THE BIG PARADE

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2588, 9 October 1915, Page 6

THE BIG PARADE

5000 TROOPS THE ORDER OF THE MARCH „ SEVENTH'S TRAINING ' . 'To-day's y march' of 5000' -troops will ■ < commonco-. at ■ 2.80.-p.m.' The troops '■ participating will bo tho whole of tho 7tli Reinforcements and tho. Ist and. ( 2nd Battalions Now Zealand. Rifle Bri- ( gade (tlio Earl of Liverpool's Oivn). 'J3io column of troops will thus ho the ' •); QongeSty thatiihas ; y.ot passed. through tho City, and certainly the most im- ■.:■:: - Tho"7th'. Reinforcements,-like,•; tho ~ . fiths, mtli, fixed bayonets,'will carry 1 1 ' thoir -arms .at the, slopo, presenting one . long line of bright steol Tho Ist and " 2nd Battalions liiflo Brigade, being j riflemen, ■nail'cany their arms at tho { trail,'and will maich with tho'light , infantry step< Eis Excellency ,the Governor (the Karl ot Li> ei-pool),, as their ; - ; -lioiiorary 'colonel, tvilL murch .at. their Leaving Government Buildings at 2.30 pm , the column u ill proceed along ' ,'jUambton Quayi Up ;Wilhs Street, along . a. l 'Manners ; Street, • don n . Lower Cuba. ■ • Street, and along Jervois Quay to their Nino .bands-,will-:bo .distn-. ;v, ? >. ; but«d ; tluougliout - the. length of •- % column—the Rifle Regiment's Band, J ' • Trentham Camp Band,,,sth (Wellington) . Regiment Band, 'Jupp's .Band (National . Reserve), Native Association's Band, : ' Mission Baiid, Salvation . . Army; Band, ■ v Waterside Workers' ■■ Band, • and. tho iWellmgton'Pipe Band ■■ Tho order' of .-march .-lias been fixed -■ -'- by tho'Detence;Department as : follows; . \ Mounted Rifles Details. Artillery Details. • : Trentham'l'egiinerit.. . '-. ■ 7th Infantry. Aimy Service Corps. * Ambulance • ( Vetennary Corps , Tho 7tli Reinforcements wero ad- J i-'dressed.'.updn,the:;results .pf^their'work- } ■by Colonel C. M/ Gibbon, Chief ,of tho, < ■W (rone'ral- • Stall',- at'.. Trcuthaiii' • Camp; 1 ; v^. : ColoM\Gibbori: said;the ; 7th::Reinfprce-; .1 ments' graining had boen somewhat ( seriously interfered.'with through van- : ous "causes, -mainly, sickness, .the break- > .mg of camp, particularly as regards the , S--:- .IMantry, and'the necessity , : for sending . 1 ■ : increased reinforcements for. tlio_ Mount- * • cd Rifles, who were now being sent. ' • ' practically as infantry. . .Then, for. the j ;. aitillery:thoy had had to findnew units. * -^'.r r !And'thon, in'addition, tho great amount of-work-that had.been going,on in the •••" -camp inymalung improvements;had.in- ' terfered with the work of training. The .. mounted men; were bemg . sent, forward .' imtraiu«l.;in .'their, particular- work to sotao-'extent", "owing to tho necessity of ■■ ' (having' to i: send ■; men..'to Egypt to, tako, . V' charge' of . tho' horses. and release the j '-/ " others ivlio "were. already;tkerG,f6r:t-he front ' There were thousands of horses iioiv. in Bgypti' : and. had to look , ■ • after them- Tho 7th -Mountcds, would '■ ..probably- 1 have-: to do: this- : foi v a .timft, : ... and while doing so would complete their own training Tlie Artillory «ere ~u ell up to • tho high standard reached .at Trenttiam; although: tho Ammunition Column had not been through , its-full ' ; cpurso'% training,-and required further' ■ : - instruction !' r bcfore , 'goiiig to 'tho'front.-. , t "As to the Infantry, I think tho > ' V standard '--attained - is,: abovo- tbo; aver- ■ 1 . ■ ago," declared' Colonel Gibbon. Judg- • -'Jng by the R,imutakas ! and ofwhat - he' .had seen of .them •; iii. crimp' : and bivouac they; knew rliow to . look after ""themselves Unpleasant ■' thinigh their, constant, changing . about > - lad lieeii, 7 -it had all been: training. -In ' Vwiir ; tlieycould.riot' any / feed - -plans-. jln learning- how-to look after fttiinirig- than' anj' : other; had- : S;if;/;-.p^eded'j%em.n^ : . .Rifles' had only ! : ;lired' tlie re ; i" :cruits' ?course„ and an- this had . done , .-N-riljovitas tiie-ilast ;J : Reinforcements. . Tho musketry-of'the .Infantry •j ;;.was s better, than';, that ;of-;' anj! -Reinforce-, ?;i^i';in6iit;draft-iwith .of ■; tho' : /: 'fiths, but it . •£,?' ;considOTihg> this-;.that^tlie ? ,.stHs v .had ex:i 7: . cellent weather with very little wind in : . i whicli to' fire. Tho 7th Infantry fired ;-"v: Jiinder- very different l conditioifs,.': An '.y^loffi^ijn^Egypt^writirig'tOihim^on^what., jwas -happemng 'there, stated that our .. 'Ttoini'orcemcnts. wero establishing; sucli> : Hi ia. i'amo -that" they j wero - looking : for. bet- , /.tor „ln each succeoding draft.; That was . . . -'a .very ,hjgh reputation - to live up to, ;j'^d > -Ke-h^qd.V s tliii : t-:th6':-7ths'-;wpiild do best to'maintain it.' One of-the i: -most. vital -points- they .had "to rememher ii. i.v 'was,-' the : necessity ! for discipline. Tho ,•; 5.i/Germans ; at ; the outset of, the' war: calcu■S;;;]atcd of tho dis-!, • ciphne of their armies.- They did not "think that our men, especially those re-v-;siding, overseas,would, submit ; >to; : disr-; ■ ciplina.. _ Thoy had tried to teach them -that all important essential in Now Zea-. land, and they had responded. ■ They ..; should .remember that' tho .'regiments. : with ,th© ;best ' suffer.ed'.;; tlie : -least' losses. / .That had been shown in . - tho' great retreat from Moils', but. it i wa s no new thing; .the,samesliad•hap.pened in t'lio • retreat to Cdruhna. -A -.; - groat many ,of.our losses-in the earlier . . . stages of the war Arero;due to the;.men- ' »Js . out of hand, ''which,-' was; ex- ■. , . plained in the lack of discipline'.' He warned thein specially against inclul;;--ini?; in" drink, ,and : : thereby : missing_tlieir : i cships." If the Reinforcement's did not .; reach tho front in full strength tho • .shortage, might seriously endanger the wholo force. The; sth and? 6th Roin- " forcoments when, they leftVNew Zealand , l .- Sad vonly... oiie! man; absent,.. and' on \sail- .-'••• ingv fromV way-ports :;had' ; iiot. v lef{;'. a . single maii; behind. ;Another way in • ' which a.man qould. betray.his.comrades was failing-to' reach; tho' fronti' and , ■ this connection ho specially warned them against the., evils of Cairo. Ho ; . .urged'them to maintain tho high reputation of 'tho.-New Zealand Reinforcement drafts in way ports, and asked ithem never-to ;,neglect to salute .officers, abroad, including thoso of the Allied , Forccs. It cost them nothing,- and' ; kept up the.' reputation of New Zealand's troops. They-;; should - also .-. specially endeavour to pull ' together. ' ''Tlie history of the war will \bo'writton one day,'' proceeded Colonel Gibbon. "Something'will'be written about, us..about ivh'at our New Zeiiland tioons, . did at the fro'nt.Vv I want-it to he,writ-. ; ten' in tliat book, that the New. Zealand- . - ers wero tho finest and best t-roo.D.s sent -forward in tlie sisrvide'of..tlie-.Empire 1 .; That rests with' you;'- it: is' in j-our Jiands. . You have lieen'/set ,a magnificont oxamplo in tlio v men who have gone . : v.' : beforo you. Hay tho game. 'Remcm- : ber u» whom you leave behind. "Tho way in w.hiclv you acquit yourselves 'will . ; ' bo, our only foward." , Colonel- Gibbon / added that the .infantry of the 6th ' Reinforcements were sent to the front : : Within four days of : landing in Egypt. ; \That was a high .compliment which had also been paid to tho 4ths and •' the. sths. The' 7ths would bo inspected . "v . upon ; their arrival there/ anil on their nefformances they would lw judged." V;';. •-. v Rome troops' that had been sent to,',;hy: ';Egyptv had- been- ordered into further - v. 1 periods of: training: ' The Ist'and 2nd Battalions, New Zealand Rifle. Brigade, who have been corii- - ploting their" training in New Zealand at Rangiotu, wore, addressed by Colonel Gibbon unon'similar lines. He compli- , , monted them upon their work, saying -' that they had done very well, especially . when ti.a diiabiliiies labouro^

