< Previous34 T H E R I F L E M A N Sl-PThMBHR, 1943. experience of small bore rifle shooting has given full value on the service rifle ranges. * * St. John's Wood Unit, Women's Home Defence, 31, Fitzroy Road, London, N.W.I., have a Swift Training Rifle which they bought in order that their members might be trained in musketry, when there ■was no range at which they could shoot. As they are now able to go to a range to practice shooting, they feel that they are not making sufficient use of their Swift Training Rifie and would be willing to s e l l i t t o a n o t h e r c l u b . * The Rochdale Wardens R.C. have every reason to be pleased with the results of their first year's operations, and this was accentuated at the first annual general meeting of members held at Holroyd Street range on 12 July, 1943. The Chairman, Mr. N. Tattersall, stated that the club commenced with 102 members and now has 128. Of the thirteen matches shot, ten had been won with the average score of 90 per cent per shooter. Due to three teams having entered the S.M.R.C. Summer League, remarkable improvement had taken place in the respective averages of those concerned in such shooting, whilst a monthly handicap competition had been held for all members. Two of the winners of the six competitions have been lady members. In paying well deserved tribute to the respective club officials the ' Chairman said that on behalf of the Club he also wished to give thanks ' to the Chief Constable, Insp. Jacksoit, and P/C. Horsford, for the valuable help and assistance they had given the club in its early days. * * * The Association of Leeds and District Rifle Clubs held their second Open Meet of the year at their Cragg Hill range, on August Bank Holiday Saturday, Sunday and Monday. A good representative entry was received and shooting in keeping with the weather, was excellent. Honours went to G. F. Clyne of Bradford R.C. who won the Montague Burton Challenge Cup and the Association (S.M.R.C.) Silver Medal, and to C. V. Hill, Leeds City Police R.C., who won the Joshua Tetley Challenge Cup in the expert class. J. W. Naylor of Sheffield won the Pistol Competition with a " possible " the scoring in this being particularly high. Bradford R.C. won the Team Com petition from Leeds " A " with a score of 1178 x 1200. The cadets of the Horsforth Squadron A.T.C. performed the duties of Target changers to the admiration of the competitors and the organisers. The unfortunate accident on service to the enthusiastic and energetic Hon. Sec. Mr. G. B. E. Bumell, put him to bed for some days, and we deeply sympathise with him in this misfortune because we realise how keenly disappointed he must have been not to attend the fruits of his orga nisation, and to be deprived of shooting in the competitions. We are pleased to learn that after 24 days in hospital he is back in harness and making up for lost time. * * * We learn with deepest regret that several of our good friends of Guernsey, C.I. have been deported from that island to Germany It appear? that all Channel Islanders who held commissioned rank in the last war have been deported. We cannot give names in case of something even worse happening to our. old friends, but our mem bers in other parts of Britain who have shot matches with them for many years, using the service rifle, the .22 rifle, and the air rifle, will we feel sure deeply sympathise with their old co'mrades in the mis fortunes which have befallen them. It is something to know that Channel Islanders now widely dispersed, have never forgotten their friendly matches with the rifle shooting fraternity in other parts of Britain, and yearn for the days when something like old times can be restored. * * * The Rotherham and District M.R.A. had both perfect weather and a grand attendance on their first annual field day held on Saturday, July 24. when Mr. F. Erskine G. Watson of Aston presented the trophies for the Winter League and the knock-out competition. He commented on the rapid expansion of the Association since October last, when there were only 10 clubs with 22 teams, now there are 26 teams and a Home Guard section which had 12 teams competing in the Summer League. He thanked the officials and members for the success of the Association and presented trophies as follows :— Winter League Advertiser Cup, Maltby " A. " Runners up, E c c l e s fi e l d " A . " I Knock-out Competition for the Britain Cup and five silver m e d a l s . E c c l e s fi e l d " A . " The Mappin Cup was the trophy for the field-day competition and this was an individual choose-your-own-start compe tition, and resulted as follows : I. C. HorneSnr . 2. Mrs. Rands. 3. E. Cook, On Whit Monday the Wouldham Works R.C. held their first annual open air prize meeting at Brook's Quarry near Grays, Essex. It was in connection with the Grays and District " Holidays-at-Home " arrangements and nearly 300 people took part between the hours of 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., despite showery weather and open air firing points. The team championship Competition attracted 26 teams of four, and it was won by the Tunnel Works R.C. with a score of 358. The sharp shooter disc breaking competition for teams of three received 23 entries and after much excitement was won by the Wouldham Works Home Guard against the runners up the Tunnel Works R.C. Mean while there was an unlimited competition open to all comers, which was well supported. A special feature of the meeting was the Chal lenge Match issued by the Wouldham Works team of four against the best team of four made up from all comers. The challenger team won by 17 points with a total of 377 against the score of 360 by the all-comers team of Grays and District. In thanking all who helped to make this gathering an outstanding success, special thanks were given to Chief Sea Scoutmaster King and his troop of sea scouts for acting as range runners. The following organisers and assistants were also thanked : Organisers.—F. B. Hyde, Hon. Sec., and W. R. Marshall, Chief Range Officer. Assistant Range Officers.—H. A. Waters and R. W. Rodwell. Chief Statistical Of ficer .—P. S. Lee. Asst. Statistical Officer.—R. Mooring. Ammo, sales and entries.—E. E. Hickey. Refreshments.—Mrs. R. W. Rodwell. Range Wardens.—J. Dean, C. W. Goodrum, F. Kemp, W. Ashwell, S. Gristwood. * * * The Grange Villa R.C. Chester-le-Street, held its official opening day on August Bank Holiday Monday, when Mr. J. F. Gibson, J.P., local Home Guard Commander, fired the first card against a club juvenile. Mr. Gibson is also President of the Club and as such, thanked the officials for the hard work they had successfully tackled to create the Club. In hoping that it would progress in every way, he promised his own ardent support. A tea and refreshments fol lowed the Opening and all present had an enjoyable time. Novelty Shooting after tea provided all with an opportunity to win a prize, and the Lucky Shot Target proved a great attraction. The Club now has 52 adult members and 18 Juveniles from a small population of miners and their families. Finally, could any club or club member supply this club with a rifle, as the only two they own are getting too much work, and all local efforts to purchase or hire a rifle have proved unsuccessful. The range has been erected in the local British Legion Hut by labour and materials supplied by members. * * * For the Kent Home Guard Battalion Championships for the Lord Dudley Gordon and Major A. C. Bossom, M.P., Challenge Cups the entries for competition No. 6,' the Battalion Championships, for Division 1 (Aperture Sights), and Division 2 (Open Sights), have exceeded all records for Kent Home Guard competitions. The total entries are 348 teams of six. For this competition teams have to shoot three rounds, the aggregate scores to count. Points will be given as in Cross County Running and the Battalion whose first four teams make the lowest aggregate will win the cups. In addition to the foregoing a Tyros Competition has been organised for two challenge Cups for " young " soldiers who have Joined the Kent Home Guard since January 1, 1942. This is an Individual shoot of three rounds, in two divisions and the competition has received 395 entries. These two competitions have necessitated marking and despatching 8,493 cards which have to be returned to Mr. T. P. Hartley the Hon. Sec. Kent County Rifle Assn., for scoring and recording. He well earns his place on the S.M.R.C. Council. * * * A very interesting and keenly contested shoulder-to-shoulder match was shot on the Small-bore Range of the Royal Marines, Chat ham (by kind permission of the Commanding Officer), on Sunday, 8th August, between "A" Company 4th (St. Augustine) Battalion, the winners of Kent Home Guard Competition No. 5, for the Kent Home Guard Company Championship, and " D " Company, 18th (Dartford) Battalion, runners-up. In the last two Company Cham pionships " A " Company, 4th Battalion have won by the narrow margins of two and one points respectively, and in each match" D " Company, 18th