7 JANUARY 1905, Page 10

A special Army Order issued on Thursday night gives effect

to the reorganisation of military commands recom- mended in the final Report of the Esher Committee last March. London is made an independent district, and the rest of the kingdom is divided into seven commands,—the Aldershot, the Southern, the Eastern, the Irish, the Scottish, the Northern, and the Welsh and Midland. Each district is a command with a General Officer Commanding, and also an administrative district under an administrative Major-General, who will be responsible for all matters not relating to training in the field. The seven commands are subdivided into foul- teen groups of regimental districts, and much of the routine work will be delegated to special officers in these districts. We may notice, as a new feature not contained in the original recommendation, the creation of coast defence commanders, who are given direct access to the War Office. This seems to us a wise provision, for the General commanding field forces could not, in the event of war, supervise coastal defence, and a separation of functions is, therefore, right and logical.