OUR VOLUNTEERS

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4315, 26 March 1901, Page 3

OUR VOLUNTEERS

CITY RIFLES. Tho annual meeting of the City Rifles was held at the Trocadero last evening, Captain W. G. Duthie in the chair. The balance-sheet for tho past year was presented and showed the corps to he in » sound financial position. t Captain Duthie, in moving the adoption or tho balance-sheet, congratulated the mem. hers on a very successful year, stating it was tho record year of the corps’ existence. They had qualified seventy members for captitation, but bad only received captitation for sixty-three, that being the number allowed by the regulations. The corps commences thg present year with a muster roll of sixty.six members, sixtythree of whom-are trained men. In the military tournaments held during the year the teams representing the corps were very successful. At Petone they secured two first prizes and one second prize; while at Dunedin three first prizes and the honour of holding the Hallenstein Cup for this year were secured. He urged members- to continue the good work of last year, which could only be accomplished by attending the company parades, which were the only instruction parades of the" corps. The captain mentioned-, • with reference to the attendance prizes for next year, for the first prize Mr Tomlinson will present an enlargement and one dozen cabinet photos of the winner. ColourSergeant Davis was re-elected secretary, a position he has now occupied for twenty years. Sergeants Halpin and TuL loch were appointed auditors. The following were appointed a olub-room committee:- —Colour-Sergeant Davis,, Nea. ber, Rankin, Cook, Smith," Prismeg and Reitz. The following Social Committee was elected: —Privates Lloyd, Love, Bernard, Andrews, Fraser, C. Guy, Tullocli, Cook, Frandi and Tanner. Captain Dutliie presented the prizes to the winners of the attendance awards for the. past year, viz: —Corporal C. Guy, first prize (£3); Sergeants Halpin, Lance-Sergeant Frandi, Corporal S. Guy, Lance-Corporal Love, Privates McGregor, Borrows, Cook, Lloyd arid Bernard, £1 each ; total, £l3. Three cheers for Captain Duthie brought the meeting to a close. A Southern M.H.R. raises tho subjoined lament to the mdmory of the scarlet which erstwhile clothed both regulars and volunteers:—i“The matter of uniform is always an important one with Volunteers. The present commandant favours the plainest uniform imaginable. He will not even allow maroon facings to tho khaki, a thin piping being all that he will permit now. A plain uniform is, there can be no denying, the proper thing for drill purposes and field service, but our Volunteers should have a swagger uniform for ceremonial occasions. In our opinion,-Volunteers should have a full-dress uniform-of scarlet andi blue. Scarlet is the British military colour, and we like to see the men in it. It was the bright uniform that made the precession, of the Imperial troops such a fine spectacle. Had they all been dressed in khaki, many.people would’ have been unab'c to distinguish tho regulars from the volunteers.”