(Branch of NZAHAA Incorporated) THE PLAINSMAN (Newsletter of the New Zealand Antique Arms Association Canterbury Incorporated)

President: [email protected] Treasurer: [email protected] or [email protected] Association Rep: [email protected] Association Meetings: last Thursday of each Month Parade Room, Riccarton Park Race Course 7.30pm (Except December, no meeting) PO Box 694, Rangiora 7440 web site: www.antiquearms.co.nz

Coming events: April 14th – NZAHAA AGM & Southland Branch Auction, Invercargill 26th – MOA May 31st – Visit History Centre at Burnham, LoTM MNO June 9th – SSANZ Guns Show, Whangarei 28th – LoTM PQR – Guest Speaker John F short talk about Dresden, Dave T short report “Wot I dun on me ‘oliday” July – 21st MAMS - 26th Quiz Night, LoTM STU Aug – TBA, LoTM VWX Sep – 15th Branch Auction, Displays and Sales Tables. Frank to do adverts for E-gazette and Gazette. To attract some members to submit their high class items, advertising will be at a higher standard than usual. Friday night set up (late). Details TBA. Winning display gets annual subs paid. The dates at Riccarton Raceway are subject to confirmation. Alternate dates in September to be considered by Committee if necessary. - 27th AGM and presentation of finances followed by monthly meeting Guest Speaker TBA, LotM YZA

Guest Speakers are subject to change, come to meetings to get confirmation.

Meetings: New Zealand Antique Arms Association Canterbury Incorporated (Branch of NZAHAA) Committee Meeting 29 March 2018 Riccarton Park Opened: 1845hrs Present: Rod W, Mike H, David H, Murray R, Wayne W, Anders G, Graeme B, Dave T Apologies: Adam C, John A, John F, Glenn M, Paul D, Frank McK. Agenda: 1. Web site any action: Rod has contacted the person who does the Ruahine web site, project is ongoing. 2. MOA: Kat will be looking after the money at the MOA. Other positions will be sorted on the night. Graeme B will be the auctioneer. Committee to be there at 6:30pm to set up room. Open at 7pm to members to being in items. Riccarton Park have advised they will be passing on a 1.5% fee for using Credit and Debit Cards. 3. ANZAC Events if any: Does anyone know about any displays being put on for ANZAC? Ask meeting. 4. Membership/Subs: President to have a sheet for members to show what problems they are having. There was discussion regarding the payment of annual subs and it was decided that the annual account would be amended to show the total amount owing. No more split payments, everyone belongs to National and local Branch. 5. General Business: Issues about being away and having to advise the Police were discussed. Graeme brought along some yellow tags to place in the breech of a weapon are available for branch meetings to indicate a safe weapon. Closure: 7pm

~o0o~

New Zealand Antique Arms Association Canterbury Incorporated (Branch of NZAHAA) Monthly Meeting 29 March 2018 Riccarton Park Opened: 7:55pm Present: 28 Members, Visitors and Guests. Apologies: Adam C, John A, John C, John F, Alec D, Glenn M, John H, Alan C, Robbie T, Alex B, Malcolm B, Tony S, Guy B, Wayne A, John H, Bruce C, Wayne G, Frank McK, Paul D. Visitors: Brendon W, Hamish H, Phil L. The President requested that all members and visitors sign the book at the entrance, each meeting night. He also requested that everyone wear their nametags, if you don’t have a nametag contact the President. Yellow tags will also be available at the entrance for members to put in the breech of any weapon brought into a meeting. Previous Minutes: Taken as read. Matters Arising: Nil Treasurers Report: Bank Account Balances as at 27 Mar 2018: Non-profit account – $ 8113.60 Simple Saver - $ 6769.23 Unusual Expenditure: Nil Subs Owing 2018: National: $ 2420.00 Canterbury: $ 2550.00 Subs Owing 2017: National: $ 2675.00 Canterbury: $ 3306.00 Other Funds: Subs to be Banked $ 470.00 Branch Reports: Library: The book “Carvings of the Veldt” Pt3, has been borrowed already. Branch Rep: NZAHAA Half AGM is happening in Invercargill on the 14th Apr. Items from Wallace L collection plus 100 other items. Neville D spoke about Wallace and offered a ride to anyone wanting to go down. Shooting: Mai Mai Shotgun shoot and BP Muzzle Loading Rifle shoot will held at the Handloaders Range, shooting for the Rosebowl Trophy. At last months shoot the Ray Aitcheson trophy was won by Wayne A. Coming Events: 1. The ANZAC trophy shoot will be held this month, get dressed in period costume and make a day of it. 2. Members were advised that Riccarton Park are applying a 1.5% fee on all EFT POS transactions put through their account, includes Credit and Debit transactions. General Business: 1. Neville D advised he had been elected to the Sporting Shooters Committee and they were looking for members from the South Island and Canterbury in particular, provided some application forms. (Please contact Neville if you are interested.) 2. Mike H advised about an article in the Press, which had also been on TV, regarding firearm safety in schools. Children playing with sticks etc. are being given instructions on safety and they even have cardboard safes to keep their “weapons” in. Something positive in the media! 3. September Branch auction will require good advertising if we are to get good items for tender. 4. Security of your collection, if you are away for any period was discussed, provided you have storage up to the standard required by the law, you do not have to advise the Arms Office accordingly, however be careful about Police interpretation of any regulation. Discussion continued about what to do if you are away or sending an item to an auction. 5. Paul W advised there would be a military display out at Prebbleton, between the 21 – 25 April to commemorate the men/women of Prebbleton and Selwyn district who went to war. Meeting closed: 8:40pm Raffle: Paul W Guest Speaker: Graeme B spoke about training rifles. LoTM: Military uniform Jackets, Medals

Name Tags: Please contact the President, at the next meeting, if you need a name tag.

