VISITORS AN THE MEETING.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 140, 7 March 1908, Page 7

VISITORS AN THE MEETING.

TWO AUSTRALIAN RIFLEMEN. SERGEANT 0. M'CALLFA T . Sergeant D. M'Calley, of tho Australian Medical Corps, who is among tlio visiting riflemen nt the Trentham meeting, is a redouhtablo shot, to judge, by his past record. Ho'began his career as' a-rifleman away back in 1592, and shot with varying success up till 1897 and 1898, in each of which years ho missed tlio'Sydney championship by one point. During tlieso years ho won various district ■ association championships throughout New South Wales. Tho year 1900 was notable .for'him. At New Jersey ho won tho American ; ! championship, tho "General Monay" match with .98 out of a possible 100, and tho Hayes mednK From thero ho went over to' Paris, and won two matches; thereafter ho proceeded to Aberdeen (Scotland), when lie annexed the 50 guinea .Corporation Cup, making six possibles in ono day—one at .200 yds., threo at 500 yds., and two 'at GOOyds. His score for tho Cup included no less than tweuty-two " bulls.' In 1907 he competed at tho New Zealand Riflo moeting at Trentham, and'tied with Rifleman A." Ballinger right up to tho last match, which lie had to forego, having to leave for England to attend the Bisloy meeting. ;His aggregate was then 333, with tho match to go. At Bisloy Sergeant M'Calley won about £51- in various events,' his trophies including tho -Kiug's Badge, the Bronzo Cross, andthe .Championship Jewel. Ho was sixteenth in tho "all-comers" aggregate, nineteenth in tlio grand. aggregate, ■ and third in tho Corporation ./aggregate. 1 Tho rifleman then went to . meetings at Edinburgh, Glasgow,, and: Aberdeen,. winning • various honours at those .places. ...Then he crossed tlio. "pond," and participated in tho Toronto meeting, when ho annexed tho principal _• event, ;tn'e " Tait-Brassey" and camo third in tho championship. He next attended the Dominion R.A. meeting, at Ottawa, at which tho -,British . Representative Rifle team was prcsejit. M'Calley camo second in the Dominion championship: event (silver; medal), fifth -in. the : Governor-General's match (tho principal event), and when ho left Canada he tool?, away about 300 dollars of good hard Canadian cash ~in,',prize-inonpy' with him. Ho then returned to Australia, and was a member of tho New South Wales representative team at- tho Brisbane' Riflo Meeting, taking: third place in his team, and winning £18 in-prizes. • Ho did not take part in t- 1 -' Empiro match at Sydney last year, although .he cairio twelfth in the aggregate for the othoroverits, ■ and;'pocketed. £30 in., prizemoney; - At Hobart.. (this' all happens in 1907) / he woii tho: Launceston match, and camo: third in the. championship aggregate, > winning £18 ; in .prize-money, v- ' The '..indefatigable M'Calley then went to; Melbourne," and at tlio Victoria R.A.. mooting made 98 out of 100 in tho Frank. Stuart ' match, taking second place. Ho camo sixth iii the championship, was in the .• King s "thirty,"winning-a- badge, and stowed,in his wallet . £35. Ho;, then turned westward, scooped -various things' at the R.A. meeting in-West. Australia, and won the championship—and took £-101 . ' I ■ ■ : .This year .ho won tlio South Island R,A. championship, but at Trontham, " tlio gravo. of riflemen's reputations," he has so . far' ■ done'nothing brilliant, bping; as lie himself ' says, '' out of form." . , ! V. - - SERGEANT EDWARDS. .Sergeant Edwards, ..of' Now' South Wales, ■who is trying his luck at Trentham just now, has also a good record. In 1905 ho won the championship medal at Randwick, and tied "for thci King's Prize with : Motton, of Queens-,'jand,'-being'dofeated in' tho count- out.