§ 27. Mr. LYNCHasked the Under-Secretary of State for War whether cast Army horses are still being sold on the Western Front; whether, as a live horse fetches £4 more than a dead one in Paris. these horses are forced to endure unnecessary cruelties in order that they can be sold alive at their destination; and, if so, whether he will take steps at once to put an end to this practice?
§ The UNDER-SECRETARY of STATE for WAR (Mr. Macpherson)An average of 150 horses are sold weekly to French agriculturists for work on the land under special arrangements with the French authorities. These secure good treatment. There is no foundation for the suggestion that cast horses are subject to unnecessary cruelty for the sake of an additional £4 per head. The live horse selected and sent to Paris for human food fetches no more than the dead one sent for the same purpose. It is impossible to destroy all animals locally owing to insufficient abattoir accommodation and difficulties of transport. Animals which are sent alive to Paris are carefully selected and are inspected by the Deputy-Director of Veterinary Services of the area. They are accompanied by a conducting party of the Army Veterinary Corps, who water, feed, and attend them on the journey, and they are met and accompanied up to the abattoir by members of the corps.