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94. May I take it from your evidence that you were in a state of discomfort throughout the whole time ?—Yes. 95. And you say that matters never got better?— Not until we got on the hill, so far as we were concerned. 96. And I understand the cooking got better towards the end ?—Yes, slightly. We were better off so far as the serving-out difficulty was concerned. We had more dishes. 97. Did you do anything as a company to improve your rations in any way?— Yes. 98. What did you do ?—We took tucker up to the camp on several occasions. 99. Supposing you had not done that, how-would you have got on?—We should have had to go without food altogether. We could always get bread in our tent. 100. Colonel Davies.] You say that you had never been in a mounted camp before ?—No. 101. Have you been in an infantry camp?— No. 102.. How long have you been a Volunteer? —Since May, in New Zealand. 103. Were you a Volunteer before ?—Yes; in England. I was in the artillery eight months before I left—the 4th Lancashires. 104. Were you ever in camp with them ?—No. 105. But you have been used to camp out in the bush ? —Yes, I have camped out for over two. years at a stretch in New Zealand. 106. Were you visited every day by your officers at meal-times at Newtown Park ?—Nearly every meal. 107. Did they ask if you had any complaint to make ?—Yes. 108. Did the men make them ?—Yes. I was not always in camp. I had a good many meals down town. 109. As far as you know, complaints were frequently made ?—Yes. 110. How many mess orderlies had you?— Two for each tent. 111. Were you ever one of them?— Yes. 112. How were you taken up to the cook-house ?—We were taken up by our company sergeant every day. 113. Was there an officer of your company there ?—Yes, there was one always saw us falling-in. 114. Was there any order up there when you got to the cook-house—was it done in an orderly fashion ? —Yes. Each corps at a time went up with its mess orderlies. 115. There was no scramble ?—Not after the first day. 116. Were you generally first there, or what ? —We were generally the last. We went by seniority. 117. Do you think the food fell off because you were at the end? —Yes. 118. How was it issued ? —lt was an average for the tents. 119. They issued you so much for ten men, or whatever was the number?— Yes. 120. You said sometimes there was none issued at all ?—There was not enough to go round. It would not cut up into ten pieces. 121. Did you have your horse there ?—Yes. 122. Do you think it is any worse for it ? —lt has a bad cold, that is all. 123. Were you wet in the tents when you were first there ?—Yes, the first night, through lying in the water. 124. Had you oiled sheets ?—Yes. 125. Your own private property? —Yes. 126. Were the waterproof sheets your own property ?—Yes. 127. Have you not got any-in the corps?— No. 128. You were not allowed to dig drains round your tents ? —No, I never saw anything to dig them with. 129. Major Hawkins.] Did you see the forage rushed by the men as the forage came into the camp on drays ?—No. 130. Was it always served out in a regular manner?— Our quartermaster-sergeant used to send in the amount he wanted for the day, and some of us were told off to get that amount. 131. The Chairman.] How many meals did you have in camp?—l was out always once every day, and sometimes twice. Breakfast I always had, but very seldom any other meals. 132. If that is so, you can know very little of what took place at the other meals ?—No. 133. Do you know if many men had their meals out ?—There was one who went out for meals as often as I did. 134. Do you know if that was the case with any other corps ?—Yes, there were a good many others. 135. So that if you had all remained in camp there would have been still less food?— Yes. 136. Is there anything you want to tell us that we have not asked you about in connection with the camp ? —There is only one thing—and that is, our officers went out for their meals the first day. After that they had a mess table. 137. When you and your men made complaints to the officers about the food at meal-times, what was done? Was the matter remedied at all?— Things got slightly better towards the finish. 138. When did the improvement begin ?—We went in on the Friday, and left the camp on the following Thursday. On the Tuesday and Wednesday things got slightly better. 139. Was the meat any better cooked on the Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday ?—I cannot say that. 140. Did you see the procession start from the camp ?—No, I never saw it all. 141. Do you know any one who was concerned in it?—No, not so far as our corps is concerned.