LIFE IN CAMP.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17099, 23 February 1916, Page 4

LIFE IN CAMP.

SOLDIERS AND HORSES. LIVELY TIMES FOR UPPER MUTT. SUNDAY SCENES. (By L. S. FANNING.) (Specially Written for "Lyttolton Times.") Time was when the Upper Hiitt hud no .meat excitement, except an occasional row among the Town CommisM'oners. the annual flower show and'the late .summer rush of the hlackberrypickers, when every kind of vehicle, from a perambulator to a motor-car, and every-kind of vessel, from a jug to a kerosene tin. are seen in the keen attack on the brambles. To-day, with seventy men of the-Field Artillery, and fifteen members of the Veterinary Corps, encamped at the remount depot, and many soldier strollers, on a few hours' leave, from Trentham, the township feels that it is in the thick of the war. There is also much bug - in" by the .skilled' and the unskilled, and" far into the night there is a tramp of military boots. Yet the morcporks in'the near wooded hills mid an opening now and' then for their voices—a reminder of the Upper Hutfc ol peace times—far. far behind. JOY IX THE HORSE'S FORM.

Sunday brings the greatest contrast*. Formerly the population was divided into two classes—the churchgoers and' lhe open-air worshippers, who had a more, or less surreptitious cult of the cabbage or golf links or trout, streams. In the heart of the township Sunday was as quiet as a gentle river's sidewaters, lingering among watercress and mint and buttercups. But the horses of war have charged in and changed all that. A horse is a horse on Sunday as on a week-day. He eats as much and drinks as much (and more if lie can get it)', and lie-has to 100 groomed just the same, and have the ground tidied un about, him."" So the brooms and thVrakes arc kept going, and lug carts, collecting the litter, rumble between the lines. Cleanliness is a very strict rule at the depot. Here the horses come for once into their own. for they have over them in Captain Tilley one who is heartily fond of horses. *Tt is pleasant to see his happiness when some particularly good animals come into his hands. He has as much joy in the lines and curves and carriage of' a spirited well-bred horse as Keats had in the Grecian uvn or the late Mr Joseph'Chamberlain in his rarest orchids. Therefore, the captain loathes the nhrase. "Breaking a horse." To him such harsh and stuoid handling of a horse of mettle is almost as sacrilegious as the Germans' shelling of Rheims Cathedral.

FLORA DEFERS TO MARS. The depot is on an estate planned for peace; the sito was formerly a nursery garden. Last spring brought the routing of the last legion of flowers, a splendid column of. narcissus poeticus (the pheasant-eye), which had to move on.to make room for horse-carrots and tho like, for Flora must not tarry when Mars enters the held. So, too, a building, once used for an art of peace—seed cleaning—has gone over to the work of war. Here is the camp kitchen, and upstairs some of tile civilian grooms (now a strength of fifty) have their quarters. Others are in tents near by. The men of the artillery arc camped across the road, and the veterinary section has a separate allotment, close to the.'•horse hospital" (the lines-where first-aid is .given* for ni-nor troubles, and for the bruises which come from heel-to-heel duels). The writer happened to see orio of thaw* fights on Sunday morning. A fiery-tempered animal of khaki hue (the onlv one of that colour in the camp) picked a quarrel with a bay beside him, and soon they were " mixing it" with their iron heels. Tn a few seconds a groom seized the khaki aggressor and led him to a position ot -disgrace-a tethering in solitude on the other side of the line, facing the whole row of the peaceful. Here h's fceb had to cool, for the main rope, Wretched Ift high, was an effective barrier. -••*.... - . .*•••■ -'

;>; TEN .ACRES OF HORSES. On Suudav the depot had 757 horses, soread over the ten acres; and it was a" merry chorus, with the neighing and sneezing and snorting, and the loud, imperative words of the grooms, who use-the' week-day terras when the occasion calls for an outburst. Here was the tallest horse ever received at tho depot—a strong, well-built animal lb hands 31 inches (which, as some laymen know, is 67* inches to the top ot the shouldcis, or thereabouts). He will be probably used for local transport work, because he is rather high for service overseas. Lr-st week the horses totalled a thousand. They kept sixteen farriers very busv at eight, fires. Tins week the shoers range from six to eight, at three and lour fires.

SCANT SUPPORT FOR CONCERTS

A previous appeal.for money to provide "motors for the givers ot concerts at Trentham has failed. A few generous citizens are still .willing to end cars occasionally, but it is found chat the great majority of owners are content to allow a monopoly ot this ciedlt. for the few. It is far preferable to have absolute independence of private cars, and to hire •< taxis," but, alas! here is another difficulty. The promoters of the concerts, after providing tire talent, are apparently expected to bear the cost of transporting it to Trentham (a run of nearly twenty miles) and back. As civilians seem to he indifferent to the repeated requests for aid. the soldiers are being obliged to shift for themselves. With the good talent which they have among the various units, thev intend giving a concert ill Wellington iii aid of the motor fund. Another way would be a small levy on the basis of company contributions. An average of 2d each weekly by 4000 men would yield over £32, which would more than meet the bill. a-• ;<<£*'. A • BAPTISM OT .FIRE."

A few days ago many soldiers of Trentham faced an actunl threatfnl enveloping fire on the hills flardting the eamp. The dry undergrowth of the hush was ablaze, and a. beautiful scenic reserve was threatened. Soldiers were armed with stout sticks, and they were given a free run at the enemy, They enjoved the onset. Witnesses say that it was thrilling to see how the. soldiers rushed to check the destructive invader. They had as much zest in their battering of the great fire's snaky tongues and serpentine arms as. i£ they were strafing the Kaiser and the German General Staff.- At night the attack was renewed by over a hundred soldiers., who had at last, the Joy-of victory and a-forest saved, . THE '■■'■•■. -BORN- •■;' '' Poets"-are born,., .not made/. 5 : says the ph. tii-uclinous person frequently.. So are bores anl philosophers and. cats and cabbaged. "Muchenn be " educated " iu or on Tot a .man. but if he is "possessed bv the devil " (as some- say) at tho

outset, the schoolmen may fail to exorcise the whole of the evil spirit, though they may much exercise it. In some cases the "devil" is a comparatively mild one: ho merely incites his victim to monkey tricks and unfunny practical jokes, or to excessive dalliance with bottles, kegs, or barrels at intervals (which may be brief). A military camp of four to six thousand men is bound to have' a small proportion of "born iiiiisanc.es/' more or less incorrigible pests to men who have, to live with them. Tho authorities, who do not have to live with the irritating, insuperable persons, seem to have an infinite patience with them. The writer has received credible evidence of two or three cases iii which a soldier has been a chronic nuisance, wasting the time'and temper of many. "Give him a good toss out." is the hearty feeling of the bored' and annoyed. One reads of the "hard case" (alias "born nuisance") who is the despair of his Company at one. moniunv and the delight at the next. That sort of thing usually exists only on paper. As soldiers men are no moro pleased to live day by day with nuisances than the.v are as civilians. A man who has a serious kink ill his composition is a nuisance whenever he thrusts himself into any fellowship of