VOLUNTEER INTELLIGENCE

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 871, 23 August 1879, Page 2

VOLUNTEER INTELLIGENCE

The weekly parade* ofjlfthefcGrisborne* Rifles, under the;&Upe;|^ioieofv lln-* structor HuddleatdrJ; -tome '-fance Nasjfe night at McFarlane's HaH; but we regret to say there was a very poor muster. A great want of energy is noticeable 'among the members of this corptj, which coiftpares m this respect, unfavourably with the Town Detachment of the J Battery, K'2. Artillery, who 'are ea'geT to advance, and are regular m their &tptendance at drill. Those members that do hot attend- should bear m mind that by their laxity they do not at all help to advance the general efficiency of the corps, while those who are regular lose heart at the repeated small musters and drop off one by one, until the parades at. last become merely nominal. It must also be remembered that attendance at the number of parades laid down m the regulations during the year does not alone entitle members to the capitation grant, bat that an efficient certificate is also necessary to be held for the current year, and unless m the opinion of the officer commanding the district, the Volunteer is actually efficient^ he will be debarred from the privilege. ; ' After the parades there was a meeting at Sheppard's Hall of the two companies (at which a mithber of the public were present), to take step 3 with reference to the erection of a Volunteer Hall and Gymnasium. • Captain G. J. Winter occupied the chair. Lieutenant Featon explained the object of the meeting, and read a ' comniunication from Lieut -Col. G. B. Reader, stating that the Government would supplement any sum raised for this purpose, 'provided it did not exceed £300. Discussion arose as to whether the. companies should contribute their respective quota from the capitation, but the. majority of the meeting was averse to this proposal. A committee was appointed consisting of Capts. Porter and Winter, Lieuts. Featon, Daly,and Warren,, and C. E. Major, to collect and furnish information'as to the cost of the erection, and the amount of subscription to be received, to report next week. On the motion of Lieut. U'Ren a subscription list was opened m the Hall, and- over£2B was immediately subscribed. - . Colonel Scratchley, 0. M. G. , has been ( ? delivering a series of lectures m the Industrial . Museum, Melbourne,' m the presence of about 300 volunteers, with the object of giving them a better insight to their profession, and inducing them to read text-books and works,bearing on military matters. He showed that the many improvements m armaments and drill, the use of electricity, and of numerous modern inventions, had contributed largely to reduciag war to a sciehce. He suggested frequent drills fin. - m. masses ; and by daylight. He also stated that experiments recently made were m favor of the adaption of length rather than weight for tlie armaments of the future. The lec^ tures are illustrated by maps and plans, . and fre listened to with great interest. The Government will, when the are completed, be requested to print the notes of the lectures and distribute, them among the volunteers m pamphlet form. ~ . . - The formation of Artillery Batteries are htill going on m the Southern portion of the Middle Island ; the Queenstovvh Rifle* are undergoing a change m that direction, while,! at Port Chalmers, a very efficient corps has/ lately been raised. ■■• "- ; - : > : - ;';:.;%.. '•! The Volunteers fighting against 7 .' the! Zulus have been hignly commended for their steadiness and good conduct .under : fire. ' ■■ : ; : - ' •-. '■ ■• " "'.' „ •; A correspondent (Volunteer ' Service Gazette) urges the necessity bf more attention being paid to developing the physical powers of men m the Volunteer ranks, by devoting more time to. extension motions and bayonet exercise. He is quite right m thinking that^the physique of many of oVir men leaves much to be desired. The only thing to be said is, that the time on parade' is so short that it is necessary, as a rule, to devote the whole of it to more important things, or things thought more important than physical exercises. Perhaps the drill-book will be simpdified 1 some day, and then the drill-instructors will have time to attend to .' the - physical training of their men. . , ] > With the view of a possible Taranaki expedition the Volunteers at the Thames have been busily engaged m working iip v m guard-mounting, posting sentries, and the general routine pf, camp life. The Engineers practised guard mounting, &c, last winter, and the Major Commanding has siguified that he will shortly examine the several corps to see which is the most perfect m this necessary part of a soldier's education.