The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 1901. CADETS AS AUXILIARY FORGES.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXIII, Issue 129, 26 June 1901, Page 2

The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 26, 1901. CADETS AS AUXILIARY FORGES.

* It was bo doubt extremely gratify'ng •o all who had taken put inorgnp ; sin<' a force of c?dets to tike part in the volunteer review in Cbristcburch to hear the remarks of His Royal Highness the Duke of York, expressing hitpleasure at the way the cadet corps conducted themselves. On all fides we lavn that the Cadet bv.fcal on was the striking feature of the ravi3W. This is the more gra'ifying besause the encouragement of cad. t cor,-s h.snot nith rio b.en a mart ed feituie of our miiit-a'y pystem, In fact the chi*separing system adopted in co' nection with our volunteers uotil the la«t yea' or eowas al*ays accentuated in the c s of cadet corp% which were in many ra;i> simply starved out of existmc . It says a great deal for the bojfe, th ir teachers, Bnd their parents, when over 3000 fairly well traired cudnts ar. found to be available at such short totice as that given in thecse of the Ohr's'-church review. At Melbourne, with exceptional menns of transp rt, 3000 cadets were assembled, and the fact that notwithstanding the extraordinary difficulties which New Zealand preaents in the mat'er of trarmport, practically the s»me number wer assembled at Christeharrh is some 'hit.g for New Zealand to be proud of. Thut tho boys bore themselves well v e kn. w from the quality of the lads who went from this district, and we ff] sure the high praise bestowtd on them t>y the Duke was tho'oughly deserv.d. The Duke (-f York did not, howevr, co£.t nt himself w,ith mere words of praise, but drew attention to the d. feot> in their organisation and the paucity o) fhair equipment, and urged that they be organised and equipped in thsame inar. ner as the Victorian cadets, with whoee appearance'"he irae so pi aß9d a few wteks ago Fortunately Maj r Eddy, who was the .organiser of the demonstration in Melbourne, and is in close touch with, atd an ardent admir-r of tie cadet system, has just vis'ted Ad" laiJe, acd in the couis>of an interview gave a represen'ative of the Register an interesting account (from which we make a few extracts) of the way the cadets are equipped ar;d maintained:—The \arious det .chin "nts are formed ioto battalions ir localities where several branches ex ; st, and in such cases they urns'; assemble for battalion drill at lea-t six times a year. The ultima e ron'ro' and oversight are vested in the military antrorities of the IState. The system is diviled into junior and senior companies, the ages fur the senior class ranging between fifteen and twenty year*, and speciPc regulations are laid down for the t>ansition to the higher ord.r. Provision is made for ta-ge' firing, which mus 1 ; in every instance be carried out strLtly under thetupervim'on pf an authcrisf d officer, who is held personally responsible for tV carrying out of the standing orders rela'iog to the practice, the s'rietn'ss of which reduces the p ss : bilities of accident to a minimum. Tne senior cadets am supplied with a modifi d form of the .303 rfle, while '■ he juniors are (quipped with the fcVm«r te weop-m, which is of a smaller bor\ " One of the nifrits of the system," said Major Eddy, " is that it fos'erß io the boys high aims and worthy ambitions, and b. ing carried on* >ti stiict oulitarj line", discipline and obedience become almost nitive traits, while at tho s me t-'meevory bay h laughtto ival'si 'hat he is in the full sense a soldier. The value of such training has already been abundantly apparent in its influeics on moral as well as physical development. No better

evideneo of the martial exce'le'.ce tint has been attuned can b'i found than that afforded in connection with the Federal demonstrations in Melbourne, which won from the Duke of Cornwall the high encomium that what had pleased him most iu (he mirch pust hid been the soldierly bearing and discipline of the cad-t c irps. When ne add to this the facS that at 1 ast 70 p-r cent, of the m"»iW* o" the several c •nriugbnts which 1 ft Victoiia for active s rvice in the Transvaal hal keen cadet boys, am? that many of thtsc h-id already received the D.S.O. and other deflorations, it will bi gfen that courage and, h roism are developed in a marked degree." Iho popularity of the mov«meafc is il'u-trat'd by the 1 uum' er of biys who avail themselves of i without pressure. To use the majVh own words : " Ihe ranks in MeUouin are 3000 st'or.p, with an add'tion«l 2000 in the c untry districts. Results ike tl.ese accomplished by voluutaiy agercy what in tom.i i thei places is achieved only by ronscipion Even where a mili'ary coar e is not fiirthir pursued, buys who have passed throug h his discipim ntve." for job the drill or how to use (ho rifle, while in ti.o e instanc s in which thy ate 'rinsffried to the regular forces it is generally found that, at the »ge r.f sixton years they haveall ih; acquaintance with military manoeuvre rec ssary for a fighting lin*. Adequate facilities arc qivpn to the cadets to a'tain proficiency in musketry, «part fr m the cln-s firing at the rang s, for excutsi.irs arc period Tally made to town*. It may be remarked that there are several ad vantages arisiog oui of these trips, one '•{ these being a reciprocal arrangement, which is readily entred into *her.) the town boys are billeted on country homes,the understacding being hat the junior meoab rs of these families in turn shall be e-atertaired by'the friends of their vi-itors. Shooting forms a greit faa'ure of outi gs, but the event par excel'ence in this •uionection is tha monster shooting day, wh«n the boys attend in full strfngth for compe'ition at the ranges." M j<r Eddy, who is enthusiastic in his prats s of the organisation, is ar;sious to see it introluced into the other S'ates of the Oommonw. a'th as an adjunct to th schools. Onn argume. t which l.e urges for federalizing it is iho ifficient r suit gained by extremely conomical fxpendi ure. In Victoria it has bien found that the modes' sum i f £750 per annum is suffirent 'o the working of tha coips, free ammu n tion and rifles being pro\id"d in ddition by the Government. Ho is opposed to any distinction beinj mad between the public and p ivate fee ■>. dary schools. He is confident tint, if the results from the introduction if cidet drid on similar linns to tint adop'ed in his own State were to be admitted throughout the Commonnea'tb, the result of tuch m'litiry twining would amply repay U lived Australia in the soldierly beaiiig of it. lisii.g mmhood, and in th* ii ci'ra e' devoiioa to duty and in li.yaliy t > th" land of their birth, as well as to the 1 Empire, ri which they wjuld fo m i.o insignificant bulwark.