under were taken into / consideration. They had won a reputation 'which ho hoped they would live up to THE SHOOTINC OF THE SEVENTH. Though they do not reach the record established by .the oth Reinforcements, the musketry results of tha'/tn Reinforcements and the Ist and Jid Battalions Now Zealand Riflo Brigade are ; nevertheless considered highly satisfactory. The average figure of merit obtained hy the Infantry of the (th Reinforcements ■ m ; the trained, soldiers course (the same as for soldiers ill'the British .Regular [Army) j is' 96.5, as against 91.2 registered by the. Infantrj •of the 6th S) 102.7 ..hr tLe Infantry, of tfho 6th s, and 80.9 hy the Infantry of the 4ths. The averages secured by the preceding drafts of reinforcements (Mounted Rifles and Infantry combined) in this course wero:—4th Reinforcements, 85.i: sths,: 103.3: 6ths, 91.2. Ihe Mounted Rifles of the 7th Reinforcements .j, lE r vet. to- fire their trained, soldiers course in Egypt, the nTeragc_fignre of. sierit for the whole of tie 7th Reinforcements draft winnot, of .a»rae,> f given. The 7th Mounteds, lion ever, faro shown up well in their recruits , average' figures': of merit .tiie Ist aiid 2nd Battalions Nen Zealand Riflo Brigadei in; the^ trained, soldiers' course are also good, bem o 87.5 and 95.6 respectively, y, , ~j