§ MR. WALFORD GREEN (Wednesbury)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War whether the quick-firing field guns, purchased in Germany and issued to the 16th and 17th Brigade Divisions of the Royal Field Artillery stationed at Aldershot, have proved unsatisfactory; whether half of the guns issued have been returned disabled to Woolwich Arsenal; whether defects in the breech mechanism have been discovered; and whether the recoil has proved destructive to the gun carriages.
§ MR. BRODRICKThe guns in question have not proved unsatisfactory; they have been found, on the contrary, to shoot with remarkable accuracy. No defects have been discovered in the breech mechanism, nor has the recoil proved destructive to the carriages. The threads of some of the breech screws have become burred owing to the guns being used for drill purposes without drill carriages—a slight damage which can be repaired locally. Some of the axles of the gun carriages having cracked in travelling, the firm which supplied the batteries is replacing all the axles by axles of an improved pattern at its own expense. Fourteen guns have been returned to Woolwich for this purpose.
§ MR. WILLIAM REDMOND (Clare, E.)Have any of the guns been used in South Africa; and, if so, will the right hon. Gentleman consider the desirability, with the view of finishing the war, of sending out a few competent German officers with them?