THE DEFENCE FORECES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11243, 13 October 1898, Page 2

THE DEFENCE FORECES.

' COLONEL PENTON'S REPORT. : : :,.'(F.iioii,p}J.n Own CoEKEsrouDENT.) ; ;•; ,-:;.'■'?,/..- :■'■■'^WELLIN'gTON, October 12.; •' The report of. Colonel. A. P. Ponton, the commander,'of;;th& 'forces, was laid on the. 'table?of-the House, to-day by/the Hon. T..~ Thompson.: ■-It-is :a .lengthy doauirent of-\l2r pages.; I make the following' extracts.:—;.;.}/ ■Thfi-Fermanent Force.—l i-eported-last.yeai;.----t- there were not sufficient..pflicera, in. the. ' permanent. ftVoa to! keep up the proper, spirit?, of discipline among tho men. Steps have '■li'eerrtaken tp"somewhat "rewedy,-'this.*. -An Imperial' officer ;has been engaged to take charge of the Artillery defence at Auckland,, and the two gentlemen who were probationary cadets la-st year havo been given commissions as1 lieutenants in the Permanent Artillery. These two young officers have been sent to England to undergo a courso of in, struotion, and on their return to the colony the experience arid knowledge' they will have gained will no doubt materially assist them to educate and train in military duties the men over whom1 they iv'ill'bo placed in com*mand. I should have been very glad hacl my recommendations to get out three artillery officers instead of one from the Imperial service on a three years' engagement been cepted, as there is ample work for them to do in the colony. Proposed Increase.—ln my last report '1 recommended an increase *to tho permanent force so that the working of the principal guns in lour defences and : all-the specialist ■ details 'ojLthe forts should'bo,carried out: by, effieierjtiand well trained'men. The proposal met with miichiopposition in-'Parliamentliind.' elsewhere, but :I think if my duty to again urge upon the authorities the.necessity of.an addition to 'tlie artillery branch of the permanent force. The idea that the colony is to be handed over to militarism because of the necessary numbers of men being asked for to work the principal guns, etc., of the existing defences is absurd. It takes much time and training to make an efficient garrison artilleryman, and the permanent force is'all .that can be relied on to work tho forts at all times of the year, and under all conditions. .The volunteers, from lack of sufficient work in the forts, would.not be compe tent at once to take their place in the oo.fence. The men are willing and eager to learn, but have not tho required opportunities, and it is only after their annual fortnight's training that they are fitted to efficiently work tlie guns. In No. 1 Company, it is essential that we should hayo .efficiently trained specialists for. the several duties connected with the artillery defence. As the force is at present constituted, there is no inducement beyond 'that of possible future promotion to non-commissioned officers' rank to induce a. gunner to keep himself efficient as a specialist. As there are rarely likely to be vacancies in tho non-commissioned officers' ranks, tlie prospects of promotion are not great. All the first-class gunners should be specialists, liable to be reduced in rank if they do not keep themselves .well up in their work. .It is on these specialises that the efficient working of the forts very largely depends, and every inducement should be given to them . to keep themselves efficient. In No. 2 company we have a very serious dearth tradesmen, such as electricians, engine drivers, carpenters, and blacksmiths. It is essential for tho efficient carrying out of the submarine mining work, and tho care and upkoap of the various stores and engines, that we should have a sufficiency of such tradesmen. Tlie pl-csent rate of pay seems too low to attract men of good capabilities to the ranks, and steps should bo taken at the very earliest opportunity to remedy the -present state of affairs. I recommend that, as suggested for No. 1 Company, tlie rank of first-cliiss gunner should be, "kept for men who qualify themselves as specialists, and that a man should ba liable to be reduced in pay if ha does not keep himself up in his work. Instruction. —The Government of New South Wales invited this colony to send any officers or non-commissioned;officers of tho artillery branch. of the perManent force to undergo a .course:of instruction, lasting for about three months, in Sydney. I recommend tlittt advantage should bo taken" of this offer, and am sure, had this-been carried out that the men would have got very valuable instruction at a small cost, and that the money so spent would have been of. benefit to tlie colony. Unfortunately my; recommendation was declined. -Should a similar offer be madeat any future.'tinie, I hope that the authorities ] will sco their way to takeVadyantago of it. Owing to the,,itistallatipri of a'hew mine field'; and increased electric light. ;plivnir, it will be' absolutely necessary.: to mak'iNi'; slight increase to No. 21 Company, which Ij'li'a'i'e asked for in : tlio Estimates. .-.- ",- ''.-'a^' • '■

