THE DEFENCE FORCES.

Otago Witness, 1 June 1910, Page 14

THE DEFENCE FORCES.

By Sentry.

The final act in the disbandment of the IMorth Dunedin Rifles is the announcement in the current issue of the Gazette that the Governor has approved of the disbandment as from April .27.

Congratulations to Major Ross, of the Dunedin Engineers, whose promotion, to date from December 23, 1909, is just gazetted.

Captain Richardson is giving a lecture to the officers and non-commissioned officers of the Auckland Division G.A.V., the subject being the now territorial scheme as it affects the Garrison Artillery. Such a lecture would prove intensely interesting to the local division.

Thero seems every likelihood, however, that the occasions upon which the- Territorials under the present system' will be called out for ceremonial parades. are drawing to a close. It is probable that we have been witnessing seme of the final parades under the present conditions. It is quite on the cards that after the present year there will be no voluntary force, but all shall be >erving under the compulsion system. After this year, it seems, the practice of paying capitation to corps will be discontinued, and all uniforms, equipment, etc., will be provided by the department. This will imean good-bye to full dress uniforms, com,pany traditions. The present companies, it is no doubt expected, will provide the .nucleus of the companies under the new system, and as the number of young men in , the general training section will be far in excess of the numbers required to bring the (Territorials up to the necessary strength, the ballot will no doubt decide who is to eerv:e. This will mean, of course, that the compulsion principle will have to be expended to something far more _comprehensive than has been already laid down for I the genera! training section, for with the ibrief. individual training provided for them itbere is littl.- hope that they would ever be than a rabble. The compulsion principle having been siffirmed r it is evidently the intention now to follow it out to the logical conclusion, o-nd- this is especially needful in view of the fact that the wisdom of Field-marshal Lord Kitchener's recommondation that the age hrnit should be raised to 25 has been practically recognised. Fresh legislation will be necessary before these proposals can be _ put into iffect. One effect of the '"nnovation would be that every Territorial of the rank-and-Ble over the age of 25 years would cease to serve with them, the regulations providing that on reaching the age of 25 the territorial will pass into the reserve for a tear. From oie -point of view there is no Boubt that the altered scheme will be hailed. The worries attendant upon the providing of uniforms could be dispensed yith by officers without one pang of regret. The" important problem of providing officers and instructors for the forces under the new conditions is being tackled. 'Amongst the applicants are ex-imperial soldiers, Volunteer officers, non-commissioned officers, and men from other ranks in life. Something like 25 applications passed through the hands of the Officer Commanding the Otago District, whose duty it has been to report upon tbe applications. Appropriate to the subject of -compulsory and- combined training are the following excerpts from Robert Blatchford's book, "My Life in the Army," which every eoldier should read:--"The great differ*nee betwen a regiment and a mob is that ..vhile the mob is an. inchoate, disunited ■crowd of isolated individuals, a regiment fe a trained, united, and sentient organism. fT'Break the mob, and it will disperse, or iwatter; break a regiment, and the parts jwillL'hold together and will struggle to Tunite. . , . Dr H. Miller Maguire said fto me once: 'Peace or no peace, I'd have [every man trained to arms. If there was aiever to be another fight, I'd drill every [mule thing. By George, I'd have univerisal • military training in heaven.' . . • BThe fact is that the drilling of masses of emeu together makes for community of fthought and feeling; makes a crowd into k regiment; makes a rabble into a nation; L develops in the men a new faculty of 'jmroanism." m The parade on the day of the funeral %f the late King was a stately and impressive function. The spirit of the day jfras upon; civilians and soldiers alike, and Mjwith rare exceptions the whole of the profeedings were marked by an appropriate %nd dignified solemnity. The impressive3ie£s of the ceremony would have been enlianoed had it been possible to mass the Military after the church services for the !fK&rch to the Oval. The slow marching Egas fairly good, but it was obvious that gS|rie of the troops had mot been very thoroughly practised in the somewhat diffiart, which one school Cadet summed in the words " It hurts!" The funeral rches were excellently rendered by the ids, the playing by the Garrison Band they approached the Oval being parfine. It was unfortunate that the clerical authorities at Knox Church did j jngt contrive to keep their service within | reasonable limits, so that the somewhat i Accelerated march of the troops, involving the Cutting out of a portion of the slow jbaroh, might have been avoided. The order to parade in great coats served to emphasise the insufficiency of the supply- The result was the sacrifice of Uniformity, sombre-coated troops beingsucceeded" by soldiers in the gayest scarlet. Not all the overcoats-on issue were preBea 4 *f course, as in some cases-no .ably

with the Cycle Corps—such us had brought overcoats left them in the hall, so that the patchwork effect of a company partly with overcoats and partly without might not bo exhibited. The result was that the Cycle Corps, always trim looking, with its large muster of 63, caught the .eye a* the smartest company on parade.