Presidents Pen It was good to see a good turnout at the last meeting considering Easter weekend following and some faces not seen for a long time. It was great to see some interesting medals and uniform tunics something a little different. Backing up Nevilles discussion on the Sporting Shooters Ass always good to have another group fighting the cause to protect our rights and privileges as firearm owners and all for a minimum cost to members. Another busy month ahead with the AGM and auction in Invercargill in a couple of weeks and ANZAC day at the end of the month, as I stated at the monthly meeting please let us know if any support is required for displays or re enacting for the ANZAC period.

…on that note keep your powder dry

Rod W President

Editorial

Every year we rightly commemorate the ANZAC’s at Gallipoli on the 25th of April, this year let us think about another theatre of the war, one perhaps not so well remembered.

Commemoration of the Battle of Beersheba in WWI By Andrew McRae, Veterans' Affairs Reporter [email protected]

The Battle of Beersheba, which was part of the Third Battle of Gaza was fought in Palestine in October 1917, over 100 years ago.

New Zealand mounted troops played a major role in the battle. “From o’er the sea – At England’s Call. Her brave colonial sons. Stand by the Empire one & all. The Sinai-Palestine Against the foeman’s guns!” campaign lasted from 1916 to 1918 and is described by Massey University War Studies Professor Glyn Harper as the forgotten campaign of the war.

The Australian troops said New Zealand had some of the best horse soldiers in the whole "Gallipoli and then the battles of the Western Front cast a campaign. Photo: Supplied / Wairarapa Archive, 06-78/5-1 fairly large shadow leaving Sinai-Palestine largely forgotten."

While casualty figures for the desert were relatively light compared to the Western Front many New Zealand soldiers paid the ultimate sacrifice.

Nearly 18,000 New Zealanders served in the Middle East, 640 died and over 1000 were wounded.

In his book, Johnny Enzed, the New Zealand soldier in the First World War, Glyn Harper wrote: "The Sinai-Palestine campaign was little more than a side-show to the main theatre of war in France and Belgium. It was a place where hopes ran high for a cheap, easy victory over an enemy not highly regarded by the Allied leaders. Such hopes were to be cruelly dashed, as the war here dragged on and experienced an equal share of disasters before victory was finally achieved."

During the Sinai-Palestine campaign, New Zealanders served as mounted rifles, engineers, gunners, and cameliers. Pacific people served as members of the Rarotongan Company of the New Zealand Pioneer Battalion.

The town of Beersheba was considered the key to taking the fortress town of Gaza, which was an important stronghold held by the Turkish forces. Receiving secret orders for Beersheba, 30 October 1917. Photo: Supplied / Auckland War Memorial Museum – Tamaki An attempt was made by allied forces in March and Paenga Hira, PH-ALB-213-p63-2 the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade did in fact enter the town, but the British commander pulled them out.

A second attempt came in April, which Professor Glyn Harper said was a major disaster.

"It was one of the most expensive battles of the whole theatre."

He said six months later, British General, Sir Edmund Allenby drew up a plan which he was determined was going to be the final battle to gain Gaza.

Eight NZ troops died at Beersheba

The New Zealand responsibility was to capture the heavily fortified hill of Tel el Saba (now known as Tel Beer Sheva), a prominent spot overlooking the town of 40,000 people.

Glyn Harper said it was a text-book attack - a cavalry charge with bayonets drawn.

The New Zealanders took the hill late into the afternoon of 31 October and this paved the way for an all-out attack on Gaza. This challenge was taken up by the Australian Light Horse Brigade which attacked the town in a full cavalry charge and captured it before dark. This dramatic and famous action has gone down in Australian military history, Professor Harper said.

Eight New Zealand troops died at Beersheba and 26 were wounded.

While the battle was successful, the fighting did not stop as the allied mounted troops pursued the retreating Turks. It is in this that New Zealand suffered its worst day of the whole campaign.

An impromptu attack was made on a heavily defended Turkish position on 11 November. Forty-four New Zealanders were killed, 141 wounded and 41 horses killed.

Professor Harper said it was the bloodiest day of the whole Sinai-Palestine campaign.

New Zealanders lauded as best horse soldiers in whole campaign

The Australian troops were impressed by their New Zealand counterparts describing them as some of the best horse soldiers in the whole campaign.

Conditions in the Middle East were very difficult, with harsh terrain and heat and sand. During the push to drive Ottoman forces from the Sinai and Palestine the troops suffered from extreme temperatures, recurring sickness and a chronic lack of fresh water.

While the allies had achieved their main objective to push the enemy well away from the , the campaign was far from over.

In late 1917, the allies took Jerusalem, which Professor Harper said was described by British Prime Minister David Lloyd George as a Christmas present for the British people.

The Turks resistance finally gave way, but not until October 1918.

It was just 25-years later that New Zealand soldiers were back in the Middle East fighting at the Battle of in in World War II.

(Thanks to Professor Glyn Harper - Massey University War Studies)

Dave T Editor (03) 323 6624

Name Tags: Please contact the President, at the next meeting, if you need a name tag.

Canterbury Mounted Rifles Regiment: April 1918 1st – First Raid on Amman: After withdrawing at 4 a.m., the CMR moves down the track and reaches Shunet Nimrin and a bivouac at 8 p.m. 2nd – The CMR withdraws across the Jordan River and bivouacs 3 km south-east of Jericho. 4th – Lieutenant-Colonel Findlay returns from furlough in England and resumes command of the regiment. 5th – While bivouacked near Jericho, the CMR sends daily working parties into the Ghoraniyeh bridgehead to help improve the defences. The CMR receives 15 reinforcements and nine remount horses. 12th – The CMR receives 20 reinforcements. 17th – The CMR receives 58 reinforcements. 18th – The CMR moves into the Ghoraniyeh bridgehead. 19th – The CMR conducts a reconnaissance into the foothills around the Ghoraniyeh bridgehead, then returns to bivouac at Jericho at 9 p.m. 30th – Second Raid on Amman: The CMR moves into the Ghoraniyeh bridgehead at 3.30 a.m. During the day the regiment is shelled as it assists the British 180th Infantry Brigade in its attack on Shunet Nimrin. Little progress is made and at the end of the day the CMR moves back to Ghoraniyeh and bivouacs for the night. Three men have been killed and 11 wounded; 20 horses were killed and 25 wounded.