• Married vM'eri.v-S-iyiy recoihrriendation that a 'fixed rule sliould'b'e laid dowh;aa'-to the number of married teen to.'be: allowed in each company has not'been acted-bh, and men are ■practically.allowed to marry; as: they iplease/and in some ' cases j they have .been enrolled, when already, niiimed. This '.militates very much against discipline,.; The'niarriod men live out of 'barracks, arid ;the: majority of the lion-oommissioncd bffifi'srs, being also married, livo out of barracks too. I 'would suggest that at the four where the permanent force is quartered the Government should tako upon theniSßlvo3;-the duty of erecting married quarters in : close proximity to the barracks. A-small reiit ; should be charged for these quarters, sufficient to repay the Government proper interest.-,on their outlay and to provide a small... sinking sum for necessary repairs. These "quarters should -be apportioned to the ma.rried;n6n-commissioned'ofncer3 and men, who iKoiild be under'the same discipline as the, single men living in .barracks? In Wellington,' where house rent is so high, this would be decided" boon to the married men of ■ tho force!," AH ■ the non-commissioned officers and .'men would always 'be getatnblc in case their? services'.wore,-required at any time. The miirtb'er., of married, men in tho force is at - present: No.; 1 Company, 79, out of a total of '218; No. 2 Gorripaay, 29, out of a total of 63. . Colonel Penton goes on to say that he-has submitted a proposal for increasing the' pity; arid improving tho position of the artificers ofI'No. 1 Cbtnpany for inclusion in the Reserves.—No :'«teps. have;-yet been taken for providing a '■'reserve for the'permanent force.. .At.iprese'htiinert, enlist in the force for, no specified:'timoj .and arc sworn in to serve, in tho defence force until lawfully discharged. Regulations should- bo laid down as to tho length of time a man should serve with the colours; and with the reserve. The men of No. 2 Company who. have joined and been '•'taught 'a' trade in :the: company 'should' not be allowed to leave until they have completed u'certain'torn of engagement, except by purchasing their disohargo lor a sum.varying acording to the length of tho man's. scr-; Polico Duty.—'-During.tho"present y*ear very f<nv_ men have bcon called- upon to perform ilulios in the streets as policemen, and Oolonol Ponton trusts, thai unless actually oallcd out in aid of the civil power they may nevor havo to perform such. duties -in future, and that tho police and military forces wili bo enliroly separated. .No men from the po-. lint) force have been trained in the forts for tho pant two years, and tho police cannot be > Hfii-iously contidored as an efficient military; roaijrvo in case of war service., Affcei laying stress upon the necessity for gymnastic training, the commander .refers' to tho Raweno Nativo trouble, and states that .the men per-, formed one trying march, and woro on detachment, for about a montjij during whioh timo their commanding officers state. that tlwir behaviour was. oxcellent and the spirit with which they wore imbued was -in every way commendable. Volunto&rs.—Binco tho last report a volunteer establishment has been fixed for the colony, and sanction has been given for capitation to be drawn for 7000 men. This will enable the commander if necessary to enroll nearly"dCOO men, allowing for tho natural percentage of. mon who for various reasons do not capitato yoarly. Of the infantry eight companies are in a moribund or inefficient ftale. Tho commander hopes these will cease to exist by the end of the financial year. Mounted Corps.—Coming to the question of mounted corps, the 'commander says: — "I look upon th'o mounted corps as a ino'st valuable arm of tho service in thin colony, whero'a'comparatively small force has "to guard a considerable, extent of country. It is most important to have a mobile foi-ce of mounted rifles, whioh can quickly attain any de?ired position and hold an enei.iy in check until reinforced. I much regret that owing to thi men composing those corps being mostly farmers and working on farms and runs, they cannot be got together oftener for drill and instruction. I havo seen all the mounted corps in tho colony, and consider that with proper training they would form as useful a body of troops''as any one would wish to command. The men nro intelligent, hard, usod to any outdoor life, and to being constantly in the saddle. As a rule', they.own tho horses they rido on parade, which, taken all round, are a useful and handy lot of animals. At present they. provide their own horses,, saddlery, saddlery, appointments, and uniforms, receiving from tho Government their rifles, rifle-buckets, and accoutrements, and the Bame amount of capitation as is given to all arms, viz., £210s a year." Colonel Penton suggests that the capitation should be'in'-' creased to £3 10s to allow for the Upkeep of saddlery and provision-of bridles and head ropes of a uniform character. Fiold Artillery.—There, are now five batteries of field artillery in the colony, one at each of the four centres and one of two guns at Nelson, for the protection of the cable station. The provision of these batteries will necessarily very much modify the condition uf-training of the field artillery. At present the batteries only turn out horsed to fire a salute on the Queen's Birthday, and occasionally for special ceremonial parades and field days, and to-march to and from, camps and practice. Only one pair <.of horses-is al->

