§ COLONEL PALMER (Gravesend)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether, in view of the fact that Gravesend was for many years the port of embarkation and disembarkation of Her Majesty's troops to or from abroad, and that exceptional facilities are offered 798 by the River Thames approach, with its three deep-water piers and three distinct lines of railway connected with Chatham, Aldershot, Colchester, and, in fact, all parts of the country, he will consider the advisability of again selecting Gravesend as a port of embarkation and disembarkation as formerly?
§ *MR. CAMPBELL-BANNERMANWhen embarkations of troops take place from the Thames it is found that the docks, in which transports lie alongside the quay, afford greater convenience than Gravesend, where it has been found that tenders have to be employed. But, in any case, in time of peace the southern ports are much more convenient for embarking troops than the Thames.