THE DEFENCE FORCES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16480, 4 September 1915, Page 3

THE DEFENCE FORCES

, ; Bx Ssmtbi. Lieuteoaxit-oolo&el M'Donald, who left . with thoMam Expeditionary Force, but ww invalided home, has taken up the. - - duties at tbQ local Detenco'Utfioe as guneial staff othoer. ■ -Captain of the sth ■ Mounted Rifles (Otago, Hussars), has bmi promoted to the rank of inajor.. _ 1 Captain W.' W;Turner, of the 14th ' Otago) Regiment, lias . boen promoted to be major. /." '"Major J; M. jf'orrester has boen transferred from the Reserve of Officers to tno IOtE (North Otago) . Regiment,with the . rkik of major. . Lieutenant- J. L. Seoullar, who'recently joined* the staff in charge ot arfea 46, Dun- - cdin.has been transierred to an'area in lnvercargill. , ."When notifications to the men chosen, to ' represent Otago in the Eighth Reinlorcements were sent out quite a number of ' intimated that for various ■ they'; could not go to Wellington on the -date mentioned. _ Tne timely intimation enabled the authorities ~to appoint substitutes. But•• on the day of dftu&rturo there were no' .fewer> than \ 15. men—nine mounted out the sughteet authorities, j Advice ;■ was .. received thity^s ; jin,eii i to'fill .the vacancies were to :t<>'; WeUihgton on y;:,ber-l*;-7:' : Xho.'Sharif made it (omewhat.'difficult) Vvffet, the'men. . It is '' V reaUy that k) manymeii ■ rbhdukl; get the ; *7leri gth : of. "enrolling'; fend > Jthen slip resolution had failed. ':/■ -'^ia&rtainlyVery, v_ vexatious "to ' the \ aut£orities. Ih .with,- the, troops which; left Dunedin" on September 1, and .conaprisednine mounted rifles,, 6ix infantry, ;;, a<udv ; 2 ; l medical orderlies/ notice was .-.re-' 'wived! ;from one man at 5 o'olock on the efe-'of- departure that he, Woiild be u.nabie to go. v- - Jtietween that hour and 6. o'clock next'morning the Defence Department had ,t£ find ' tt-eutetitute in Inveroargill. They

. found one. At 9.30 a.m. 'ou the day of departure another man strolled in and .said he could not g0... Before train time man ~ iiad;beien foun 1 to fill his place. ' -For servioe at llrentbam ais hospital orderlies, etc. ," no fewer than 80 applicants' - presented themselves at the Dunedm office. ,Thdy* ranged in 12 yeara :io 75 ■ yjpare, and their viewpoints had a correspondingly wide range. There were some • who desired to- be paid union wages for ' y their work". From the: number offering . throughout. Otagoith'evmedical' staff selected , a ; very jpromfeing set of men. but the usual V Pf°P9 r tf>n pf neoessitated the . finding of eome/substitutes. Many of those !?• ;™e original gelection were' men ' with .!• '..iSt. - John-Ambulance training. Othets were • ®® n 't®ry : ' trained cooks, .etc. ■ '/'-A;j/ew lines) from ;a. private letter ifroxn Major Waite.— . ;; ..the doctor: looked at my: arm- on V June 29, ,he asked me a lot of questions. V I feel run! down?' and "did i feel : tto9,and that?' I told him I did,-and ; Ke -iobligingly pint v'gastrib: enteritis' on my '. P™ e, ' ,That sounds . well/ but the .. cantor oil was not exactly what I expected. . :p9 for two days I've been on a drink diet (Wcqa, bpvril,. and milk and soda). I won't y attempt a description of that period. This morning (July 5) I porridge, and at ''i.• ■ •' J- had soup, coboa^;" and • arrowroot. •j' ALW kHiay; cutting up-Unt and cotton ; paM the timeaway, It's very .;;. n»rd to ' be aboard this ship and watch ES >p^ > ''' eat ! b, X bully -beef' and W«ouits~and no appetite oneself. However, the daily bath and tbe comfortable ■■ bed L are worth any money. To-night lam discharged from the Sicilia, and go ashore at Lemnos convalescent. A few days uere and tiben back to tirow another . oridc at the Turks. ' afSTw^ 0 ??!!" in section with the sth Mounted Kifles are ;being arranged for. Uates are; as yet: not' definitely arranged; but the ; is: that the fi»t camp wul Be at Qamaru about the beginnmg of October.; Hawea me'nibers go into camp during the latter, half of Octo- ' r » Arrowtown following about the end of November. A and D SquadN will most likely: be held early in -De-- \ s®™ ) ber ' ia,propoßed~that C Squadron ■Qall' go iDto carop m January. " strengtihlof i 1 Rifles the following. have y* X 1 iy^ s present war Sergeant R H. Bailey, O: Squadron; SerJ oT * E - J ca » , A Squadron; Sergeant Li ' , Squadron; Sergeant D. Suther land D Squadron; Private G Swanson, D Squadron; Corporal N. Baxter, A • Squadron.

