308
Mule Freight Ships engaged by Admiralty 98
Full Cargo Freight Ships engaged by Admiralty 210
----
1,027

Nearly all the transports made several voyages, and some of them were
in continuous employment for over three years, and went to the Cape
and back as many as ten times besides coastal and colonial voyages.

[Sidenote: Tonnage, transports and owners.]

[Sidenote: Report of Royal Commission.]

The 210 full cargo ships carried 974,000 tons of the stores, besides
3,745 oxen. The remainder was conveyed in running ships at current
rates. The transports engaged by the Admiralty were the property of
thirty-six owners, mostly Liverpool or London firms; their average
size was 6,400 tons gross, ranging from 12,600 to 3,500 tons, the
range of speed from nineteen to eleven knots. The proportion of
tonnage per man and per horse turns out, over the whole, four tons per
man, twelve and a half tons per horse. This estimate is made by
calculating the tonnage per man on the infantry ships alone, and
allowing for the men at that rate by casting out the tonnage per horse
over the transports which conveyed both men and horses. The following
is an extract from the report of His Majesty's Commissioners appointed
to enquire into matters in connection with the war in South Africa,
dated 9th July, 1903, pp. 125, 126.

"TRANSPORT BY SEA.

"The transport by sea to South Africa from the United Kingdom and the
Colonies of a force much larger than any which had ever crossed the
seas before in the service of this or any other country affords a
remarkable illustration not only of the greatness of British maritime
resources, but also of what can be done when careful forethought and
preparation is applied to the object of utilising rapidly in war
instruments which are in peace solely engaged in the purposes of civil
life. If the same forethought had been applied throughout, there would
have been little criticism to make with regard to the South African
War. A full account of the Sea Transport organisation will be found in
the evidence of Mr. Stephen Graff, Assistant Director of Transports at
the Admiralty, and of Captain F. J. Pitt, R.N., Naval Assistant
Director of Transports.

* * * * *

"It had been represented by the Admiralty in a letter of the 4th
April, 1898 (in cont