SERVICE NOTES.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIII, Issue 28, 2 February 1907, Page 15

SERVICE NOTES.

fßy "Scout.") Secretaries of volunteer corps and of rifle '■ olubi are invited to forward any 1 items of interest regarding parades, «hooting, o^ general company news. The New Zealand International Ex- , hibition Rifle Championship meeting is awakening great interest locally. The meeting is to be held at Eed cliffs Rifle Range, Christchurch, on 18th to 23rd February, inclusive. An innovation which will be extremely popular with marksmen is the decision to supply ,free ammunition to all competitors. Somo alterations have been made to the pro- ' grammes issued a short while ago, and for the information of anyone who may bo depending on these, the following official summary of alterations and additions has been published : — Ammunition. —Ammunition will be issued on the Range to all competitors free, no other ' being allowed. Condition No. 14, "Position." — 600 yards should read 500 yards in both cases tho same as N.Z.D.F.R.A. Rules. Civilians and Honorary Members.— Civilians and Honorary Members of co"rps or clubs are 1 eligible to compete in Matches Nos. 1, 2, « 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 12 and 13. Match No. 11. — In Match No. '2 in this competition, teams will only fire 10 shots, . the retirement having bosn eliminated. Match No. 13. — In the prize list 2 prizes , at £3 should read 2 at 30s. Match , No. 14.— The "Victory Shield" not being available for this Meeting, the Council , have decided to transfer the Cup pre- , sented by Lieut Timbrell, from Match , No. 10 to this Match. Special Trophies > — A Trophy value 25 guineas, presented . by R. H. Rhodes, Esq., M.M.R., will be i added to the prize list, as well as other . trophies, and will appear in tho official [ programme. Camp Accommodation. — , Competitors are notified that tents and I straw are provided free, and that Board , has been arranged at 18s 6d for the six ! days. Arrangements can be made for those desirous of going into camp before the opening day_, or remaining \ alter the meeting. It is important that ! competitors requiring camp accommodax tion should notify , tho hon. .sec. with . their entries. , In the course of his speech in reply- , ing to the toast of the "Navy and Army" at the Highland Gathering in Sydney the other day, Captain Stokes Sees, C.8., superintendent of H.M. Nay Yard at Garden. Island* said that the remarkable success of the. British navy in gunnery was solely due to the strict course of shooting that .the men k had to undergo. There were just as , good marksmen in Australia as anywhere in the world, but in his^ opinion they 1 did not get tho practice they should. i Some system should, ho thought, be , evolved with a view to the end he had L in view, and for his part, he would like to see instituted there, such an estab- j lishment as the great gunnery school at ' ' Whale Island in England. Captain ' Stokes Rees, who will shortly leave tho j Australian station after spending two ! years there, remarked that there was [ magnificent material in Ausralia from ; which to evolve naval men, if they t could only get at it, but no material^ • however excellent in itself could be of ! any practical use until its was trained. ! The plethora of colonels in the Army ' has formed the subject of a report on ! the part of a War Office committee, which states that the rules respecting ' promotion to the higher ranks are complex and not based on any clearly defined principle. The superabundance of colonels is attended with many drawbacks. The committee recommends that tho automatic promotion of lieutenant - colon?! to brevet-colonel by effluxion\>f -• time should cease. They believe that the principle of the selection of the, ' best man is now firmly established that ' there will bo no tendency to go back ,' on it. It is suggested that the numbers in the different ranks should be as fol- ; lows: — Colon-els, 350; major-generals. ■ ; 70 ; lieutenant-generals, 20 ; generals, 10. , 1 Tha* financial ellect of the changes pro- ; 1 posed is expected to be a saving of [ £6000 a year. Recommendations for the promotion of the whole Army, in the opinion of the committee, should be made by the Selection Board, to which should be added some military members ■ of tho Army Council, including the Chief 1 of the Staff. A Royal warrant, x dr.ted 29th November, and i33ued on Tuesday ' m Army Orders for December, order that an establishment of 70 major-gen- , erals shall be forthwith created, inclus- ; ive of officers holding non-military ap- ! pointments and exclusive of major-gen- ', erals of the Indian Army. At i time as the' Army Council may decide . \ an establishment of colonels spall also , ' bo created, which shall be composed . of officers of cavalry, Itoyal Artillery, '• and Army Service Corps. The British Admiralty has now deci- | ded that this groat battleship is not to ' constitute the exact pattern for ships I ! of her displacement in future. Propo- ' sak have b-son put forward for improve- . ments in design and equipment, and it ; '< is probable that the two Dreadnoughts to be laid down on New Year's day at Portsmouth and at Devonport will em- | body many improvements of the great- ; est importance. Tho turbine equipment ', of the now Dreadnoughts will undergo ! a considerable change. It is a difficult ' problem to decide on design and pro- , portions to ensure favourable results at all speeds, but with a view to determin- ' ing this question it is proposed to fit . additional cruising turbines in tho pro- . posed two nsw battloships. It is recalled by a London newspaper ! that it is now 92 years since Marshal ' Ney was 3hov as a traitor (7th December, . 1815). His career was the most meteoric [ of all Napoleon's men. Entering the French army as a private, Ney soon won his way to the rank of genera). In 1812 he accompanied Bonaparte to Russia, | and his services there procured him . tho title of Prince of Moskowa and tho ' epithet "tho bravest 6f ths brave." Upon the abdication of Napoleon he re- , tired, but was recalled by Louis XVIII. ; He received orders tp march against Napoleon, who had returned from Elba. ; At, tho head of an avmy ho set out, but upon rieeting his old master, he went over to- his side. At Waterloo he com- ' manded tho centre of the French army, and lud fivo horses shot under him. Upon hi 3 return to Paris ho was sentenced to death aud shot fti tho Garden of the Luxembourg, "he who had iought ; 500 battles for France-jiio't one against ' her — was shot as a traitor." [ The camp of th.» Wellington Rifle Bat- ', tafion at Lowei Hutt brcko up yesterday, after a most successful instructional course of six days' duration. The officers, I , under direction, of Lieut.-Coloncl Collins, | officer commanding the battalion, put then men through some useful manoeuvres founded upon the lessons of recont

