THE DEFENCE FORCES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 172, 14 April 1908, Page 10

THE DEFENCE FORCES.

♦ ' GENERAL ORDERS. , GENERAL INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF. Tlio following will be the distribution of officers, General Instructional Staff, for instructional purposes for current Volunteer year, 1008 : 9: — (a) Major E. ff. W. Lasccllos as Chief Instructor for General Courses and Classes of . Instruction (cxcept technical classes, artillery subjects) throughout the Dominion, with headquarters at Wellington. (b.) All Garrison and Field Artillery; Captain G. S. Richardson, with headquarters at Wellington. , (c) Field Enginec-ts; (officer to be named later), with headquarters at Wellington.(d.) Mounted Rifles: Captain Nelson for the 1 South Is'.nid, with headquarters at Christchurch. Captain Browne for the North Island, with headquarters at® Auckland. (e.) Infantry: Captain Rogers, with headquarters at Wellington. APPOINTMENTS. The appointment of Lieutenant C. B. Harton as Acting-Captain of the Wellington Post and Telegraph Rifle's, and of Mr. V. R. S. Meredith as acting-lieutonant No. 1 Company, Wellington Division New Zealand Garrison Artillery Volunteers, is approved. INSTRUCTIONAL COURSES.' The - following syllabus is published as, a guiclo for officers and N.C.O.'s wishing to attend courses of instruction _ Course I.—Six days' continuous - for N.C.O.'s, each military district: Recruit training ;squad, section, troop, company, and squadron drill; skirmishing, semaphore signalling; elementary musketry; elementary topograpny and map-reading; . elementary field engineering; field messages and reports; elomontary tactics, with small war-game .or tactical exercise; discipline and interior economy. , Course ll—Six days continuous for officers, junior class: Recruit-training, squad, section, troop, company, ancL squadron drill; musketry, skirmishing, lire tactics; map-read-ing and topography;semaphore signalling; military field engineering; minor tactics, the snSject-matter of "Combined Training and the training manuals in use; discipline, organisation, and administratioh ; stair ride. Course lll.—Six days continuous, ofheers, senior class: Company, squadron, battalion, and regimental drill; advanced musketry .training, fire tactics, and field practices; organisation and' administration m; .peace ana war ; indoor and outdoor tactical exercises boaring on subject-matter off Combined Training," Manual of Field-sketching, Manual of Military Field Engineering; mobilisation instructions; staff vide. . • In order that valuable time jmay be saved at' these courses, officers commanding districts are to see that the-instruction at district classes is preparatory to above. /: MARCH EXAMINATIONS: ■ General. — Twenty-eight officers,various ranks, ■ sat for examination, ilhere.is still a tendency to evade direct replies to questions. For instance, a question regarding selection or camp-site was in several instances answered, "It should be on suitable ground. ; Candidates should describe what they consider suitable ground; Officers commanding districts are to awange that red and blue pencils are , available, to enable candidates .to mark position of troops on sketch. I . : : '■••■v 'Musketry.—-Generally ' an ;. : ,mproyement ' Field Engineering. wore very good. , The 'various - forms 1 < ofshelters and tiro Frenches' jhoifld ibe 'kiiown\by: I all officers. j ■'■■■ ■ Outpost.—Fair improvement shown on last examination, generally. The various classes of patrols and their dutios were confused with ea,ch other. ' . ' . 1 . attention seems to have been given to this important subject. Topography (Sketches)'.—ln nearly all cases tho conventional sign for. true and magnetic north was misplaced, oj: ! candidates did not know that magnotic' north is east of true in the Southern Hemisphere. In'four cases it was stated in writing as iwest of true. Tactical.—lmproving. 'With one exception tho field-officers were distinctly good. replies . 'to questions on discipline and regulations show .that in most cases officers have hot bee.n kept acquainted with amendments. For instance, only one candidate answered correctly-as to the qualification necessary for j joining company or squadron reserves. I Drills and Exercises.—Generally very good, showing a close acquaintance with the Drill Manuals? Mounted rifles are in a transition state as to Drill Manual. This iis taken' into account'when awarding marks.) It is hoped to make'a general issiie of thej'new manual in April. .• / . ;) , .

