The British Transport Service.

Feilding Star, Volume XXIL, Issue 91, 15 October 1900, Page 4

The British Transport Service.

A leading a-ticle in Licyd's List of Auynst 3rd gnes some very intensting inforniition with reference to the transport service iv connection with the war in South Africa. It is stated that the transpoit of an army o{ 200,000 men is a feat that stands out, so far as history has 3et been made, as an unparalleled performance, and one which the mercantile marine of no other nation but great Britain, could have achieved. During; the period of rine monihs from July Ist, 1899, to March 31th of this jear 144 voyages were made to South Africa with troops and horses from England and the Mediterranean alone, and sn 7 enty-twoby freight-carrying vessels. Of the casualties that occurred among these tranports the Persia broke her shift and htr horses had to be transhipped to the Gcth at St. Vincent: the Isinore was wrecked near Capetowa ; the Badipan bad t j be put back to Liverpool damaged by a gale ", the Denton Grange stranded nt Lib I Pfllmas ; and ihe Pinercore lost her propeller blades. In 213 ships there were carried 66H3 officer.--, 170,185 men and 30,101 horses, Of the horses 1543 were lost on the pas-age out. The larges-t s eatmr employed as a transport was the C^meiic (12,017 tors) and the largest freight ship the Afiic (11,948 tons ) There were thirty-three voyages from New Orleans', Naples a- d Gibr-ilter with 31,503 mnle=, of which 671 were lost en route. Forty-Dine voyages were nude from Ind:a to South Africa, the vessel* employed carrying a tot il rf 13,500 ottkerd nnd men, about 7000 horsfS nnd 1100 mu'e?, For the transpo't of co'.oniil con ingents twenty-nina yoy-iges w<r? made, the Medic (11,985 tons) being the larget-t vessel employed, and twenty - four voyages were made for ihe transport of hordes acd cobs from Australia and Argentina, Altogether, in connection with the t*?k of transpoit, whither from England, the Mediterranean, India, An?tra'aia or elsewhere, th-re were 351 voya.es of iransporls find fr< ight ships during the nine months mentioned. This, "it is to b 3 noted, wes achieved prac ically without disturbing the ordinary shipping business of the Empire or cau'ing a rise in freights.