1. • l^ ar am a cadet, and will be shortly. tothoTerntoriaJ ranks* obtain a commission, and ' would like you to tell me. ( what books I require to study in order to fit mo to pass the necessary examination. 'How long after passing an examination would, j'have to serve before obtaining a lieutenancy? If the chances of promotion are equal, r prefer the mounted, but, if it comes qui&er m the infantry, then I would take that course, m, promotion is my aim .-I am, Amongrt the military works "Cadet" will require to study are 'infantry Training," Musketry Regulations/' " New Zealand i • t}b 9 ok o{ Military Law,"' - Fie 'd Service Regulations," and "Teo- < mapry and Moupted Bifle Training." The last-named-would-not be necessary if he dettde* in favour of infantry: If tKere were a vtoncy and " Cadet " 'were take it he' would not have to wait at all rS «; ff m ®° ******** his looal Group (Staff, very willing to assist him - to realise ins; ambition. A class of instruction for medical officers and orderlies, etc., throughout the Otago ? district wittib®, jeommenoed at an early date ; dflfeeri and 21 N.C.O.V ; and the 9th> Reinforce- : >mrats, will leave DunecKn: on September 6- ; V the approval pf the Defence is obtained, the Kaituria Lawn ■ proposes to - establish a.; minia- : . ttire tal§ rtißgie ion jts courts in Serpentine " *yehua /jrhe idei originated ? with- the pre-' sraent (Mr: B. B. Couston), who offered to - w > thd first -rifle, and '■ who expressed the ; opinron the"range would bea,valuable >, appropriate : l adjunct io the club: > The would be electrically lighted; and at ! pf.play and - during intenrals toemTiseful rifle • practice; Oddly ojtouph. the' majority of Ihe male > members ofV Kaieuna Club are married men. CAs a ;i ?^^ r f , 9X:'P re l' aration { ° r the time when ■ called iuponj the membew welcomed the'proposal. < •parade, " last Veek of the 7th' Mou'nted ' Field i-Anibulancfr' at Invercargi]] ' feeling reference was made by the Officer ; jto' thfr death of their late com- •, rade, Fnvate .'Arthur Eton Belworthy, who had diedvof* wounds'received, at ,the Darda- ; He, had: beenjan extremely popular highly efficient member of . the company, but hastening to serve, his. country in. any /capacity, he joined the Otago Infantry Bot.with the.'Fifth -Reinforce* - ments. ' -loans father, Sergea-nt-rri-Jijor 33g1of Hospital, and-his mother, ; theyiextended, their deepeßt sj\mpaAhy. y \:}t: i RK!h : . Who: have given up •their for the use of conf Jesoent." soldiers varo dismayed (says a 'p&2>er) v to ; find that in fow «ases,are 4 .n.e and quiet of tljeir gardens tuid vgrouyids .'ftppreoiated. - Ori perhaps, ifc would be' ptttnng it more'correctly to say that the : : iekful -'beauty- ii not enjoyed because of the. -fhttmahvlife. The ordi;>narc.Tbmmy drama of the street, ' an<r on' the wall, of the garden attached to

■ a -mansion . near. London there sits- in the < sunshine a row of convalescent soldiers with their 'backs:to tho lovely quiet garden, and . their faces turned • towards a- distant linG. of,. tromcars. t Tho greatest. treat'-they desire is an hour or two of " t(fe pictures," and one lricfi hostess - has 1 had a email' -kinema fitted tv in hor house for the benefit of her soldier guests. 1 , ' , . . === v