'Expenditure on Malleson Mission and troops in East Persia, 1918 to 1921' [‎8v] (16/34)

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the above principles, fall outlie Imperial Government for the years 1919-20 and
1920-21.
A copy of this letter is being sent to the Foreign Office .and War Office.
Yours, Ac.,
The Secretary, Treasury. A. Hirtzel.
15. —Telecj ram from Secretary of State to Viceroy, Army Department,
dated 3rd December 1920.
3814. My telegram of 4th November, No, 3054. Cost of Malleson M ission. Please
telegraph as early as possible rough estimate of total cost from beginning until com
pletion of withdrawal, also substance of your proposals for division of cost and estimates
asked for in last paragraph. Do your estimates of recoverable war expenditure in
your telegram in the Finance Department of 13th November, 60200 O.W.C., make any
allowance for contribution by India towards cost of Mission ? Matter is very urgent.
16. —T 'eleyram from Secretary of State to Viceroy, Army Department,
dated 3rd December 1920.
The London newspapers to-day are full of what appears to be a telegraphed
version of an account from the Times of India of the Meshed Expedition. Please
telegraph at once your answer. It will do you a tremendous amount of harm in the
present economy feeling, and it will be pointed out that you were spending without
control the British taxpayers’ money. The writer The lowest of the four classes into which East India Company civil servants were divided. A Writer’s duties originally consisted mostly of copying documents and book-keeping. estimates the cost of the Expedition
at 100,000,000/., the word “ economy ” being absolutely ruled out; talks of 600 miles
of derelict barracks, ice-houses, temples and swimming baths ; of miles of road
which were never used. If this not true, have any steps been taken to contradict it
in India ?
17 .—Tdeyr a m from Viceroy to Secretary of State, Army Department,
dated I3th December 1920.
526. Your telegram dated 3rd December, No. 3814, and 3982, dated 11th
December. Following are approximate figures of cost of Malleson Mission proper in
thousands of £ sterling; 1918-19, 500; 1919-20, 100; and 1920-21, 50. Figures
are only approximate, as no separate accounts of Mission proper are available at
headquarters. Total cost of troops in South and East Persia is 11,304 in 1919-20 and
5,100 in 1920-21. These fi gures include approximately for cost of troops in Fast
Persia, inclusive of Malleson Mission proper, 8,000 in 1919-20 and 4,500 in 1920-21.
Here, too, actual figures cannot be given as accounts received at headquarters are for
East and South Persia together. It is not possible to give readily similar figures
before 1919-20, as separate accounts by theatres were not compiled before that year.
2. Our estimates of recoverable war expenditure, as telegraphed to you on 13th
November last, make no allowance for contribution of India towards cost of Malleson
Mission proper.
3. We hope to telegraph to you our views on question of incidence, shortly.
18. —Telegram from Secretary of State to Viceroy, Army Department,
dated 14:1 h December 1920.
4038. Y T our telegram of 13th December, 526. Question in Parliament. What has
been total cost, including works, of troops in East Persia since establishment of East
Persian cordon ? Please give separately expenditure on the road from railhead in
Baluchistan to Meshed. Were estimates prepared and sanctioned before work was
undertaken ?
19 .—Teleg ram from Viceroy, Army Department, to Secretary of State,
dated 19f/i December 1920.
568. 18th December. Your telegrams 1539 (sic) (? 3814) dated 3rd December,
and that of 9th December. Meshed Expedition.
1. We characterise the article as a malicious exaggeration. Though described
as a wild venture and a gigantic piece of bluff, force in North-East Persia acquitted
itself successfully, and proved adequate for the purpose for which it was intended.