TERRITORIAL TRAINING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LV, Issue 17033, 14 December 1918, Page 8

TERRITORIAL TRAINING.

GREAT MILITARY ASSET. , 9 The strength of., the Territorial Ford jp and Senior Cadets and their training and i]sJm discipline are referred to by Major-General JH Sir. A. W. Robin, General Officer Con* m manding the Forces, in his report npoafewj the work of the Defence Department for .:<••■ lathe year ended March 31. HUH The strength of the New Zealand D* -g| fence Forces on that date was as underjf|BJßJ| Territorial Force 22.933 fe--.ffl Senior Cadets 30.668 fe-H Rifle Clubs 7,252 'fpH Total 60,853. M ! Wi During the.past tliree years of waft Iffl states, the report the training of the Terr. Eg ritorial and Cadet Forces has been con- ga tinued, notwithstanding many sever* m handicaps and increased difficulties 9*' IB varied kinds. Not the hast of these haJ K been a lack of understanding of the vast', pj \ value of this training on the part of some |- , in the Dominion, who, when not engaged ."' fg] in pouring cold water on the work and i» IS need, have endeavoured to suppress thj»;'.y |l ;j training altogether. All military expert* || M brought in contact with the training of -,;' IflJ the Dominion's Territorial and Cade* Ipjl Forces, and who alone are in a position 018 to judge of its value and necessity, art jflj unanimous regarding the vital need *#;;■■':»|j supporting its continuance not only *° ;V ?fiSS directly aid in the present war. but a ]f3HH to ensure a successful Defence Force with Hi some thousand officers, and well over its : : @j total original strength of 30,000 other |g| ranks. In ndd''tion, it is still at '/*'.--;'■- EHB strength of 29,000, some 8000 of whom M annually pass into the Expeditionary 18, Force on arrival at the age of ?0 year?. jMJ Last training-year alone some 500 officer* ;■-. h s '.■;-; and 14,000 men left the Territorial F°*?--Kfifj for service at the front. Had Territorial 7' jr.■ training been suspended in 1914 these {Mj officers and other mnks would have been |S deficient of three years of military train- ; 'BB| ing, a training which aims at both &* m[, feating the enemy and saving the lives «J[| Hj| our own soldiers. [11*1