WITH THE NELSON CONTINGENT.

Colonist, Volume XLIII, Issue 9691, 22 January 1900, Page 3

WITH THE NELSON CONTINGENT.

A FEW INCIDENTS.

[BY ONE WHO SAW THEM OF! I .]

The Nelson and Marlborough contingents mustered exceedingly well, and the visit to the Empire City by the Tutanekai, and the' departure of our New Zealand warriors, will take a long time to erase from the memory. The passage was a splendid one, except for a little roll in the Straits going over, which caused a good proportion of the strength to line both sides of the vessel, and feel inclined to remain there. The accommodation of the ss Tutanekai was taxed to the utmost, and several officers had to take potluck for a berth, owing to Borne of the cabins being under repairs, and the attendance of several ladiea'and gentlemen who had been specially invited. In respect to meals, the stewards exerted themselves to give satisfaction to the inner man, and they did their very best under the extra special circumstances. Although about 70 odd Volunteers were absent, the muster compared more than favorably with the other corps who were in Wellington. Of the infantry corps, the Nelson Eifles, with a fine muster of 60, headed the list in strength, and hardly took second place in appearance. The H Battery, with their up-to-date uniform, weie admired, and found their friends of the D Battery "still wearing the old-fashioned busby, of which the former can claim a friendly acquaintance. The country corps suffered on account of harvesting, more especially the Stoke Bifles, but still every Nelson man who wore a uniform felt proud of his district's representation, and felt glad he was a part of it to celebrate such an occasion. The progress of the city of Wellington impressed everyone. Hundreds of Nelson people now stationed in Wellington were met, and a cordial greeting took place, but it remained for the afternoon to supply one of the most h.^vcssive sights in colonial history, Nel-

son had 39 many brave representatives in" the contingent that it felt it was doing its share towards a noble .object— the fredeom of the country The proceeding's, .are elsewhere detailed, so that it is needless, to reiterate them. Words cannot possibly describe the sensations experienced on seeing the brave fellows taking the last . ln,ive of dear ones, the outburst of enthusiasm everywhere, the thousands of hats raised on rifles, swords, or sticks, and tho thrill which followed the singing of " The .Soldiers of the Queen." There was a lump, and a big one too, in every throat when the final shake of the hand came. Few could utter a word, but the feeling was fully understood by the unrelaxed grasp of the band, which it was hoped would ere long be again wrung in a grand welcome home. Let us fervently hope so. It was, indeed, a grand sendoff, and every Volunteer of the large number who stood on parade, would have gladly stepped aboard the troopship were he able. A number of the lo^al men brought back mementoes of the occasion, the best perhaps being photos of the whole of the men. The H Battery and Nelson and Waimea Rifle 3 sent up special cheers for their representatives, and wished them "Godspeed." The Nelson men were disappointed that they were not, as visiting volunteers, given a better position when the speechfying and singing by the children was taking place. They were stationed over 800 yards way from the stands, and therefore missed the sight of the immense throng of people. In fact they were isolated from the main body altogether, and had to be content with a faint echo of the cheering. The only chance they had to see the contingent was when it passed on the wharf just prior to departure. One member of the Nelson Riflee, Private Jarrett, was taken ill on the passage to Wellington, and was, on arrival, taken to the Hospital for treatment. It is expected he will be well in a day or so. The H Battery were kindly entertained by their friends of the D Battery on Saturday evening. The trams did a roaring trade and volunteers in uniforms were taken out to Newtown free of charge. It is needless to say this consideration was largely taken advantage of. Navigation was difficult on Saturday evening, owing to the multitude of people. A number visited the Opera House, where his Excellency the Governor and party were present. The hotels and resturants did a roaring business, but there was no difficulty in obtaining food supplies. Several cases of fainting occurred just prior to the troopship leaving, but it was a difficult matter to get near to water, owing to the crowd. In one case that of an elderly lady, whose son was waving his last farewell from the steamer, a local officer used the hilt of his sword as a restorative. The cold steel was applied to the brow of tha lady with beneficial results. It was originally intended that the ss Tutanekai should leave on the return journey at nine o'clock on Saturday evening, Captain Post being anxious if> return to Wellington as soon as possible. He suggested, however, that if the Marlborough men would come on to Nelson first, so as to avoid the necessity of calling at Picton, he could leave at half past eleven. Major Eogers kindly fell in with this proposal, and Messrs F. Trask and C. H. Mills, M.H.R., waited upon the Premier, and Mr Seddon • graciously agreed that this should be done, Nelson was reached at half-past nine yesterday morning, and the manner in which , everything was made to fit in for the enjoyment of all, made the trip doubly pleasant. On arrival at the wharf, Major Eogera, as officer in charge, on behalf of the Volunteers, thanked Mr F. Trask for having, by his exertions, made the visit to Wellington an accomplished fact, He further made most complimentary reference to Mr Trask as a citizen, and the interest he took in the. Volunteers. Major Kogers also thanked the Premier in a very hearty manner for his kindness in allowing the use of the vessel, and the officers for their courtesy to and fro. Cheers followed for the Premier, Mr Trask, the Contingent, Captain Post and his officers, Captain Simpson, and the Mayor (Mr Harley). ! Both Mr Trask and Captain Post suitably replied. His Worship the Mayor thanked the Volunteers in his offioial capacity for the honorable manner in which they had up- [ held the prestige of the city in going to 1 Wellington, and by their conduct and good appearance whilst there, and he had also to thank those who had shown him kindness. More cheers were again given tor the Nelson and thea for the Marlborough Volunteers and the Nelson Garrison Band, and all joined in singing " God Save the Queen. As the Tutanekai left for Picton the Garrison Band struck up "Auld Lang Syne." The local men then marched fo> Trafalgar street, where the Mayor again specially thanked the Nelson men. The country corps left by special train in the afternoon for home, although most of the Stoke Rifles marched home in the moming via the Eocks Boad.