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Minister of Justice ; Captain Anderson, who acted as Assistant Quartermaster-General; and Major Goring, who acted as Provost-Marshall, having not only worked all day and most of the night, but having shown the most marked tact in dealing with the Volunteers, and consideration for all their wants and inquiries—even when these were apparently trivial and arose from inexperience ; Commander Home, 8.N., who proved most useful as a staff officer to the Naval Volunteers—a duty he very kindly undertook at some sacrifice of his convenience ; and Captain Coleman with the cavalry, who rendered great service outside of his staff duties, which were also admirably carried out. I must not omit to mention Dr. Mclntyre, who acted as senior medical officer, and whose arrangements were excellent; nor Canon Stanford, who acted as camp Episcopalian Chaplain, and who held several voluntary services. Petty-officer Grant, of the Torpedo Corps, having been prevented by the "Taiaroa" disaster from joining his detachment at Port Chalmers —though he subsequently met it at Oamaru— his place was taken by Captain Goldie, who, escorted by the Harbour Board launch, brought the torpedo boat up from Port Chalmers, and at the naval demonstration took her outside and showed her powers of rapid turning and going astern and high speed during a half-hour's run among the boats and ships. This was not part of the supposed defence operations, but simply to show the manner in which she could do her work if well handled, which she was. Major Sumpter did much service in rendering Captain Anderson's task lighter, and in obtaining all possible local assistance. Personally, I desire to mention the great obligation I feel under to Colonel the Hon. de B. Brett, M.L.C., who acted as Chief of the Staff; and to Major Porter, who acted as my Aide-de-camp. The thanks of the Government are especially due to the Brigadiers Lean and Stavely and their Brigade-Majors, Newall and Gordon, on whom so much of the work devolved ; and to Lieut.Colonel Bailey, Majors Wales, Tosswill, Andrews, and Captain Commandant Goldie, commanding the several battalions; to Major Hammersley, commanding the artillery, and Major Slater, commanding the cavalry, and their officers ; as well as to the various medical officers, whose attention was most conspicuous, and who had provided complete sets of ambulance requirements. I have not received any detailed report from Colonel Stapp of the Wanganui camp operations. But he informs me that thirteen hundred men of the Napier, Woodville, Wellington, Wairarapa, Marlborough, and Nelson Volunteers, in addition to the West Coast corps, assembled at the Wanganui camp, and acquitted themselves creditably. He draws attention to the fact that, owing to the generosity of Captain Abbott in lending his land and paddocks to the force, and to his liberal assistance, it became possible to render the camp, as it was, a great success. Colonel Stapp speaks highly of the officers who held the chief positions on this occasion—Lieut.-Colonels Pitt and Butts, Majors Baillie, Noake, Crowe, Garner, and Watt, Captains McCredie and Abbott; as also of Major Webb, Brigade-major; Lieutenant Jones, Assistant Quartermaster-general; Surgeon Major Tripe, P.M.0.; the officers of his staff; and of Captain Loveday and the signalling-party of the Wellington Guards. I cannot close my report without mentioning the generous way in which the Auckland Volunteers, on this occasion, forbore to press for a camp this year, which they had intended to hold at Easter. Early in the summer I told them, through their commanding officer, that the tentage in the colony was insufficient to supply cover at three places, and that I would feel obliged if they would therefore dispense with a camp this year, in order that there might be tents enough at Oamaru and Wanganui. Their having immediately agreed to do so, while making it a pleasure to be associated with a force in which such consideration is shown by one part to another, gives them, however, in my mind, a fair claim to be considered next year in the camp arrangements. I anticipate that in future the behaviour off duty in the camps will be less noisy, as the high spirits of the young Volunteers on this occasion made them give a wholly false idea of their discipline in camp. Those who judged it by the hilarity of the men drew wrong conclusions of their sobriety. At Oamaru there was but one case of drunkenness reported, out of 2,550 men, and that not a bad case. There never was the smallest difficulty in closing the canteen experienced by the Provost-Marshal or orderly officers : and at Wanganui, though I have heard of a complaint against the canteen-keeper for supplying other than Volunteers, it has only been necessary to dismiss one Volunteer for drunkenness on duty. I observe that a larger honorary staff is necessary for a hurried Volunteer camp than is required by regular troops, as the paucity of the staff at Oamaru caused too much work to devolve upon the gentlemen who kindly accepted the position. I have, Sst., G. S. Whitmorb, The Hon. the Minister of Defence. Commander of the Forces. [Approximate Cost of Paper.— Preparation, nil; Printing (1,400 copies), £2 135.]

Authority: George Didsbury, Government Printer, Wellington.—lBB6.