Division have been the runners-up. This has added much keen and friendly rivalry, to this meeting. The match was arranged by Mr. T. P. Hartley, Hon. Sec., Kent County Rifle Asso ciation, who was present to referee the match. Among others present were :—Brigadier Craig, O.B.E., Commandant, Chatham Division, Royal Marines ; Colonel H. S. Franklin, C.M.G., C.B.E., D.S.O., Zone Commander, Kent Home Guard ; Colonel A. L. Forster, C.B., D.S.O., Commander No. 1. Group, Kent Home Guard ; Major Lord Dudley Gordon, D.S.O., 18th Battalion, Kent Home Guard. the final result uf the match was " D " Company, 18th Batta- WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKSl-PTITMBHR, 1943. T H E R I F L E M A N lion, 560 ; " A " Company, 4tli Battalion, 556. Silver Medals were presented to the Winning Team by Brigadier Craig, also a silver medal presented by the Kent County Rifle Association, to Sgt. H. W. Jones, tor the highest .score in the match. * * In the interests of Small-bore Rifle shooting Linotype and iMachinery Ltd. (small bore) Rifle Club, of Altrincham, has been running an Inter Services .22 competition in the Altrincham district between the following services 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 23rd Battalions of Cheshire Regiment, Home Guard, Altrincham Police Division, Al trincham Wing Air Training Corps, Army Cadets, National Fire Service, Altrincham Wardens, Timperley Wardens, and Hale War dens. The competition started as an inside competition in each of the above services to determine the best shots, after which a repre sentative team was selected for etich service. The Competition proper was then started on the " Knock-out " basis. The finalists were 23rd Batt. Home Guard and the Altrincham Police Division, of whom the former ran out the winners, the final round scores being :—23rd Batt. Cheshire Regiment Home Guard, 317 X 320 ; Altrincham Police Division, 310 x 320. Mr. A, A. Mc- Kinnell officiated as Range Officer in the final round, and the shooting was of a very high standard as slings were not allowed. The lino type Rifle Club provided rifles and the use of range, except for the final which took place at Home Guard Headquarters. The Al trincham Police Division are now members of this club, also the Altrincharn Section of the Women's Home Defence, although normally membership of the club is confined to employees of the firm, but this rule has been relaxed for the duration owing to the shortage of rifles and ranges. Mr. F. J. Hampson, J.P.," has kindly provided the prizes. * * * On the occasion of their Golden Wedding, Col. Sir Albert and Lady Bingham of Ranby House, Retford, received a large number of congratulations from friends near and far. Sir Albert, amongst his many other sporting interests is also a good marksman, as on several occasions he won the Officer's Cup of the "iforkshire Rifle Association. When in 1935 the Yorkshire Miniature Rifle Association was formed by Mr. Charles Laywood and his colleagues. Sir Albert Bingham presented the first Challenge Trophy for annual competition. This is only one of their many esteemed gifts of public benefit. In 1927 he and Lady Bingham gave the site and defrayed the cost of the erection of a Recreational Institute for the is; of the residents of Ranby. Therefore, we can all understand why, amongst others, on Sunday, August 29, he and his wife received the congratulations and good wishes of the small-bore rifle shooting fraternity. * * * The Caflferata R.C. -is one of the few that are keen enough to enter every competition that is available and not with only one team but with as many as the club can muster. The fruits of all this energy and enterprise are, first of all, the intensive interest that the large majority of the members take in their club, and the increased scoring records that naturally follow League Conpetition shooting. Shoot- in the in S.M.R.C. National League Competitions, their A, B. and C teams each put up their team record scores recently, the' A team achieving 1,932, the B team 1,894, and the C team 1,884. The con ditions are teams of five, forty shots per competitor,'twenty at two fifty yard Match cards and twenty at two one hundred yard Match cards. No fewer than seven members of the club passed their own best previous score and the best individual records in each section were :—A team, R. Priestley, 393, B team, F. Everett 387, and C. team, T. F. C. Downman, 380. * * At the annual meeting of the Lytham St. Anne's Rifle Cluh, the prizes were distributed by the President, Mr. F. Mayor. In the Women's section the club membership cups were won by Mrs. D. Lindsay (handicap and scratch). Miss L. M. Anderson won the cap tain's and vice-captain's prizes, lyliss P. Cottrill the rosebowl. Miss M. Holden, choose your own handicap, Mrs. Burrow, tyro handicap, and Mrs. M. E. Grundy the aggregate (gun score) prize. In the men's section, Mr. C. A. Smith carried off the captain's prize and the tyro handicap, Mr. A. Boyles the vice-captain's prize, Mr. R. Cook- son the president's prize, Mr. R. Hetherington the Cartmell Cup, and Mr. R. C. Jacklin the aggregate (gun score). » * The Worthing M.R.A., open small bore competition for SO-and 100 yards, held at St. Ronan's School, Worthing, on August 29, attracted 40 entries, and there was some excellent shooting. The winner was Mr. J. W. C. Harrison, of Brighton, the well-known international shot, who has represented Britain in the Dewar match and England on at least 20 occasions, both with Service and small bore rifles on five occasions, and the Pershing Match twice, seven times champion of Sussex from 1930 to 1937, and was in the King's Hundred a t B i s l e y i n 1 9 3 3 . T h e r u n n e r - u p w a s M r. W. M e d l o c k , o f t h e Petworth R.C., and Major Wood. He has been Officer Commanding E Company, Post Office Home Guard, who was placed third, was the best of the Worthing competitors. If all the challenge trophies now being presented to the Home Guard in many parts of the country are maintained by an annual Competition, there is every reason to look hopefully to the future by all concerned in the propagation of rifle shooting. .Major E. All- port has presented a challenge cup for battalions of the Home Guard in South Staflbrdshire zone which the 26th (Willenhall and W ednes- field) team has won. Apparently this success was a very popular one with all taking part. At the presentation L. Col. A. T. Champion in congratulating Lt. Corfield and his team, also paid tribute to Capt. J. Swales, the training assistant, and to Lt. Col. T. S. Smith, the last King's Prize winner at Bisley, for his work as range officer. * * * We are all looking forward to the time when small-bore rifle shooting at least will be included in municipal enterprise for recreation in every part of Great Britain. Already quite a few local Councillors have carried the idea into effect today and one of these is the Wembley Town Council. Therefore, we were interested by a recent match which took place between a team formed by the Mayor and Council, and a team representing the local Government officers, shooting with whom was the Town Clerk. The L.G. Officers, however, were much loo strong for the Council as they scored 630 points to 457. It means that the Council must have more practice. * * * The Swanley British Legion R.C. are inviting all their members and their friends to take advantage of fine Sunday mornings for their shooting practice in order to qua ify for S.M.R.C. Marksman Badges and Chevrons. It is hoped that other clubs will follow suit. * * * The Air Training Corps of the 21st F Lewisham Squadron have just held their annual Inter-Flight Competition for the cup presented by F/O. deSte. Croix. No cadet had fired before in this competition but the results were exceedingly close. C Flight headed the list with the score of 155 x 160, whilst A and B tied for second place with equal scores of 151 each. D Flight was not far behind with 149. No doubt similar competitions are taking place in the A.T.C. all over Britain. The S.M.R.C. Standard of Efficiency tests should help. * * * We learn from Association Secretary G. Christie, that the A.G.M. o f t h e A b e r d e e n a n d D i s t r i c t S . B . R . A s s o c i a t i o n i s d u e o n t h e f o u r t h Wednesday of September and will be held this year in the club rooms of the Portlethen Club, 254, Holburn Street, Aberdeen. Clubs are requested to send along representatives. County clubs which can not be represented this year on account of the lack of suitable trans port may nominate three members from any of the city clubs to look after their interests. Will new clubs and others outside Aberdeen shire and Kincardineshire, contemplating applying for membership to the association get in touch with the hon. secretary, 14,West Mount Street, Aberdeen, before the date of the A.G.M. * * 4 = As a result of the shoot off of the finals in its monthly club com petitions the Pirbrigbt and District R.C., report Messrs. R, Thurs- field 1st., 480, Alex. Martin, 2nd., 477, and J. Slocock, 