DEFENCE NOTES

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXVII, Issue 19523, 24 June 1933, Page 4

DEFENCE NOTES

ACTIVITIES IN TIMARU. (By “O. C.”) The officer’s conferences for the purpose of organising D(M.G.) Company have now been completed and the Company Commander has made the following promotions and appointments. Promotions. dorporal to rank of Sergeant, Sergeant Halkett, Sergeant Shanks, Sergeant Bungate. Corporal to rank of Lance-Sergeant. Sergeant Gibbs. Lance-Corporal to rank of Corporal. Corporal A. A. Keene, Corporal S. Pilkington, Corporal Burbury, Corporal Denniston. Private to Lance-Corporal. LanceCorporal Purcell, Lance-Corporal Healey, Lance-Corporal ShirtclifEe, Lance-Corporal Andrews, Lance-Cor-poral Richardson. The above members of the company are to be congratulated upon their Increase in rank and the officers of the company wish them every success in their new commands. This is quite a substantial list of promotions, and indicates that an interested and hardworking member does not have to wait long for his promotion. The N.C.O.’s of the company now form a very strong, experienced team and the training of the company will improve rapidly under their direction. Appointments. Company Headquarters—O.C. D. Coy. Captain G. R. Lee. Recruiting Officer —Lieutenant J. Downs.

Company Quartermaster Sergeant— Sergeant Halkett. Clerk: Lance-Cor-poral Johnstone. No. 13 Platoon—Platoon Commander. Lieutenant E. W. D. Unwin; Platoon Sergeant. Sergeant Shanks. A. Section. Sergeant Gibbs; No. 1, gun team, Lance-corporal Paterson; No. 2, gun team, vacant.

B Section, Corporal Keene; No. 3 gun team, Lance-corporal H. Sloan; No. 4 Lance-corporal F. Sloan. No. 14 Platoon—Platoon Commander: Lieutenant E. Wilkes; Platoon Sergeant, Sergeant Wilford. C. Section, Corporal Pilkington; No. 5 gun team, Lance-corporal Pilkington; No. 6 gun team, Lance-corporal Williams.

D Section, Corporal Barbour; No. 7 gun team, Lance-corporal D. Mcßeath; No. 8 gun team, Lance-corporal Sutton.

No. 15 Platoon—Platoon Commander, Second-Lieutenant R. J. Mason; Platoon Sergeant, Sergeant Bungate. E Section, Corporal Burbury; No. 9 gun team, Lance-corporal Purcell; No. 10 gun team, Lance-corporal Healey. F. Section, Corporal Sutherland, No. 11 gun team, Lance-corporal Cosgrove; No. 12 gun team, Lance-corporal McGowan.

No. 16 Platoon—Platoon Commander, Lieutenant B. Baxter; Platoon Sergeant, Lance-Sergeant Peake. G. Section, Corporal Morrison; No. 13 gun team, Lance-corporal Shirtcliffe; No. 14 gun team, Lance-Corporal Andrews.

H Section, Corporal Denniston; No. 15 gun team, Lance-corporal Sharpies; No. 16 gun team, Lance-corporal Richardson.

The Recruiting Officer is at present working upon a recruiting scheme involving a window display and the use of posters, recruiting sergeants etc. The general object is to combine all activities into a “recruiting week,” similar to that held in Christchurch last year, and it is hoped that the scheme will be productive of new recruits for the company. The main difficulty experienced in the recruiting work is the bringing home to prospective recruits, the nature of the work carried out by the young men now in the Force. A great number of the young men, who should join up are greatly afraid that their time will be wasted with drill and “marching up and down." This idea of the British Army to-day is outstandingly false, and it is thought that the best means of clearing it up, is to display the guns and instruments used and to illustrate the work by means of photos. The more extensive use by infantry of automatic weapons has changed the character of military training to a great extent during the past few years and this change has added extra interest to the work and enabled the drugery to be eliminated.

The fact that Timaru has a Machinegun Company located here, emphasises this point and there is no doubt that the specialist training which a machine gunner undergoes is the most interesting available in the whole military forces. The total to date for June of new recruits is now twelve. This figure shows satisfactory progress, and will encourage the N.C.O.’s' whose duty it is now to build up their commands to the standard figure.

D. Company Miniature Club held a very successful evening shoot against the Timaru Club, when D Company

managed to score a win. This was due partly to the advantage gained by D Company through shooting on their own range. The shooting of the club shows steady improvement, as a number of men who at first had some difficulty are now returning good results. The work provides good training in holding and trigger-pressing and forms an excellent preliminary to range work with the .303.’' The first class of the new year for N.C.O.’s was held last Tuesday, when all N.C.O.’s holding appointments paraded in mufti to have the work for the coming year outlined. The Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel S. D. Mason attended and addressed the men on the subject of their duties and obligations as members of the New Zealand Territorial Force, and outlined the standard of efficiency

pairs. which he desires that the unit will attain this year. The Company Commander, Captain Lee, then outlined the duties of each N.C.O. and instructed the clars in the major points to which they will have to give attention in their commands. The N.C.O s then paraded under their own platoon Commanders for platoon instruction. Parade List. Tuesday, June 27—No. 13 and No. 14 platoons. Drill Order; No. 15 and No. 16 N.C.O.'s. Mufti. Tuesday, July 4—No. 15 and No. 16 platoons. Drill Order; No. 13 and No. 14 N.C.O.'s. Mufti.