-.!"Ho •'came" sep'6hd J ,for''tlio" King's Prizo -in: 1006,' 'and at'Melbourne-'ho also distinguished HiwsdlF. At Raridwick : in 1907 ho was a membor ; of tho.Austra.lian representative team for the . Empire match.' At Bisloy ho topped the list of his team for'tlio Kblaporp match, _making an aggregate scoro of 100 at 200, 500,. and 600yds/-: RANGE GOSSIP : There 'was 'some comment ! by. marksmen yesterday oh . what" tliey' teriiied inaccurate ''marking at tlio 2Qoyds. , . ; r|ingo in. the Auckland Match'.'on ; Tliurs'day. It,is "alleged that several'shots, which .fell on tho .''black and which; wero spotted ' as.'. '.'inncrc", w.ere h marked as bull's'eyes,. .Some .of."tho highest , scorers i.woro.'indebted' to the. niisbonceptioii . of ~the markers'' for . tlieir' .go'otl' fortune.; . Naturally they made no'complaint regarding tho mis: i: takes; 1 - which, however, 1 wero immediately hotc'd'-by' their' unsuccessful: brethren Except for tho lapse 1 referred to, the :}v6rlsT'has 'o'arntidv a' fair amount'- of - approval 'from ■ both riflemen aiid volunteers; but there worn.- soma -complaints- heard yesterday. .■MarlvMnen-,thinJ>:,that thero . aro too' many untrained-lien in- the trenches... ■' The Trentham range", lies - n'ortli-west. ' A 'number of-marksman! consider, that-it should 'faco-tho' 1 north-east, with the 1 ' targets' -to- ' wards'.- the south:-''. Tho' gain, v they 1 state, ■''would- bo in securing-a much longer range than tho present ono, and much better conditions . 'so far as the-wind;is concerned.:lf appoars 'that -when :tbo site-was selected some, years'ago, the matter of'wind didnot occupy the attention of the Government, and it. is considered that to make a ohaiige now would involve'-' too much ■ expense. . Thia', general 'appearancb..pl some of the iridenien at tho meeting remind ono" of tho, pictures-of thp'.Dutch. burghort who gave the world some new. ideas in the art of guerrilli warfare. There is about .these New Zealanders something of the samo free aiid o : a'iy"style as was evidenced by' the Dutob farmers..'.Big; Strong .men thoy'.are, in old clothos' arid a slouch hat, with tlio smell, ol 'tho'farm, ,the sa'welust, and the bush fresh upon ' thorn. ' Ono notices' tho characteristic face, with'its'healthy blood,, and tho keer eyo of tho sons of, tho land. In only , one thing'does their fancy border 'on'.the .fastidious and that is in tho caro of their rides, In all else they are. free as air, and they, gc down to the ranges with their big, hob-nailed boots, sucking their bullets, arid plug in at tho targo't, with., countenances .which fairlj shine with enthusiasm, . ,- , Pigeons,.aro useful. news; carriers,, but theii litt-la idiosyncrasies aro apt to bo i sowowliiil disconcerting to those . who. would omploj tlicm on errands: of moment.. Yesterday .1 pigeon almost brought disgrace to his species Ho was.set off with,a sheaf of "copy," bul instead of making . str.-iight for . homo he alighted on tho roof of the mess : room ant .walked pibout and surveyed things,. Then :)i< porohed-. On. tlie roof of, tho. Exeoutivo Coun cil''s"office, 'and: appeared, to . a , greal interest in '!the; shooting.. .His brethren.hac meanwhile gone, and his .agonised owners pursued him yl'ith , stones unci anathema. Tli< pigeon stood the assault for some timo, ane then called at tho oaiiteeri: where'he mado f •long stay, in spito 'of continued protest voluble .and trajectory. Finally, he was prevailed .upon to leave,; arid flew homeward .much:'to tho relief of. those who wore;mosj .interested iri his'welfare. ' Riflemen gonerally aro inclined ; to tin opinion that of the threo ranges at Trenthan the Seddon is the best. In tho Scddon rangi tlio butts aro farther" away, from the hill: than, on tho Collins and Somervillo 'ranges and marksmen, declare that it has,.