3rd, 471. The conditions for this club spoon shoot are the five highest scorers of two shoots each at 25 and 50 yards during the month plus a shoulder- t o- sh ou ld e r 1 0 sh ot s at 10 0 ya r ds. Th e t ot a l sc o r e s d e c id e t h e placings and winners are penalised 3 points for a success in any month. For the Home Guard spoon shoot the conditions are for rifles with blade sight, no slings at military targets 25 yards range, the five highest scorers of two shoots during the month shoot five shots standing and five shots kneeling, to decide the places. From the double scores so. made. J. Thursfield was the winner with the score of 195. lii * * Whilst the first individual possible score had yet to be made by a member of the Stirling Women's Home Defence on 16th August, we now learn that one member. Miss J. Hillcoat, has got within one point of such an achievement. Our congratulations. With the darker nights approaching, the attendance at the range is increasing. New members are joining up and everything points to an increased membership this winter. A recent visit to this range by the S.M.R.C. Secretary in the company of Mr. D. W. Foster of Dunblane, and Capt. Reg. Horc, of the Alleyns School Rifle Club and the City of London League, confirms the opinion that this section of the W.H.D. means to main tain a high standard of shooting under the management of Capt. and Mrs. A. B. McKenzie, who are so enthusiastic and work so hard for it progress. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK36 T H E R I F L E M A N September, 1943. arrived here aftpr ^ Canada's Kingsley Wood, who has just London Reforp th" eight years, is no stranger to a member of thp he came to England five years running, as ra^ae rifle shL bp the team's crack long- range ntte shot, he won many prizes at Bisley 11, August 16, Mr. J. B. Rothnev President of the ins^rf^e"nresem Small-bore Rifle Association presided at a gather- nf thi S M R r u I G. Pethard, Secretary Diie resnee'. ^ hospitable invitation of Mr. W. D. Findlay. Hon Serrem^ the memory of their late good friend and cussion on ^ i hefore the usual interesting dis- w h i c h t h e p r o g r e s s o f t h e A s s o c i a t i o n i n future wnc ^ Supplies of ammunition for the present and [eires of tLTb'"^"' Sec- G. Christie, Ld his col- Speretar^ thp, Association were able to assure the Society's mn^ta ^"'i quantity of the ammunition wfnte? to be assured that the best forthenminp ^b Association's activities since the war, would be „f ->-) -iflp®' T ® crying need besides ammunition was for supplies d d'not matter Va u thcsB Were bolt action or Martini action ant rfse annoo t° f 5^! of the best competition standard. In keen a?f/a? .? ^°r the Society in the North East, was as nionshin of the°A J''® Ellon Rifle Club had won the cham- ?iam^ thi otnH ■" ''y ' ^'"8 place in Grade 1 of the ^ virds mnaec Tb^ cT® °1" '"o^r ten shots each at 25 and score of 796 x 8()0 " finished their matches with the * 4 = Mrs^^MnBi! u Yorkshire Association's 50 and ICQ yards League, R-fle n,?h baH ,b lil^.ens.tgetic Match Secretary of the Harrogate ^'donh e oo^ti ® ,l ° the only Competitor to score a nrem Lrfe f 'l^c ^vhole of the matches shot. Mrs. Ward is a great worker for rifle shooting. * * * '1^® members of the Dunblane Rifle Club excel in other recreations besides rifle shooting. For the second ifst war®h®fhT "te local bowls championship Wnne^ebyb ?' F^guson, another member of the Dun Wane club, met in the final which Mr. Leadbetter won. Davy Fos- tfear Jhm h m different parts of Great Britain will regret to mcf We f not beet! too well recently and has been ordered to and er, t f® ^1"® wishes of them all for an early fbal be 1 Foster may be depended upon to sec ■Cf , ? Itind her) orders completely. Meanwhic we are glad their family thrives at Ardgour. * * \ c tS R-r^bl district Wardens Rifle Club, which A. J. Palmer of the Mn t'l!l iAte®i'^f r°X°'^™' in plenty of match shooting to keep maieh nn the AHH^ their members. They recently fired and won a T nef ? b -h^^'k Southern Railway (Norwood Flub with the score of 1126 against the Southern Rail- \trc Pa? r f r® "I ntdividual scores for the Wardens were, ea^b ^ r 1' 1^' and R. T. Lawrence 98 d M L ? ^®'^''®! 5"" ll'® Southern Railway were Mrs. Brooks 97 mateh t fb ^b^" ^6 cach. They have also had a postal match with their fellow Wardens at Rochdale with teams of c®'t, won by Croydon who made 1873 to ri d °QQ n'l ''®-'^' scores in the Croydon team were. .N. Hodges 99, Mrs. Palmer and W. W. Brannon 97 each, and the best m ft oe 1? ^^'®'^® Turnbull 99, B. Mortimer, R. H. Law and T. Piatt 98 each. * * » We have just heard from Signalman Glyn Ellis who is with the horces in Africa, and all his friends wiil be glad to know that he is enjoying the best of health. He informs us that he has lately heard from Lt. Col. W. B. Rowntree, O.B.E., to the effect that he is now well again aftei a period in hospital. Members of the Lensbury and Britannic House, Lpper Tooting Church Institute and Embankment Clubs will be interested in this news, * * * We are glad to receive the information that the Portsmouth Pas senger Tramsport Rifle Club has been revived after being in abeyance for tour years. "They are having quite a successful time already and have won ihcir first six matches against various opponents repre senting Police and Home Guard teams. * t i c ^ The final of the team championship for the Metropolitan Special Constabulary was shot shoulder-to-shoulder on the Imber Court range on Saturday, August 7, and after a very close tussle was won by F Division with a score of 552 against 550 by X Division. During the course of the afternoon a match through the ranges was shot by a team representing the whole of the Metropolitan Special Constabu lary against another team drawn from the Metropolitan Police This match was a very enjoyable affair and the M.S.C. were quite satisfied to run their formidable opponents so close as they did. The Metro- P°/'f" won the match with a score of 2,942 against the Specials total of 2,89L The targets for the final were scored by F. J. Tuck- nott, S.M.R.C. * * * The Individual Cbampionsbip of the Metropolitan Special Con- stabu ary took place on the City of London Police range on Thursday July 15, and after an exciting match in which two tie cards had to be shot by the first and second men, the championship was won by Inso Hudspflb, C Division with a score of 287, S/C. Pratt of X Division With 287 was second, C/I Wadson, F Division was third with 286 and S/C. Elvin, the previous holder was fourth with 283. All the pre liminary rounds of this competition were shot on Divisional ranges and the leading 16 competitors met on the Police range to shoot the final stages. The-cards of the match were scored by F. J. Tucknott .of the S.iM.R.C. * * * An interesting match was shot between the City of London Police and the Metropolitan Special Constabulary on the City Police range on Thursday, July 15. Despite improvement by the Specials the City Police again won the match by 1,154 points against 1,137. During the evening opportunity was taken to wish God-speed to the popular range attendant " Bill " White who now joins the Roval Air Force imrnediately and is looking forward to the opportunity to prac tice his skill as a shot to rid the world of a few more undesirable per sons. . * * The team which Shot in the forty-first division of the Summer League under the title " A.T.A., Hamble, A.S.T." is composed of lady Ferry Fdots, and in a recent match, ladies from the Lf.S.A., South Afnca, Poland and England, comprised the team. These ladies do not have a lot of time for shooting, but are most keen. Mr. F. H. Ford, their coach, who sent us the information, also states that his Air Training Corps team from the 1917 Squadron recently won the Southampton and District Shooting Competition at the University College range, despite a ten points penalty, which, under S.M.R.C. rules, would have been one point only. There were ten teams com peting. * * * Medals for the C Team Croydon A District Wardens R.C., who had achieved second place in the 42nd Division of the S.M.R.C Winter League were presented by Mr. G. Pethard, Secretary, S.M.R.C., at a well attended gathermg on the evening of Tuesday, 29th June, when Mr. A. S. Ridz, the District Warden and President of the Club, stated that it was a most creditable performance that the Club, which had been in being only since August, 1942, should have gained a prize winning place in an open National Championship. Mr. A. J. Palmer, ex-Captain ot the Llub, who was responsible for the opening and running of the range gave full details of the A, B and C Teams all competing in open competitions. Of the 58 matches shot, they had won 44, tied 2 and lost 12. He has suggested that the club should continue after the war as an open club. As this was his last night before joining H.M. Forces, he took the opportunity of thanking members for the strong backing he had received and gave a word of encouragement to his successor as Captain Mr. N. Hodges. * * Referring to the Sunbury-on-Thames M.R.C., a writer in the Middle sex Chronicle states " What struck me most was the very pleasant atmosphere which prevailed amongst the members and I must con fess I have never met a more jovial and sporting lot of men in my life." Apparently the Council Chamber of Staines is fully represented and the writer suggests a match between Staines and Sunbury councillors in aid of some war charity. * * * The Stirling Women's Home Defence Rifle Club held a Gala Night at the Golden Lion Hotel, when Sir George Stirling Bart., Lord Lieu tenant of the County was present to distribute the prizes of the Club, and Mrs. F. M. Balungall as President, was in the chair. Capt. A. B. Mackenzie, the Hon. organiser of the club was also present to be thanked for the great success which had followed his efforts of a year ago, until at the present time there were no fewer than 180 members. His daughter, Mrs. C. A. Crossiand, had won the Championship, and his wife was runner up, in that Championship, must have added to his gratification that the Club had been sticli a success. Mr. J. J. Munro, O.B.F., who presented the Cup for the Club's Infirmary Competition to the winner. Miss E. L. Blair. