HIGH SCHOOL CADETS.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIIC, Issue 13835, 22 February 1909, Page 6

HIGH SCHOOL CADETS.

The cadet corps of the Timaru Boys' Higli School, who are at present under canvas undergoing their annual training, attended Church Parade at St. Mary's yesterday morning. The corps paraded witli side-arms fifty strong, under the command of Captain Johnson, who had with him .Lieutenants Hall-Jones and Malthus and Staff-Ser-geant Major Healey, and marched down North street to Stafford street, where the Garrison Band was picked tip. The cadets, preceded by the band, marched through the town to St. Mary's Church.

The service, which was a special one, was conducted by Archdeacon Harper. Taking as his text the words of Joshua to the Israelites "Be strong and very courageous," the Archdeacon said that that morning, for the first time, they had to welcome the cadets of the Timaru Bovs' High S cliool. A corps such as that was an organisation of the first importance inasmuch as it was, in a way, a preparation -for. the more serious and arduous work of national defence undertaken by the adult volunteer corps. He could say. without fear of contradiction, that all in the district were proud of the progress tlm school had made, both scholastically and otherwise. At the time the words of the text were spoken by the great Jewish captain, the Jews were encamped on the banks of the river Jordan i'ist before their entrance into the i promised land of Canan, and they all knew that tbev had some hard fighting before them before the land could be I

+' ?, "' ho as P»"ed to be solf S M i an coura g e were qiiuli+°u , importance, and it was not absolutely necessary to be void of ear for a man to be courageous. The highest kind of courage', was when tlie ull extent ot the danger was realised, but was . laced with firmness and unlfinehingness. Courage, of a different Kind was necessary tor the spiritual soldier, and his weapon was prayer. In Aew Zealand the people lived under far better conditions than was the fate ot dwellers m older countries, but even here temptation was abroad and the Christian soldier had need to keep his «eapons bright and keen and to keep in touch with his great captain. The moral courage necessary for the living of a clean, upright life came from God, and it was only too easy for the Christian soldier to be hilled into a false sense of security, and by abstention xroni prayer and religious exercise to get out of touch with God, the effect of flinch would be disastrous in the extreme, as disastrous as it would be for aii army to be without a. leader in action. Some people decried the format tion of cadet corps,, giving as their reason that it tended to foster a spirit of militarism, whereas it was in fact an important and necessary preparation for the time when the dark cloud might come. If all voluntarily submitted themselves to. discipline both material and spiritual they would be ready against the time of trial.