EASTER MANCEUVBJES.'. NEWS AND NOTES. / An efficient staff, of to act during the Easter manoeuvres; which will commence at 5 p.m. on Friday next, has been selected; the staff consists principally of officers oil the active list (unattached), and also some of the visiting officers, and will be quartered at the Porirua Hotel. ; Six of the officers engaged as "umpires are ex-members of the Fourth' New. Zealand South African Contingent. They aroLieut.-Col. Bauchop (Um'pire-in-Chief), Captains Ross, Gardiner, and Seddon, and > Lioutenants Fowlcs and Grant. .V ■ }•{.. ' ' Two hundred and forty tents and nine marquees have been pitched at tho " Red " base at Johnsonvillo in preparation for the mobilisation operations' oil Thursday and Friday next. At Paliautanui, near Paremata, tho " Blue" base, one hundral and sixty tents and two marquees have'been pitched, and at-Paremata a supply depotiof four tents and four marquees has, been established. ' _ Lieutenant-Colonel . Campbell, commanding the • Garrison Artillery- division, has selected as his staff for ;jthe operations _at tho forts , during ; ;Easter, the following officers arid warrant-officers':— Captain Symon, R.N.Z.E. (adjutant); Sur-gcon-Captams Gilmer; Perry!, and Shand (mcdical staff); Regimental Sergeant-Major-Withers; Divisional Sergeant-Major, Quartermaster Doncaster. I Tho contract for the supply 1 of rations has. been let to Messrs. Rod and Co., of Johnsonvillo, and that for firewood, forage, and straw to Messrs. Thompson 13ros. alid Co./ of Wellington. ' . I A pipe-line has been laid down from a c'roek about three-quarters ■of a-mile from the "Red" base at Johnsonville, for- the supply of the storage tanks /which have been erected at the camp. A cre«k nearer the baso was condemned by the' medical authorities as being unfit for drinking purposes. Tho " Blues " will draw their water supply from tho Paliautanui stream. A half-company 'of tho Johnsonville Rifles, under Lieutenant Willis, Jias been detailed for night guard duty at the " Red " base at Johnsonville. and went into camp on Saturday last. The camp is iii charge of Staff-Sergeant-Major M'Nair at present! Lieutenant Merrielies, of the Johnsonvillo Rifles, has been attached to No.'2 Field Column. Lieut.-C.olonel W. G. IJuthio, commanding the "Reds," together with his staff, paid a visit of inspection to the'.camp on Sunday. A meeting of the officers of No. 1 Wellington Rifle Battalion was hold on Saturday evening last, Major Mackintosh, 0.C., presiding. Soveral matters relating to transport and . mobilisation - wero /discussed. , On assembling at Johnsonvillo, tho Red Foroo will bo divided into threo separate field columns. No. 1 Column will bo commanded by Major Tato, of tho Wairarapa Infantry Battalion; No. 2, under Major C. D. Mackintosh (Wellington Rifle Battalion); and No. 3 under/Major: Ilalpin, of the Napier Battalion. Thft troops from Gißborno and tho East Coast districts will travel to Wellington per s.s. Tom. It' has been arranged, for tho present manoouvres at any rato, that railway passes for/Vohuiteers proefceding to tho manoeuvres will bo issued by tho senior officers at entraining stations. These officers will enumerate tho entrainment parades to tho guards of thoir respcctivo trains, and will reooivo from them passes for the number of'ni-on entrained. Tho provious custom was to stato boforchand tho number of men who would bo travelling, and .in every caso.tho number of men either exceeded tho estimato given or, fell below .it; this resulted, in tho' case'of an excess, in a loss to the Railway Department, and in the t otlior caso.a loss to tho Defence Department..