MILITARY NOTES.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1277, 4 November 1911, Page 9

MILITARY NOTES.

(Editf.d By Echelon.] Tim opening course of instruction at the new School of Muskelry at Rand«ick will lie licld on November 1. Twcnty-ono otlicers, from all the Stales, will attend, tho course being under tho direction of Urn comniauuflut, JUujor Heritage. Applications from members of tho military forces aro invited ior tho position 01 mounted drill instructor at the lioyal Australian Military College at Duntrucin. Tim appointment will be (or ten years, with a salary at tho rate of XlOu per annum. .Applications should bo made to district headquarters beloro November lit) next.

Misgivings ns to the inlerest of Now South Wales military forces in rillo shootins were caused by t!io lmluro to, enter for the now service matches at tho recent ie.-ir.dwick meeting. Onlv 84 entries were received. The .Minister for Defence lias since boon informed by tho secretary cf IIm? Nov South Wales National Kill'a Association that tlic council considers the discouraging entry duo to not heldnig the shooting on a Kuturday. Other service matches, ho renorte, were largely and keenly centered, especially the raiigo guessing competition, whiclr was extremely valuable.

Preparations for (lie introduction ol the new uniform physical training into (schools throughout Australia are noiv being completed. All boys of 12 and 13 years of ogc are as junior cadets to l» trained by their teachers, and an allowance of 4s. per cadet will bo made to the headmasters by the Dofenco Depart- 1 ment for corps' expenses. The training of tho teachers will bo undertaken by tha new military physical instructors.

Tho Paris correspondent of "Tho Times," recently stated lliat the report on tho health of the French A row for 1003 shows that since lfi|)2 there has'been a steady increase of sickness among th«> (rcops, and that the total number of treatments in hospital for ail ranks amounted to .1,58' i,]!).'! in 1909 as compared with .1,113,759 days live years earlier. Tho correspondent adds: ""i'licss ii;?ures uvo regarded ns_a striking argument in favour of ca.Uing up for iwrvieo only tho most able-bodied elements among iht population."

In the interests of discipline it is frequently found necessary to punish cadets for offences of a more or less trivial character (comments, an Australian contemporary). Unfortunately tho punishment generally lakes the form of a fine, which has to be paid by tho parents oi tlio boy. A case was mentioned in tho House of Representatives tho other day, where a cadet was fined lis. for smoking and ss. for joking and laughing in tho ranks. Tho lad's father was a poor man with a big family, and the call'upon his purso of 10s. was a very serious matter to him, Tho question' was asked if it wore possible to so amend the regulations that all pains and penalties attached to endetship should fall upon tho cadets themselves and not upon (heir parents. .The reply was a promise to bring tho matter under tho notice o{ the Minister for Defence.

An old custom of the Australian military forces—one which bears the stamp of British traditions, mid, like all traditional practices,' has been much abused —is Hint men of the forces must furnish, orderlies and personal servants for olliccrs at camps and schools of instruction, II has been abolished by the Minister for Defence (states tho "Agi"). Tho Minister has issued a memorandum to tho adjut-ant-general and district commandants that in future soldiers must not be detailed for such duties, or to act as orderlies at district offices and this central administration. ]n making tho announcement recently, the Minister said tho order had been issued because it had been, found that n large number of men who should have bocn trained as artillerymen had been taken away from their duties and given work as orderlies and personal servants. "I do not think,'" added tho Ministoi, "Mini it is dosirabld that men who have enlisted to tervo an soldiers should be sent to duties of a domestic charact.tr." Other men will ba engaged for orderlies' work at heuu•nmrlcrs. llow officers will get on in camn without their man servants is a matter which at prefont can only lx> guessed. It may be safely Eurmis«l'thnt the cleaning of their own boots, fetchingof tho washing water and grooming of their horses will not lightly bo undertaken. But (he tips with which they have rcftakd their orderlies in tho past will bo insufficient to pay for wanes and keep of special servants. It was .'suggested to (ho Minister that an allowance might meet tlur new situation. "IV is possible," he replied, "thai: tho adjut-ant-general may bring forward some isucli' proposition "

Tho following letter speaks for itself;-. London, August 1, 1011. Tho Eight Honourable the Secretary o{ State for War, Whitehall, S.W.

Sir—l )Kg to oiler tho sum of .£IO,OOO (ten thousand pounds) to Ilia War Office as a gilt to tho nation towards the purchase price of a full-si'/.od rille. range, to bo acquired near one of the thiekly-pcpulat-cd districts of England. There'is a lack of rillo ranges to-day: (ho need is likely to become accentuated, and the difficulty of acquiring ranges near Inrgc towns must nessssarily increase. Soon it may beconio too late. Great Britain and hoi Dominions, almost alone among the Great Powers, have all the territory that they dosiro or are likely to require. Tho tendency in the future, so far as wo can see, will bo for other nations to strive continuously forinoro land and for further outlets for their poople. Whose territories will they want? It is felt by many Englishmen all oyer the world that doier.eu schemes ou big, broad, (hough nor necessarily arduous, lines are necessary to the units of Iho Empire. A systematic training of tho Ixjys has already been commenced, or is bsing commenced, in various parts,'and a spirit of patriotism, not of aggression, is L.-dng fostered. So much can be dono in the .veal's of boyhcod and youth which if delayed renders the task far more difficult and more burdensome. The Dominions and colonics are gradually realising that they have a solemn duly to perform, to themselves, to each other', and to the Mothedo.ud. May 1 ray also that there is a growing feeling that the Motherland has a similar duty to perform—a duty to herself and to her Dominions. Individual and voluntary effort can accomplish much, but infinitely more can be done if tho Ixira is broadened and (lie burden is fairly divided over the boyhood and manhood of the country. The extraordinary success of the Boy Scout organisation during ivecnt years and the steadily growing inl.crcvit throughout Great Britain in Miniature rille sheotiiiK indicate tho willingness of tho material. What appears to bo still wanted is r. woll-emsidercd, allembracing national movement, beginning with (ho l»ys and attaining to ellicienrv without tho great dislocation of most Continental military systems—a movement of our nation for our Empire.—l am, sir, A.N ENGLISHMAN FROM BEYOND THE SEAS. (From "The Times" of August IC.)

Tho Tcsulis of the raiiso-limling competition at tho Nov,- i-enth Wales mooting will be hailed as confirmation of tlio contentions of those- who claim that bull's, eye practice at known distances does not make fcr effective lire on active service (jfatos a cont«ni]»rary). Competitors turned up in hundreds to estimate tlio i'.'iuris, which ucro not measured nut imtil after tho estimates had been handed in. Tho following aro a few !-aiup!o i>,ttmates by competitors, designated ABO mid D:— A's B's C'« U's Kst.i- 3vsti- ].; s ii. ivij. Correct, niato. mate. male, mat" Yds. Yds. Yds. Yds. Yd--' 700 ... 1100 11-10 SO J-;,i tan ... 1:100 1200 iir-o son 11S0 ... 1700 1950 7(10 20*| MO ... 250 700 SCO j,V) 510 ~. 900 800 300 -CO Tho majority of tho compel itora ov<-r----estimated tho distance, that is to y.w, h-id (hey bean "snipius" ou active :Vi-vice their bullets would havo sped «-o fen- over tho heads of the enemy that lliev lii'rdl - ' would have heard tlio "liixV' lliou-ii thoy must havo heard the crack of lh\\ rifle. But it is evident that some had not read tho conditions of the match, v.h'<-h stated definitely that tho distances wore "not exceeding 1100 yards." Notwithstanding this plain insfifuclion, iiki\ ji"raisted iu giving distances up to 3500 yards