Lords Sitting of 8 February 1900

The Lord Vivian sat first in Parliament after the death of his father.
RETURNS, REPORTS, ETC.
  ALIEN IMMIGRATION.
  Return of the number of aliens that arrived from the Continent at ports in the United Kingdom in each month of the year 1900: ordered to be laid before the House (the Lord Churchill).
  UNITED STATES (No. 1).
  Convention between Her Majesty and the United States of America supplementary to the Convention of 19th April, 1850, relative to the establishment of a communication by ship canal between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans; signed at Washington, 5th February, 1900.
  TRADE REPORTS (ANNUAL SERIES).
  No. 2378. Portugal (Trade for the years 1897 and 1898).

  SOUTH AFRICA.
  Notice issued by the High Commissioner for South Africa, on 26th January, 1900, relating to forfeitures, etc., of property situated in the South African Republic or in the Orange Free State declared subsequently to 10th October, 1899.
  Presented (by Command), and ordered to lie on the Table.

  ARMY (MILITARY SAVINGS BANK).
  Statement of amount due to depositors on the 31st March, 1898, and of the receipts, interests, and disbursements during the year ended 31st March, 1899, etc.
  ST. LUCIA.
  Regulation amending Rule 282 of the Prison Regulations, with respect to interviews between prisoners awaiting their trial and their legal advisers.

  IMPERIAL OTTOMAN GUARANTEED LOAN, 1855.
  Account for the year 1899.
  Laid before the House (pursuant to Act), and ordered to lie on the Table.

  ALIEN IMMIGRATION.
  Return (in part) respecting: Laid before the House pursuant to order of this day, and to be printed. (No. 8.)
PETITION.
  VIVISECTION.
  Petition for suppression of the practice of; of a Meeting held at Rushmere, Wandsworth Common; read, and ordered to lie on the Table.

  SOUTH AFRICAN WAR—TELEGRAMS TO SOLDIERS ON SERVICE.
  THE EARL OF LICHFIELD: My Lords, I beg to ask the Secretary of State for War if he contemplates establishing a registered telegraphic address for each battalion or unit of our forces in South Africa; and if so, whether the scheme will be brought into operation at an early date. Your Lordships are aware, many of you from personal experience, of the great expense involved in sending telegrams to those who are at the front in South Africa. Each word costs 4s., and it is very difficult to make out a telegram to any friend at the front costing less than £2 for the address alone. It must be obvious that, under these circumstances, it is impossible for poor people to use the telegraph as a means of communication with our soldiers in South Africa; but if a system such as I have suggested in my question were adopted, no doubt many who have hitherto been unable to use the telegraph would be enabled, owing to the reduced cost, to avail themselves of it. I believe that if the noble Marquess the Secretary of State for War is able to adopt a system of registered telegraphic addresses, it will be possible to address a telegram to a private soldier at the front in two words—one giving his regimental number and the other the registered telegraphic address of his regiment. I am assuming that the words "Cape Colony" or "South Africa" would be included in the word representing the