(Thanks Graeme)

Go Armoured!

NZDF Female Quarters Regulations The New Zealand Defence Force is now assigning females to quarter in a separate private "OFF LIMITS" area on all Camps, Bases and Ships.

While addressing all personnel at Linton Camp the Chief of Army advised, "Female sleeping quarters will be "out-of- bounds" for all males. Anyone caught breaking this rule will be fined $50 the first time."

The CA continued, "Anyone caught breaking this rule the second time will be fined $150. Being caught a third time will cost you a fine of $500.

Are there any questions?"

At this point, a Trooper from QAMR stood up in the crowd and inquired: "How much for a season pass?"

WW1 End of the “Aussie” digger myth – the originals were Maori Pioneers… by Hutts Blogging World April 21, 2015

Opinion: Gallipoli – End of the ‘Digger’ myth

When the ANZACs finally ran out of puff, and in some cases bullets, on the night of April 25, 1915 in the hills above what was to become Anzac Cove at Gallipoli, their commanding officers sent a message to the man in charge, General Sir Ian Hamilton.

Hamilton was woken from his slumber on board his command ship, and read that the ANZACs’ position was untenable and that his troops should be withdrawn as soon as possible. It was then Hamilton sent his famous reply “You have got through the difficult business, now

Maori Pioneers were the original ‘Diggers’, Australia’s you must dig, dig, dig, until you are safe”. soldiers simply adopted the name to describe themselves (Photo: NZ History) And dig they did, creating a rabbit warren of trenches that surrounded their tiny beach head, that in some cases were only five metres from the Turkish trenches. The great legend that surrounds Hamilton’s “dig, dig…” comments is that the ANZAC soldiers then began to call themselves ‘Diggers’, and that this slang for ANZAC soldiers has now been carried through to mean the same thing in 2015.

Remember the Fallen

Through the centuries, the soldiers profession remains one of duty and sacrifice. War is never pleasant, yet many soldiers have served bravely, facing te horrors of the battlefield with courage ad resilience. The reality of combat is that the soldier is constantly dealing with death – whether causing it or avoiding it.

For someone to deal constantly with death is a difficult thing, to say the least. Fear, uncertainty, and danger are constant facts of combat. Living in the valley of the shadow of death marks people in ways that are not always visible – and, often, never fully escaped.

Those who have never experienced the horror of combat can never fully understand the toll it takes on the soldier. Nonetheless, it is worthwhile to remember their sacrifices. Every year on ANZAC Day, the people of two nations pause to remember those who have served and to consider the cost of freedom.

On ANZAC Day, hymns are sung, prayers are offered, readings are given, and the “Revelle” is sounded. People stand in silence to honour the sacrifices of men and women who served Australia and New Zealand in conflicts around the world since that historic landing at Gallipoli, Turkey on April 1915. People ponder the cost of war and the efforts of those that fought on their behalf.

ANZAC Day is extremely important for Australia and New Zealand because it is a reminder of the fragile nature of life in a broken world. It is a reminder of the finality of death and the value of life. It is a statement that life and freedom are worth the cost.

Throughout history returned servicemen and women have personally felt the responsibility to remember those that did not return as we do as a nation on ANZAC Day. The sentiment of return and remembrance is captured in the karanga that called home the Unknown Warrior in 2004 and inscribed on his Tomb at the National War Memorial in Wellington.

Te Mamae nei a te pōuri nui The great pain we feel Tēnei ra e te tau Is for you who were our future Aue hoki mai ra ki te kainfa tūturu Come back return home, E tatari atu nei ki a kou tou We have waited for you Ngā tau roa Through the long years I ngaro atu ai te aroha You were away. Sorrow E ngau kino nei I ahau aue taukuri e Aches within me. ~o0o~ Binyon’s lines:

E kore ratou e koreheketia They shall grow not old, Penei I a tatou kua mahue nei as we that are left grow old. E kore hoki ratou e ngoikore Age shall not weary them, Ahakoa pehea i nga ahuatanga o te ra nor the years condemn. i te kekenga atu o te ra At the going down of the sun Tae noa ki te aranga mai i te ata and in the morning, ka maumahara tonu tatou ki a ratou we will remember them.

~o0o~ Ari Burnu Memorial, Gallipoli

Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives… . You are now lying in soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and Mehemets to us where they lie side by side in this country of ours …you the mothers, who sent their sons from far away countries, wipe away your tears; you sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well.

ATATURK, 1934 ~o0o~ ‘In Flanders fields’ featured in WWI Commemorative Park FEATURED WHO NEWS Dec 2, 2015

“We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields.”

Those words, taken from John McCrae’s iconic war poem, movingly remind the reader of the sadness of war – young lives snuffed out before they had a chance to flower.

Born in Ontario, Canada in 1872, Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae was the grandson of Scottish immigrants. By 1893 John was training as an artilleryman at Ontario’s Royal Military College of Canada. By 1894, he was writing his first poems. Subsequently choosing a career in medicine McCrae obtained a position with Montreal General Hospital. Other medical appointments followed, and after serving in the Second Boer war he returned to Canada where he became Professor of Pathology at Vermont University.

In 1914, Britain declared war on Germany, and John McCrae – now a Major – was appointed as second in command and surgeon of the First Brigade Canadian Field Artillery. April 1915 found him in a trench in Belgium, treating wounded soldiers as the second battle of Ypres raged around him. By the time the battle was over, almost a month later, the Canadian forces had lost 1000 men killed, with almost another 5000 wounded. A Canadian Army Medical Service Captain won the Victoria Cross – Britain’s highest military honour for his bravery under fire.

