TERRITORIAL FORCE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 952, 20 October 1910, Page 8

TERRITORIAL FORCE.

TRAINING THE GUNNERS. SOME NEW IDEAS.. To-morrow evening, No. 2 Company of the Wellington Garrison Artillery Division (Petone Navals), under Captain Bevan, will go iiito camp at Fort Kelburne, Kgahauranga,' for their annual course of training in fort-manning and big-gun shooting. During the whole of the present,week the officers of tho.companjv with the divisional stair officersnine in all—have been in camp for preliminary instruction under Captain G. S. iliclmrdson, Chief Instructor of Artillery, repeating what last year,was a very successful experiment. A departuie from the custom- of previous camps is the . idea adopted this iyear: of getting, the l , men through their various examinations in order, to leave the; ground clear for the greatest possible amount of instructional, work, which will' consist ' of company 'training..and service, practice with live shell. There was some talk of divisional camps being held at th>>. various defended ports this year, but the idea has, beeii taken..up by Auckland :alone. : In.AVellington,..the -Petone. gunners,i in order to meet. the. convenience ; of', employers .-as far as,.possible, .hold their/camp in October, for with' many .of .the men''the ensuing.. months are' very busy cues at Petone, .especially .'for - those employed m the meat worlcs.; . The .Wellington Navals, .on the other hand, find the convenience of employers, best suited by. holding theircamp in January. Under these circumstances a divisional camp for . the Wellington' Coast Defence troops is, this year at any.rate, a difficult proposition.. / On Saturday the big 6-inch. B.L. .guns "A 1 and A 2" -will .be. "calibrated"--teisted for error. The" conditions' for the shooting test. have . beeii stiffened every year,: and' for'the present, year's test/the range, .will be increased, in one series; from 4000 . to. 5003 yards, while the . rste of toeing the, targets will alsi be .acceler-' ated.. There , will be no night-firing. 7. Several new . features in' :.the general instructional, work :will;.be infcroduced .this year, including a' court-martial for' the purpose, of: affording, the .officers and men

some ■ practical idea of the procedure at such courts, which have' been provided tor in ' the new Defence Bill. Special instruction in administrative work has also been given to the officers, and, in addition, a syllabus of lectures , has been drafted. Major P. G. Courtney, of the Divisional Staff, will lead off with a lecture on "Gunnery," illustrated with lantern slides. Permission has been granted by District Headquarters for the annual "at homo" at Fort Ivelburne to be held on Sunday, October 30. NEWS AND MOTES., The first infantry battalion in the.Welliiigton district ,to announce its intention of' going' into camp for a seven days' course of instruction, in,terms of the last district • order, is the Second Wanganui Rifle Battalion, which will go under canvas from February 4 to February 11,' 1911. ' The Masterton Mounted Rifles will go into camp 1 for. tlveir annual course of training on' January 3 nest. ; ■ Additional results of the. September quarterly examination of Territorial officers for'certificabes of rank are announced. Jjieutenant' MeiyHlees, Johnsonville Rifles, has passed for ' captainActing-Lieuten-ants J. B.'Davfe (Ivelburne Rifles),'Melloi' (City Rifles), and Slipper .(Hutt. Valley Rifles), have passed for lieutenants ;\Aot'ing Paymaster and Quartermaster Le Quesrie" (secoffd .Wellington Mounted Regiment, Napier), bas passed for the rank-.of captain.' . 1 •' . .. ■ Certificates of acting-appointments jhaw been issued to Mr. R.' H. Whalley, .as l ;i?.ting-car/tain of, the Palmerston North. Technical School ;Rifle Cadets, and to' Mr. .I."* j?rasep, as acting-lieutenant''attached . to the. Napier Guards.. ; St. .Anne's Defence .Cadet Corps ,;i will parade/ Jot divine, service 'on. Sunday, November 6. ' i Tho first battalion of the' Wellington Territorial, Infantry'paraded, at , ther.Gar-' rison 1 Hall last evening.; LieuteiiantColaael 1 Duthie commanded, and there was a good muster of all corps. ,