-the. ad -vantage of a "calm .belt", of - tivo-liuudret yards immediatoly in'front of the, targets The .two-hundred yards space in, front of ,: target is all important to oi marksman especially at tlio longer ranges, 800 nnd 901 yards, as,, it' is thero; that,.the .speed of t bullet, 'after traversing tho first few luindrei yards,!.'begins, to slacken. _ To the casiia outsider, it s'oenis to bo-a distinction, witliou a diifbrenpo to say that a bullet is travellinj slower at the end than at the boginning o an eight-hundred yards journey, but, wlici ono observes the parapliornalia which a chain pion requires to; secure accurato shooting ono can easily; understand tho contention. Some of the marksmen , condemned th wind at Trentham ■ in . bitter anathema yes torday; others said that it was " simpl; Trentham wind." Fivo points wiutlngp ; oiv way or another was allowed at tlio SOOj'ard l-aiige, .but ono shot stated that hp had gon down on somo occasions lat a provious moot . ing, when, owing to tho; galo which' wa blowing, lie had had to allo\v ; as mnoh a 15 degrees of windage, and then sighted onl; for the edgo of tjio target. Marksmen described it as a "fish-tail' wind, with a " corkscrow." in 'the middle Tho "■'fisli-tnil "• at Trentham ia caused b; the conicuration of the iountry. 'Iha ranc

lies in a basin of hills, whjch turn tho courso of a breeze in all directions. It was not a distinctly bad wind, but it was very tricky, and baffled several of tho,' best marksmen. This was especially so at the 500 yards range in tho Auckland match. M'Lcay, of the Opaki Riflo Club, who had put mi tho possible at tho 200 yards on the previous day, went all to pieces,, his scoro being 19 only, while Henry, his club I mate, and an ex-champion (1903) had to ho content with 26. Rifleman H. Hawthorne, of tho Petono Club, who had inado a possible at the 200 yards range in tho Auckland 1 match, managed' to hold his own with 31, t but Captain W. N. Masefielel, of the Sounds < Riflo Club, compiled a modest 28. Franklin,of tho Weber Rifle Club, was tho most successful marksman at the range. Ho, shot when there was a calm, and rattled oil 33, while Sergeant J. Mills (Dnnedin), who fired his eight shots in four minutes, scored 32. It appears that with " single-man " targets there is opportunity for more rapid, and possibly moro reliablo, shooting than under tho old conditions, when men would go down on tho mound and wait and wrcstlo and commune with tho elements before they pulled tho trigger. It, was a nerve-raking process, and the innovation should eventually find favour with all marksmen. The wind was also bad, and tho scoring fair. On tho Seddon'Range, tho finish of tho "Volunteer and Rifle Club matches, and the , commencement of the Otago match wero being fired. Tho range was visited yesterday by Colonel A. W. Robin, C.8., Chief of tho General Staff, who was accompanied 1 by Lieut.-Colo-nel Hawkins, commanding the Canterbury military district, Surgeon-Major J: R. Purdy, and Hon. Captain J. O'Sullivan. A friendly'match was fired this afternoon, at the. running man target. .Tho competitors were Lieut.-Colonel Hawkins, Honorary Captain . O'Sullivaii, and Surgeon-Major Purdy. Colonel Robin was an amused spectator, whilo'Lieut.-Colonel Collins was'super.visor. Lieut.-Colonel Hawkins fired first, and managed to hit tho target three times, although he threw,his last shot away,.,'owing, to tho fact that his automatic, victim reached cover before ho could pull trigger. Captain O'Sullivan threw his'shot away in the samo manner,, and .missed .the target every time, Surgeon-Captain Purdy succeeded in firing eight shots in the given time, but ho'received illegal aid -from. Colonel Collins, who kept him going with cartridges. Notwithstanding the doctor's fusillade, the man escaped. : TO-DAY'S PROCRAMME. 8 a.m.—Otago Match, 900 yards, squads,. J. to. 25. 8 a.m.—Nelson ' Match,. 500 yards, ' - .-.'squads, 26;t0 25.. , 10 a.m.—Nelson Match, 500 yards, . squads, 1 to 25. . ; 10.30 a.m.—Otago ,' Match, .900 yards, squads,' 26 to 50. r" , '•2 p.m.—Nelson . Match, . 000 yards. 3.30 p.m.—Rapid-firing Match. -