Drill Hall & Rifle Range

Southern Cross, Volume 10, Issue 17, 26 July 1902, Page 12

Drill Hall & Rifle Range

Volunteer and Rifle Club members are i incited to contribute to this column Items of news, diagrams of targets reports of matches, meetings, and all events of interest to volunteers and shooting men will be received. Address “ Magpie,” Southern Cross Office. Parade nights of local corps ; Battalion Band, Mondays and Thursdays ; City Guards, Mondays, regularly ; Oreti Rifles, Tuesdays, regularly; Awarua Rifles, Fridays, regularly; Mercantile Rifles, Wednesdays, regularly; the Gore Rifles parade regularly, Government Inspection being held on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays in each month ; Southland Mounted Rifles, town contingent, foot parades erery second Thursday at Garrison Sail, mounted parades every fourth Wednesday afternoon at Waikiwi; Winton, Thornbury and Otautau contingent parade as per dates on cards issued to each member. Wallace Mounted Rifles: Wairio and Nightcaps Divisions : Saturday nights; Otautau Division : Monday nights. NOTES BY 11 MAGPIE,” The Awarua Rifles have fixed the date for their ball and progressive euchre party for Bfch August—the night previous to Coronation. Sergt. A. H. Jones has the arranging in hand, and promises a real good time. * * * The Colac Bay Rifles held their annual ball on the evening of the 18th inst. This gathering is one of the most popular in the district, and fully 100 couples took part in the Grand March. * * # An exceedingly pleasant evening, or rather night, was spent, for dancing was kept up till an early hour next day, the dancers being loth to quit the floor of the spacious drill hall. And no wonder, for the music was of the best, and the arrangements all round left nothing to be wished for. * * * Capt. Dawson and the company generally are to be complimented on the position they have attained. There are net many companies that can point to the possession of a fine meeting place after an existence of only some two years. * * * The company, too, is fortunate in having in its ranks some fine specimens of manhood—men who are physically first-class, and wbo in addition take a keen interest in their work as volunteers. * * Among the visitors I noticed Capt. Saunders, of the Wallace Mounted Rifles, who arranged with Capt. Dawson to bring a team to Otautau to give a match with the Wallace men with aiming tubes on a Saturday evening to be fixed later. # * From the balance-sheet to be submitted at the annual meeting of the Wallace Mounted Rifles to be held on the 30th inst., I see that they have a balance of cash in hand of £ls 14s Bd, and that the assets exeeed the liabilities by £258 4s fid. * * * From the report accompanying the balance-sheet I learn that it covers the 16 months ended 31st May, 1902. * * * Owing to Corporal Humphries’ removal to Otautau leaving the Wairio Division with only one Corporal, his acting appointment has been cancelled and Ho. 9 Trooper H. Flynn is promoted to fill the vacancy —the promotion to date from July Ist. * * * As indicated last week, the contest for possession of the marble clock given by Major Acheson (Otautau) to the Oreti Rifles, was a very close one between Q.M. Sergt, O’Toole and Sergt. Boyce, the latter eventually winning by three points. The final ranges taken were 500 and 600 yds, and some very good scores were registered. Q.M. Sergt. O’Toole 34, and Col. Sept. Lennie 33 at the first, and Sergt, Boyce 31 at 600 being very praiseworthy in view of the high wind blowing, * * # The full scores for the competition will be published with next week’s notes, and will show a considerable

advance on previous shoots, due mainly to the increased efficiency of the ‘303 rifle now on issue to the corps. * * * I hear that Dr. McKnight got on the good score of 47 at 600 yards on Wednesday. With a wind allowance of 14 decrees necessary this indicates pretty good holding.