lowed per gun, and consequently the guns cannot go out of a walk, and cannot practice talcing up positions. such as they would be called upon to occupy in action, on ground commanding the surrounding country. Should they by any means'succeed in getting ;into..suoh.A'. position they could not be y withdrawn .'iC.iime;: to avoid capture if at all pressed tty.the enemy.. The new field batteries Will be practically white elephants and useyless unless they "are.properly manned, and,] horsed. Men andfjibrses should be .trained -to.impart sufficient mobility to the giins to enable them to play ;their.proper part in the "defence. The volunteer regulations are being 'altered; to allow of -the field batteries going into for a fortnight, instead of six days'. In- atlfclitiifiti'to the .fortnight camp, the bat- ' tenes."'s!ioifld turn" out once a month for -mounted..'qi'arades! of ...an afternoon. . These parados should carry a personal payment of 2s- 6d a head to' the men1 turning out, and should not be earned; unless a sufficieWt hum-' her of men turn ■■out-to.-"enable the battery to be efficiently worked. Naval and Garrison Artillery.—The officers and men of the artillery corps are keen volunteers and anxious and willing to learn their VvOrk, but they suffer from the fact that the n.tiiprlly of the torts are situated at soineidis-. tahce from'tile, towns, and can only,be got at by ■ -water.-"-' 3'his prevents ■ them in .the majority of cases drilling at the forts in the positions, they Vfould have to ;occupy in action, 'except during Hip tiifte of.itheir annual camp. All drilli except-in very special cases, .is car-' ried out of an evening, but now that daylight parades have been sanctioned it is hoped that all the daylight drills will be carried out in the forts. To enable this to,be done, however, some arrangoment luPve to be made either for hiring.or proyiditifi; suitable steamers for. .'carrying the men to-and from the forts. If; is impossible!, to train men as guii layers, one of-tlio most important of-artillery duties,.. unless tile training can be carried but by daylight. There are now two corps in the colony, 'brie at-Auckland arid one at V allinglon, whose duties are entirely confined to submarine mining work, but owing to the want of proper submarine mining vessels their instruction cannot be thoroughly carried out. In last year's report it was recommended that two efficient submarine mining boats should, bo procured, nnd it is imperative for the efficient training of tlie men ami t.lio proper laying out of the ■ mine fields that such boats should be purchased at as early a date as possible. T;.» regulations as to the musketry course for all naval corps are being revissd, and these corps will earn their capitation on their qualification, as artillerymen and submarine minors, and not be dependent for it on their skill with the riflo. The money hitherto given for prizes for rifle shooting.to the various artillery corps should be lumped'together and (riven as" a prize to the company who scores most points in a competitive artillery practice, which' should be instituted yearly in the four centres. More ammunition should be allowed annually'to." the artillery corps for their practice, as'it is only by carrying out the actual firing that. the. practical results of the training can bb ascertained.

; Infantry.—Duringtiio past .year the organisation of it-he infantry has been changed, and all the corps in the colony either have been, or are about to bo, organised into battalions. This is a simple matter in the centres, where there are several corps in ono town and others grouped on the railway system in close proximity to tho town. The battalions so formed will have o. reality of existence. As regards the country corps, however, there are. rarely more than two companies of the battalions in one town, and tho other companies are dotted about at.different stations, along the line of rail, so that tho battalion only comes together as a whole at Easter camps or on special occasions. To carry out the battalion system thoroughly in the country districts an extended Use will have to be made of the railways. * This should be done so that battnlions, i!' possible, and most-certainly halfbattalions, should be brought together for daylight drills. The infantry corps are, considering the amount of training they get, fairly efficient in drill-hall work, but sadly deficient in their khowledgo of practical soldiering. This is not the fault of the men, but of the system., of volunteering in force in the colony. With the exception of tho timo spent in the oompany. camp, no daylight parades aro insisted on, and consequently the men. get very little, out-of-door training. In some districts advantage is taken of moonlight nights to take the corps out, but this is not nearly sufficient. -It is hoped that the six daylight parades* with a personal payment to the men of 2s 6d each parade, recently sanctioned, will go some way to remedy, this defect. Of'course, these parades and tho'eonditions they are to bo held trader this year are only, ■ experimental, and -till we have gained sonioiexperience of how thampn turn out and, what effect the training has.: oil the force no hard arid fast rules can be laid. down.

