DEFENCE OF NEW ZEALAND.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 438, 18 January 1890, Page 3

DEFENCE OF NEW ZEALAND.

1 MAJOR-GENERAL EDWakDS' I REPORT. The following report by Major - General Edwards has been forwarded to his Excellency the'Governor, for presentation to Parliament: — r, ' ; “My Lord,—ln accordance with the instruction contained in the War Office letter of the 3rd June, 1889, I have the honour to forward for the information of your Government the following report on the military forces and defences of New Zealatid. The question of the defence of New Zealand differs from that of the neighbouring Australian colonies on account of the greater extent of its coast line, the numerous harbours, and the difficulties of communication, and if any enemy succeeded in establishing himself in any part of the colony it would be almost impossible to combine the local forces to operate against him. This difficulty will, however, gradually disappear as the railway system is developed, and communication opens up between Wellington and Auckland in the North Island, arid between the East and West Coasts of the South Islands. As it will be impossible to prevent an enemy from landing at many points in the colony, its defence will be best secured by the formation of reliable field forces at the four great centres of population, Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. Major-General Schaw has lately made exhaustive reports on the works for the defence of the harbours and for the general defence of the colony. I concur in his recommendation, with the exception that the field forces proposed for the four centres are not organised so as to allow of sufficient expansion in time of war. These reports were drawn up at a time of great financial depression, and framed to reduce expenditure to its lowest limits. The forces generally have not sufficient training to man the works for the defence of the harbours, nor is there any organisation by means of which field forces could be created to protect the four centres. The material is all - that could be desired, but to make it of use it must be trained and organised. The latest returns show the forces to bo as follows :—Permanent Artillery and Submarine Miners, 196; Volunteers—Cavalry, 700 ; Mounted Infantry, 105 ; Naval Artillery, 1,250 ; Garri; son Artillery, 170 ; Field Artillery, 576. Engineers, 169 ; Infantry, 721 ; total, 7,887. In addition to these there are 2,512 CadetsThe Permanent Artillery and Submarine Miners are a body of men well drilled and instructed, and with more gun practice will be capable of fulfilling their duties. An officer should be appointed to command. The guns, carriages, store-rooms, and magazines in their charge are in good order. It will, however, be difficult to keep this force efficient on account of the smallness of its numbers and its scattered condition, but this might be obviated by amalgamating it with the permanent forces of the Australian colonies and forming one “ fortress corps ” for the service of the guns and mines of the different works for the defence of the Australasian colonies.

“ Volunteers.—l have had little opportunity of forming an opinion of the condition of the cavalry, but the corps which I have seen are well mounted, and presented a creditable appearance. Their services would be of greater use if they wore drilled and equipped to act as mounted infantry. The force of mounted infantry is very small. It should be considerably increased, because it is essential that the different field, forces should have a proper proportion of this most important arm. The term “ naval ” artillery is a misnomer, as the majority of the men have never served afloat, or in any occupation directly connected with the sea. They are, in fact, .chiefly garrison artillery, dressed as seamen. The men are of good physique, and look well on parade. To make them eflioient they require gun practice, as a considerable proportion have never practised with the guns they would have to serve in time of war. The numbers are largely in excess, as, including the garrison artillery, only 670 officers and men are required. There are only 170 garrison artillery, and I had no opportunity of seeing them at their guns. Their duties are much the same as those of the Naval Artillery, and they should be amalgamated with them so as to have one corps responsible for the service of the guns and submarine mines. There are 576 Field Artillery, but as only 360 are required they should be reduced to that number. The batteries paraded for my inspection drilled well, and the men took an intelligent interest in their work, but more complete arrangements should be made for the provision of horses and harness. The guns, however, are of an obsolete pattern, and should be replaced by others of later date. The Engineers are a fine body of men, and their trades are those which are useful for this branch of the service, but they require more instruction in field engineering. The formation of cadet corps should be still further encouraged, and a proper system established for their instruction under the supervision of the district staff. This does not appear to be the case in some of the districts.

“ Organisation.—The troops required to man the batteries of the four centres should be separated from those which, would form the field forces, and placed under the command of an officer, who would be responsible to the officer commanding in the district for their efficiency. r, 670 artillery and submarine miners are sufficient for the service of the batteries and mines, as they could be rapidly increasecbun war from the Government service, which contains many men who have been trained in the Permanent Militia. They would be distributed as follows —Auckland, 220 ; Wellington, 210; Lyttelton, 110; and Dunedin, 130. Besides these, small local corps of infantry will be required for the immediate defence of the batteries and the positions in the rear of them. In order to create efficient field forces regiments must be established, bub on a different footing from those recently dissolved. They should be small in peace, but capable of great expansion in war. The peace establishment of the field force to be! created at each of the four centres would be as follows:—lnfantry—A regiment of two four-company battalions, each battalion 300 strong, 600 ; three companies of mounted infantry, 180; battery of field artillery, six guns, 90 ; company of Engineers 30, commissariat, medical staff, etc., etc., 55 ; total, 955. Provided a sufficient number of Rifle Corps or Clubs are established throughout tho colony, this field force could be raised to 2,500 men, each battalion being made up 1,000, but before it can be placed on a proper footing something more reliable is required than the present volunteer system, and I recommend the partially-paid system which has been adopted in the i Australian colonies. The condition of service can then be made more binding, and centres can be established into which the volunteers from the Rifle Clubs can be drafted to raise the forces to war strength. In the Australian colonies the rates of pay vary from £6 to £l2 a year for attending a certain number of > whole or half day instructions or night drills; . The higher rate : of pay: has been adopted by Victoria and New South Wales, and ifcie found to give much more

