Captain MURRAYasked the Secretary of State for War whether he can state if the Special Reservists who this year were supplied with the new short rifle, but who retained the long rifle bayonets pending the issue of new bayonets, had, during a-previous training, been instructed in the use of the long rifle; and whether a sufficient number of long rifles was actually in store during the training to arm those Special Reservists to whom the short rifle had been issued?
§ Mr. HALDANEPrevious to the issue of the short rifle the Special Reserve had been trained with the long rifle. During the training of the Special Reserve this year there was an ample stock of long rifles in store, sufficient to have re-armed the whole Special Reserve if necessary.