work given in this Table are not complete in themselves, as it is necessary to refer to the Section Commanders' Orders in Chapter IV to identify the different works for which the working parties time and tools are here stated. Without plans it is not possible to criticize the details of the proposed works, and the Colonial Defence Committee do not think that such criticism by them would be advisable. But they would suggest that the G.O.C. should carefully reconsider the necessity for all the somewhat elaborate works proposed. They note that some
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