After the battle, John McCrae was ordered – much to his irritation – to proceed to Northern France to establish a military hospital. McCrae wanted to stay where the action was, saying at the time ‘all the goddamn doctors in the world will not win this bloody war: what we need is more and more fighting men’. One of his close friends was killed at Ypres, and it was this man’s funeral that moved John McCrae to write ‘In Flanders Fields’, the war poem that has moved and inspired people ever since.

A new Park in Griesbach, North Edmonton, Canada now has a special memorial in honour of McCrae and his poem. Flanders field park features a bronze plaque showing an image of McCrae’s original hand-written poem, while storyboards tell of the poem’s inspiration and its connection with Remembrance Sunday. Pathways in the park are designed to symbolise First World War trenches, with accompanying beds of red poppies lying nearby.

John McCrae died of pneumonia on January 18th, 1918 aged 46. He was buried in Wimereux Cemetery, Wimereux, France. The red poppies of Flanders fields have remained a poignant symbol of the First World War, and of those who died in all subsequent armed conflicts.

~o0o~

These laid the world away; poured out the red Sweet wine of youth; gave up the years to be Of work and joy, and that unhoped scene, That men call age; and those who would have been, Their sons, they gave their immortality. Inscription on Wellington Cenotaph. by Robert Brooke

Guest Speaker:

Graeme B must have emptied his gunroom to have the rifles to illustrate his talk on British Small Bore Training Rifles and even then he was missing four examples, not a bad effort.

Purpose: Short range practice or instruction in Aiming

References • The Lee Enfield by Ian Skennerton • Australian Service Longarms by Ian Skennerton • NZ Defence Reports sourced by Noel Taylor • The NZ Arms Register – maintained by Phil Cregeen and John Osbourne (deceased) • Director of Ordnance Services (DOS) memos sourced from NZ archives by Phil Moore and Graeme Barber • List of Changes sourced by Graeme Barber

Morris Aiming Tubes: • Morris Tubes first introduced in 1883 – .23 cal for .450 Martini Henry Rifles and Carbines – Part rifled tube placed in bore – Threaded chamber placed in breech, tube screwed in to tube and nut and muzzle tightened – 297/230 short round • Aiming tube introduced in 1891 for Lee Metford then in 1907 for the Lee Enfield – .22 RF – Chamber section and tube one piece and placed in .303cal barrel from the breech end – Muzzle nut tightened on to tube Francotte Patent 297/230 Cadet Rifle • Australian Service .230 cal rifle • Made by Birmingham Small Arms Co, Ltd, circa 1890 under licence from AUGUSTE FRANCOTTE & COMPANY LIEGE • Steel rifled (five groove) round barrel, 699 mm long • Victorian Government purchased the first 500 Francottes in 1887 at 3 pounds each • Issued to Victorian cadets - withdrawn in 1911 when Senior Cadet training was introduced

Bonehill Converted MH Rifles • Converted surplus rifle and carbine actions from early 1900’s • Fitted with – new .22 SMLE length barrel – MH carbine furniture – Aperture rear sight – Sling swivel slotted in to nose cap • Sold out of service marks • Fully functional and issued to cadets -green band

Martini .310 Cadet Rifles • Centrefire single shot produced in the UK by BSA and WW Greener • Based on the Martini Henry but internally • Issued Australian military Cadets and purchased by States within the Commonwealth • Chambered for the.310 Cadet/.310 Greener round • Also sold to the public as BSA No4, 4a, 4b and 5 IN .297/230 AND .22 RF • The rifles will often chamber the similarly sized .32-20 (.312cal) which is 10thou less than the .323 cal Cadet round • After being sold by the Australian government many were converted to sporting or target rifles,

War Office Pattern (1906) Miniature Rifles • Produced at BSA and LSA for Cadets, Miniature Rifle Clubs and Boys Clubs • Total production 21982 between 1906 – 1915 • Majority in .22 RF and limited numbers in 297/230 • Available in 3 patterns – Standard –Short wood – Long Fore end - Fully wooded – Magazine – 5 rounds • Special aperture sight option

War Office Miniature Rifles

.22 Short Rifle Mk I • Conversion of 3200 Mk I*Lee Metfords approved in December 1907 • Aim was to produce a training rifle that resembled the SMLE. • This involved – a new 8 groove RH twist .22 barrel of SMLE profile – SMLE Mk III sights, – shortening the fore-end, – Removing the cut off and magazine – In some cases replacing furniture with locally made wood. – Removing the bolt dust cover – Replacing the bolt head (.22 stamped). – A floating firing pin was introduced in 1910. • Converted at Enfield in 1910. • 600 MLE, short .22 issued in NZ in1923 • In June 1924 stock held in store – 15 Short .22 RF pattern 14 No 2 – 26 rifles, Short, .22 RF BSA (repaired and re-barreled) • In July 1925 165 of above types on issue all but 42 were in poor condition. • The .22 Short Rifle Mk I declared obsolete 20 December 1923 .22 Long Rifle • Long Rifles originally converted for the Navy from 1912 • Mk I converted from MLM Mk II- no safety catch on bolt • Mk I* converted from MLM II*, LE I or LE I*- safety catch on bolt – New 8 groove RH twist .22 barrel – Original sights refitted – Bolt cover, magazine and cut off removed – 2 piece firing pin with front section floating • In 1914 NZ investigated purchasing from the War Office miniature rifles as cheaply as possible • In April 1914 an order place with CG Bonehill of Birmingham to convert 300 old Metford rifles to .22 long Rifle by – Fitting new barrels with 8 groove rifling – Adapting striker mechanism – Blocking the magazine well with wooden block – Fitting a steel floor plate over the wooden block – Graduating the rear sight to ,25, 50, 100, 150, 200 yds

Short Rifle Mk III • Approved in August 1912 (11000) • From Mk II and Mk II* Converted SMLE’s • Fitted with – new 8 groove RH twist barrel – .22 bolt head with floating 2 piece firing pin – Parker Hiscock 5 round magazine

