§ LORD HARRIS rose to call attention to the hardships which it is alleged that officers and men are being subjected to on their journeys home for leave or demobilisation, and to ask His Majesty's Government for an explanation.
§ The noble Lord said: My Lords, there have been several letters in the papers recently describing the conditions under which officers and men are being sent across Europe to this country, conditions which apparently are not merely uncomfortable 336 but rather harsh, and in one case actually dangerous to life. I should think the War Office would be glad of an opportunity of explaining why our officers and men have to put up with such extremely inconvenient conditions of travel.
§ THE UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR WAR (VISCOUNT PEEL)My Lords, I am sure my noble friend does not believe everything he reads in the newspapers. Some of the statements which have appeared are not exactly correct. He is aware, of course, that there is an immense amount of congestion on the Belgian and French lines running to Germany. They have to carry all the men who are demobilised, bring down the men on leave, carry those who are repatriated, and also bring the materials for the building up of these damaged countries.
There is a tremendous strain on the rolling stock, and there are not enough ordinary coaches to be able to convey all these men. As a matter of fact they are conveyed, as they have been in the previous stages of the war, in trucks. But on reading the statement in the papers you would suppose they were open trucks. They are nothing of the kind. They are carefully closed and provided with stoves and fuel at either end. I have heard a complaint privately from one or two noble Lords that in some cases there was not a sufficient supply of fuel. Particular cases, of course, can be inquired into, but experience has shown that this particular type of car is better and can be more easily heated and looked after than the ordinary coach which might otherwise be used for transport. Great care also is taken to provide proper meals at the stations for the men as they come down on demobilisation.
No doubt some difficulty has arisen from this cause. Owing to the much greater length of the journey, the congestion of the line and the difficulty of dealing with the rolling stock, the period of the journey from Cologne and other points has been much longer than the normal, and it has created a good deal of fatigue among the troops. I had an account from a friend of mine who came down the other day as to the tediousness of the journey. Every arrangement is being made to increase the rolling stock and the comfort of the troops, and the most specific directions have been issued by the Quartermaster-General in France for the 337 carrying out of all these matters in the proper way. Reports have also been asked for by the War Office from the Quartermaster-General as to the inspection of these trains, and we shall very soon be provided with further information upon it. But there is no reason to believe that the matter is neglected. When these reports are received I shall be glad to make to my noble friend any further communication that may be necessary.