DECORATING TROOP TRAINS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16338, 19 September 1916, Page 9

DECORATING TROOP TRAINS.

VETERANS' ENTHUSIASM. < BUNTING AND GREENERY. ! The naval veterans of Auckland have i' been struck with the comparative absence j' of display in the city on the occasion of! the departure of reinforcement drafts, and j ] have decided to do their share, at any ' rate, towards putting heart into the bud-1 ding soldiers of the Empire, Accordingly' arrangements have been made under which the Royal Naval and Royal Marine Asso-1 ciation of Auckland will undertake the, decoration of every train that in future' carries Auckland recruits away to camp, i The promoters of the scheme have been j promised enthusiastic co-operation by the railway authorities and the Mayor, the latter having enlisted the assistance of the! city landscape gardener, and secured through him necessary material. To-day's reinforcement draft will be the first to have the benefit of the association's enthusiasm. The engine which is to : head the main troop train of this afternoon will be profusely decorated with greenery, varied with screens bearing appropriate motto?, and also with bunting. The principal inscription will be one stretched across the engine, with the words "Speedy Victory; Quick Return." The secretary oi the association, Mr. Gullery, has received .from the Northern Steamship Company a fine red ensign, which will be hoisted on the guards' van of the train. The members of the association also purpose parading at the railway station at the hour fixed for the troops' send-off, to speed them on their way with the enthusiasm natural to men who in their dav have, in the words of a popular sone, "Been and Seen " in the cause of the Empire.