DEFENCE FORCE NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XLI, Issue 284, 30 November 1910, Page 9

DEFENCE FORCE NOTES.

foloMl Wolfe, O.C. Auckland District, 13 ,{ present in Whangarei Inspecting the local troops. Tie Government Armourer Is busy at the nrlll Hail Jafpecting the arms of the troops £{ieiAwiland District. Yearly »:' tlie Territorials in the Anckknd district. with the exception of the Ban-boa Artillery, havo now capitated. The irtiUerv will not capitate till their annual emp, to be held next February. .People Interested are informed in Auckland District Orders that Private Morris She clffbs can purchase St the .Defence flgce rab<* ior 25/> aml ammunition for jf/6 per thousand. Thames Territorials are in camp for a j. a t Tararu. Good work has been (lone Tnder the instruction of Sergt.-Major MacDMmell Captain E. Carpenter. A.A.G., gJJes down on Thursday to inspect the WHS- , Toe following regressions tavo been ap•roved for the current year to DefnTice rifie clubs, on expiry of which the new regulations wUI define the new t-onditiuns: rt) Free is?ne of ammunition from * to 150 round*: CS, ammunitimi to be cStaiucil at redur.-t! ratiß, Increased from 100 to 200 rounas; (3 payment for rifles pnrchEEed to be made in three instalments. Paotam B S. Matthews, who went to fcnft Africa with the first, fourth, and deltl continents. Is returning to New «Mlaßd towards the end of nost month from England, where he been undermine * couree of training. Captain Matthews is one of the m.wt enthusiastic S we Save, anri he should l.c a Rreat ieta to the authorities in getting the new wheme it to wortinc order. He was a--mdited to the War Office by the New Zμui n Government, I'lit he bore the who.c jj the expenses of his course himself. Tn the District Ord.rs issued to-day by Colonel Wolff, it is in-umated that circular So 33/10, just received lrjm neadq-uartei*. -jjs attention to secliuu li>, of ••Ainendin:,' Art, Deteace, l'Jlu," whereby sectiuii oo of the principal Act is amended to read as follows: "No person shall bring or convey m Intoxicating liquor in-to any camp, fcpraek, fort, or other place where any of the defence iorces are quartered, sxatioued, er serrtajr, or are beinp trained or excreted." Officers commanding corps will at «mc notify all O.C. units of their reapertjre commands that, the Act now bring Iα lorce, any offender is liable to the penalties earned in the said section.

A novel plan of defence—the invention «f an Indian officer—has been tried in EugJjndwith some success. The general scheme of defence was by a system of flares and trip-wires, the latter starting a flare as eooa ac touched. In war those trip-wires would be placed at I'M or 200 yards trim the line of defence, but on account of the Sjtvre of the ground these wires were ouly placed 40 or oil yards fruin the Hue of defence. At every 3u yards in the line dares «re fixed connected with the trip wires. 60 that directly a man touched the trip njire " would go off. The wires were supported about 0 or 12 inches above the ground, and, in order to prevent an enemy tumbling over the flare and getting burnt, * hurdle was placed before each flare.

Lieut-Colonel W. F. Cockburn, R.G.A., «iief instructor of artillery In the English eonth-westera coast defences, recently superintended a War Office test of some tracers of American invention, which were attached to shells, -used for night firing, die tracers are being adopted in England, end consist of a small metal cylinder screwed into the base of the shell, and containing a secret composition, largely formed d magnesium. As a shell leaves the muzzle it shows a light, which continues burning throughout the passage of tie shot through tie air. The object of the tracers is to Identify shells fired by the different guns ef the batteries to tell their distance from mc another.

Following are some Interesting particuIra of the newest guns built by Messrs Krapp, of Essen, for use against alrsliips u4. aeroplanes in the warfare of the folate. For use on land Alessrs Krupp have constructed a gun of 6.5 centimetres, and another ol T. 5 centimetres, and a gun of 10.5 centimetres for nse at sea. All tliree guns fire a shell, which, explodes the moment It tonches Its target. It is necessary In firiDg on airships that the gunners should he able to follow the exact course of their projectile, so the ahells flred from these guns have been constructed in such a way that during the daytime they leave behind them a trail of smoke, and at night a column of light The guns for use on land can fire their shells to an altitude of approximately 20,000 feet, and the gun used Et sea can fire its shell to a height of 85,000 feet, the altitude in both cases being far »nd away beyond the highest altitude which can erer be possibly reached by airship or flying machine. The guns can b« elevated to an angle of 75 degrees.

The snm of £60 2/9 granted to =the Anckfand District for the €n<!onragement <rf rifle footing has been apportioned as follows by- the local Defence Office:—Mounted Sifles and Infantry shots: Nine prizes at 15/ each, £6 15/; 10 prizes at 8/ each, £4; 12 prizes at 7/6 each, £4 10/; 39 prizes at 5/ each, £4 15/. Total, £20. Beeond-elass: 40 prizes at 4/ each, £8; 22 Jrizes at 3/ each, £3 6/; seven prizes at 2/ «di. 10/- Total, £12. Becraits: Fonr prizes at 10/ each, £2; 10 prizes at 5/ etch, £2 10/ ; 16 prizes at 3/ ech, £2 8/; 11 prises at 2/ »eh, £1 2/. Total, £8. Senior Cadets— Kist-chss shots: Four prizes at 10/ each, s2; fonr prizes at 7/6 each, £1 10/; 26 prizes at 5/ each, £6 10/. Total, £10. Sec-ond-class: 12 prizes at 4/ each, £2 8/: 14 PtizM at 3/ eacfc, £2 2/; 15 prizes at 2/ w<4; £1 10/. Total. £6. Recruits: Three prizes at 8/ each, £1 4/; 10 prizes at 4/ eel, £2; nine prises at 2/1 each, 18A>Total, £4 2/S.

Consequent on tie new arrangements JWJe In connection -with catering at the Dominion Rifle Association meeting, it hns wen decided by the Executive Council that • catering- fee of 15/ per man will be charg- «"■ and dne at the time of entry. Each competitor will receive a ticket, ■wtrich will eitffle him to ten meals in the dining room •M ten meals at the tea and coffee Pa-riUon. It has been found necessary to meet this change owing to the Associnjwn Herag unable to ascertain beforehand mc number of competitors to be catered «"■ Considerable unnecessary expense has «en incurred, and a consequent monetary J?"* finds of the Association. A urge dromg room is now being built, and ito aecommoda.te 230 at one sitting, the ™" mess room beta- set aside for the "™ en! - A new coot house and baker's «mL also been "Prted, which will wanie tie Council to provide competitors «^Ji. Jneals n P t0 With the ample "*<K>»modatli>n available. Colonel Collins Is sroposmg a new system of squadding: fonr . ~l° a S( inad. and twenty-five scjnade to mf^T? 1 ' letrer Prt from A on-wards. so that ?vf the men of the section or sections ™ie are reqnired at the firin X point, the "raer competitors being available for serw* matches or with time to take part in «nra matches