Sympathy.of' Employers.—l trust no* that tlvs Government has seciv its way to provide the money for thisje extra parados tlat the ■ emplbyers :of: labour (in ■>the oolouy will cuoperate ami do all they can, compatibly with their business arrangements, to allow their mon to take advantage of the'parades. Their success •.depends'-very.-largely on employers granting volunteers in their employ some slight concessions, and as the volunteers work entirely for tho -protection of the employers,' property in tinie of-war,'l trust that wo will bo met in a liberal spirit. I am glad to say that within the last four months two large firms—ono in Auckland find one in Dunedin— have corns forward and allowed corps to. be formed exclusively from their employees, and as tho men in these corps will all be able to get away on the samo day I have no doubt, but that the companies so formed will soon turn out smart and efficient. Should these daylight parades prove a Buccess this year, I hope that tho full number I asked for (12) will be granted next year. I am sure that the money given to improve the efficiency of the forca in field training and out-door work will be money well expended. A Great Weakness.—The great weakness of the volunteer force lies in its officers and non-commissioned officers. So long as the power of election of officers remains with the men so long will the volunteers be inefficient from a military point of view. As matters at present-exist an officer io dependent for his position on the will of the men, and he is loth to do anything at all contrary to the feelings of the men, tho consequence being a sad want of discipline, which would militato very seriously against efficiency should active operations have to be taken. The officers are, as a 'irjlle; keen to learn, but have few opportunities of perfecting themselves in tho higher branches of the military profession. It is tho non-commissioned officers, however, who are ths great blot on the volunteer force. In tho largo majority of tho companies the commander has inspected he has had serious •"fault' to' "find' ''"'-with' life1 ■hon^cnmiiiiesibned "| officers. Making largo allowance for nervousj ness, and what is''chllodi -inspection fever," beyond knowing the manual and firing exercises, and in some cases the bayonet pxercises,! and physical "drills, tlio non-commissioned officers are rarely able to efficiently instruct their men. The non-commissioned officers should be tho backbone of the company, thoroughly up in all drills and capable of imparting instruction both to tho -recruits and the company. They should not permit mistakes to pass without notice when drilling : their men. As n rule they seem to be eithor afraid to correct tho men or to be too ignorant to do so. They do not inspire the respect among-the mon "which they ought, and as a body are capable of vast improvement. . . Revival of Volunteering.—During the last fow months there has been a areat revival cf volunteering throughout the colony. Since tho commander's arrival 71 corps have pioffered their services to the. Government, arid tho majority of these offers have come in sinco tho Commencement of 'this year. The commander has only recommended the acceptance of tho services of companies at headquarters "of'ciistricts or in stations closely connected by rail or by boat with those in whioh corps already exist; so that-no difficulty should bo experience!'.! in getting companies together1 for daylight drills, and that mobilisation for service could bo carried out in the most expeditious manneiv Each of the four centres now has its own town battalion. The companies comprising tho battalion can be mobi- ■ lised in a few hours and marched at once to their positions. Under the defence scheme the companies of tho country battalions, be-' ingiiill on thg line o£ rail or.boat communication, could all bo mobilised and in their positions "within 24-.hours. •■• . ' ' Engineer Corps.—Provision has been mado< for an-Engineer Corps to be formed in each of; tho four principal districts. Corps have existed for some timo past in Christchuroh and Dunedin. So far I have been iinable to form them in Auckland and Wellington. A scale of equipment has been laid down for such corps, and orders are being sent Home for part of tho equipment this year, to be completed in the following year. These corps will be available for telephone signalling and telegraph work, and for carrying out simple field, engineering, and it if; hoped the estab-. lbhment of the corps will soon be completed.. Cycle Corps.—Sanction has been given to the formation of a. Cycle Corps, consisting of two Officers and 25 non-commissioned officers and mon at the four centres. Corps already exist at Wellington, Dunedin, and Christchurch, and the commander hopes soon to get the offer of a corps from Auckland. Medical Services'. — Regulations are being drawn up i for the reorganisation of the medical branch. This branch will be organised by districts, a principal medical officer being appointed for eaoh district, who will be responsible for the proper carrying out of all tho modical services in the district. All the districts will be-put under a principal medical officer at headquarters. An equipment has been drawn up of the medical stores necessary for the ambulance companies and field -hospitals, and prders have been sent to England for the necessary stores and appliances. As regards hospital accommodation at the four centres, no doubt if there • w«? any protracted fighting the large hospitals would give us.all the assistance in their power • in. providing, .accommodation anrl

