The New Zealand Contingent.

Hastings Standard, Issue 380, 23 July 1897, Page 4

The New Zealand Contingent.

——— ARRIVAL IN LONDON. INCIDENTS OF HIE VOYAGE. [LYTTELTON TIMES CoiUiEsvoNDEvr.] London, June 12. The Ruahine, with the colonial contingent of volunteers for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebration, reached Plymouth on Thursday, and 011 Friday morning she entered the Thames, and about eleven o'clock was berthed at the New Zealand Shipping Company's section of the Albert Dock. The colonial force was marshalled on the upper deck, the Maoris at one end and the Europeans at the other. As they appeared then they were undoubtedly a fine, stalwart, and one might say, handsome body of men. But there was decidedly something wanting. Where, oh where! was the thrilling war cry of the Natives, sending the women in the crowd on the edge of the dock into hysterics ? It was conspicuous by its absence, and the Maori costume was even wanting, the men being attired in the same way as their white contemporaries; that is to say in the new regulation colored buff uniform with maroon collars and cuffs. To judge what the " 'orney 'anded t'uns of soil," yclept dock laborers, who composed most of the crowd along the dock, thought of the show, I wandered in and out among them with a vacant expression, but could gather no unsolicited opinions. Finding this course of procedure unprofitable, I mildly asked of a group next me who the darker of the " military coves " on the steamer were. One man with a well-defined squint opined that there were no dark men, and another ventured to remark that they came from the boundary of Noo South Wyles, and consequently were somewhat browned. A third, who must have had something of the Sherlock Holmes instinct about him, thought that as the steamer was a Noo Zeeland Shipping Company's boat the troops must be Noo Zeelanders. Finding the information to be gleaned from the dock laborers to be of the scantiest description, I ventured on board, and there discovered the Agent-General, the Hon W. P. Reeves, who had journeyed down to meet the contingent. He informed me that he had not called for the Premier, the Hon R. J. Seddon, at the Hotel Cecil, because that hardworking individual had only arrived in town at 5 a.m. from Leeds, and he knew that if he called for him he would most (jertainly get up and meet the troops aT the dock, which would have meant curtailing his sleep to an hour or so. I was introduced to Captain Robin, second in command to Lieut.-Colonel Pitt, and he was courtesy itself, affording me all the information in his power. This (not the power, but the information), briefly stated, did not amount to much, in fact, it might be summed up in the following way : —A beautiful trip, splendid behavior on the part of the men, and pretty constant drill and exercise filled in the bill. The voyage seems to have been an exceptionally fine one, judging by the remark of Captain Robin, that " the steamer was as steady most of the way as if she was steaming up the placid waters of the dock." The only time that there seems to have been any disagreeable weather was passing through Magellan Straits, where, unfortunately, the beautiful scenery could not be appreciated, owing to the heavy mists prevailing. Drill and practice took up a considerable amount of time nearly every day. The officers had somewhat of a heavy task in bringing the men, who are, I understand, drawn from all parts of the colony, to a state of efficiency, and the task with the Maoris can be well appreciated when I state that they had little or no knowledge of volunteering. However, everything works very smoothly now, and with a few days' practice with their mounts the body will be in a thorough state of efficiency. I fail to see why the Maoris should not appear in their native costume. They are not soldiers, and the only interest that attaches to them is due to the fact that they are Maoris. On board I heard that they were constantly giving hakas in a mild form, but only about ten of them out of the eighteen have full dresses, that is to say feathers, mats, &c. Perhaps, however, it will be decided later that the Maoris shall make their public appearances in native costume. With one of the privates I had a look round the men's quarters in the bow of the vessel, and I must say right here that the accommodation was absolutely abominable. They slept together in a series of boxes, much resembling coffins, adjoining each other, and just about the width of a broad person's shoulders. Had the weather been bad in the tropics, necessitating the men being battened down in this place, I would not like to swear that a Black Hole of Calcutta calamity on a small scale would not have been the result. The food, also, was the cause of considerable grumbling. These troubles, i understand, were not the fault of the company, but the result of the economy which the person or persons supervising the matter in New Zealand tried to observe. With regard to the ship, most of the ineu were enthusiastic on the subject, and I believe Captain Bone allowed them all sorts of privileges, which •were greatly enjoyed at the time, and will not be forgotten for a long while to come. The deck sports on the Ruahine were, of course, particularly good with such a number of athletic men on board, and the New Zerand volunteers scooped most of the prizes. Private Burr was the particularly lucky one, and to him fell decidedly the lion's share. The detachment, as you no doubt know, consists of Lieutenant-colonel Pitt, chief in command, Captain Robin, second in command, Lieutenant Pringle, Sergeant-major Rogers, Cap-

tain Tuni irnngi, con.mr.nder of the Maoris, and CJ colonial non-commis-sioned ofHrors and private-i and 18 Maoris;. As soon as the baggage eon Id i)H passed the contingent was brought r.p by special train to Liverpoo' street, wheie thev were met by officials from the War Office and conveyed to the barracks at Chelsea. It is thought that they will be about two mouths 1:1 England. For the first moi.th, besides taking part in the procession on Diamond Jubilee Day, they will appear at numerous public functions, and the idea is that furlough will be granted to a majority of the men during the second month. It is a great pity that they arrived just too late for the military tournament, for a Maori war would have been a most welcome addition to the splendid programme which was provided. I have been informed, and the inquiries I have been enabled to make tend to confirm the statement, that the New Zealand contingent is the only one among the great number now in London from all parts of the Empire confined to men who are strictly volunteers ; that is to say, to men who receive absolutely no remuneration for their military services. This gives the New Zealanders, should it be correct, a decidedly distinctive standing. The New Zealanders arrived at Chelsea just as the inspection of the Colonial contingents white, brown, and black—by the Duke of Connaught had come to an end, but as his Royal Highness was still on the barrack courtyard, the Maorilanders were given a little review all on their own account. They came out of the brief ordeal very creditably, but some of the "boys" were evidently very nervous at being the focus for the eyes of so many " gentle lords and ladies gay." Their time of trial was, however, very brief, and by five o'clock Lieut.-Colonel Pitt had his men in their quarters —a large and airy ground-floor room in the main block facing on the parade ground.