EXTRACTS FROM OFFICIAL DESPATCHES. 190 



v.— EXPEDITIONAEY FOECES IN INDIA. 



By His Excellency General Sir Charles Carmichael Monbo, 

 G.C.B., G.C.S.I., G.C.M.G., Commander-in-Chief in India. On 

 Operations during the Third Afghan War from May to 

 August, 1919, dated 1st November, 1919. 



" 13. The requirements of Veterinary Service necessitated 

 i;he formation of three Camel Veterinary Hospitals for 500 

 camels each, a Camel Convalescent Depot, and a Horse 

 -Convalescent Depot for 1000 animals each as well as additional 

 Eield and Mobile Veterinary Sections and Base Depots of 

 Veterinary Stores. The creation of these units imposed a 

 severe tax on available sources of recruitment and some 

 difficulty was experienced in obtaining personnel of the right 

 stamp. But on the whole the existing organisation stood the 

 test well. The mortality among animals was never excessive, 

 amounting to a weekly average of "2 per cent, in the case of 

 horses and ponies, "04 per cent, in the case of mules, 3 per 

 cent, in the case of bullocks, and '3 per cent, in the case of 

 camels, as compared with '2, '06, 1"6 and '1 per cent, respectively 

 ■during the period May to September 1918, in Mesopotamia. 

 The evacuation of sick animals was on the whole well carried 

 out, but there was a tendency to maintain too many ineffective 

 animals with units ; this fault was corrected in course of time. 

 Considerable inefficiency was caused by the incidence of foot- 

 and-mouth disease and rinderpest in bullocks. 



"88. As already stated I have had every reason to be 

 ;satisfied with the work of the Veterinary, Eemounts, Ordnance, 

 ■Supply and Transport Services." 



