Mr. Winston Churchill, speaking at Plymouth on Friday week, dealt
with the subject of Army Reform in a spirit of temperate and well-informed criticism. He disclaimed the authority of an expert, but " he knew enough to say that there were very few things in military administration which a business man of common-sense and a little imagination could not understand if he turned his attention to the subject." The War Office had neglected the great essentials of military equipment. The Mauser was better than the Lee-Metford, the German Service rifle was better than the Mauser, and he believed that a still better Norwegian rifle was now made, and used in the American Army. Again, till lately our Volunteers were armed with the old Martini-Henry, a weapon still used by our native Indian troops. In the matter of artillery it was a pity that the War Office should have had to wait to be taught by ignorant Dutchmen that the Pom- pon] and heavy field-gun were useful patterns. Finally, he pointed out that our Volunteer garrison artillery were still armed with muzzle-loading guns of a pattern which went out fifteen years ago. He was inclined to lay the blame for this state of affairs largely upon "Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman, who handed over the land defences in a shocking condition," and thought that Lord Lansdowne had "not done so badly according to his lights." In conclusion, he suggested that the supply of artillery should be accelerated by distributing contracts more widely, a suggestion with which we thoroughly agree. Mr. Churchill is so shrewd an observer that his facts are always to be respected, however we may differ from his deductions, but in this matter his conclusions seem to us as valuable as his data.
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