DEFENCE SCHEME. FROM CADETSHIP TO RESERVE.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXI, Issue 99, 28 April 1911, Page 4

DEFENCE SCHEME. FROM CADETSHIP TO RESERVE.

INTERESTING SUMMARY. The headquarters staff has issued an interesting resume of the conditions which operate under the new Defence scheme. ' Everyone, it is pointed out, unless physically unfit, will have to take his share in the defence of the Dominion.Those who, in consequence of the doctrines of their religion, have a conscientious .objection to bearing arms in the service of their country will be trained as far as possible in the noncombatant branches From the • age of twelve to fourteen every boy will be a junior cadet ; from fourteen to eighteen a senior cadet. On reaching the age. of eighteen he will, if found, oil again being medically examined, to be physically fit, be drafted into the Territorial Force. As a Territorial soldier he will be liable to be called out ■at any time for service within the Dominion. On reaching the age of twentyfive he will be transferred to the reserve, in which -he will remain till he reaches the age of thirty, when he will be discharged. A-s a reservist he will' bo liable to he called back to his regiment in case of war or other national emergency.^ If he belongs to a rifle club he will, so long as he remains a member, be liable up to the ag« of fifty-five to be called up as part of a secondary reserve to fill the ranks oi the Territorial Force after its own reserve has been, tused up. Every youth who had attained the age of fourteen' on Ist March last, but had not attained the age of twenty-one on that date, is now being called upon by law to register. Registration forms can be obtained at any post office, defence office, or police station, and must be filled in and sent to the area sei'geant-major at his advertised headquarters before 7 p.m. on- 2nd • June, when registration ceases. The work of the Defence authorities will be made easier -if all will register as soon as possible. , FAILURE TO REGISTER IS '-V ' * PUNISHABLE. Any of those registering who have a preference to serve in any particular I arm or branch of the service, combatant" or uon-mobatant, are invited to say NATURE OF TRAINING. The training of the cadet and soldier tHroughbut *his - service will be strictly ; territorial— that is to say, it will, exL cept.'for the> one week a year spent by the-. Territorial soldiw in camp, be car- . tied -out ,wifchin reach of his home and at", convenient times. The whole of the traihing - will be arranged with every possible consideration for the interests both of, tho employer and of those who are being trained. It will be one of the qhief . duties of th© . officers and watfranb officers of the Staff Corns and Permanent Staff throughout the country to' study the conditions of life in their areas; they will be responsible for assisting Territorial officers .in , arranging the "drills and 'parades' of their companies no as to interfere ss little as possible -with the ordinary working life of the men and the local conditions of employment. Special arrangements will be made] so that employers will not loso the services of all of their employees at the same time. A minimum amount of training must be performed each year by every Territorial. i WHAT THE REGULATIONS PRESCRIBE. The prescribed training for the Territorial, Force 'is aa follows: — (a) Thirty drills, twenty of which will be out-of-door parades; (b) twelve half-day or, six whokwJay parades, all of which will be exercises in the field, except in the case of garrison a-rtillery unite, which will be exercised at the works of defence to which they are allotted on mobilisation ; (c) seven days' annual training in camp (exclusive of the days of arrival and departure); (d) prescribed course ol musketry. A drill in tha Territorial Force ie one hour and a-half continuous instruction; a drill in the senior cadets is one 'hour continuous instruction; a half-day parade ie three hours continuous instruction.; a whole day parade 'is' six hours cofatinuous instruction; an out-of-door parade may be carried out in the evening, and will not be- devoted entirely to drill, but will include route marching, outposts by day and- by night, CJifrencMn-g; signalling; driving, etc., and auch work aa cannot conveniently be carried out jndoors. In, the case of artillery and technical corps, the proportion of outdoor parades may be reduced at the discretion of the commanding officer. Tho principle k> that the drillshed should be avoided as far ' as possible. THE CITIZEN ARMY. It must ba remembered that the New Zealand Territorial Force ie the first lino of defence of the Dominion after the Imperial Navy. Its position cannot be fairly compared with that of the Territorial Force in the United Kingdom, which has the Regular Army and Special Reserve in front of it. The New Zealand Territorial Force must be able to take the field at once on the outbreak of war. It is the New Zealand Army and r thjs permanent officers 'of tho Staff Corps, tho permanent regiment of the Royal New Zealand Artillery, and the warrant and N.C. offices* -of the Permanent Staff are its auxiliaries to control, guide, ' and instruct it. The Territorial , Force .tvHI be about ' 50,000 strong, and will be organised im field and coast jlefence unite, with practically the same for peace as for war. The force will be fully anned 1 and equipped according to, the most modern, standard ; the men will be uniformed by the State, and will be paid and rationed during the annual camp. THE CADETS. In order to simplify the control of" cadets, it has been decided by the Ministers for Education and Defence fcbat-for training purposes (not registration — all} over fourteen must register) all pupils-, attending primary schools will be considered junior cadets, and all pupils attending secondary schools will be considered senior cadets, irrespective of their ages. It is hoped that in many cases Scoutmasters and others connected with the Boy Scout movement will be not only officers of the Boy Scout cadets, but ako will command units of senior- cadets, in which the Boy Scout cadets are incorporated. The military authorities are anxious to foster the Boy Scout mw«ment in every "way, awi, in return, hope for the Hssiststnoe 'of all Boy Scoot officials in the senior oadet training which by law has bo be undergoiae by Bay Scouts as 'well as all other youths in tho Dominion. .BESERVI&TS AND RIFLE CLUBS. Men of the Territorial Force Reserve., will be borne on the reserve lists of their lato unit or coTps, and perform thoir annual parades with some part of that unit or corps. The tifle dubs, being part of the N«w Zealand Military Forces, in virtue of the liability of their mesn■beni to serve as a secondary res&rve. will be governed by the military regulations and wilt caxry out each year a prescribed .'Course of musketry. Such, briefly stated, is the scheme. It wilt not come to fruition in a day nor in a year; but, if it is carried out in the spirit in which it has been conceived, there is no" reason why New Zealand should not have a thoroughly efficient *-«Hiz9n arasy; in the pear future.