SECOND ECHELON

Grey River Argus, 14 March 1940, Page 5

SECOND ECHELON

7000 Men Moving FINAL LEAVE. WELLINGTON,..March 13. This week about 7,000 officers and other ranks comprising the Second Echelon of the Expeditionary, Force are travelling to their homes to commence their fortnight’s final leave. Under the movement scheme drawn up by the Army transport officers with the assistance of the Railway Department and the Union Steam Ship Co., each man will be provided with transport to his home town and back to camp again at the end of the leave period. The distribution of so large a body of men throughout both islands involves a complicated transport problem, the solution of which has involved a tremendous amount of work.

For leave travel, 26 special trains have had to be arranged, and their time-tables fitted into the normal fcchedules on main lines throughout the country, but for small drafts accommodation has been arranged on ordinary trams. Where rail travel is not suitable buses have been engaged and, of course special arrangements' have had to be made to provide accommodation for troops travelling between the two islands.* Appreciation has been expressed by the military authorities for the assistance rendered by the Railway Department and the Union Company in preparation of the leave travel scheme. The fact that the leave travel is- dose to the Easter period when civil travelling is at a high peak has presented special difficulties that have had to be overcome. Drafts of troops will begin to leave the mobilisation camps on Wednesday. South Island men from Trentham left camp on Wednesday, and going south by the steamer express the same night. Ths Nelson draft leave on Thursday and the' Marlborough craft (for Picton) on Friday. The Wellington City men come in by tra n on Thursday. Other troops boumj for various points in the North Island will leave camp on Thursday. North Island drafts from Burnham will pass through Wellington on Fr.day and Saturday morning. Nelson and Marlborough men from Burnham will travel overland by bus. Some idea of the complex nature of the travel, problem involved may be gained from considerat.on oi the v«..i. ous drafts from Trentham. Their numbers and destinations are as m lows;—North Auckland, 47; Auckland, 284; I -'.milton. 35: Rotorua district, 36’ Bay of Plenty aria, 35; Thames, 23; Taranald, 311; Hawke’s Bay area, 281; Manawatu, 64; Wairarapa, 74, Wellington City, 162; Nelson, of, Marlborough, 13; West Coast, -a, Christchurch City, 69; North Cant mburv 9; South Canterbury, 38; North Otago, 6; South Otago, 20; South.and, 11- Invercargill, 24; Dunedin, 75. Orders have been, issued to all troops that Hi y must return to camp at the expiration of their leave on .h > trains and boats specified. |