H.—l9

16

In order to insure all batteries in the colony being tested on uniform lines, the details for carrying out this test will be supplied to the officer deputed to conduct the examinations. Sixty points will be awarded for the turn-out as above, and 40 points for a subsequent route inarch. Distance, about fifteen miles. AH military precautions to be taken. Section 11. Battery Drill. Batteries will be inspected by the A.S.O. in battery gun drill, fire discipline, &c. At this inspection casualties will be made to both personnel and materiel, so as to thoroughly test all ranks in their duties. The inspecting officer will note all errors made, and deduct marks accordingly. Full marks, 100. Section 12. Return of Results. As soon as the examination of the whole of the battery has been completed, the officer who conducted the examination will forward the following return to the A.5.0., together with a detailed report explaining how marks were gained or deducted in each subject. This report is to be forwarded separate from the practice report, and made confidential. The battery will not be informed as to the results until the publication of the awards in " General Orders." Report on Results of Challenge Shield Competition for Garrison Artillery Volunteers. Wellington, New Zealand, Ist April, 1906. The introduction of this competition has resulted in considerable improvement in the efficiency of the Garrison Artillery Volunteers, and the tabulated results show in a marked degree the weak points in the training of some of the companies, which should be remedied before the next camping season. The awarding of marks for attendance at the annual training-camps has caused better attendance than in previous years, the attendance of Nos. 2, 3, 4, and '6 Companies being particularly good. The examinations were carried out chiefly by the officers of the Permanent Force at each station, all records being finally checked at headquarters in order to insure that the regulations had been strictly complied with, and the awards, &c, made under uniform conditions throughout the colony. The standard of efficiency in gunnery is very high in most of the companies, the highest marks being awarded to the companies in Dunedin, No. 3 Company gaining 9336 per cent., No. 2 Company being next with 9208 per cent. The average marks awarded to these companies for the shield in gunnery were, however, reduced on account of a number of men absenting themselves from the examination, as was also the case in several other companies. For this reason it will be seen that the marks for guftnery vary in almost the same proportion as the marks for attendance. In No. 6 Company every available man was examined in gunnery. The regulations provide for a minimum number of gun-layers, D.R.F., and signalling specialists, and those corps that had neglected to keep the proper number of specialists in training found it impossible to get sufficient men trained in time for the examination, and were penalised accordingly, notably Nos. 7, 8, and 9 Companies. The use of D.R.F. model targets for training purposes resulted in great improvement in range-finding in companies where these targets have been used at the weekly drills continuously throughout the year, as in the case of Nos. 4 and 6 Companies. Only two companies had the full complement of signallers —viz., Nos. 4 and 6 Companies—the signallers of No. 6 Company being very efficient. The standard of efficiency laid down for Garrison Artillery signallers is not a high one, and there is no reason why eight men per company should not be kept in training in this most important subject. Nos. 7 and 9 Companies had no trained signallers. Owing to the difficulty of teaching heliograph to Volunteers, it was decided to eliminate this test from the examination. International Code signalling was omitted from the examination of the Dunedin signallers. The gun-laying of Nos. 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 Companies was very good. Too little attention had been paid to this all-important subject by the companies in the Auckland District. Owing to the difficulty in getting Volunteers to attend daylight laying parades, most of the failures were in Case I method, which can only be really well taught at daylight parades. The trumpeters of Nos. 2 and 3 Companies are very efficient. The examination in fort-manning was, with one exception, satisfactory throughout, all the companies having been carefully trained in fire discipline. The discipline of the various companies was very good, but more instruction should be given in saluting, general bearing, and camp duties.^ The order of merit for the various companies is as follows: — Ist. No. 6 Company (Petone Navals) ... Winners of Challenge Shield for 1905-6. 2nd. No. 4 Company (W.N.A.V.) 3rd. No. 2 Company (D.N.A.V.) ... All th four compan i e s qualified for A grade. 4th. No. 3 Company (P.C.N.A.V.) ... sth. No. 5 Company (L.N.A.V.) 6th. No. 7 Company (N Battery) ... ... Qualified for B grade. 7th. No. 8 Company (Ponsonby) ... 1 Not qualified. Insufficient marks to be graded. Bth. No. 9 Company (Devonport) ... I No. 1 Company, N.Z.G.A.V. This company did not hold a training-camp in 1905-6, and was not, therefore, examined for Challenge Shield.