WAIKATO MOUNTED RIFLES.

Waikato Argus, Volume VII, Issue 456, 4 July 1899, Page 3

WAIKATO MOUNTED RIFLES.

CAMBRIDGE NO. 3 COMPANY. The week's drill the above Company have been putting in under the able instruction of Captain Coleman, terminated on Saturday, and it is very gratifying to to learn that he is well satisfied with the progress made. He speaks in terms of praise of the behaviour of the men, and says all they require is a really good Captain to make them a particularly smait troop. Colonel Banks inspected them on Saturday, and we believe he was ahn well satisfied. In the ffternoon ot that day some independent ana volloy tirng was done, and notwithstanding the wet and windy state of the weather good work was done, the independent firing being very good,. In the evening a meeting of ths members of the troop was held iu the Public Hall for the purpose of electing officers when the following vacancies were filed : Hon. Chaplain, Archdeacon Willis ; Lieutenant, W. Wallace ; Sergeant Major, W. Garlaud ; Sergeant, G. Gane ; Farrier Sergeant, B. Pi rguson ; Buglar, C. Boyeo ; Corporis, J. Mutton, E. Smith and J. Scott ; Lanu? Corporals, G. M. Watt and C. Bruuskill. At this meeting the late Captain, Mr N. I. Hunt, bade his comrades good-bye and wished them every success in the future. His good wishes were hoartily reciprocated by all present. I' must be very gra ifying to the members of the Company to hear the high terms in which the inhabitants of the town speak of them, and they thoroughly deserve it, for their conduct has been most exemplary. There has not been the slightest attempt at larrikinism, and the steady and business-like manner in which they have gone a'out their duties has earned the respect of all. They a:e a fine sec of youna men of the right stamp to make good volunteers, and we are sure they will find the inhabitants of the district eucourage them in every possible manner. CHURCH PARADE. On Sunday morning the troop attended St. Andrew's Church, on the march there being headed by the Hamilton Band, who kiudly journeyed up for the purpose. We say the Hamilton Band, and we think that is the right name for it, for ten of the performers came from there, while there were only three from Cambridge. The servico was a hearty one, the band assisting the organ in accompanying such well-known hymns as " Onward Christian Soldiers," " Come All Ye Faithful," " All Hail the Power of Jesn'e Name," the " Old Hundredth," and at the conclusion of the service the National Anthem. The sermon was preached by the Ven. Archdeacon, whose text was Ephesians, 6th chapter, parts of 10 and 11 verses : " Be strong iu, the Lord and in the power <f His might; put on the whole armour of God." The preacher said this was an exhortation addressed to soldiers and was suitable for all soldiers, rot only for those who wear the Queen's uniform, but for all servants of the King of Kirgs whoso praises they lad just been singing in the grand old hymn, " All Hail the Power of Jesn's Name." They were all soldiers of Christ and had a warfare to maintain under the banner of the Cross. They were made soldiers when they were received into Christ's Church in baptism and were signed with the sign of the Cross in token that they should not be ashamed to confess the faith of Christ crucified, and manfully to fight under His banner against sin, the world, and the devil, ami to continue Christ's faithful soldiers and servants until their life's end. The society of Christ to which they belonged was a warring society, strange as it may sound to fray so. The church was a militant church, warring against sin and Satan, and she needed soldiers to her battleß. And the strength of her soldiers was the strength of the Lord of Hosts. Be Eirong in the Lord, and in the power of His might, said St. Paul, put on the whole armour of God. Then he described the armour in detail, the girdle of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the sandals of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit. With such weapons as these the soldier wus fully armed and sure of success iu any fight. Be strong in the Lord, was an old battle cry, reaching from the time of Moses to the time of St Paul ; used by Moses just before his death, encouraging Joshua and the people of Israel to continue their warfare against the evil nations they were to dispossess ; used by God himself, when chargiug Joshua, how he was to conduct his leadership ; used by David, encouraging Solomon and Israel to build the Temple, for which he had made provision and which was typical of the Church of God and the people of God, which were to be built up by the wise rule of the human head of the nation ; used by God through Isaiah, be strong, fear not, behold your God, He will come and save you ; used by the Aogel encouraging Daniel ; used by Haggai and Zachariah, encouraging the people in the re-building of the city and the second temple, aft r the return from captivity ; used much by St. Paul in the New Testament, saying to the Christians of Corinth, stand fast iu the faith, quit you like men, be strong. To those at Ephesus in the words of the text, be strong in the Lord. To Timothy, be strong in the faith, that is in Christ Jesus. And if this exhortation was suitable for all Christians and was doubly suitable for Christian men who wear the uniform of the greatest Sovereign who has ever ruled on earth. Continuing, the Archdeacon said : Voluuteers, if you desire to be good soldiers of the Queen, you will become so by being good soldiers of Jesus Christ. By being such you will be possessed by the highest spirit of e.ipirit dc corps, of patriotism, (f courage (and by courage I mean not only physical courage, but moral courage, wh ch is tho greater quality and harder to acquire and less common to witness). By being such your warfare will be conducted with high principle, with religion, with selfsacrifice, with moderation. It is a high aim for a soldier to desire to be a religious soldier. We have examples of such even in the army of heathen Rome in the time of Christ and His Apostles, in ihe centurion who was first after the crucifixion boldly to confess truly this was the Son of God. Iu the centurion who sought Christ to heal his servant and who loved the Jewish people and had built them a synagogue. In the centurion brought under oar notice iu to day's lesson, who was a devout man and one who feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people and prayed to God always. Yon who are volunteers are in an honourable position, giving of your time to the serving of your country. I have not always held the high view 1 now hold as to the value of our citizen-soldiers. I think now, however, it is the very beat form for the military element to take. Wc cannot do without sobiiers. They are necessary for the maintenance of peace. Godwoiks by human means now as he did of old. But. I think the old plan of having vast bodies of men giving their whole life to the profession of arms is a tremendous mistake and a sinful waste of power. In some countries of Europe it seems to me that the armies are in danger of doing more to disturb the peace than to maintain it. The army has been a cause of menace to peace in France and in Russia, and eveu, I think, in Germany. But our citizen-soldiers are able to be builders in time of peace, if they must become destroyers in the time of war. Nehemiah set a good example in the old days of the re-building of Jerusalem, when his men, while holding a weapon to defend themselves in one hand, yet built the wall of the city with the other. We cannot, of course, do without some professional soldiers to be the neucleti3 of the national army and to be tho trainers of volunteers, but our aim should be to encourage all our people to be volunteers and to make training in the use of arms all but universal, God works by human means,

