CORPS OF STALWARTS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 285, 11 May 1915, Page 6

CORPS OF STALWARTS.

AUSTRALASIA'S TROOPS. Till']lK WORK. IX EGYPT. Under I lie above heading, "W. T. Massov, the Cairo correspondent ol the London Daily Telegraph, wrote to fiis pap<r on 7th. March: -- The Australians and New Zcalauders are a wonderful illustration of the resources of the British Empire. Jt is doubtful whethi r any army corps iu Europe could match them in physiijue. Tall, broad, deep-chested, heavy-limbed men they are, for the most part accustomed to bard living out yf doors, with the keen eyesight of the countryman and the alertness of the townsman. Long hours in the sun do not fatigue them, and the wide variations of temperature during nu Egyptian winter have had slighter effects on the general health than could have been anticipated. Possessed of ideal constitutions for roughing it, the men will be a powerful reinforcement for the Allied armies, and, as tliey have proved capable of readily learning their work on the parade ground and in the field, no one doubts that a short period of active service will give them the polish to fit them for the honour (as they hold it to be) of standing side by side with the regular soldiers of Ilis Majesty's Regular Army. They arc desparately anxious to follow Tommy 'Atkins' good example.

Some of our Australian comrades did not take so readily to discipline as to drill. I do not mean to suggest tliey were disobedient or anything approaching it, but coming from a democratic stock they were somewhat slower to appreciate the virtues of discipline, of instant and unquestioned action on the receipt of orders, than they were to learn their drill . They were always admirable (I nearly said perfect) material in the instructors' hands, keen to become proficient in every branch of the soldier's work, and determined to use their intelligence to the best advantage. And, as they progressed in their instructional work, so their discipline improved. You saw the. difference in every stage, from platoon to company, from company to battalion, battalion to brigade, and brigade to divisional training, and now the independent spirit so marked in a democratic people is identified with military smartness. The majority of the Australians were disciplined before they had been in camp a week, but that the small minority have also learned the lesson is regarded by military men as one of the most significant achievements of tire training.

SOUND MARCH ICRS. Tliey will take the field seasoned troops, vigorous, robust, courageous, equal to any ill the world with the same period of training. A colonial ollicer, in conversation with me yesterday, said the men only wanted a good, stiff action with well-led troops, to complete their training. He was obviously right. I have had the advantage of seeing the. colonials since tliey arrived ill Egypt four months ago, and I am confident no men have'Dwcn made into soldiers with greater care, or with a stronger desire to make the most of the good material at hand. The stall' has worked hard, and the training has been carried on systematically and progressively with a view to teaching officer,-), quite as much as men. The result has been most satisfactory. Yesterday forenoon f watched the New Zealand infantry brigade return to the desert camp at Zeitiin, after having been out all night on divisonal operations on the Suez-road. It was inspiring to see the swinging stride of the battalions, which the exertions of fourteen foodless hours had not shortened.

The height of the dust columns surrounding the marching men, though not so high, of course, as the sand-screen raised by cavalry and artillery, told of pace and energy, and long before the. battalions from Otago and Wellington, from Auckland and Canterbury, had reached the confines of the camp you knew they were coming home as strongly as tliey went out before the moon was up the night before. They bad covered eighteen miles in ankle-deep sand, and had cut and filled in miles of trenches

Carrying their full packs, with entrenching tools, which they bad used to cut long, deep pits before they were attacked at dawn, with yellow sand masking their bronzed faces, they swung a long, happy and contented that tliey were another step towards the goal of efficiency. And that is the direction towards which their minds are always set. They are. a pattern on which all colonial troops could model themselves, and if the whole of the colonial army corps at present in and near Egypt are as physically fit as these fine sons of New Zealand the overseas Britons will go a very long way towards proving themselves men of a strong and patriotic race.

WELL-TRAINED DIVISIONS. Into the course of training to which the colonial troops have been put it is not necessary to go in detail. Tile men being of the right stamp, the stall' never hesitated to give tliem long hours in the field. Physical drill wais not required to get them into condition, nor did they need many route marcßea to prepare them for covering long distances in the desert. The men simply had to learn the active service side of soldiering. They were lucky ih not having to furnish any details for the duties of the army of occupation in Kgvpt. 'All that was done by the East Lancashire Territorials.

Tito Australian and Now Zealand infantry liavc had a gradual preparation, .•m the lines adopted by the .Home commands in times of peace. Not quite the same, perhaps, because time pressed, and it wns important to cram into a week more Held work than the average regular battalion did in a month, divisional training has been verv thorough, and if the men thought they were ready before they reallv were—well, confidence in one's powers is not a bad tiling. The brigade of Australian Tviglit Horse and tV. New Zealand Mounted Infantry have worked; very hard, and the excellent field artillery from both colonies have had ample training under conditions admirably suited to make them cHicient. The Australian and New Zealand Kngineers had their training in assisting to put the Canal in a complete state of defence. Hoyal Engineers were proud to be associated with them, and no higher praise than theirs could be earned.