§ 3. Mr. PETOasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, whether he has any recent information as to the conditions under which our merchant seafarers are interned in Turkey; whether they are receiving the same consideration at the hands of our Government as are our prisoners of war interned in Germany in the way of provision of clothing and the like; and whether he has any knowledge that letters and parcels addressed to these interned prisoners in Turkey are safely received?
§ Lord ROBERT CECILI have no official information as to the conditions under which British merchant seamen are interned in Turkey; but the United States Consul-General at Smyrna is doing all he can for the crews interned at Magnesia. With regard to the second part of the question, in the absence of proper lists of prisoners it has been impossible to take all the same steps for the assistance of our prisoners in Turkey as of those in Germany, 1440 but the United States Ambassador at Constantinople has a fund at His Excellency's disposal for the relief of British subjects interned in Turkey, and he is being consulted as to whether the activities of the Prisoners of War Help Committee could usefully be extended to Turkey: as far as I am aware, letters and parcels addressed to British subjects interned in Turkey are duly received.
§ Lord ROBERT CECILI shall be very glad to receive it.
§ 4. Mr. PETOasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has any information as to a number of invalid and aged British merchant seafarers who are interned in Germany; and whether, having regard to the exchange of invalided civilians and of incapacitated military and naval prisoners of war which is taking place on the 6th and 7th of every month, he will now take steps to bring about a similar exchange in the case of merchant seafarers?
§ Lord ROBERT CECILI am aware that a number of invalid and aged British merchant seamen are interned in Germany. I am requesting the United States Ambassador to inquire whether the German Government would agree to extend the agreement for the release of invalid civilians to invalid seamen.
§ 5. Mr. PETOasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can give information as to the treatment of captains and officers of German merchant ships who are now interned in this country; and whether similar treatment is accorded to our own interned merchant captains and officers in Germany?
§ Lord ROBERT CECILMasters and ships' officers of German nationality are treated in the same manner as other civilians interned in this country: the same principle is followed in Germany.
§ 8. Mr. BUTCHERasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can state what steps have been or are being taken to obtain a list of British prisoners in Turkey; and whether, in view of the anxiety felt by relatives of missing officers and men, he will cause such list to be published as soon as possible?
§ Lord ROBERT CECILWe have repeatedly pressed the Turkish Government for these lists. It was recently decided, in view of the failure of the Turkish Government to communicate to His Majesty's Government lists of the British prisoners of war in their hands, to suspend the dispatch of similar lists to the Turkish Government. In the meantime we have received four lists of British prisoners of war in Turkey, which have been forwarded to the Admiralty or War Office.
§ Sir A. MARKHAMCan the Noble Lord say when the last list was received—I have a brother-in-law there?
§ Mr. BUTCHERHave the services of the American Ambassador been invoked for the purpose of obtaining these lists?
§ Lord ROBERT CECILCertainly. We can only act, and are acting, through the American Ambassador, who has done everything he can to persuade the Turks to give them. I am afraid I cannot tell the hon. Baronet offhand, without looking it up, when the last list was received. It was comparatively recently. If my hon. Friend will speak to me afterwards I will look into it.
§ 9. Mr. BUTCHERasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he can give any information as to the British wounded who are now in the Bed Cross hospital provided by Americans in the Tash-Kishla barracks, in Constantinople; whether he has official information to the effect that, under German instigation, access to this hospital has been denied both to American and British residents in Constantinople; and, if so, whether he will request the American Ambassador in Constantinople to appeal to the Turkish Government to remove these restrictions?
§ Lord ROBERT CECILI have no information as to the British wounded in the hospital established in the Tash-Kishla barracks, except that they were transferred there at the end of August. We received information, dated 1st September, that visiting of the British wounded had been absolutely prohibited as a retaliatory measure for supposed ill-treatment of Turkish prisoners. The United States Ambassador at Constantinople at once took steps to secure an official permit for the Secretary of the Embassy to visit freely all wounded in hospitals, and he expected that this would be given at an early date. There is, of course, no foundation whatever for the allegations of ill- 1442 treatment of Turkish prisoners, and we so informed the United States Ambassador, and asked him to convey that information to the Turkish Government. We also asked him to inform them that we had no objection to the inspection of any Turkish prisoners of war in our hands by United States Diplomatic or Consular officers, and that we expected that the Porte would give us reciprocal treatment.
§ 13. Mr. ANNAN BRYCEasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs how many uniforms have been sent from this country to Germany and from Germany to this country, respectively, for the use of prisoners of war?
§ The UNDER-SECRETARY of STATE for WAR (Mr. Tennant)My right hon. Friend has asked me to answer this question. There have been sent to Germany 961 jackets, 1,006 pairs of trousers, 562 great-coats, and 997 caps. Individual German officers and men have received articles of uniform from Germany, but I have no statistics which I can give my hon. Friend. So far as I am aware, no bulk consignments of uniform emanating from the German Government have reached the German prisoners in this country.