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK37 At the Denstone College Speeeh Day when Group Captain Lord. G.N., Douglas Haiiiilton, O.B.E., A.F.C., presented the prizes, the Headmaster in his interesting report was able to state that the boys had received a considerable amount of pre-service training. The J.T.C. continue to work very hard and earn good reports from its inspecting ofTieers besides some cadets being able to give valuable service to the country, others had assisted by giving help to the Army Cadet Force. In shooting the College had won the County of Lan cashire Miniature Rifle Shooting Cup and gained the third place in the " Country Life " .22 Shooting Competition. * * The Stormontfield Ladies' Miniature R.C., in the Wings for Victory Week held a whist drive and dance which realised the sum of £14. * * The enterprising Keighley R.C. always has a full programme of interesting competitions. In the shoot for the E,\-Service men's Cup, which was shot under sealed handicap conditions the result was a tie between H. Cundall and E. Martindale. We were glad to see them entertaining a Police team recently for a teams of five match, which the Club team won by a close margin of 3 points. Their Summer Meeting on 29th August was well attended despite adverse weather. Messrs. E. Pickard, F. Pickles and H. Tovey were well to the fore. * * Major General P. J. Shears, who on behalf of the S.M.R.C. re cently presented the Mackworth Praed Challenge Cup to the winner of the second Home Guard Competition, organised by the Society, has now officially opened a new rifle range for the 7th Bn. West Riding Home Guard, which was built entirely by these volunteer soldiers in their spare time. Fatigue parties have built it in six weeks, under the ! supervision of a builder, a member of the Home Guard, who carried out the brick work. After firing the first shot, Major General Shears . stated " Your range is better than many regular army rifle ranges on which I have fired." * * * Malton R.C. is to be open for women personnel of Civil Defence on the first Monday in each month. The club is already being used b y m e n o f t h e C i v i l D e f e n c e a m o n g o t h e r o r g a n i s a t i o n s . T h e r e has at different times been a successful women's section of the club. * * » The Suffolk County Rifle Association, although in a district badly pestered by air raiders, has never ceased to continue its operations ! and to run Leagues in each season of the year before and since the war c o m m e n c e d . M e s s r s . W . J . A r t i s a n d A . C l e e v e s e a r n o u r w a r m approval. * * * Following the first annual meeting of the revived Hampton R.C., ! at which Councillor W. J. Slade, the Chairman, told the 57 members i that £121 had been raised from donations and annual subscriptions, on Saturday, September 4, the Mayor of Twickenham, Councillor W. A. Cooke, opened the new range of the club and the Lady Mayoress who is a member ofthe club, fired the first shot. Mr. Wyatt, Hon. Sec. ■ was able to state that the membership had risen to 103 members, which included 26 women and 26 juniors. Moreover' due to the generosity of local residents £160 had been raised, whilst a silver Challenge Shield . had been given to the Club by its President Mr. V. K. Gould, and i silver medals presented by Messrs. Slade, Wyatt and Heath, Chairman, ! Secretary and treasurer respectively. After the lady Mayoress had fired the first shot the Mayor declared the range open and Major J. ' Hepburn proposed a vote of thanks. In seconding the vote of thanks, Mr. G. Pethard, the Secretary of the S.M.R.C., stated how glad they j all were at Headquarters to see the revival of this famous old club. ' Mr. S. G. Mason, one of the originill members of the old Hampton Hill R.C., recalled that in 1902 Lord Roberts had opened the first club, and the members of it had made a national name for the Club in the rifle shooting fraternity. A disc breaking competition followed in which the Hampton Mobile Police beat the Diamond family team from Sunbury in the final round. * * * The Insurance R.C. of Glasgow, have a way of utilising the mem bers mistakes to help charities. They fine their memebrs who fire shots on the wrong targets and the fines collected are put aside to help deserving charities. The Bulletin and Scots Pictorial acknowledges another gift and recalls that whilst last year they received £2 from the club, this year they have received £3 3s. We wonder if our good friend McMonnies or Mr. Balfour have devized this method of capi talising mistakes. Apparently the members are not reformed by it, as they appear to be more anxious than ever to contribute to charities. * * * The Harehills Comrades R.C., Leeds, now have a new 25 yards range which was officially opened on Sunday, July 11. Better the day, better the deed. It is situated on the premises of Messrs. J. Davenport and replaces the earlier indoor range. There was a large crowd for the opening and Mr. J. C. Davenport fired the first shot to score a bull's eye Mr. W. Rawlings, the Chairman and Captain of the club, spoke of the team spirit and good comradeship of the mem bers that had enabled the range to be built. It was built by themselves and they shifted 80 tons of earth besides constructing a 10ft. wall, with not a skilled bricklayer amongst them. The Club has 50 mem bers and General Ramsden as President, whilst a W.H.D. Corps are now to practice at the new range. * * * On the Police Sports Ground at Sowerby Bridge, in connection with the Halifax West Riding Police Sports Association, the standard of shooting was very high in their annual competitions the winner being Constable Woodcock of Hebden Bridge, with Sgt. Johnson of Elland as the runner up. In the Revolver Championship event Con stable Woodcock was again the winner, and Constable Booth of Luddenden Foot was second. The rifle range has been brought up to modern standards and was opened by Colonel Beake and Insp. P e z e t . T h e w i n n e r o f t h e c o m p e t i t i o n w h i c h f o l l o w e d w a s C o n stable Telford, with a total score of 61 out of a possible 65. * * * The Norwich Miniature R..A., recently held their shooting com petitions at a meeting on the Gothic Rifle Range, Norwich, by kind permission of Laurence, Scott and Electro Motors Ltd., the respective winners being as follows :—Any Sights, J. Culley (Electricity) 100 ; Aperture Sights, E. Steward (Specials) 95 ; Open Sights, H. Holder (Home Guard) 88 ; Double Metric Targets, G. Sturgess (Specials) 199 ; Pairs, J. Culley (Electricity) and Miss Drew (North Norwich) 196. The Sharp Shooter teams of three event was won by Electricity, who beat Eaton in the final. Lt. J Paine distributed the prizes after the statistical work had been carried out by Messrs. J. Paine and E. C. Storey, whilst O. F. L. Green was the organising secretary. Like their members we are all very grateful for the enterprise and work of these officials who have given many years good service to this organisation. » Mr. George Hicks, Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Works, presented the prizes at the miniature rifle shooting competition between teams from the Royal Parks for a silver Challenge Bowl given by Lord Portal, Minister of Works. The Richmond Park team were the winners with the score of 745.7 out of a possible score of 808, whilst the individual highest score was won by Park-keeper Hayes of the winning team, with the score of 96.5 x 101. The Hampton Court team were the runners up with the score of 735.1. Mr. Hicks, in presenting the prizes emphasised the value of such meetings in pro moting a spirit of good comradeship amongst the men of the various Parks, and complimented the men on their good shooting. * * The aggregate age of four brothers and two sisters of a