Pattern 14 Short Rifles No 1 • Approved in August 1912 • 427 approx. converted from SHT LE Mk II and II* converted from MLM II – Barrel bored out by AG Parker and fitted with a 8 groove RH twist .22 liner – stamped on muzzle crown – Bolt head firing pin hole filled and drilled for floating 2 piece pin – Magazine removed then refitted without spring and follower in 1925

.22 Ross Cadet Rifle • Produced November 1912 shortly before the .303-inch calibre Ross Mk.III • Canadian Government ordered 10,000, delivery commenced in 1913 continuing for three years

Pattern 14 Short Rifles No 2 • Approved in April 1916 (1743~ not including Aussie and NZ conversions) • From SMLE Mk III converted from SHT LE Mk II and IV some converted from MLM II – Barrel bored out by AG Parker and fitted with a .22 8 groove RH twist liner – stamped on muzzle crown – Bolt head firing pin hole filled and drilled for floating 2 piece pin – 25 yd mark stamped on right side pf back sight bed – Magazine removed then refitted without spring and follower in 1925 • Many converted to Mk IV/IV*in NZ and Australia

Pattern 14 Long Rifle • Approved April 1918 • Converted from CCLE Mk 1* converted from MLE or MLM • Rifle bored out with a .22 8 groove RH twist Parker Tube liner

Pattern 1918 • Approved July 1918 • Uses a mock .303 cartridge or ”conveyor” loaded with .22 cartridge • Modified from SMLE Mk III and has a tubed 8 groove RH twist barrel • Stamped PARKERIFLED on the barrel and PARKERHALE .303 CUM .22 SYSTEM on the top of the action • Bolt and bold head firing pin hole filled and drilled for floating 2 piece pin • Each rifle issued with 30 conveyor cartridges and a tool to remove spent cases • Magazine retained and loaded with conveyors

SMLE Rifles converted to .22 • Approved November 1921. • Took place at Enfield, BSA, Lithgow and Ishapore and also by unit armourers – new 8 groove RH twist solid barrel, – modified bolt head with offset floating firing pin (.22 stamped) – longer extractor claw and – cut off removed • Some were made up from new components. • Mk IV had no magazine • From 1925 an empty magazine was fitted and stamped .22 resulting in the Mk IV* • Due to WW2 shortages used old stocks of sleeved barrels and also sleeved 303 barrels. • Mk IV* conversions were undertaken by BSA, Alexander Martin, Parker Hale and WW Greener, RSAF Enfield also made a few 100 from spare new parts

Range Elevation Range-yards Elevation-yard 25 300 50 450 100 550 150 725 200 850 Some sights have 25 yards marked at the 300yd mark

The NZ Story • In December 1920 NZ Ordered 500 SMLE .22 Rifles (22 RF Pattern 1914 Short Rifle No 2 Mk I) with accessories received by 28 April 1922. • In October 1923 another 500 rifles as above with spare parts and cleaning gear ordered • In December 1923 order amended (following WO advice) to 500 new pattern .22 inch Mark IV rifles with spares as component parts all standard received in NZ by June 1924 • In April 1925 the Chief Armourer at Trentham converted an SMLE Mk III to the 22 Mk IV pattern • Recommended the purchase of barrels and components to convert obsolete MK III SMLEs at a considerable saving in cost. • Instead (subject to further investigation) a second order for 500 Mk IV rifles was placed. • In September 1925 proceeded with the local conversion of 25 SMLE MK III rifles for evaluation. • Trials were carried out on the locally converted rifles at Trentham, Auckland and the Small Arms Laboratory Mt Eden • The local conversions were as good as those supplied by Britain. • In December 1925 plans put in place to commence local conversions at Trentham and more parts ordered to complete 500 rifles by early 1926 • In 1926 NZ had 2,000 .22 MK IV and Mk IV NZ rifles issued to • Northern Command 650, • Central Command 650, • Southern Command 700. • Provision made for a 10% annual replacement • Patterns of other patterns of .22 rifles not to be replaced. • In July 1926 a further 500 barrels and components ordered for arrival in 1927 • Some MK IV rifles have been observed with a locally made aperture sight mounted on a brass block braised to the LHS of the receiver. • NZ marked rifles have also been observed with 1941 acceptance dates

In 15 July 1926 Stocks on Issue On Issue Type Number

BSA 56 Mk III 500 Mk IV 500 Mk IV NZ (converted in 28 NZ) 197 (In store) Mk IV 300 (Part of June 1925 order for 500

Total in Dominion 1581

On Order from UK 200 rifles 200 barrels for conversion in NZ

Vickers Target Rifle • Produced by Vickers from 1920 and then Vickers Armstrong from 1927 to WW II • Folding post or aperture foresight • Open ramp rear sight and adjustable fold down rear sight • Special Purchase order for NZ contract in 1926- still researching numbers, dates and where issued • Bakelite pistol grip option

Cooey 82 Training Rifle • Manufactured by H.W. Cooey Machine and Arms Company • 30,000 approx were purchased by the Canadian government for use as a military training rifle under the name “Rifle, Cooey Pattern. .22 in. Instruction No.1.” • Proved to be robust and some went on to drill service

Canadian No 7 Mk 1 The 1925 advert for the early standard • 20000 approx. manufactured at Long Branch 1944 to 1946 Mk.I and Mk.III Match rifle – Solid 6 groove RH twist barrel with no bayonet lugs – Bolt and bolt head have 2 piece off set firing pin – No 4 magazine stamped .22 and with a grooved platform to assist load and a gap at the back to facilitate catching spent cases – Back sight graduated at 20 and 100 yards No 7 Mk I • 2500 produced at BSA from 1948 • Converted from Mark I bodied No 4 rifles shortened 3.6 inches – Some early barrels sleeved with 6 groove RH twist Parker .22 liner – Most were 6 groove RH twist new barrels – Tapered bolt head and shorter bolt than the Canadian No 7 but 1 inch longer than the No 8 – Auxiliary extractor on bolt head and special extractor fitted to side of action – No 1 Mk III or III* magazine modified to fit a BSA 5 round magazine – Mk 1 rear sight set at 200 for 25 yards

