THE THIRD CONTINGENT.

Otago Witness, Issue 2412, 24 May 1900, Page 36

THE THIRD CONTINGENT.

FROM ALBANY TO EAST LONDON

DETAILS OF THE PASSAGE.

(By * Oxm, Special . Correspondent. ) " On the Knight Tempiar . (with the New Zealand Rough Riders) , March 20, 1900. We expect to reach Durban on the 20th March. AIL on board are_ anxious for news, and also whether they are to land or to go further. With one exception, all are well. Corporal Richards, of No. 1 Company, was yesterday sent to the hospital attacked with influenza. All hope to see the corporal well enough to be 'about again by the time the contingent moves off. Cameron had an attack of pneumonia, but is well and about again iiow.' Tip to the time of writing eight horses have been put overboard. Two more are unfit, and will have to be destroyed. The -voyage has tried the animals severely, and it is very noticeable that the, weakest of them go, and the better horses look just as well as 'when they. left Lyttelton. A very striking feature is that the horses fare worst on the port side of the vessel,, all the deaths occurring on that side", which may be accounted for by its being the weather side. Including the mare which went mad three ■ or four days after leaving port, No. 1 Company has lost three horses, and No. 2 Conijjany five horses. The passage from Albany has been .--unusual as regards the weather. The captain appears delighted, and has accomplished the voyage an four days less than he expected. We only passed one vessel. At Albany several of the men provided themselves with l;ards, draughts and chess boards, and other games, and thus had ample amusement for the latter part of the voyage. Song books were also purchased, and more music was indulged in. St. Patrick's Day was celebrated with a concert on deck. The piano was hauled up, and a large electric illumination was erected by the chief engineer. The enterprising secretary drew lip and posted several elaborate programmes all over the ship, including songs and dances, instrumental solos on the piano, flute, violin, and mandolin. The evening was very enjoyable. The officers of the ship were entertained with a farewell smoke concert in the saloon. The chief officer deserves especial credit for the obliging assistance he rendered to all whenever appealed to. For the cleanliness of the troop, the officer commanding ordered bathing parades occasionally, each man having to pass under a hose. All, more especially the looker s-oji, enjoyed themselves very much. The weather is' very warm. The horses are

* now all shod -in the front feet, the hind hav•ing to be left till they go on shore. The adopted war cry, which is practised daily, is as followri: — " Ilia kata; _hi, Ida toa; hi ' puritoa te mana ote Kuini! Hi, hi, ha!" ("Be strong; yes, be brave; yes, uphold the supremacy of our Queen! Yes, yes; ha! ") j Captain and Adjutant Bourn, of the South Canterbury Battalion, has been appointed j to the command of the No. 1 Company, vice ; Captain Rose, resigned. Lieutenant Lewin, 1 an attached officer, has been acting from Albany. Captain Bourn takes command on the landing of the troop. It was thought to apply for an Imperial officer to fill the vacancy, but the general wish wafe in favour lof our own officer. He was, therefore, given the preference. April 23. — After waiting until yesterday morning at anchor in Durban roadstead, orders were received to proceed to East London, a -port 260 miles south. We are now on our way there. After a very rough right, we find ourselves 40 miles beyond our destination, and are new steaming back along the coast looking for the pert. The general impression is that we will have to swim our horses to land, as the Knight Templar draws too much water to allow her to berth. I