NEW ZEALANDERS BOUND FOR THE WAR.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXI, Issue 103, 2 May 1900, Page 5

NEW ZEALANDERS BOUND FOR THE WAR.

'ABOARD THE GYMERIC

THE VOYAGE TO ALBANY.

.jfSfar" Special Correspondent.)'

• ALBANY, April 14. 11 ♦* la3t!" was heard on all sides stL-,, % trcoPshiP Uymeric slowly Slr ay Irom tiie L^tteito" o?<^? T endcn>s cheering and strains abouHh.^T Syne-" We all stayecl RS I Qks Until tlie H&hts on the get I? 3Way ' when we be&all t0 dreai, fto °U1" respeefive bunks to left b «n° Uv homes and friends we'd S^& Zea + lancl-; Thereare ttes^Vnn ■ d out as keeping and 8 CoXSv bem&. occ"Pied the No. land r?J? J' CollslstiKg' of the Audithree wl Cf S- Thei<e are about board 4S • and tAvenf 3- men on cr^7aS U f Slve °f officer* ship's hWs i low hllnd «d and twenty CUn imagine we are yon as steady as a rock. The •w-Bp m? LYBUGLE CALLS l El^^ a-ffl-^table S atC.ls. clea niD ? SS U§; an* Ceding, and se^a sta h llsl »>»eakfaßt at 8.15; t i% ati 2 ? >d«*J attend «M6na m s t in' first P ost' 9-30 P-m.; Any fell °p-m-; "S'hts out. 1Q.13. I s done i + °r ' other -wtok So tim!'' ,D?tw. ee" those calls. «fle p? act ipp VaS + i lost hl starting ? ak4 a l?'- the Wellington men Nes fcj]11)l!n? on Monday at n a tSS V°, lle- V firiE §- eight ■S-^tehaiTL? 110 S cosd^ted by fet^^V + led °ut the difiehi^. I£IVV tar?ets were left h-*a.s done " c very fair snoot" ; a T" e?% there was a M cd

change in the weather, and we began to realise that we were at sea, with the result that the numbers turning1 up to mess showed market! diminution. The captain of the ship gave warning to prepare for a rough isli night, so all things on deck were tightened up and made secure before we turned hi, which many a poor trooper did without his evening meal. After midnight the (lymeric. began to jump about in real earnest, and those of us who had managed to get to sleep were wakened by the confusion of all the tin mess gear rolling and pitching about the floor. .About four o'clock in the morning- things got « bit serious, as three of the horses had fallen down. The picket and all the men who were, able were called on deck. All the horses were got up again after a bit of trouble, not nmeh !the worse for their accidents., excepr\mg a bit of skin knocked off here and there. -The rough weather continued ! through Wednesday and Thursday, double pickets having to be posted during- the nights. Some AMUSING INCIDENTS occurred during the storm. When tne shout of alarm from the deck, saying that a horse was Jown was heard a trooper, who is aWvthing but fomt of the ship and sea, seemed to get It into his head that the (lymeric was down, for he jumped from his bunk and rushed on deck with his life-belt on. Another "son of the sea"' from Wellington, on hearing if was going to be a rough night, could not be persuaded to go below at all, braving the wind and weather on deck all night garbed in his life belt. The poor fellow has had rather a bad time since from the bearing- of his mates. On going to bed the following night he found his blankets and bunk filled with life-belts. Trooper AJdrei of the Auckland section, suffered so severely on the voyage that he will have to be left at Albany. Otherwise the health of the men is very good. On Thursday there was such a heavy beam sea running-] that we had to reduce to quarter speed j for the sake of the horses. Our FIRST HORSE DIED on Thursday evening. It was situated aft, between decks, 'and was a remount belonging1 to the Fifth Con- | tingent. It was hoisted up and , i COMMITTED TO THE DEEP ■ j on Friday morning. The first joyful'! sign that we were approaching land ] again was when we sighted the lighthouse off Flinders Island at 10.30 p.m. on Friday night. Monday night it set in rough again, | blowing very hard from the W.S.W., | which made it almost a head wind, and i it turned out a most disastrous nighr ; for our horses. Two horses died in the j forward hold during the night, another j dying early the next morning, and two i more being1 in such a bad way as to i have to be assisted by the aid of a j friendly, bullet to put them out of. j misery. The death fiend wasn't even ' satisfied then, a fine horse belonging ; to the Wellington section, who' went ' -mad during the night, but was quiet- i ened down before morning,- died in ' the afternoon from the knocking I •about he had given himself, making j six horses put overboard on the one i day. and bringing the total lost up | to eight. There has been only one ! stowaway come to light, and lie has \ been set to work down the stokehole. • It is evident that the men are ! NOT SUFFERING FROM LOSS OF ; APPETITE, as the butcher informed me that up : to the 12th (Wednesday) he had ; killed forty - five sheep and three i bullocks, besides a lot of tinned meat j and fish being served out. On Wednesday, April 11th, the first edition of the great "Gymcrack" made j its appearance. The paper is edited by j some of.the noh.-corns., contributions; from anyone on board being thank- j fully received and requested. . | Albany was reached at last, and we ! dropped anchor here at 7.45 a.m. on April 13th (Good Friday). When the pilot-boat came alongside all sorts o£ j eager questions' were shouted at the 1 men in the boat, chiefly concerning i the other two troopships, and we hear they have just left, leaving- yesterday morning. After breakfast and stables were got through with, half the men were told to dress and tidy themselves ready to go oh shore. After a bit of waiting, our names being taken, etc., we were taken ashore by the tug-boat Bruce. On reaching the shore we all marched up the- wharf, and fell in on the street in our respective companies, and then came one of our ple.asantest duties, receiving our pay, Colonel Sommerville .giving each man £1 of his wages. We were then dismissed and told xo enjoy ourselves with discretion, and fall in again to come on board at 7 p.m. The Auckland boys wished to be relnembered through your columns to their friends at home. Troop-' er Aldred, who has suffered so much from seasickness, will be left here. He is not dangerously ill, but unfit for any further sea voyage. Our | loss of horses has been pretty heavy, totalling up to twelve, but almost all the remainder are in splendid health, so we might be able to make up for our poor beginning by losing few in the latter part of the voyage.