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  registered telegraphic address. If, further, there was a code word to signify "in hospital," it would be possible to address a message in three words to a wounded officer or soldier. I am quite sure that if the noble Marquess can see his way to adopt a plan such as I have indicated it will be greatly appreciated by the people of this country and by the soldiers who are fighting so bravely for us in South Africa. I would merely add that I hope, if any scheme is introduced, it will be as comprehensive as possible, and will include our Colonial contingents.
  THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (The Marquess of LANSDOWNE): My Lords, my noble friend made this suggestion to me some weeks ago, and it certainly struck me as a most reasonable one. I was sure that all the Departments concerned would gladly co-operate in order to give facilities to persons in this country desiring to communicate with their friends in the field force in South Africa. I lost no time in communicating with the Post Office on the subject. The Post Office has considered it in conjunction with the Eastern Telegraph Company; a list of code words has been framed, and has been sent out to South Africa, and, I think, must have arrived there two or three days ago. As soon as the telegraphic authorities at the Cape have informed us, as they no doubt will do by telegraph, that they are able to accept the code, the new arrangement will come into force, and will be made known by the Post Office here. The procedure that will be followed will be this:—The senders of telegrams will continue to address them as they have hitherto done, giving the name of the person to whom the message is addressed and the full title of his regiment; but the telegraph authorities will translate that of their own motion into the code word. That will have the effect in the case, for example, of a regiment which has a long title of substituting for such long title a single word. The difference between the suggestion of my noble friend and the arrangement proposed to be carried out is merely this—that the translation of the address into the code word will be made, not by the person who sends the telegram, but by the telegraph authorities who transmit it to the Cape. I think that is certainly an improvement. As to the further suggestion that code words should
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  be introduced as the equivalents of such expressions as "in hospital," I shall be glad to have it considered, but it did not form part of the original proposition.
  THE EARL OF LICHFIELD: I beg to thank the noble Marquess for the extremely satisfactory answer he has been I able to give to my question; only I do not quite understand how under the scheme the sender is to know how much he will have to pay. I should have thought it would have been better to publish the code at every post office. I hope the press will take notice of the scheme and make it as public as possible, so that everyone concerned will understand how it will be put in force.
  THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE: Instructions will be issued by the post office on the subject. When the sender delivers his message at the post office he will find that he is charged for the full title of the regiment as if it was condensed into one word.

  SPION KOP—BOER TREATMENT OF BRITISH WOUNDED.
  THE EARL OF CAMPERDOWN: My Lords, I rise to ask whether it is true, as reported in the newspapers, that after the battle of Spion Kop wounded Uitlanders and Colonial soldiers were shot by the Boers on the field of battle. On Monday last, a telegram from Durban appeared in several of the newspapers to this effect, and with your Lordships' permission I will read the version of the telegram which appeared in the Standard. It was as follows—
  "The wounded soldiers here (Durban) say that the Boers showed a marked vindictiveness against the colonial troops during the fighting at Spien Kop, even going so far as to kill, in cold blood, numbers of their wounded. This barbarous conduct accounts, it is said, for the exceedingly heavy losses sustained by Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry and the Imperial Light Infantry. Some of the Regulars even gave their regimental badges to their colonial comrades, in order to save their lives, should they happen to be left on the field."
  Of course, it is possible, and I hope it is the fact, that the statement is not well founded, but if is well founded a very barbarous crime has been committed. We must remember who these colonials and Uitlanders are. The two corps which have been mentioned—Thorneycroft's Mounted Infantry and the Imperial

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  Light Infantry—are mainly composed of Natalians and Cape Colonists, whose country has been invaded and whose property has been looted, and they have as good a right, and, indeed, a much better right to fight in defence of their country than the Boers have to invade it. As I say, I hope the statement I have quoted is not correct. One is glad to think that some of the statements reflecting upon the Boers have been found, on further examination, to be inaccurate; on the other hand, some of the statements to their prejudice, such, for instance, as wanton looting of property in Natal and compelling Englishmen resident in the Free State to fight against this country, are, unfortunately, only too true. I wish to ask the noble Marquess the Secretary of State for War whether he can give us any information on the subject, and, if not, whether he will cause, at the proper time, inquiries to be made into the matter.
  THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE: My Lords, we have no corroboration of the extremely painful story to which my noble friend has referred. I suggest to him that the better course will be to wait until we receive, as I have no doubt we shall, a despatch giving an account of this particular engagement, and should there then be any confirmation of this sinister rumour, it will be our business to make further inquiries.
  LORD WENLOCK: Might I ask the noble Marquess if it is true that the Colonial troops are dressed differently to the Imperial troops?
  THE MARQUESS OF LANSDOWNE: I fancy they are all dressed in khaki, but whether there is any distinguishing mark between the two I cannot say.
  House adjourned at a quarter before Five of the clock, till To-morrow, half-past Ten of the clock.