COLONEL SYKESsaid, he would beg to ask the Secretary of State for War, Whether, in reference to the Fortifications Return, No. 157, of the 26th March 1867, in which it is stated that 987 large rifled guns, and 1,104 guns of 95 cwt., at a cost of £1,833,722, will be required for the armament of the said Fortifications, it is his intention to apply the Plymouth Iron Shield, said to weigh 33 tons, or the Gibraltar Shield of 32 tons, or any other 1817 Iron shield, to the embrasures of the 2,093 guns required for the Fortifications, or to what number of embrasures, and at what cost per shield, and the total cost?
§ SIR JOHN PAKINGTONsaid, in reply, that it was not in his power to give the hon. and gallant Gentleman a decided Answer to his Question. At present no decision upon the subject had been come to, and it would be impossible to come to such a decision until the Government had received the Report of the Committee which was now engaged in considering the late experiments at Shoeburyness. Before any decision was come to it would be desirable that further consideration should be given to the invention of Captain Moncreiff, which might have a very serious effect upon the question of the adoption of iron shields in fortifications.