Biu-ley-in- Y'harfedale family is 472 years. All the four brothers are members ofthe local rifle club, and they are Jack Lupton 77, William 79, Walter 84, and Albert 87. » * " That's my son," Mrs. Blakely, of Dunbar Road, Portsmouth, proudly declared when told that the youngest invader of Sicily was Bugler John Hamilton Blakely, of the Royal Marines. An Associated Press message said that the boy was aboard a cruiser operating in Catania Bay. John reached his 16th birthday only on June 9. He joined the Royal Marines as a boy of 14 after leaving Greenwich School two years ago. " I have not seen him for twelve months," his mother added Bugler Blakely's grandfather, now 79, served as a Royal Marine gunner in the last war. His father was a survivor from the Fiji, at Crete. His eldest brother, Raymond, adds the Daily Mirror, is an artificer in the Fleet Air Arm, and another brother, Donovan, aged 14, is waiting to join the Royal Marines. ^ Claim to be the oldest Home Guard in the country, is made by Mr. George Robson, \^'allington Street, Witbington, Manchester, who will be 82 in September. A private; doing clerical duties, he has taken courses in rifle and Sten carbine, and has been on route marches. He was given up for dead 30 years ago when he had double pneumonia. » * * A miniature rifle range for members of the 6th Cadet Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment is to be set up in the dressing rooms at the Lordship Recreation Ground, Tottenham. * * The Newton Town Miniature R.C., Devon, with a mixed member ship never fails to publish weekly results of its handicap competitions for its numerous members. At present they arc competing for two trophies the " Porte " Cup and the Anderson Cup, and we note with interest that Mrs. Holmes with a gun score of 97 and a handicap start WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK38 T H E R I F L E M A NSeptember, 1943. of 1.87 for a total of 98.87 is leading in the former, whilst in the latter Mr. F. Penning with a gun score of 92 and a start of 8 shares top with Mr. M. Prowse with a gun score of 85 and a start of 15. The Anderson Cup is a Choose your own Start competition whilst the former is a dropped point handicap. * * * Bridlington Town, which has been " Knocked about a bit " still has in operation its rifle club, but we notice that in its last match of the season it lost by 15 points to the Leeds X team with a score of 582. In any case we have to congratulate Mr. W. S. Cocker and A. D. Sinclair for both making highest possible scores. Many friends of .Mr. A. Sinclair will be pleased to feel that he is still going strong. He made many more friends during the S.M.R.C. meeting at Bridlington, when he was so helpful to all of us. * * * The Whitley House (Poplar) Cadet Corps now affiliated with the S.M.R.C. begins to show some very good marksmanship at the weekly miniature range practice and we are looking forward to their doing well in the forthcoming A.C.F. Competition organised by the Society. A wounded member of the Rifle Brigade, an old Poplar boy, is being adopted by the unit and the lads will see that he gets a good supply of comforts and reading matter. The Rifle Brigade is the parent regiment of the Whitley House Cadet Corps, Unity Hall, 56, East India Dock Road. 4: « * Admiral Sir Edward Evans at Nottingham, when praising the work of the Home Guard and local rifle clubs, also referred to the Women's Voluntary Services as the Army that Hitler forgot." He suggests that their great work is worthy of an eloquent writer's authorship of a book under the title " Women's Victory Service." * * » For the ofhce of Sheriff of Poole, Dorset, the Council have nomi nated Councillor H. D. Hunt, who was at one time a keen footballer and rifle shot. * * * During the past six years the rifle section of Gloster Aircraft Sports and Social Club has shot consistently in summer and winter under all conditions both miniature and service. At the present time, three county cups and some 50 medals are held and their A team was runner H P S . M . R . C . W i n t e r L e a g u e , a n d n o w h e a d me 10th Division of the S.M.R.C. Summer League. Mr. Sims \V. Reeves for his outstanding record over the past two seasons with an average of 99 x 100 stands pre-eminent. It is one of the finest achieve ments known in the county. In handing over the R. A. Withers Cup, Mr. Cyril Burrows voiced the heariv congratulations of the shooting fraternity. * * We are glad to see Market Rasen again coming to the fore in rifle shooting matters at a recent match for the North Lincolnshire S.A. Cup for Home Guard teams. The No. I Platoon Market Rasen beat the Louth Battalion by a narrow margin in the semi-final. * * Since their formation in March, 1941. the Malvern Post Office Ladies Rifle Club have been beaten only three times and their last defeat was so long since as October 2. 1941. The team is captained by Miss G. M. Morgan and trained by Mr. W. Walker. * * 4 = At the Annual Meeting of the Fordsham Miniature R.C., it was decided to run a Ladies Section. Mrs, Beresforcl Jones was elected president, and Miss Cragg secretary, whilst Major Ashton was elected president, and E. A. Glover Chairman., Mr. Lomax Hon. treasurer, and Mr. S. Ravenscroft secretary. » * * The Weybridge R.C. revived a pre-war custom on Whit-Monday when It ran its shooting competitions at the Brooklands Rifle Range. The combined " Choosc-your-own-Start Competition was won by Miss E. M. Poulter and a "Card" Competition by Mr. J. Stock, after tying with Miss Poulter. A hidden target shoot was won by Mr. Pimm and the Pairs Competition by Mr. Barrett and E. Wallis after a double tie which failed to separate these two, and they agreed to share the prize. 4: « S: " I am none too good a shot." confessed the Mayor, wnen ne opened the N.A.L.G.O. rifle range at the Wembley Town Hall last Tuesday evening. Recalling his soldiering days in the 1st war, the Mayor said that on his very first day of entering the Army, his camrj was attacked by a zeppelin. and he was handed a rifle and five rounds and told to " hit the thing." " 1 was so good a shot " he concluded, "that 1 was transferred from that regiment and made a .sergeant bomb instructor." Councillor Barton fired the first shot lltat officially opened the range, which will be the training ground for the Wembley Rifle Club branch of the National Association of Local Government Officials. * « * The C.O. of the Angus Cadet Battalion, Lt. Col. A. C. Whyte, has given permission to a former Champion of Scotland marksman, Mr. W. F. Ferrier, Secretary of the Angus and Mearns League to •Tart up two divisions of 11 teams each for units of the Army Cadet Force in Eorfar, Brechin, Montrose, Arbroath, Newtyle, Glamis, ■ Inverarity, Muirhead, Kirriemuir, Barry and Eriockheim. We feel Mire friend Ferrier will make a good job of it. 4: * * The Midland Small Bore R.L., is announced elsewhere as holding its annual meeting at the Exchange Restaurant, Stevenson Place, Birmingham, at 7.30 p.m. on Monday, September 27, and nearly 250 rifle clubs of the Midland Counties have been invited to attend when the secretary of the S.M.R.C. will preside as the League's Chairman. In the Coventry Evening Telegraph of the 17th August, a very good picture of the G.E.C. (Coventry) Rifle Club team appeared. This team won the F. W. Jones Trophy as Champions of the second Divi- . sion of the Midland Small Bore Rifle League last season. The League is expected to have at least six divisions this coming season. * * * A few months ago the Petersham and Ham Group of Sea Scouts under the direction of Insp. R. Edden of the Richmond Police decided to form a rifle club. Under the capable tuition of Messrs. Waiting and Edwards in a very short time they were strong enough to enter a senior and tt junior team for the Duke of Connaught Challenge Shield Competition open to all scouts in the United Kingdom. These two teams after only ten weeks of training finished very near the top of a record entry of teams competing. The senior team finished fourth with 701 points and the juniors seventh with 632 points. * * The Barrow-iu-Furness R.L., which includes teams from Vickers Works, Home Guard, A.T.C., Police, B.H.S., and others, has again had a successful season by running two divisional leagues the first of which was won by Vickers S.C. A. team after a very close finish with the Home Guard as the latter only lost the final match by one point in a total of 369. Division 2 has been well won by the Police who w e r e s u c c e s s f u l i n t h e w h o l e o f t h e f o u r t e e n m a t c h e s s h o t . E n t e r prising August Bank Holiday shoots were also very successful. * * For the Civil Defence Forces of Shrewsbury .22 shooting compe titions organised by Chief Constable G. H. Macdivitt, no fewer than 48"teams entered. A silver challenge cup has been presented by Mr. W. H. Paton, the Chief Warden in the borough. There is also an individual competition for civil defence workers in progress and over 200 individual entries have been received for it. Typical of similar enterprise all over the country it indicates that .22 rifle shooting is being regarded by such workers as a means of welfare and comradeship. 