No 8 Mk I • 2000 produced at BSA Shirley (DA prefixed ##) and 15000 approx. produced at Fazakerley FROM 1950 to 1960 • Most part non interchangeable with the No 4 • Developed from the 105 Trials No 5 • 6 groove RH twist barrel 2 inches and heavier than the No 4 • Body 3.6 inches shorter • Long tapered bolt head • Bolt cocks by lifting bolt handle • Adjustable trigger attached to the body • Singer Mk I sight graduated 25, 50 and 100 yards

No 9 Mk I • 3000 converted by Parker Hale between 1956 and 1960 for a special Navy contract • Most converted mostly from No 4 Mk II – Barreled bored out and sleeved with AG Parker 6 groove RH twist liners stamped PARKERIFLED AGP on muzzle crown – Converted bolt head with offset, floating firing pin – Magazine stripped of spring and platform to act as a spent case catcher – Original sight marked 25 yards on the side

Members will notice the Yellow Tags in the breech of the weapons – Ed.

LoTM: Paul W started with a selection of Jackets of WW2 uniforms belonging to various Officers one in particular belonging to Lt Albie Bennett of the 28th Maori Bn.

David E finished off with some nicely mounted and un-mounted Long Service Medal Groups from Edward VII era, NZ Volunteer Service Medals including an Efficiency Decoration and others for Long and Efficient Service. Also a set comprising The DCM, 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and the Victory Medal, with an RSA Badge.

Shoot Results: 1 Apr 18

Military Bolt Action Rifle 1st- Hugh 2nd- Rod 3rd- Big Len 22 Rimfire Rifle 1st- Hugh 2nd- Rod 3rd- Ron Shotgun Smokeless 1st- Rod Mai Mai Cup Shotgun Blackpowder 1st- Wayne G 2nd- Ron 3rd- Rod W Blackpowder Rifle 1st- Hugh Canterbury Branch Cup

There was a good turnout considering it was Easter and a good day was had. We shot for two branch cups. The Mai Mai Cup was won by our leader Rod who soaked up all the pressure and insults and took away the rubber ducky, well done Rod. The Blackpowder muzzleloading branch cup was taken home by Hughie the man who did the business when needed, well done Hugh. Next shoot is on the 29 April and it is the Anzac Shoot. We will have a bit to get through so we need to start shooting at 9.00 so be early. The Rosebowl Cup will be shot in the afternoon. As it was postponed on Sunday.

Shooters are reminded that it is compulsory to wear EAR PROTECTION and SAFETY GLASSES while shooting at the NZ Hand Loaders Range. This requirement is part of the Police approved Hand Loaders Standing Orders. Members of NZAAAC Inc. must comply with all the NZHA standing orders. Shooters are also reminded that if they shoot, they are to pay their range fee before leaving the range. Any and all, articles attached to this newsletter are copied from both foreign and local shooting and firearms magazines and are for interest purposes only and should not be used as authority for action, or override common sense and/or established practices.

Views expressed in this newsletter are those of the editorial staff and therefore may or may not reflect those of the Canterbury Branch or its Chairman or the Committee.

Thanks to Gary Hayes and his staff at FocusPrint, Waterman Place, Ferrymead, for publishing and distributing this Newsletter.

As usual in closing a subject dear to my heat – Ed.

DRINKING TO FORGET: THE ASYLUM OF MISFORTUNE 7th February, 2018 by Rupert Millar

Following on from part one the casual observer may be wondering how the French Foreign Legion managed to build up a reputation for being an elite fighting force rather than a ragtag bunch of paralytics.

Despite the problems caused by drunkenness the culture of heavy drinking clearly did not conspire to impede the Legion’s overall operational effectiveness – if it had then there were only too many members of the army brass who would happily have seen it disbanded and forgotten.

A more pertinent question to ask – and one Donald Porch sets out to do in his seminal The képi blanc was never worn more rakishly than in history of the Legion – is why? the classic 1939 film version of Beau Geste (though Burt The psychology of legionnaires in the early days of the Legion and even up until the Lancaster had a good go). present day can be difficult to fathom. Who were these men? Why did they choose to Its tale of desertion, casual brutality and murder caused fight in the service of a foreign army for causes that weren’t their own? And to what such a stink in the Legion extent, if any, was drinking a cause or a symptom of various aspects of Legion life? that it was banned in France until 1977. Part of the problem with an institute such as the Legion is the cloak of lore, mythos and mystique that has built up around it – fuelled in no small measure by old sweats only to happy to tell a newspaperman or novelist anything they liked in exchange for paying his slate and by the Legion itself which instituted and even invented a number of ‘traditions’ in the 1920s and ‘30s in a bid to legitamise the Legion in the eyes of an ever-sceptical French public.

The wave of novels such as PC Wren’s Beau Geste[1] that appeared in the early-20th century, particularly soon after the First World War, have absolutely cemented the image of the Foreign Legionnaire in popular consciousness; harking back as they do to what was already seen as a ‘lost’, almost chivalric age in the ‘clean’ deserts of North Africa before the mechanised slaughter of Passchendaele and the Somme in stinking mud wiped away that supposedly gentler Victorian era.

The problem is this image is one of a Legion full of romantic idealists, all clean cut and handsome and fundamentally decent rogues (Gary Cooper’s 1939 rendition of ‘Beau’ Geste or Burt Lancaster’s ‘Mike Kincaid’ in the 1951 film Ten Tall Men are perfect archetypes).

