diff --git a/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/Location.java b/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/Location.java
index d0036a3bc..247279ec5 100644
--- a/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/Location.java
+++ b/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/Location.java
@@ -110,6 +110,14 @@ public class Location implements Serializable {
         return lineNumber;
     }
 
+    /**
+     * @return the column number
+     * @since Ant 1.7
+     */
+    public int getColumnNumber() {
+        return columnNumber;
+    }
+    
     /**
      * Returns the file name, line number, a colon and a trailing space.
      * An error message can be appended easily. For unknown locations, an