4 * * Lady Featherstone-Godley, whose husband is so well-known in the British Legion, presented savings certificates as prizes to the win ners of .22 rifle shooting competitions held in connection with Alex andra Rose Day collections in Kensington. The originator and organiser was Mrs. Koop. The venture resulted in an additional £20 lor the Rose Day fund. Sgt. Treverton of the R.A.S.C. with a score of 100 was the winner and he was closely followed by Cpl. Juggins of the same Corps with 99, whilst S/P/S. Clayton of the Police was third with 97. A special complimentary prize was presented to Mrs. Elsie Baker of the Chiswick Women's Home Defence as she was the only woman to lire on equal terms with the men after tying for second place. Thanks were recorded ,to the Kensington Rifle Club, the Kensington Barracks, and the Lex Garage for allowing their ranges to be used, and to the S.M.R.C., for its assistance. 4 : 4 s * At the invitation of Mr. A. W. Dods, C.I.E., of Pinewoods, Shir ley Hills Road, Croydon, a very interesting match was shot between the Police, the local Heavy A.A. Regiment and the Ballards Rifle Club who represented the Civil Defence. The competition was over the 25 yards range and consisted of 10 rounds on a 5 buM unit sighter target followed by 2 single bull targets, 5 rounds being fired at each from an unknown range the firing point being decided by the judge at the last second without previous notice to the teams. No sighters were allowed in the latter but each shooter was shown his first target before firing the second. Blade fore-sights were used throughout the match. Ballards quickly established a useful lead and ran out winners vyith a score of 1019, the Police being second with 959 and the Army third with 789. Their host entertained the party to tea and Mr. B. H.Gilbert, the captain of the winning team, called for ancnthusi- iistic vote of thtinks to Mr. Dods. Such matches can never be too often. Undoubtedly shouldcr-to-shouldcr shooting is " the goods." WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK39 Major A. C. Stoncman recntly received from Sir Harold Harms- worth the Harmsworth Challenge Cup, and this was followed by the Bedford Cup. These were both won by the C Company of the Ply mouth Bn. Home Guard for miniature and open range shooting. * * * A m a t c h a c r o s s t h e o c e a n b e t w e e n t h e H a r r o w R . C . L a d i e s a n d a ladies team in the U.S.A. has been shot with much interest, the result is now awaited from the interchange of targets. * * Following our announcement in the last issue that Major Thomas Sutton, of Eastbourne, a member of the Executive Committee and Council of the S.M.R.C., had been appointed Acting Commanding Officer of the 2Ist Sussex Home Guard, we now have to congratulate him upon his advancement in rank from Major to Lieut./Colonel. His many friends in the shooting world will join with us in hearty congratulations. * * The Swansea R.C., concluded a Wings for Victory competition by which the Red Cross funds have benefited to the extent of £27 8s. A total of 464 entries were received from Swansea and West Wales. All the prizes for the competition were contributed by members and friends of the club and consisted of savings certificates, the leading prize winner being Mr. W. T. Jones. The club captain. Mr. E. J. Thomas and his colleagues are to be complimented on such helpful enterprise; A special feature in the prize list was the award to Master J. Howells, aged 8+, the youngest competitor, who made a score of 194 using a rest for his rifle. ^ ^ ^ it has been very gratifying to the officials of the llfracombe R.C., who recently revived its activities after being in suspension since 1940, that their action has been justified by the excellent results since achieved. The members have enhanced their reputation as marks men. Teams coach Mr. A. P. Hailstone is to be congratulated upon his good work. We are glad to note that both the military and .A.T.C. were concerned in the teams. * * The six divisions of the East Riding Police compete annually for the North Riding Shooting Cup a trophy which was presented to the East Riding Constabulary by the North Riding Police many years ago. On this occasion the Borough Division team won the trophy. No doubt this result is due to the fact that Supt. A. C. Bowler gives h i s e n t h u s i a s t i c s u p p o r t . * * * ■ Mr. A. T. D. Tipping of Wallasey, as long ago as 1906 was in the final for the King's Prize and has been in the final stage at Bisley on no less than seven occasions. He has now won the silver spoon of the Altcar R.C., with the outstanding score of 98 points which is seven points above the next best competitor. This latest success shows that his holding, aiming, and trigger pressure arc as good as ever. * * * The Smith-Ryland Challenge Cup for the best aggregate score on all ranges of the Barford and Sherborne R.C., one of the oldest clubs in the country, was won by H. Currall closely followed by S. Bromley. The Burton Handicap Cup was won by Mr. B. Winston with Mrs. L. Horton runner up. The trophies were presented by Mrs. V. Cart- wright and as the club now has a goodly number of lady members it is hoped to obtain a special cup for them very soon. t * i - f To mark the remarkable record of 50 years service with Messrs. Kodak Ltd., Miss Rosalie Harvey has not only received from the firm an illuminated address but a number of other gifts in recognition of what is felt to be a record for any lady worker in any firm. Appa rently she took up her duties on July 24, 1893, at the age of 16. On the corresponding date this year a lunch was given in her honour and the presentations hiade. Messages of congratulation have been re ceived from all Kodak branches which include one from Rochester, New York Up to a few years ago Miss Harvey was a very keen mem ber of the Kodak Rifle Club^ ^ ^ With the Cadets forming a hollow square the Mayor of Ealmouth (Alderman W Reep, O.B.E.), presented the Cadet Trophy for minia ture range shooting after a Sunday afternoon parade at the Parish Church This parade consisted of all kinds ot cadets in the town ■md the salute was taken at the War Memorial by Admiral Sir Bertram Thesiger, K.B.E., C.B., C.M.G., The winning team was the A Coy., 1st Cadet Bn. D.C.L.l. » * The final shoot in the Grimsby and District Small Bore R.L., has resulted in section 3-4 winning the first prize with the splendid score of "'4 X ''6 points. Thus for a short while the heavy labours of our i old friend G. Chambers will be in abeyance. Undoubtedly, he has the appreciation and thanks of all competitors as he has ours. The -winning section under the captaincy of Cpl. W. Tomlinson has again proved the value of consistent markmanship which League shooting propagates. Commencing with scores of 134 x 150 they finished with one score of 146 and four scores of 144, representing an improvement of two points a match per man above the earlier scores. The runners up under the captaincy of Cpl. A. Priestley were only two points behind the leaders, but formed the unfortunate habit of staging their low shoots against the best and vice versa. Under the captaincy of Cpl. S. Coulbeck the third position was won by section 2-5 which held the leading position until the 11th round when it was unable to stretch that little bit extra, which makes all the difference in a keen finish. There were 14 teams in the League and its object was fulfilled Ly the all round improvement of consistent shooting which took riacc. » # * Satisfactory progress is reported by the Horsham M.R.C., as a nuniber of new enrolments have come in and a high standard of shoot ing is being maintained especially amongst the younger members, who are showing great promise. * « The ladies section of the Bishop's Hull, M.R.C., which was only formed in January this year, are doing well together with the junior boys team section which is being encouraged in every way. ■ * S s * Unbeaten in the whole of the 14 matches of the Worthing M.R.A. Summer League, Chatsworth Rifle Club A Company. (H.Q. Com pany 5th Sussex Worthing Home Guard), were successful in winning the first division whilst the winners of the second division were the Police B team. At the General Meeting it was agreed that there should be three divisions each of six teams, and the shoots for each to last over a period of ten weeks. The meeting also agreed in principle to an inter- division knock-out competition to precede the League season, and left the matter to the Executive Cofnmittee to deal with. The question of shoulder-to-shoulder shooting was also referred to the Executive. The annual report was presented by Police Sergeant A. Pennicott, and the Chairman, commenting on it, said that things seemed to have worked smoothlv and satisfactorily ; there had been no complaints of any consequence, and minor difficulties which cropped up had been