efficient force than the lower. The number of ‘ partially - paid ’ men would be : Artillery and submarine miners, 670; four regiments of infantry, 2,400; four corps of mounted infantry, 720; four batteries of tield artillery, 24 guns, 360; four companies of engineers, 120; commissariat, medical staff, etc., etc., 220. Total, 4,490. This would still leave 3,597 men for the rifle clubs, provided the excess of men in the naval and field artillery were transferred bo them. They should be affiliated to the ‘ partially paid ’ regiments, and receive the same advantage in the shape of capitation grant, ammunition, etc., as the present rifle Their dress should be the same as the regiments to which they are affiliated. “ Defences.—The defences of the harbours are well planned, and the armaments are sufficient to repel the attack of several cruisers, provided the defence is properly organised, and competent officers appointed to command. Auckland, being the base for the navy, should be made perfectly secure. A po<verfulgun should be mounted on Victoriaheights, as itwould notonlycommand the entrance but fire On the anchorage off the city. A gun should also be mounted at Stokes Point, and a mine field placed between it and Ponsonby Point to prevent ships running up the harbour and shelling the city from a position which would not be seen by the guns oE the defence. A gun is also required to command the anchorage at Wellington. It is not necessary to mount tho Bin gun at Lawyers’ Point, Dunedin, as the two H.P. 6in guns and the two 7in guns already mounted on the Otago beach would prevent a bombardment of the city. The submarine'mining establishments are in a satisfactory condition, and provided the officers and men are sufficiently trained, the mine defence should be effective. There would appear to be no adequate provision for keeping the public out of the batteries. The regulations recently drawn up by the War Office for the purpose should be strictly enforced. “Staff.—There is no one in command of the local forces. A commandant should be appointed, who would be responsible for the discipline of the troops, their preparation for active service, and, in the case of attack, for the disposal of the forces to resist it. The officer selected for this duty should have a thorough knowledge of his profession, and I recommend that application be made to Her Majesty’s Government for the services of an officer as Commandant. Considering the frequent changes which take place in the art of war, it is desirable that this appointment should be made for not more than five years. He would require the assistance of a staff officer, who should be able to give the whole of his time to his military duties. The present Assistant Adjutant-General is also Inspector of Volunteers and Inspector of Prisons. »

“Military Districts —The military districts are too numerous, and they should be re organised in four corresponding to the four centres. The officer commanding should also be the Lieutenant-Colonel of the regi ment in his district, with a Major in command of each battalion. An annual camp of instruction should be formed in each district. “Appointment of Officers. —Disciplineand efficiency cannot be maintained if the selection of officers is left in the hands of the members of the volunteer corps. The officers of the part paid force should be appointed on the joint recommendation of the officer commanding the battalion or corps, the officer commanding the district, and the commandant of the colonial forces. Arms and Ammunition.—The ammunition for Bin and 6in H. P. guns should be increased to 150 rounds per gun. For the 7in there should be 200 and for the 64pounders 300 rounds. That for the 6pounder Nordenfeldts should be increased to 400. The quantity of ammunition for the field guns is too small. It should nob be less than 400 rounds per gun.

“ Rifles.—The Snidei’ rifle is now obsolete and should be replaced by rifles of a modern date. Sixteen thousand are required, so that after the forces. have been armed there should be a reserve in store to meet unforeseen contingencies. The rifle ammunition in store should be increased, as although Messrs Whitney and Co. have established an ammunition factory at Auckland, it would probably tax its resources to meet your requirements in time of war. Under these circumstances 150 rounds per rifle should always be in store in time of peace. The supply of arms and ammunition will be greatly simplified when a federal ordnance store is established for the Australian colonies, through which New Zealand could be supplied. There §hould be one pattern of rifle and a common field gun among the whole of the Australasian colonies. “I forward herewith a memorandum of the organisation of the forces of the Australian colonies, in which allusion is made to many points which also concern the forces of New Zealand, such us the amalgamation of the permanent forces, the ‘ partially paid ’ system, rifle clubs, dress, education of officers, the appointment of an inspecting general, a federal small arms factory, and an ordnance store. On many of these points combined action between New Zealand and Australia would lead to economy and efficiency, and it is a question for consideration whether the forces of New Zealand should nob eventually be federated with those of the Australian Colonies, so that they may be prepared to mutually assist each other. I would, however, strongly recommend that your Government join with them in obtaining the services of a general officer to inspect your forces annually, and advise it in all military questions. “ The propositions for the re-organisation of the forces are as follows (1) The appointment of a Commandant; (2) amalgamation of the districts into four, Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago; (3) the organisation of field forces of districts ; (4) the establishment of a ‘ partially paid ’ system ; (5) the abolition of the election of officers by the members of the corps; (6) the combining with the Australian colonies for an annual inspection of the forces by a general officer, who would also be the military adviser of the Government. These propositions cannot he carried out without increased cost, but would not exceed the amount annually expended by the colony on the local forces up to 1887. No further Bums should be expended upon works or batteries after the present works are armed and completed, but the field forces should be placed on a proper footing, or . the expenditure which you . have incurred in defending your harbours may be rendered useless. I would strongly impress upon your Governmnent that batteries and forb3 are of little value unless they are supplemented by field forces to prevent their being turned. In conclusion, I would request your Excellency to convey to your Government my grateful thanks for the kindness I have received and for the arrangements which have been made by the Hon. T. Fergus for my journey through New Zealand.—l have the honour to be, my Lord, your obedient servant, J. Bevan Edwards, Major-General.”