Ashburton Guardian Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 1941. NEW CHIEF OF STAFF.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 250, 4 August 1941, Page 4

Ashburton Guardian Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 1941. NEW CHIEF OF STAFF.

The appointment of Brigadier Puttick as Chief of the General Staff of the New Zealand Forces will be received with satisfaction throughout the Dominion. The selection of a man with a fine record of active service in two wars was especially essential at the present juncture, and it is no detriment to others reputations to say that it would be hard to find, one who could discharge the onerous duties of the position as capably as Brigadier Puttick. He has proved himself a good soldier in every sense of the word. He is a good tactician and an able administator and a strict disciplinarian, and one who asks none to perform tasks that, he himself would not dare Undertake. Thus he has earned the confidence of those serving under him —a vital factor in sustaining morale. Brigadier Puttick’s experience in the present war, rounding off the knowledge he gained in the previous one, will serve the Dominion in two most 'important aspects. He will be able to direct the training of forces destiped for overseas on the lines best fitted to enable them to meet all calls upon them: He will also be competent to mould the Territorials and other Home forces according to the pattern - that will make them efficient to meet any possible threat to this country itself. In these days of swift action, the nation that has neglected every possible opportunity of strengthening its defences lays itself open to acts of aggression and to emphasise the need for adequate action in that respect is not the adoption of an alarmist view. It>is simply uttering a warning against a complacency, that may lead us into a false sense of security.