smoothed out. The accounts showed the Association to be financially on the right side. Councillor Mason (who was re-elected Chairman), presented the cups and medals won. * During Hartlepool's " Holidays-at-Home " the .22 rifle shooting competitions were a feature. The team championship resulted in the Hartlepool Rifle Club being first, closely followed by the West Hartle pool Police and the Hartlepool Borough Police, whilst the individual championship went to R. C. Smith of the rifle club. P/C. Sessford being the runner up. In the Police competition, W. M. Scott was the winner whilst the Services Team competition was won by the Sussex B team the Navy being second. The Individual Servicemen's Cham pionship was won by 1. Brownbridge (R.N.), and the Veterans' Com petition by R. C. Smith. The Junior Services' Competition was won bytheA.C.F . ^ ^ ^ The Secretary of the S.M.R.C. was able personally to congratulate Mr. Angus King of the Bridge of Allen R.C., when in the company of Mr Davie Foster of Dunblane, and Captain Reg. Hore of Alleyns Old Bovs R.C., he learned that due to the enterprise of Angus during the Wings for Victory week, he and his club members had raised a sum of just over £60 for the purpose of starting a fund to provide Christmas gifts for the men and women of the town serving in His Majesty's Forces Besides shooting with the .22 rifle, there was air rifle shooting and bagatelle competitions. Miss C. Morrow won the expert .22 rifle competition with the possible score of 50. lii * * The Duke of Wellington, now a Commando captain, has been taking part in the Sicilian operations. He was with the raiding party which landed in north-eastern Sicily. Before the .war, as Lord Mornington he was a lieutenant in his ancestral regiment, the Duke of Wellington's. He served for 18 months m Malta. Early in 1939 he joined the King's African Rifles, and served in the Abyssinian canipaign In 1941 his father died and he succeeded to the Dukedom. He is 31 the great-great-grandson of the Iron Duke. He has some thing of'his famous ancestor's build, but not his nose. His father, on the other hand, had the nose, but not the build. Over a year ago. he returned to this country and took his Commando training. While here he look his seat in the House of Lords. The Duke is an expert rifle shot. He was also an archery enthusiast. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK40 T H E R I F L E M A N September, 1943. ^ Sun drenched skies of deepest azure hue. Fleecy clouds adrifting through the blue. On mossy couch, lie basking in the sun. Long hours of sunshine still to run. Lazily you drift away the afternoon. Shooting time comes stealing all too soon. Nature seems to help me with a zest. For haste I cannot. Lord! Just let me rest. That, you'll find is outdoor shooting." Whenever the outdoor range can be got into order,- the members u 5 W.H.D. will start outdoor shooting. None of them ■ outdoor experience, so all are looking keenly forward to U. Meanwhile they have an invite by D.W.F. to attend the Dunblane R.C. on Sundays. * * * G. M. Munro thanks the Worthing local Press for the publicity they have given to the Association's League during its season's run, and states that shooting will commence again in October. Actually, the people to be congratulated are Mr. Munro and the members of me Committee, including the President, and Mayor (Alderman A. Chambers) and the Chairman, Councillor J. A. Mason, who have done a fine piece of work in popularising .22 rifle shooting in the Borough and also in the surrounding district. * * * The 21st Lewisham Squadron A.T.C. maintained their reputation for shooting when a visit was paid to Beckenham for a shoot against ^ckenham Wardens. Remarkable shooting was done by both teams the result being a tie, each team scoring six possibles. Of those counted out, the Cadets dropped three points and the Wardens one. As this was only the third match in which the majority of the Cadets had fired. It was a very fine effort for their part. * * The re-opening of Croydon Civil Defence Services' recreational «ntre at Fairfield car park was the occasion for a short speech by Councillor Admiral J. H. Harrison, chairman of the Croydon A.R.P. Committee. After reviewing the work of the Croydon C.D. services during the " blitz " period, he laid emphasis to the need for such a wmre in order to combat boredom by providing relaxation for the C.D. personnel now that quieter times were being enjoyed. Admiral Harrison then declared the rifle range open, and started proceedings by sli^ooting a friendly contest against Captain J. W. Smith, Croydon's Chief Warden. This was followed by an invitation match between Croydon C.D. services and Croydon A District Wardens, the latter winning by a handsome margin. * » The Tring R.C. women's and men's teams have been having most interesting matches with the local R.A.F. at the Halton Range. The men's team managed to win by three points and on the occasion of the ladies tearn's visit it was arranged for twelve to shoot on each side and the best eight to count. As this was the first time the ladies had competed on an outdoor range, they are to be congratulated on a very creditable performance, as they made 729 against the score of 743 by the R.A.F. Miss J. Newman had the best score of 97, whilst A. A. Evans, had the best for the R.A.F. team of 98. A marksman's dream by W. J. Higgs of the Tring R.C., has been realised when he scored a possible 100 which has been confirmed by the S.M.R.C. and a Certificate awarded. * * * The Plumstead Woolwich and Shooter's Hill Police R.C., only formed this year, is making good progress on its 25 yards range, and as they arc the first team to have beaten that of the C.I.A. (Eltham) they arc bcgimiing to feel their feet, and we hope will gain confidence to enter National competitions in the near future. * » * Mr. Alex Logic is a busy man as in his spare time he is not only the secretary of the Bowls Club in Larbert, but also secretary of the Larhert R.C. and the Stiriingshire Association. When Mr. T. Walker and the Secretary of the Society were able to call upon him in Larbert on 19th August they took the opportunity to congratulate him upon the succc.ssful progress made by the Association and to thank him for his great services. » » When the Secretary of the S.M.R.C. was able to call upon Miss Patricia Young, M.B.E., in Edinburgh on Friday, August 20, he found our only lady member of the Council as keen as ever to hear about her many friends in.the Society in all parts of Britain. It is an ever present regret with her, that she is unable to travel these days and meet them all again. Of course she will never be forgotten for the lead she took for many years in Dumfries and district and the excellent range she was able to obtain for the shooting fraternity of Dumfries Maxwelltown and Galloway when she was resident at Lincluden! At the annual meeting of the Fife Association which the Society's Secretary was able to attend in Dunfermline on the evening of August 18, four clubs were represented, others sending apologies for absence due to travelling difficulties in the widespread area of Fife. As the League has more than one division operating however it is quite apparent that their esteemed Hon. Secretary Mr. J. W. Wilson of Crossgates has succeeded in holding most of the clubs together ready for a big step forward as soon as the war is ended. Meanwhile Mr. Wilson is assisted by an emergency committee and the Association has a credit balance of over £11 in hand. For teams of six the Winter League is run in two divisions. The First Division was won by Guardbridge and 2nd by Dunfermline B, whilst the Burton Cup for teams of four was won by Dunino and District. The best individual average prize in the 1st Division was won by D. K. Lessels of Markinch with 97.9 and D. Foster of Dunfermline with an average of 91.6. The Individual Championship for the Capstan Cup was won by J. Gilmour of Guardbridge with Messrs. J. Liang of Dunfermline and J. Warner of Kinross and Milnathort third and E. H. Geeves of Dunfermline fourth. Mr. R. N. Gatherum presided and thanked the S.M.R.C. for allowing their secretary to come up and talk over shooting matters with them besides handing over the prizes. * * * The Dunfermline R.C. is most happy for several reasons. In the first place it has built its own range, an enterprise which never fails to get the lasting goodwill of its members ; secondly, it has written down the value of the range to £1 and still has a few pounds in hand, and thirdly it has a membership of both ladies and gentlemen who regard the club premises as their recreational centre not only fbr the pleasure they get from their shooting, but also as a social gathering place from which they derive mutual entertainment of the best kind, l^n another part of this magazine we give a picture of the leading mem bers of the club with the trophies which they have won. The Tarvit Trophy was won by their B team for topping the Second Division of the Fife League Championship, and the