NEW ZEALAND TROOPS.

Colonist, Volume LXI, Issue 14957, 3 January 1919, Page 3

NEW ZEALAND TROOPS.

GERMAN SOLDIER'S OPINION.

"GOOD.ASSAULT DIVISION."

The German view of tho New Zealand soldiers, this term including the Maori, is contained in a diary captured from a Urerman in the 26th Reserve Division. An extract from the diary was forwarded to relatives iby a New Zealand intelligence officer. The extract reads as follows :—

/'Description of New Zealanders: Two? kinds, white New Zealanders and i Maoris (who are big, light brown people | of Polynesian race). A company's fighting strength is about 150 men; and the : reinforcements consist almost entirely' of young, strong men. They are a par-1 tioularlv good assault division, charnc-1 terised by a very strongly developed in-: dividual self-confidence or enterprise typical of the colonial Englishman, and i by a specially pronounced hatred of the ■ Germans. The division prides itself on; taking few prisoners. A captured oifi-' cer,taken the end of April, did not hesi- • tate to boast of this while in vthe prison-! ers' cage. The regiments have peculiar : special names, e.g., those of the 11. Wellington are Taranaki and Huahme. 7' ' The intelligence officer states: "Only" two German regiments have given the ; New Zealand Division any trouble in the operations of the offensive during August. Those were the famous Jager ! Division, a crack •German division, Bet- < ter than the Guards, and the 113 th, a! good unit up to strength. These divisions ,we.ro thrown in to hold the New : Zealand" Division, and fought us hard to prevent our getting to close grips with the Hmdenburg line. Our casualties dkT not exceed the number of pri- ' sorters taken: I have had" over 3000

through my hands within the last tEree- , weeks. It has kept me busy handling them and getting the order of battle and enemy intentions out of them It ,is surprising how sdme of them talk, and at times I have had great fun. ! The G.erinan is usually an easy subject and does not try to hide much."