WHY MAORIS CHOOSE THE ARMY My visit to Burnham Camp coincided with the heaviest rainfall of the year. The flow of water was a reasonable preparation for monsoon weather in Malaya, but the temperature in middle July added that extra twang which builds up endurance. Much to everyone's regret, two companies had gone on a long route march just before the full attack of the elements began. The overwhelming impression of the camp was of high pressure activity. The outsider tends to imagine there is something essentially sleepy about a peacetime army; Burnham camp however is stirring day and evening, with a sense of purpose pervading almost everyone. It was not until well into June that the battalion reached its full complement; it is due in Malaya in November. This poses the task of converting civilians into battle-fit soldiers within the space of a few months—teaching the handling of weapons, the practice of modern warfare and, most important of all, making the soldiers physically fit and mentally adjusted to active military service. The men collaborate in this high pressure training because of their keenness to go to Malaya. Only well-trained men will be selected for transport this year; it becomes therefore everyone's ambition to reach the desired standard. As a result the recruits not only accept the toughness of the programme but attend voluntary training sessions in the evenings as well. Even the men who came back at 4 p.m. on the day of my visit, frozen to the bone during the long, wet route march, were back with the training officer that same night. The strength of the battalion is between 900 and 1000 men consisting of four rifle companies and a headquarters company. Of these, 700 men will go to Malaya, the rest being kept behind as a reinforcement company, comprising late enlistments, men under 21 years of age, men unfit for the tropics, and some married men. Naturally everyone has the ambition to belong to the chosen 700. The force now at Burnham Camp is the 1st Battalion of the New Zealand Regiment. It is the first New Zealand force to be sent overseas entirely by air, by planes of the R.N.Z.A.F. The advance party has gone in August and September, the main body will go in November and perhaps in early December. The planes will, on their return flights, bring home men of the 2nd Battalion who are serving in Malaya at present. The battalion commander, Lt. Col. L. A. Pearce, M.B.E., is a specialist in training, having been in charge of the Army Schools at Waiouru. In Malaya, the New Zealanders will move into a new camp at Fort Terendak, which is in the southern part of the country, well away from the some time ago. They will be part of the 28th area where battles against the terrorists took place Commonwealth Brigade Group, a garrison force composed of three battalions (one British, one Australian and one New Zealand) as well as other Commonwealth units. Fort Terendak will be a small township, with no less than 10,000 inhabitants. In this self-contained community, the New Zealanders will have 140 houses for married quarters, so that a large number of soldiers' wives can be accommodated there. The battalion will be stationed there for two years, with plenty of time and facilities for entertainment. Much rugby, soccer and tennis will be played, including sizeable inter-unit sports tournaments with other parts of the brigade and with other regiments in Malaya.

MAORI LIFE IN THE BATTALION One remarkable feature of the battalion is the way in which Maoris and Europeans have been welded together into an integrated whole. There are 300 Maoris, including four officers and quite a number of NCO's. This is about the same proportion as in previous Malayan contingents. The Maoris form no unit of their own but are spread throughout the battalion. In the recreational programme, the Maori element is important. The two main clubs in the battalion are the sports club and the Maori club. The sports activities this winter have been largely limited to rugby, with a few soccer and hockey enthusiasts practising. Soccer however will come into its own in Malaya, where it is widely played. There is a strong indoor basketball club and a good following of golf. Rugby coach is Father P. M. M. Carmody, the Roman Catholic chaplain of the unit, the captain of the first fifteen being Corporal Rangitataura (Sam) Christie, from Opotiki, who served in Korea as well as Malaya with the first contingent. Practice is on Wednesday afternoons and in the evenings but enthusiasm for rugby is limited just at present as most of the men concentrate all their efforts on military training. The second major club, almost equally important in the battalion, is the Maori club. It is actively suported by Ltd.-Col. Pearce as Patron and by the company commanders as vice-presidents. The other club officials are all Maoris, led by the president. Captain J. P. (Joe) Brosnahan, from Mohaka. The chairman is Staff Sergeant Mat Edwards; among the committee members are Cpl. Christie (for Maori sports), Sgt. Rangiuia (for social activities), Cpl. Brown (for catering), and some others.