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VOLUNTEER ADJUTANCIESi 
harness, Staff Sergeant, Nos. 1, and drivers and officers are mounted, 
and in many cases are turned out in a serviceable and soldierly way, 
smart in every respect, and are no mean followers of tlie British Field 
Artillery. This perfection has not been arrived at without considerable 
difficulty. 
The horses for draft were the first consideration, and these have 
been lent to some corps by private firms and public corporations, or 
hired privately by others, as circumstances differed in various localities. 
At first these horses were used in the guns with their ordinary cart 
harness, the drivers being on foot, each man leading his own horse, 
and himself dressed in a loose smock or serge. It was soon found, 
however, that locomotion under these circumstances was exceedingly 
difficult, and in thoroughfares where traffic was going on being even 
dangerous when passing other vehicles. The two lead horses, with their 
drivers walking on either side, formed a very large front; the Sergeant 
No. 1 was supposed to march in front of his team and direct them by 
signal and command ; but he could not see all the drivers at once 
whatever position he took up, nor could the drivers see him or easily 
hear his voice; the lead drivers were not unanimous in the way they 
would pass obstacles, or even as to the particular spot which was best 
to make for. So that at last many corps began to buy R..A. harness at 
their own expense, and to mount the drivers as in the ft.A., and thus 
somewhat forced the hands of the War Office, till at length permission 
was granted to mount officers, Nos. 1 and drivers as in the Field 
Artillery. Of course this could not be done at once ; care had to be 
taken to find out what N.-C.O.'s and men were likely to make fair 
riders ; these had to be trained, either by using hired horses in the 
armoury field every evening in the summer, and giving riding and 
driving lessons, or by sending men to a riding school. By both these 
methods thoroughly good men were found and trained, affording there¬ 
by much pleasant work to the Adjutant and his staff if he were lucky 
enough to possess a N.-C.O. who had served in the Horse or Field 
Artillery. 
The whole of the mounted men of our corps soon learnt the sword 
exercise mounted, and the simpler battery movements; the emulation 
was pleasant to see. All the mounted N.-C.O.'s requested to be sent 
to the F.A. riding school, Newcastle, for a week, there to be perfected 
in their duties in stables, drill and riding; they sacrificed a week's pay 
to go, and lived in barracks, were very well received by the B.A. 
Sergeants' Mess, and obtained great credit for their smartness. 
The number of members passing through the ranks is large, about 
150 recruits joining, and 100 men or more leaving the corps every year. 
N.-C.O.'s do not leave as soon as some of the men—-no man, however, 
is supposed to resign until he has been efficient at least three years. 
In our corps the recruits came in pretty thickly in the spring and early 
summer, very few joining at any other time of the year, probably this 
was due to advertisements chiefly, i.e. } most of the work of the year 
was done between March and June, and thus the Volunteers were 
brought prominently before the public only during these months. For 
a few days after each march out (which was always through part of 
