AUSTRALIAN DEFENCES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11553, 17 January 1901, Page 6

AUSTRALIAN DEFENCES.

FIRST FEDERAL COMMANDANT.

If, as rumour reports (says the Melbourne Age) the first Australian commandant is to be Lieutenant-General Reginald Pole-Carew, the Commonwealth can congratulate itself upon having secured an ideal man for that responsible position. Born in 184-9, General Pole-Carew is in the very prime of life, and he is said to bo one of the handsomest men in the British army. Hp is a bachelor. A year ago he was practically an unknown man, but the war, which has stroyed so many others, proved him to be stroyed so man-" others, proved him to be a soldier of excelling qualities.

He had previously been the LieutonantColonel commanding the 2nd Battalion of the famous Coldstream Guards, and when he sailed for Africa he was first made "Headquarters Commandant" of the First Army Corps. On the reorganisation after the field-marshal " took command, MajorGeneral Colvile being given a division, Ma-jor-General Pole-Carew succeeded as next senior guardsman to the Guards' Brigade, with the local rank of major-general, which took a prominent part in. the historic march on Bloemfontein. Owing to : an outbreak in Northern Cape Colony on the very day that the British sighted the (now) Orange River Colony's capital, Lord Roberts hurriedly despatched Pole-Carew with his brigade, three guns and some mounted infantry to reinforce Generals Gatacre and Clements, who were then striving desperately to prevent the Cape Colony rebels from joining Olivier and Do Wet, after those commandants, foiled in their effort to help Cronje, had turned southward. After successfully assisting in this, Pole-Carew and the Guards' Brigade returned to Bloemfontein, where, to make amends for the disappointment which they had experienced in' not being ableas is the Guards' right— head the march into the Boer capital, Lord Roberts promised to lead them, personally, into Pretoria. This, as the world knows, he did. '

During the long and anxious wait at Bloemfontein, while the army was re-equip-ping and recuperating for the second phase of the campaign, which was to end at Pretoria, Colonel Pole-Carew (on April 10) was made a local lieutenant-general, and given command of the 11th Infantry Division, and his hands were kept busy in many ways owing to the great activity of the Boers round Bloemfontein. Koornspruit, the Waterworks and the Sannah's Post affairs made things especially lively for the Guards and their commander, as they had to bear a very great part of the vigilant patrolling which was then insisted upon. Finally, being among the first to be reported fit, tho Guards' Brigade headed the great advance on Pretoria, forming a part of the 11th Division which cooperated with the famous ■" Mounted Infantry Division," in which all the colonics were represented. On May 5 Pole-Carew set out from Bloemfontein to effect the passage of the Vet River, where the West Australians greatly distinguished themselves, and, accompanied by lan Hamilton's mounted infantry of Button's Brigade and tho Guards and the 13th Brigade, both the Vet and Sand Rivers were successfully passed by him within a few days. The Saturday Review, writing at the time, said: — • One notable .feature in the second phase of the campaign is the rapidity with which comparatively junior officers have como to the front, Genorals Pole-Carew, lan Hamilton and Ridley are cases in pointparticularly the first-named.

It is matter of history how Pole-Carew fought his division at the passage of tho "Vaal River, up to Johannesburg and round •Pretoria; and how, too, he, under Roberts' eye, fought his way right up to the Portuguese border, and afterwards junctioned with Bullor. It was Pole-Carew who, in honour of the King of Portugal's birthday, reviewed 9000 or 10,000 troops at Komati Poort on behalf of Lord Roberts, and since then he has been actively engaged in helping to pacify and administrate tho Eastern and Northern Transvaal. His actual army rank is that of major-general, which grade he attained ou May 11, 1900. Those Australians who served under or with him, and who aro now home again, agree in describing him as " a magnificent fighting man," and a most humane, kindly and considerate officer. Personally, he was very • popular. General Carew has seen other service besides. In 1879-89 he was through the Afghan campaigns, and there gained the medal with three clasps for each important battle in which he was engaged; in 1882 he went to Egypt, where he fought at Tel-el-Kelsir, gaining the medal with one'clasp, and the Star of the Medpdeh was also awarded him by the Khedive. In 1886 and 1887 he fought in Burma, and for good work in that country was made a Commander of the Bath.

So far, no announcement has bten made as to the rewards gained in the now expiring war; probably none will be made until the \ery last ashes of rebellion are stamped out, but whonever the Gazette comes out with those interesting and long-looked-for promotions and prizes, the name of Lieu-tenant-General Reginald Polo-Carew is sure to occupy a prominent place. It may perhaps be interesting to mention that there is almost as much dispute in pronouncing our first commandant's hyphen-) ated name as there is in the case of General Baden-Powell's; many people say "Pool Carey," but most pronounce it as it is spo/-Pole-Care;*,