The two sections of the Officers' Training Corps mustered well, and presented a smart appearance' in, their plain, serviceable khaki. Their steady marching and soldierly bearing furnished an illustration of the valuable physical effects of even a short period of consistent, intelligent military training. This corps might be distinguished by reason of the number of its men wearing spectacles. Within the enclosure the Batteoy carried out_ its sombre duty quietly and methodically, the muffled booming of the guns intensifying the haunting minor so expressively intoned by the bands. Without, the crowds watched the gloomy pageant with subdued and reverent mien, albeit there were the exceptions who did not hesitate, in the selfish desire to be to the front, to jostle their fellows and hamper the parade.

Sadness and humour are never far separated, Thus when the parade filed into St Matthew's Church on. Fridiy, Major Fredric, who was in command, and conse-. quently was at the rear of the force, had the door shut in his face, and was obliged to spend the hour of service outside with those Volunteers who for various reasons do not go within th© church. Major Fredric's saving sense of humour enabled him to accommodate himself to_jLhe situation. Needless to say the untoward happening was the result of accident, and regret was expressed to Major Fredric for the exclusion.

The weather and the recent parade taken into consideration, the tribute paid to the memory of the late Lieut. Jack by the military forces was a generous one. The publio also turned out in thousands to witness the funeral. The (procession was a very long one, and practically all the companies were represented. The deceased' not being a member of any company at the time of his death, the usual order of pv&ciedence was observed, the Dunedin Navals, of which the late officer was at one time a member, following immediately behind the gun. The Dunedin City Guards, to whom, he had most recently been attached, supplied the firing party. Some of the public evidently do not recognise the risk they nun by interfering with a parade. The spectacle of a civilian crossing between the ranks is not at all uncommon. The proper (position at which to cross a parade is the rear or the front. One or two civilians who attempted to pass between the ranks on Sunday were somewhat roughly handled by the nearest soldier. A much worse fate will befall on© of these trespassers some d.ay. He will find a firm grasp in th© vicinty of his coat collar, and the next thine he will realise that he has been arrested and handed) over to the police. A point of etiquette is suggested bv the providing of a £[un in connection with the military funeral on. Sunday. In the King's Regulations it is laid' down that a gun carriage—not a gun —shall be used', and as a rule a special carriage is kept for th© (purpose by the Home forces. It is understood that the use 'of a gun is permitted when an artilleryman is being accorded a military funeral, and this was the practice* observed here in former days. Just one other point—when returning through the streets from such a function the effect would be much better if th© gun detachment remained at attention throughout) instead of " sitting at ease," which admits 1 of smoking. A local shooting fund committee has been bereft of its funds under peculiar circumstances. Fortunately the loss will not involve the committee in serious financial difficulties, for the amount not accounted' for represented an accumulated credit balance. As a matter of fact it is net possible at present to state the exact amount of the deficiency, as despite persistent application a balance-sheet was not forthcoming. The funds of the Otago Rifle Association are practically intact. Th© defection is being reported to headquarters, and efforts to secure restitution will be made. " The Fourth Battalion Otago Territorials Rifle Club" is an imposing title. Those eligible for membership of the club are efficient members of th© 4th Battalion Otago Territorials and its Corps Reserve; and as honorary members ex-members of the late 4-th Battalion Otago Rifle Volunteers and efficient members of the Otago Territorial Forces. The membership fee is:—Officers end honorary members, ss; non-commissioned officers and men, 2s 6dl per annum. Amongst the officials are: Patrons—Lieut.-colonel James Allen, M.A., J.P., M.P..; Mr Alex. Scott Malcolm, M.P.; president, Lieut.-colonel V. S. Smyth, Commanding Otago District; vice-presidents, Lieut.-colonel Alex. E. Stewart, Captain P. Souness, Lieut. A. F. Duthie. Lieut. Alex. Johnstone; executive officer, Lieut.-colonel J. B. M'Clymont, Commanding Fourth Battalion; secretary, Staff-sergeant-major Catto. The general regulations covering the annual prize meeting, to takeplaca at Milton, will be those that govern the annual- prize meeting of the Dominion Rifle Association of New Zealand for th© time being.