and we must do our part to m»inUin law and order in the great Empire to which we beloDg and in the world at large. By being prepared to fight if needful, we shall be doing much to preserve the peace and to Eee that gnod order is maintained. The power of England's army is now being used «s a menace to wrongdoers in South Afiic« to right some most grievous wrongs, and I b-lieve that (in God's mercy) the wio gs will be s<-t right without an appeal to force of arms. It is well wo ha\e the power. Jt will bo to England's greater glory if the reforms cun be brought about without any oveit act of warfare. Brethren, let us all ie Strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might let us put on the who've armour of G'od. By a right uhc of His nrmour, His truth, His righteousness, If is saivs'.ion, His peace, His faith, His Holy Wend, we Khali be soldi, rs of ihc highest type, not of the rough type of which Shakespeare speaks. " full of *:range oiths " and " set king tlie bubble reputition e'en in the cannon's mouth." We shall be toldiers who will bring nothing but c edit bi the uuiform we wear and the training we undergo, and who shall have an iufluence for the highest good in the great Empire to which we belong. In the. afternoon the band gave a ncitalot music in the Jubilee Garden, Which was much appreciated by the inhabitants. The thauks of the band are due Mr E. Smith kindly entertained them to dinner at the National Hotel. We trust this will not be the last timo the Hamilton and Cambridge band players will join forces to give selections in Cambridge. The following was the programme on Sunday a'ternoon : Mach, "I'yragon" ; fantasia, "Cave of the Elephants" ; march, "Reveller"; descriptive selection, "Ihe Young Recruit " ; javotte, "The Sultan"; overture, "Crown of Victory"; march, "Eclipse" ; selection, " The Jol.y Band."