§ 66. Mr. WILLIAM THORNEasked the Under-Secretary of State for War the total number of horses bought for Array use during 1915 and 1916 which have had to be sold again and which were offered in the various sales as suitable for tradesmen, jobmasters, and others; and what is the total loss sustained by the nation in each of the two years mentioned through these purchases?
§ Mr. MACPHERSONIt is undesirable for military reasons to give figures, but the number of horses cast and sold in all theatres of war and including the United Kingdom, but excluding Mesopotamia, during the twenty-nine months from August, 1914, to December, 1916, inclusive, amounts to 5.6 per cent, of the total numbers acquired. The total loss from all causes is 24.7 per cent., or less than 1 per cent, per month.