§ 6. Colonel YATEasked the Secretary of State for War whether, considering the fact that there was no emergency which necessitated the sending out of drafts for regiments in India in the middle of the Indian hot weather and that the Commander-in-Chief in India asked in February that these drafts should be sent out as early as possible, he will state who were the officers in England responsible for the delay in the dispatch of these drafts from February till June, which delay was apparently the primary cause of the deaths from heatstroke on the Indian railway that subsequently occurred in the case of the drafts sent out in the transport "Ballarat"?
§ Mr. FORSTERThese drafts were asked for on 24th February, but previous demands not having been satisfied, owing to shipping and men not being available, they were not dispatched until 5th May, when shipping and men became available. The responsibility rests with those responsible for providing sufficient men to meet the needs of the Empire.
§ Colonel YATEMight I ask, considering that drafts are never sent out to India in the hot weather, whether the authorities in England are not equally responsible with the authorities in India?
§ Mr. FORSTERThe men were urgently wanted, and I am afraid that we cannot observe the ordinary rules of peace time with regard to drafts. We had to send the drafts.