H.—6c.

TROOPER S. GARDINER.]

93

36. Did the attendants neglect their duty?—No, sir, not those who were there, unless they were supposed to be awake all night; I should say they did then, sir. 37. Did you have enough attendants? —I got up myself the last night to wake the orderly to give a patient a drink. 38. You had to leave the hospital at Albany to buy food?—I went out of the hospital when we got to Albany and bought food, and then went back to my quarters. 39. What was the matter with your back? —I ricked it. It is bad yet. 40. Then, why did you go out of the hospital if the food was good, to go back to your own quarters?— Well, because of the smell. 41. The hospital was worse than your own quarters? —I did not like the smell in the hospital, and I got a terrible bad cold when I was there. 42. Did you leave the hospital because there was neglect ?—I left it because I did not like it. 43. Why did you not like it?— Because of the smell. ■ 44. And on no account except that of the smell?— The smell and catching the cold. I caught it two days after going in. It was very draughty there. 45. You say you were mess orderly and you made complaints about the food ?—Yes, sir. 46. When was this ? —The first five or six days after leaving Durban. 47. And to whom did you complain ? —To the officer who came round, sir. " 48. What was the nature of the complaint?— About the tea. 49. Tell me the worst cases of complaint—the worst you can think of ?—The men were always making complaint. 50. What did you complain of ? —One day about the meat; that was the worst complaint. 51. What was that complaint ? —That the meat was tainted and that it was not cooked. 52. To whom did you report that ?—To the orderly officer, sir. 53. Who was the orderly officer ?—I have no idea who it was. I just made a complaint and he went away again. 54. You made a complaint about tainted meat to somebody, but you do not remember to whom it was made ?—I just made a complaint, and it was taken no notice of, so I just let it go. 55. Then, when you made complaints you got no redress ?—No, sir, not then ; we did towards the finish. 56. Well, I wish you could tell me who the officer was ; try and remember ?—I have no idea. I only know about two officers—those of our own squadron. 57. How did you make the complaint? —The officers asked if we had any complaint, and we said, " Yes, sir." And we showed it to him, and he said he would see what he could do. Those were the words he used. 58. And when the meat was bad you did not get any redress ?—Not at first. Towards the end we did; we got tinned meat. 59. How many occasions did you fail to get redress ? —I could not say, lam sure. 60. We want to get something specific. We want to find out whether the men were neglected, and unless you can give us something definite we cannot follow up a clue. We want the name of some officer and some occasion when no attention was paid to complaints made ?—I do not know the officers, and Ido not know the occasion. It was just before I went to the hospital. 61. Was that on one occasion or more ? —That was on this occasion of the meat being tainted and badly cooked. 62. What was the next bad case?— The soup, sir. I made a complaint about that, and I made a complaint about the tea. 63. I want you to connect it with some officer on some occasion?—lf I did not know the officer I could not tell you who it was. 64. How can we follow it if you cannot give us more precise information? Whom have we to go to? We want a definite statement. Could you identify an officer from his photograph?—-No, sir; Ido not think I could. We did not take any notice of them. 65. Did you officially complain, or simply grumble ?—I should say it was an official complaint, sir. 66. Was any non-commissioned officer present ?—I could not say, sir. 67. Was it customary for a non-commissioned officer to go round?— Yes, sir. 68. Did you know your non-commissioned officers?—l could not tell you. I used to take no notice of them. 69. No notice of the officers or the non-commissioned officers, and no notice of the dates ?— No, sir. 70. How long did the meat remain tainted : was it tainted during the whole voyage ?—Sometimes it was good. 71. After the first week out was the meat tainted?— Yes, sir. 72. After you left Albany was it tainted?— Yes, sir; about twice I noticed it. 73. After you left Albany? —Yes, sir ; but I seldom touched it myself. 74. On how many occasions did you observe it?—l should say once or twice. 75. Did you never touch the meat? —Very seldom. 76. I suppose you went down to the meal?—l bought some food of my own at Albany, and, of course, I used to eat that. 77. What food did you buy at Albany?— Some fish and fruit. ■ 78. About how much did you spend ?—£l 4s. 79. And you lived on what you bought at Albany all the way to New Zealand ?—We used to eat the bread, sir. 80. But nothing else ?—Sometimes I used to eat different things —tinned meat for one. ' ■ 81. Jams, butter ? —The jam we used to get once or twice.