treatment for eerioua cases! Slightly wounded men would be accommodated in building's alreidy selected by the Defence Committee, and remain under the treatment of the military medical officers. ( Cadet Companies.—The Education department is considering the desirability of systematic military'"training throughout the colony for the boys boing educated in the State schools. That the Military department should be relieved of this duty and not charged with the • expense of the boys so trained. is a sound move. The Defence department gets very little benefit from _ the ,boys trained in the companies of the State .Schools...,_ Many of them drift out into the country, where" Ihere are no Volunteer corps, and few of them join the volunteer1 forces as adults. Under the circumstances, the Military department should not be paddled with the expense of the upkeep of the cadet corps. Howevdr, a military training widely1 diffused among, the growing.youths of the colony is good both from a moral and physical point of view, and this exeicise and training must be very beneficial to the boye' physique. Rifle Clubs.—The rifle club man practises simply at a standing target under conditions as favourable as ho, can make them to him.Self. lie lias no experience of .field' firing under servieb' conditions, no sense of discipline, and knows nothing about drill. I have no hesitation in saying that rille clubs' formed in towns where volunteer companies, exist do harm to the companies and take recruits away from the ranks. The only way. in which J think they should receive encouragement from the Government is in turning them into reserve corps for the volunteer force. After serving for four years in' the volunteers, a man should be qualified to join a Government rifle club formed in a station where a volunteer corps oxists. He should be allowed 50 rounds of ammunition annually, provided he titrn's put once a quarter for drill and inspection. The whole club should turn out together for this quarterly drill if possible, men not aWe to attend being allowed to put in a drill with the volunteer company. In places where volunteer corps do not exist rifle clubs might ]io formed consisting of old volunteers, who would receive the same grant of ammunition, provided they put in their four quarterly drills in the year; rifle clubs so formed to be brought under the conditions of the Defence ■Act as part of the defence force of the colon)'. A large number of men leave the volunteer forco every year, and I am of opinion that if rifle clubs were put on the fooling I now recommend we would retain a fair proportion of the trained men as a volunteer reserve. Unless a rifle club devotes a certain lime to military training as well as perfecting its members in shooting it will be useless to the defence force, and a lot of untrained and undisciplined men being included in the force at the outbreak of hostilities would bo a source of anxiety and hamper llio utility of the force. If a man gives no service to the State, I fail to. see why he should expeel to be subsidised by the State for the purpose of carrying out his own pleasure and amusement.. . The Rifle Association.—From a1: defence point of view, the resullß of the meeting of the Now Zealand Rifle Association .were disappointing, and I cannot recommend that in ' future any assistance be given to the New Zealand Rifle Association. The money would bo much better spent for the benefit of the volunteer fighting fores. If a certain amount was allotted to each district for prize firing during the year each district could have its own rifle meetit g, the majority of the competitors being confined to volunteers, and good practical matches forming a great part of the programme. One or two matches might be set apart exclusively for rifle club men. Free railway passes should be granted to the men in the uistriot taking part in these competitions, which should bo entirely under the management of the officer commanding the district. One district should be selected annually, which should form a competing centre for the colony. That is to say, that in this district certain matches would be fired open to the whole volunteer force, and a small extra grant should be given annually to this one district. . The men taking part in Iho several ' riflo meetings should live in camp and be under military discipline. At the last year's Oamaru meeting, although a largo number of touts were provided by the Government, no one but the permanent force markers lived ■in the camp, and the tents were only utilised as shelter for the competitors in case of rain.