wars. Provision for pleasure during spare hours was made, one company being provided by its captain- with a piano and marquee for social gatherings.' " T. ho pipers of the Highland Rifles made some merry evenings, and the artistic efforts of the cooks contributed in gTeat degree to tho general success. Some idea-of tha capacity of the cooks may be gained from tho menu of the officers' mesa for hist Sunday (when Colonels Robin, Webb, and Bauchop visited the camp). Tho menu was not wholly French, but an intermingling of that language with" English, possibly to celebrate the entente cordialo arrived at in late yeaTs by these nations. Joints were listed as Roti sirloin 'de boeuf and roti mouton efc mint sauce, while as adjuncts there were "pomme de terre baked et boiled, choux and French beane." Plum pudding was served with '"sauce a la ' garrison/" and theie was "yin jelly," "compote de peaches et custaTd," and "stewed plums." Afterwards came "tho, cafe, other light beverages, bisciuts et fromage, fruit, savoury." "The Jungle," in. Manners-street, is a favourite resoTt of volunteere, and the proprietors of the place are arranging to acknowledge tho patronage bettdwed upon them. They have recently Dent out the following circular to officers commanding volunteer companies : — "Dear Sir, — The proprietors of 'The Jungle,' having noted with pleasure tlxe great interest taken by volunteers in this district in target 'shooting, are desirous of encouraging good marksmanship in volunteer circles. To this end the proprietors of Tha Jungle' ar^ prepared to give every month a gold medal, to tho value of £3 3s, to be shot for at 'The Jungle,' Manners-street. Theee competitions would be open only to bona-fide members of volunteer corps. We would bo glad of your co-oporation in making this known to the men under your command, and would feel pleased to receive any- suggestions you may desire to make. Wo suggest the competitions should' bs shot off ac follows; — Any volunteer making the possible, viz., six bulls (30 points), will be eligible to shoot oif in the finals on a night to be arranged to suit the- convenience of the majority of the competitors. Tho medal will bo exhibited before and during the competition at 'The Jungle,' Manners-street, next door to the Opera House. First competition will cUrt on Friday, tho Ist day of February, and continue during the month." A well-reasoned deduction was given expression to during the camp of the Wellington Rifle Battalion by Lieut. Colonel Bauchop. Speaking of manoeuvres, he expressed himself that to achieve the greatest success in these, the main attacking manoeuvres should never get rid of the idoa that they were being fired back at. By keeping this idea permanently in mind one was pievented from the carelessness nnd exposure that somotimes meant failure in manoeuvres.