REPORT. (Hansard, 20 February 1860)

§ MR. MASSEY
brought up the Report of Resolution agreed to in Committee of Supply.

§ SIR HENRY WILLOUGHBY
asked the Secretary for War to state the precise number of men paid at the present moment. He noticed that fourteen battalions of Queen's troops were going to China, while the right hon. Gentleman had only taken credit for five. How was it proposed to meet the cost of those fourteen battalions, and on what principle would the expenses of the nine battalions of Sepoys who were also going to China be calculated? The movement of troops from India to China was very expensive, the Indian allowances in such cases being very high. How would this large outlay be defrayed? He wished also to know whether it was intended that 92,000 men should be kept upon the Indian establishment during the forthcoming financial year. If so, it was quite clear that any chance of the Indian revenue righting itself was hopeless. There was an unjustifiable number of men kept up at the Indian dep6t at Warley; 100 men would be sufficient for each regiment, but he believed there were nearer 200. It was not right that such heavy charges should be thrown upon the Indian revenue.

§ MR. SIDNEY HERBERT
said, he had stated the other night that the number of troops who were to be sent to China differed from that mentioned in the reports from India; and it would be found on referring to the Estimates that troops were put down there as being on the Indian establishment who in all probability had been moved from India to China, for the purpose of being transferred to our establishments. The War Office did not know at the time the Estimates were compiled what regiments would be sent to China; and, therefore, the list of regiments stated in the Estimates as being in India could not be relied on. The next mail would, no doubt, supply the required information on this subject. With respect to the depots, the hon. Baronet was quite right in saying that there were two companies in depot for each Indian regiment; but that was not different from the arrangement in respect to other regiments abroad. The 1449 question bad been raised by the India House whether or not one company in depot would be sufficient, and that was now a matter under discussion.