§ 24. Mr. COLLISONasked the Under-Secretary of State for War the cost of maintaining armies in the following countries: Great Britain, France, Germany, Russia, and the United States for the years 1913 and 1922?
Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSAs the answer is long, and includes a number of figures, I will, with the hon. Member's permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Following is the answer:
§ Great Britain.—The total voted for the British Army in 1913–14 was £27,700,000 (exclusive of aviation). The figure for comparison in 1922–23 was £60,800,000 (exclusive of War terminal charges, but including the cost of troops in the Middle East repaid to Army Funds from the Colonial Office Vote).
§ France.—The total cost of the French Army for 1913 was:
| Francs. | ||
| War Budget | … | 1,022,821,931 |
| Colonial Budget | … | 88,023,178 |
| Total | … | 1,110,845,109 |
§ The corresponding figures for 1922 were:
| Francs. | ||
| War Budget | … | 3,409,473,659 |
| Colonial Budget | … | 188,443,000 |
| Total | … | 3,597,916,659 |
§ The cost of the French Army in Germany is not included in the War Budget, but is dealt with under the heading of "Compte Special," or expenditure recoverable from Germany.
§ Germany.—The total cost of the German Army for 1913 was about £60,000,000, and for 1922 it was Marks 3,341,477,038 (=£2,386,769 at Marks 1,400 to £1).
§ Russia.—The total cost of the Russian Army (including the Air Force) for 1913–14 was 647,000,000 gold roubles. The cost for the first nine months of 1922 was 556,000,000 gold roubles.
§ United States.—The cost of the United States Army for 1913, including a small supplementary estimate, was $320,800,000. The cost for 1922 was $361,075,165.