DEFENCE TOPICS

Evening Star, Issue 22359, 8 June 1936, Page 13

DEFENCE TOPICS

QUARTERDECK AND PARADE GROUND [By Sam Brown*.] NAVAL RESERVES PREPARING FOR REVIEW Tho Otago Division, R.N.V.R., assembled on Wednesday last, when the preparation for the King’s Birthday review was proceeded with. The recruits assembled again on Thursday night for voluntary- training, and are beginning to shape well in the preliminaries of rifle exercise. _ The same procedure will be carried out when the division assembles on Wednesday next. VOLUNTARY TRAINING The ’visual signalling and wireless telegraphy equipment will be available for voluntary instruction to-morrow. The interdivisional signal exercise conducted by the flagship will be carried out. The recruits will assemble again on ’Thursday for further voluntary training as for last week. SMALL BORE RIFLE. SHOOTING On Monday last small bore rifle shooting practice was carried out at headquarters, when there was an exceptionally' good attendance. Another stage in the shooting for the Keith Ramsay and Roberts Sports Cups will be fired during this month. A friendly small bore rifle shooting match between the Otago Division and a team from the New Zealand Railways will take place at headquarters to-night, at 7,30. Practice will not take place until after the match. A return match has been arranged with the Imperial ex-service men, to take place l at the Cadbury', Fry, Hudson’s small range- to-morrow evening. The following ratings have been selected to take part:—Petty-officcr Simpson, Yeoman of Signals Berryman, Leading Seamen Baskett and Ogg, Leading Teleora phist Bowler. Able Seamen Denison, Meikleiohn. Peterson, Signalmen M'Kinlay. Peat, Wright, Ordinary Telegraphist Beaumont. MOUNTED RIFLES LOCAL PARADES The Dunedin portion ,of the Otago Mounted Rifles, comprising the machine gun squadron and signal troop, continues its weekly pimides on Monday evenings, and good progress is being made in both branches of the work* ARTILLERY nth HOWITZER BATTERY The 14th Battery paraded on Wednc«day last, when there was a large muster of all ranks present. Inc general syllabus was suspended for the purpose of rehearsing the programme which will take place at the Oval on the occasion of tho King s Birthday. After going through the various movements the battery assembled in the elnbroom, when Major Stark outlined by. diagram the events which would take place. The battery will parade again on Wednesday eveliing. r THE OTAGO REGIMENT WEEKLY PARADES The parade of the Ist Battalion, the. Otago Regiment, was devoted to the payment of out-of-camp pay and matters in connection with the military art union. in this respect the sum of about £2OO has been collected by the unit. The parade set down for tomorrow night will be spent in preparation for the. naval andy military review to be held on the King s Birthday. KING'S BIRTHDAY REVIEW PREPARATION UNDER WAY All units arc now training for the combined naval, army, and air review to be held on the Oval on the King s Birthday. Tho massed bands will carry out training on Tuesday morning on the Oval if the weather is fine, or in the Drill Hall if wet. OTAGO REUNION FUNCTION AT WELLINGTON A reunion of ex-members of Otago units which was held at Wellington recently was a most successful function. There was an attendance of nearly 200, presided over by Colonel A. B". Charters, C.M.G., D. 5.0., and other senior officers present were , Colonel .1. Hargest, D. 5.0., M.C., M.P., Colonel D. Colquhoun. D. 5.0., Major T. G. Hislop, and Major F. Waite, M.L.C. The Hon. W. Perry, M.L C., Dominion president of the Returned Soldiers’ Association, was ajso present. The hall was decorated with the colours of the Otago Regiment blue and gold. “ Otago Units ” was proposed by Mr Perry, who said the Otago units had left their names on every battlefield where the Now Zealand Expeditionary Force served. They did their duty as well as, if not better than, any other unit in the force, and time alter time they suffered heavily, but alwa«> came up smiling and reformed to carry on. Although Ofago had most of the bad luck that was going, the regiment put up a wonderful record and produced two of tho most famous Victoria Cross winners of tho war. The gathering was as fine a one as he had ever seen from one brigade. Responding to the toast. Colonel Charters, who was O.C. Ist Otago Battalion. said his old unit was the only tiling ho lived for during the war, and he had regretted leaving it in Ger-

many. For three years the battalion had been his home and everyone had combined to make it a happy one. He expressed his appreciation at the success of the reunion and said it illustrated the clannishness that had always characterised the Otago units. Colonel Hargest, who was O.C. of the 2nd Battalion, said he had gone away with the Otago Mounteds, had transferred to the Ist Otago, and had ended up in the 2nd Otago. He referred to some of the well-known men of the Otago Regiment, both officers and men, and said he had been asked by members still in the south to convey their best wishes to comrades in Wellington. “The Returned Soldiers’ Association ” was proposed by Major Waite and was responded to by Mr J. Spence, secretary of the Wellington R.S.A., and then the large gathering settled down to an interchange of reminiscences of days in the field, every member of the large gathering satisfied that the reunion had been an unqualified success.

During the evening items were given by Major T. G. Hislop and Messrs 8. O'Connell, J. Duncan,’and G. Hayton.