Life in the Legion is forever an exotic adventure or comedic caper where the heroes are bold and noble and if anyone is sticky-fingered it’s always in a good cause or as light relief. Even Laurel and Hardy got in on Legion-mania with their 1931 film ‘Beau Hunks’, which pandered or lampooned the Legion myth that foreign legionnaires all joined because of unrequited or lost love; in this case having Oliver Hardy, the entire company and even the Riffian[2] war chief all finding out they’re in love with the same woman – the mischievous Jeanie-Weenie.

The Legion high command abhorred the “abracadabran fantasy” the golden age of Hollywood wove around it – especially the idea of enlisted men casually drinking wine in the company of NCOs, officers and “semi-nude naked women jumping around in the streets” – though to little avail as the fiction was lapped up in ‘Anglo-Saxon’ countries and rarely to the Legion’s detriment.[3]

One might of course be tempted to over-correct and say the life of a legionnaire was one of absolute horror but that too would be its own myth, once again perpetuated by the novelists and memoirists gingering up their experiences and, from 1903 onwards, sustained propaganda from the German government who wanted to stem the flow of German volunteers (and army deserters) to the Legion.

Suffice to say the Legion was neither a bellyful of laughs nor continuous torture. But it was a hard life and these were hard men – in the truest sense – and they were treated that way by their superiors, with punishments such as the ‘crapaudine’ and more straightforward physical violence meted out for even minor transgressions.

Legionnaire Flutsch recalled a Corsican named Vittini who after a night out on the town and a skinful of wine in Sidi-bel-Abbés made the mistake of talking back to a corporal on guard duty.

Flutsch recalled: “Two seconds later, Vittini, dazed by a head butt right in the face, sat on the floor leaning against the table. The corporal, taking him by the shoulder and drawing him up, threw him down on his stomach. Holding him down with his knee, he grabbed a fist full of hair, and hammered his face on the flagstones, ignoring the cries of his victim….I saw Vittini, his face completely masked in blood which flowed from his nose, his mouth, his forehead… ‘Warning to you new boys who don’t yet know how to respect a corporal in the Legion,” [said the corporal.] “This is the first lesson.”[4]

From its very inception the Legion was not a romantic getaway for heartbroken lovers and gentleman rankers[5] but a dumping ground for the French government to put its undesirables and political and social radicals.[6] Another film version of the Legion that exaggerated its realities, this time for comic It filled its ranks with those cast adrift by their respective societies, misfits, perhaps effect when Laurel and Hardy criminally inclined or social outcasts and (very desperate) debtors, sometimes those realise that not only Ollie but simply bored and restless or actively seeking adventure, soldiering for soldiering’s everyone else in the Foreign Legion and the local war chief sake, those booted out of other arms of the service (usually for drunkenness) or even are all suffering from a bout of just the promise of a regular square meal. unrequited love for the same girl – Jeanie-Weenie A few officers might indeed be the younger, penniless sons of fallen noble houses but the enlisted men were often the scrapings from an increasingly urban, disenfranchised, grindingly poor, uneducated and politically volatile underclass in an ever more industrialised world. And France, the home and beacon of modern revolution and revolutionaries until Russia usurped it in 1917, did not want disaffected domestic or foreign nationals within its borders.

As Porch relates: “It [the Legion] served as a release valve for political and even political tensions, absorbing the unemployed (and the unemployable), the troublemakers and the penniless foreigners who might make mischief.”[7]

Minister for War Marshal Jean Soult, was even more damning in his appraisal soon after the Legion’s founding in 1834. He wrote: “As the Foreign Legion was created with the only purpose of creating an outlet and giving a destination to foreigners who flood into France and who could cause trouble… The government has no desire to look for recruits for this Legion. This corps is simply an asylum for misfortune.”

The notion of the Legion as a cast of noble castaways was partly created by legionnaires themselves through free and occasionally wild (mis)use of the anonymat, by which men perhaps seeking to escape the law or debt could sign up under a false name, with which often went an elaborate back story.

If a lot of Legion lore is fabricated then the amount they drank is perhaps the one thing that is not embellished. It was a time when people drank more than they do now as a matter of course and serious alcoholism was endemic in many societies – although even the amount that was consumed in the Legion was considered extreme.

The drinking culture of the Legion in its early days was undoubtedly fuelled not only by exaggerated social norms but the harsh discipline, dismal surroundings and the stress induced by the very real threat to life and limb through violence and disease.

There was also boredom and melancholy, known in the Legion as, ‘le cafard’ – ‘the cockroach’ – which was to be feared as much as any enemy ambush or psychotic martinet.

If the long stretches spent rotting away in sunbaked forts in the bled or in the malarial swamps of Madagascar and Tonkin was dreaded by the average Legionnaire, so too was the indignity of being used for menial labour by the French high command.

Being used as labour for road building was one thing – the tradition of soldiers building important infrastructure goes back to Roman times[8] – but being farmed out by unscrupulous officers to break their backs in quarries or fields while the locals looked on and mocked them was a smarter blow to their martial pride than any petty punishment for defaulting and it contributed to not only reduced operational effectiveness but also that most serious of all military problems – low morale.

Bad morale and melancholy was the canker that ate away at the heart of units left out of action too long and without officers and NCOs with the wherewithal to keep their men suitably occupied and motivated drunkenness and insubordination was often the result.

The view of the Legion as a home of dangerous malcontents and social outcasts also meant that in the early days there was very little interaction between the men and the locals wherever they were based. Girls from local European communities that emigrated to North Africa (the ‘colons’ or ‘pieds noirs’) turned their noses up at invitations to a drink or a dance and her watchful brothers would quickly descend on the would-be gallant with threatening intent.

This brutality and forced isolation no doubt partly explains, “the inclination of the legionnaires toward drunkenness,” wrote the Italian veteran Aristide Merolli (the high proportion of Germans was thought of as another by French generals), but, as ever, unpicking whether drink, “was a cause or a symptom of a deeper institutional malaise,”[9] is a Gordian task that defies easy answers. Suffice to say both drink and melancholy exacerbated the other.

