THE MIMIC WAR TO-DAY.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 752, 26 February 1910, Page 6

THE MIMIC WAR TO-DAY.

?;->-i;;.V-- ; -t ":;■;:'■:.:ThV : ■'';At;,thei:time of • writing. (9.45 p'.-m.l'Fri-day) "moro .th'an'vhalf ~the,:-camp:'is; ■ in blackness.. Empty : tents, , awaiting :". the arfiyal of the troops iwho* are still oh the way.:, Every half-hour: troop, trains■ crawl , into . Johnsonville'.r Troop. de- : trained.- Men,: blinking..: in ■ sthe glare -of the station . lainps, ; . .fall into.: linej - wheel -into line,'and disappear into the , 'darkness, bound for the, camp. -will. con-, tinue :'■ to. amve..till well, past midnight, 'so';that,'at;this..stage. i it;.is:n , ot .possible to. give any.'accurate estimate of,the'.'number of troops '.who will spread, themselves over, the. Chills' .'to-mprrpw. >'■; LieutehantfColonel Bauchop-has .'-not- yet/arrived, .and-until he'doe's tor'morrow's doing will-be, impossible to -The rain has : stopped, and everybody.-: appears;, to: be\yery: comfortable. To. judge from..the-appearance ■of ; the.;sky,: v the...weather.,;.f6r': ro-morrow. ■../.■,;■: .'.■.';;■ ■'■.'■..'.•.'■;.:'. The,; -Wellingten-.: Infantry , r ßattalipn : (Lieutenant-Colonel •■:Duthie)": has:.arrived in;camp, :and has., comfortably '■ settled down. At 'the time-.'of /writing the Engineers : .are: ; ;CompletingC the.... direct telephone ; communication, from/the base headquarters ,, to. 'Wellington;- and it ,is expected r thatftß;:s6onas'that is accom- : plishcd news of V to-morrow's. doings: will •filter through fromV'JC.'s" Chief of Staff.

':;'■■ •■'■ "AT JOHNSONTILLE, .."'.'-.,- J; 1 liieut.rCpl. Bauchop,: officer commanding the brigade at Johnsonville,informed "the press representatives r last evening ; that the orders' for to-day's; operations,- would be as,follow:—;;, '-'■ ■■■'■■ '■■'■'■■ : ,;-\- "'- : .'•'.' :i. : A defensive: force; skeleton in character, /will take,,up a position.at Marshall's, 'under the. command of'Lieut.-CoL Joyce, 'whose force will, consist entirely' of .men" from the-Nelson district.. Colonel Joyce's position .'will'.be situated >about three miles'out, due north of:Johnsonville/and is: what is known' as ah exterior defence of that somewhat important centre. ;: i ; About three miles north .of. : > Colonel posi'fion,. at.ißenson's.'rbn r.the, T.ikapau' Eoad,. a'large, attacking., force .will.be' posted, under. command, of, : , : ,' 'X[.--..~ ,'■ '•■'.,.-, Both foroes/will: parado;-:at... their ;re[spective- positions- fdr -inspection..by Lord

Kitchener, who wfll motor out :from town to.the church,,, which stands*between the positions iknown.' , as Duncan's and Brown's, 'where led horses, .will be stationed for his use. Hβ will thqji inspect the- troops, after which, the ...operations will commenced • The' camp will be astir very early in the morning; as tho troops will move out to their positions between 5 and 5.30 a.m. Licut.-Col. '-.E. W. C. Chaytor and Major ■ Lascelles ; will. act as umpires during the operations to-day. After the inspection of the respective forces by.Lord Kitchener the officers commanding will hand in their operation orders! :•. ' - •\ ■ ■ : : -. .'•

: The numerical proportions of :the attacking force to the defending-force: is two to one; ; The* advantage would-appear ;to be with' the attacking force, the members of 'which, are familiar; with .'the' ground. The Nelson-men, oh the other-hand, are iu strange.. ground entirely, and much' of their success in defending their position will depend on the efficiency, of their outpost_ line of defence. ; According to camp gossip the attacking force will "cat up the defenders. '.". •:' "-:'/,/, :W ....-'