before those of others, and it became necessary to draw
on the reserves of other corps which had more than they required,
their militia reserves being selected for the purpose. By the time
the war had lasted a year the equivalents of five drafts on the 10 per
cent. basis had left England. But a limit had been reached. "By the
end of a year's campaigning our infantry reserves proper, including
the now non-existent militia reserve, were exhausted, a point which
was emphasised by Lord Lansdowne in the following words in his minute
of 2nd June, 1900....:

"'Two points stand out clearly: (1) That in future campaigns we must
expect demands on a vast scale for infantry drafts; (2) that our
reserve is not large enough and must be increased.'"[12]

[Footnote 8: Some difficulty was experienced in finding
certain specialists, such as farriers, &c.]

[Footnote 9: Of this original force from England, all cavalry
and artillery units and eleven infantry battalions went out
with a "war establishment, plus excess numbers," which were
calculated at 10 per cent. to make good casualties for the
first three months. It was decided to adopt this standard in
all cases.]

[Footnote 10: The reserve of the artillery fell short almost
at once, whereas the entire reserves of the cavalry were not
called out until the end of February, 1901.]

[Footnote 11: For one battalion alone, the 2nd battalion
Royal Irish Rifles, 1,831 duly qualified soldiers left
England in six months, without having to draw on any reserves
outside its own corps.]

[Footnote 12: Memorandum on Drafts prepared in the
Adjutant-General's department, 30th September, 1902. See
Appendix volume, Royal Commission, p. 86.]

Short service had made it possible to build up a reserve substantial
enough to minister to the unprecedented requirements of the regular
army for a year. Without it, the end of our resources in trained men
would have been reached at a very early stage.

[Sidenote: Borrowing, with results.]

One difficulty arose. Staffs of many formations, such as those of
mounted infantry, ammunition columns and medical field units, did not
exist. The completion of these new creations for the original field
force necessitated the borrowing of officers and men from other
bodies, which, as was supposed at that time,