, THE KHAKI LINE

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2665, 10 January 1916, Page 6

THE KHAKI LINE

AND GLISTENING STEEL ; THE NINTH MARCH- GUT - STIRRING SCENES • Stirring sights were witnessed in the • City on Saturday afternoon, when the' V Ninth Reinforcements marched through ■ the principal streets. Tho event is i generally referred to as the march of | the Ninth, but the Ninth was really . only part of the force, though, of | course,; the _ strongest part. Marching : with tho Ninth' were the Third Rein- : forcements of the New Zealand Rifle /Brigade, and the advance parties of ; the Third-and Fourth Battalions of the; • Brigade. .Tlie ;march was Witnessed by •Vtt; vast crowd of enthusiastio people. - Early ,in the week accommodation in . the. City was unobtainable by those who Iliad not taken time well by' the' fore-' lock. Everyday small crowds'of peo- - pie arrived by train and boat, and on Friday there were so many visitors . about that a great crowd for tho morrow was a-certainty. However, the | morrow brought its surprises, for ■ the f early trains simply poured people into ; town. On the overland express which ■ arrives at about tho same time as tho . dawn was standing room only, and : little of that. The weather was delightful. Bright and steady sunshine ! and an absence of wind were its features..- It was:a summer day worthy of • the occasion. ;' The troops moved off from Waterloo | Quay at 3:30 in the afternoon, and by '.then the route had been deeply lined j with people. How many of the public i witness' these marches can scarcely bo \ calculated, but the numbers must be i very large, for not only do the city | and ;the suburbs come forth almost in Ktheir. entirety, but visitors are present I't'rom all parts of'the Dominion. ; ; "A Brilliant Spectacle. They marched out of Bunny 'Street ■into Lamhton Quay, near the Govem~;raent Buildings. Along the Quay, up .Willis Street, through Manners Street /they swung, and finally turned off'down oLower Cuba Street. Major R. C. Allen :(Hauraki Regiment) rode in the van, ; and tlie : order of tho procession was ,Mounted Rifles (B Squadron). , ; Field Artillery. •/Engineers.: / . Infantry Brigade (C and D Companies). Reinforcements for lliflo ; Brigade CE ! ■' :and F Companies).' : •Half Advance Party, 3rd Battalion, Rifle ; . 'Brigade. lAdvauce Party, 4th Battalion, Rifle . Brigade. •- •Mounted Rifles (A, C, and D Squadrons) 'Infantry Brigade (A and.B Companies). •Half Advance Party, 3rd Battalion, Rifle Brigade. Divisional Signal Service.

i(Ambuiance,:Details; etc. . | Bands ..were- distributed throughout .tho ccihimn, and they-enlivened the proceedings with their music. It was noticeablo that many of the old airs had supplanted the latter-day; march tunes ■ which reigned in the early days of the • war.' And though some of these pieces fare old-enough for the lads' grandfathers to have marched to, the suci cess; of their revival bears it in on one -that they are evergreen. What a sight this march 'was! A : column a mile long! Chains of shining "bayonets glinting in. the : .sunlit ! streets; thousands of cheering people ! crowding in to narrow the way and shower their good wishes on the.men! That; endless ribbon of khaki, ; rising land falling," and moving ever onward ;\vjth perfect regularity! Those athletic. ■ looking ■ soldiers marching cheerily, resolutely through; how lit they ,'were! Fit,--indeed, to : fight for an Empire! I The military spirit infected; the .crowd, and martial ardour held ' sway over allpther, sentiment.' .; But the "other sentiment" was there, and there in all its pent- up strength. Some who ; saw these men go by had no one near ; and dear to them marching in the Tanks.. Many- had. Some had come out>' to cheer for men ihey did not know. lOthers were there straining their eyes to catch even a glimpse of one or more who were near and dear to them—per'fiaps, nearest and dearest.. They had come many miles to see HIM march by.

A Credit to Their Land., , .'All along the rout© men and women ißroke through the crowd to shake the hand of a friend in tho ranks. Some soliders seemed to be known from end to. end of the route, and on both sides. ■Kind ivords fell from balconies and windows and verandahs as tli© men Were; recognised, and every word was .cheerfully answered. Here .and there 'civilians attached themselves to soldierrelatives, and marched along with them. ;Here and there a man in mufti fell into line, but by far the most of civilian additions to the procession were women And. girls. White summer frocks found Itkeir way in amongst" the khaki in occasional spots, but some soldiers had .quite a bodyguard in feminine raiment. ; .'A'striking little figure was a short-, stout,: country lass, who appeared marching along with her brother in the early port-ion of the column,' The column was swinging along at a good pace, and the girl found it impossible ; fo march with them. ■ But if she could uoKmarch, she coidd trot. , And she jdid.:. And she was still in line, FtrngIgTTng with a big parcel '(for. HIJI, no doubt), when the column moved out of sight, into Cuba. Street. i> This was not the biggest march Wellington has seen, but it >-.'as one of Hie biggest, and also among the test. The Ninth is said to be the strongest of our Reinforcement draftsj and, with the .other troops, it made one of the best'displays. The men were big and itougliened by training, and were cheerful to a remarkable degree. They have 'not received as much training as have the>other drafts, but they are reckoned !fco be guife well-enough schooled to be a credit to New Zealand. Certainly the material is a credit to its country.

A PRIVILEGE TO SERYE ;' Lieutenant Downie Stewart, who is an officer in the 9th Reinforcements, has 'sent tho following letter to his constituents:-- ; "I desire to convey to the electors of Dimedin West my appreciation of the 'niany assurances I have received that tlioy approve of tho course I liavo taken. •Tliey realise that my absenco can be of 110 material importance at a time when local politics are in abeyance, and that the duty which' calls me away is more imperative than the affairs of the electorate. There are many homes in Dune'din West whose sons have fought and died' for the cause in which we are engaged, and I feel it a high privilege to serve in an army whose valour and endurance have made tho world ring with ■its praiso. Our paramount duty is\ to seo that tho sacrifices that have been made shall not liavo been made in vain, and to this end we must continue to pour in our resources in men and money .until victory is: achieved. I will always •remember the many kindnesses I have •rocoived at the hands of the electors and from the people of Dimedin, and my hope is that when tho war is over I may have an opportunity of repaying my obligation in some degree, aud of serving the city to -which I owe so much, and which I lovo so well.—(Signed) William Downie Stewart."