Nonetheless, despite it all the Legion survived and prospered[10], carving out a reputation for itself built in no small measure on sheer bloody-mindedness.

A good example is the Legion’s defining moment, the Battle of Camarón (or Camerone) on 30 April 1863 during the French intervention in Mexico.

Legionnaires die hard at the Camarón hacienda in Mexico, 1863. The last stand of Captain Danjou’s detachment In what became a classic of the famous last stand genre against overwhelming odds has gone down in military Captain Jean Danjou and 64 legionnaires trapped in a little history and Legion lore as the epitome of the unit’s fighting hacienda held off 3,000 Mexicans for 10 hours until nearly spirit. everyone was dead or wounded and the water and ammunition had run out. The Mexicans were so impressed by the legionnaires that they let the three survivors go – Danjou not among them. Before he was shot dead he is reported to have inspired his men with fine words and a good deal of wine. His wooden hand is a treasured relic of the Legion today and paraded before the legionnaires every 30 April at the Legion base in Aubagne.

If alcohol was the bane of Legion life it could also be its boon. There’s no doubting that legionnaires gained the fighting reputation they did thanks to the strong bonds that grew between them as a result of shared hardships and getting good and drunk together – all of which coalesced into the absolute intangible every military strives to cultivate; ‘esprit de corps’.

If the Legion was despised then it despised everyone else back twice as much and its members took pride in being able to march further, fight harder, drink more and swear more imaginatively than any other unit in the metropolitan or African armies. The Legion came to view itself as a band apart and, naturally, one that was superior to other units.

It was often noted that drunk legionnaires roaming the streets went quietly when picked up by a Legion patrol but were liable to quick up a stink if manhandled by men from other corps. March or die might have been the order of the day in Madagascar or Tonkin but between themselves to turn down help to a fellow legionnaire was tantamount to treason.

As much as they may have fought each other during their fortnightly ‘cuite’, the rallying cry of ‘a moi, La Légion!’ echoing down a back alley was enough to bring every nearby legionnaire homing in to rescue a brother-in-arms and give his assailants (be they other French soldiers, police or the young local toughs) a thoroughly good kicking and tales of outnumbered legionnaires defending themselves against impossible odds in bar brawls were as revered as any Camarón.

As ungovernable as the legionnaires sometimes made themselves when in barracks, when in action they were transformed and many Legionnaires remembered how even the most hard-bitten brawler and inveterate drinker was transformed into the image of a perfect soldier when the bullets began to fly; kepi tipped back on his head, cigarette dangling from his lips as he calmly worked the bolt on his rifle and fired into the mass of enemies to his front.

The social lubricant of alcohol also had its uses in bridging the language gap between the polyglot recruits – an idea put forward by French psychoanalyst Roger Cabrol in a dissertation of 1971.[11]

Singing was the other and one actively nurtured by the Legion to this day. The Legion has a number of somber but moving ‘chants’ either French or ‘borrowed’ from other countries especially Germany.

Although French was the nominal language of the Legion, many soldiers in the early days only learnt enough to understand very basic words of command and these were as likely to be given in German much of the time given the high number of German and German-speaking legionnaires.

Although many men became good linguists, a large group of Germans of Poles in one unit might see no reason to learn much French which could make life rather lonely for a French, English, Spanish or Italian speaker with few compatriots around.

Flutsch described Legion life as a silent one, “punctuated by periodic periods of drunkenness.”[12]

Then again, just as it was in the equally linguistically diverse saloons of late 19th and early 20th century America, shared drinks in the canteens and local bars of Legion bases were important places for the men to get to know one another, their imperfect French anyway transformed into a unique Legion ‘argot’ peppered with all manner of buckshee words from the many homelands of the legionnaires (with ‘Goddam’[13] being the most popular English word).

Language skills are often touted as improving with a certain amount of moderate drinking and then past a certain point (when language skills of any sort are out of the window anyway) what anyone was speaking presumably didn’t matter. No doubt broke the ice with fellow foreign (quite literally) legionnaires over a bottle of wine or two – when they weren’t breaking them over each others’ heads that is.

Notes: [1] Published in 1924. [2] The ‘Riffians’ were tribesmen from the Rif Mountains in who resisted Spanish then French incursions in the 1920s in a brutal and largely forgotten conflict. [3] ‘Beau Geste’ was made into a silent movie in 1926. The film was so disliked by the Legion high command and subsequently became so controversial in France for its depiction of villainous Legion officers and NCOs and mutiny in the ranks that the classic 1939 version of the film starring Gary Cooper was banned in France until 1977. Incidentally, the name of the character that sets the plot of ‘Beau Geste’ in motion and is the central character in the sequel, ‘Beau Sabreur’ is Major Henri de Beaujolais. [4] Porch, op cit. p190 [5] Although in 1857 Lt Charles Zédé (of dueling fame) claimed rather entertainingly that his company was “permeated with the wreckage of vanquished parties” and included in its ranks a defrocked bishop of Florence, the descendant of an Eastern European dynasty and a Hungarian general who’d picked the wrong side in the revolution on 1848, as well as Spanish Carlists, Parisian revolutionaries and even a Chinese whose pigtail hung down beneath his képi. (Porch, op cit, p121) [6] So too, in a way, were the penal battalions known as the ‘Battalions d’Afrique’ – the ‘Bats d’Af’. [7] Porch, op cit, p172 [8] At least one Legion colonel roped his men into excavating old Roman sites in North Africa as it happens (which might at least have been somewhat interesting). [9] Porch, op cit p [10] Barring when it was briefly disbanded in 1838 after being effectively destroyed in the Carlist civil war in Spain. It was reconstituted in 1839. [11] L’adaptation a la légion etrangère; etude socio-psychologique, 1971; Porch, op cit, p308 [12] Porch, op cit, p186 [13] Strangely enough echoing the Hundred Years War when the French referred to the English as the ‘Goddams’ after what was clearly the medieval English soldiery’s favourite invective.

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