MacLeliand Cup and silver medal for the Club Championship was won by Mr. J. W. Wilson. Mr Wilson was also the recipient of the S.M.R.C. Distinguished Service Award for the minimum of five years' service as Hon. Secretary. This was formally presented on behalf of the Council of the Society by Mr. G. Pethard, M.B.E., the Society's Secretary on the evening of August 18. Other prizes presented were for the A Team League Matches best average J. Laing, and B Team League Matches best average D. M. _ Foster, the latter also getting the best average prize presented by the League. In the I.K.O. Competition J. Laing was the winner and E. H. Geeves the runner-up. Anyone visiting this Club cannot be otherwise than inspired by the good spirit in its membership. » * The Dundee and Angus Association is going strong as was fully evident on the evening of August 17, when the S.M.R.C. Secretary was able to meet the principal members and talk over all matters both local and national appertaining to the advancement of small bore rifle shooting. Apparently the Association has had one of its best seasons and especially enjoyable had been its open air meeting in Craigie Quarry. Well supported by the famous Scottish International Service Marksmen, who is also a small bore enthusiast, Mr. Charles Sutherland of Dundee, there is little doubt that the Hon. General Secretary of the Association Mr. W. Campbell is an inspired person besides being a born organiser. Nevertheless one feels that he is allowing his own shooting to suffer for the sake of-the Association, and one cannot avoid expressing the view that if in some way his duties could be shared with an Assistant secretary, he will find the time and concentration necessary to himself become one of the leading marksmen of Britain. At present everything goes first rate in Angus and besides the above mentioned two olficials we feel fortunate that Messrs. Eddie, Fisher and Moilison, are all going strong. * * « At the Perth City and County Small Bore R.C. function at Y'ork House on the evening of Thursday, August 19, the Club had a galaxy of trophies second to none for any club in Scotland. Both Mr. G. Pethard the S.M.R.C. Secretary, and Mr. Tom Walker, the Society's Scottish Deputy were present to support the presentation of prizes which followed a whist drive and meal at which over 60 people were present, including the member of Parliament for Perth, Mr. T. Hunter. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKSeptember, 1943. T H E R I F L E M A N 41 The Secretary of the S.M.R.C. in presenting the Scottish-Cup empha- •sised that the club had two crowning achievements to celebrate on this occasion. The first was the team winning the Scottish Cup for the first time in its existence, the second being Mr. J. D. Nicoll winning the Individual Scottish Outdoor Championship to follow his son's success with that trophy last year, and his own success in the previous year, thus making it a family affair for three years in succession. Had the speaker known at the time he might have added a third crowning achievement, and that was the Club's junior team winning the Junior Summer Competition of the S.M.R.C., from a record entry of 230 teams. Mr. G. L. Brown, President of the Club, said that in the and the B team were runners up in the second division. Mr. J. D. Nicoll had gained the Wallace Cup for the best individual average of the First Division. Mr. P. Lumsden won the Little Trophy, the Dundee Association Junior Championship, and the Junior team were the runners up for the S.M.R.C. Junior Team Championship. This is another club which has found a home in a new range after some years of temporary premises, all members having to rally around it and put their shoulders to the wheel. One of its leading spirits for many years has been Mr. F. B. Smith, Hon. Secretary, and now he is ably assisted by the match secretary Mr. R. Wilson, and Mr. Crockart. At a meeting of the representatives of the Edinburgh and Mid lothian Association, the Society's secretary was assured of the re starting of the League competitions as soon as the exigencies of the war were overcome, and the experienced officials available from ser vice duties for the necessary administration. Meanwhile, Messrs. G. and H. Purves, J. G. Proudfoot, J. Sinclair, and other leading lights were keeping the game alive as far as possible. Colonel WJiittqn, chairman, and J. H. Hayhoe, Hon. Secretary, are holding the fort for an immediate resumption of activities as soon as the time is pro pitious. It was remembered that when the war started we were about to hold the Scottish Prize meeting at Fairmilehead, Edinburgh, with the generous support of the City Council. This had not been lost sight of and Messrs. Whitton and Hayhoe will try again to get that offer re-instated for the first Scottish meeting to follow the war, if both the Council of the Society and its Advisory Committee approve of the action. * * * Capt. Michael Bradford, son of Mrs. Bradford, The Grange, first secretary of the present Martock Miniature R.C., has won the Naval Brigade Rifle Championship at Bombay, India. To Mrs. C. A. Crossland falls the honour of being the first member of the Stirling Women's Home Defence to score an individual " pos sible," and in a league match, too. At the Annual General Meeting of the Lanark.shire S.B.R. Association, at which 36 clubs had representatives present, the Hon. General Secretary, Mr. D. McGillivray, was elected for the tenth year in succession. Mr. MacMonnies retained the chairmanship by acclamation whilst Mr. Hutcheson was re-elected Vice-Chairman. The good work of Miss C. Alston was recognised by her election as Assistant Secretary to the General Secretary, whilst Mr. R. Gray of the Glasgow Police becomes the new Match Secretary. Besides the Winter League it was decided to organise a competition in aid of the Red Cross similar to that of last year. The Association has a credit balance of £83 at the bank, which reflects the good work, of the hon. treasurer and the lucrative activities of the Association. * * * At the Annual General Meeting of the Stirlingshire S.B.R.A., held at Larbert oh 15th September, 1943, Mr. Sutherland of Bridge of Allan was again appointed Chairman, and Mr. Liddell of Larbert, Vice- Chairman, whilst Mr. Alex. Logie was re-appointed Hon. Secretary and Treasurer. Through the winning team in the League's foregoing their prizes, the Association ended the year with £13 in hand, but it is hoped to be better off this coming season, and in appreciating the loyal way in which prizes were given up the Association places on record their thanks to the clubs concerned. Mr. R. A. Kelso has kindly given a challenge trophy to the Association, and it has been decided to use it for an Individual Indoor Championship. GOLDEN WEDDINGS. We have to congratulate the following On Friday, August 13, 1943, many congratulations were received by Mr. and Mrs. Henry Joint Martm, of Box Cottage, Balcombe, who were married at that famous church, St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Lon don, on August 6, 1893. Rifle shooting has always been a great hobby of Mr. Martin, and in spite of his age he is still an excellent marksman. In 1884 he joined the 7th Surrey Rifles, afterwards known as the 4th Volunteer Bn. East Surrey Regiment, and following on as the 23rd London Territorials. He retired after 28 years' service with the rank of R/Q/M/S. During his service he was four times champion shot, and was a marksman for 27 years. He also represented Surrey i n c o u n t y s h o o t i n g m a t c h e s . M r. a n d M r s . M a r t i n h a v e l i v e d i n Balcombe 22 years, during which time Mr. Martin has taken great interest in the rifle club, being until last year the club's Captain, a position held for 18 years. Moreover, he has been prominently associated with the Sussex Small-Bore County Association of which he was for 10 years vice-chairman. He has found his place in the Sussex Twenty and Sussex Ten and is the holder of a silver medal for being top of the county in a national competition. They have two sons and one daughter. With the British Legion in 1860, Mr. Mar tin's father fought for Garibaldi. He received a brevetto entitling him to wear the medal for that campaign. Mr. and Mrs. Harry Arthur Mayston, of 17, Argyle Gardens, Up- minster, were married at Sibton, Suffolk, on July 12th, 1893, and they have two sons and a daughter. For the past 13 years they have resided in Upminster. Amongst his other sporting interests Mr. Mayston is a first rate marksman. He was rifle shooting champion of Southern . Suffolk in 1882, and he has won many prizes at other shooting compe titions. Mr. and Mrs. Ernest A. Ralph, of 138, V ictoria Road, St. Budeaux, Plymouth, were married at Stoke Damerel Church on the 7th August, 1893. Not only was Mr. Ralph a member of the old Devon- port Board of Guardians, but for many years a leading light in the Devonport Rifle Club. LAST POST A m o s t p r o m i s i n g m a r k s m a n o f t h e E a s t H u l l R . C h a s b e e n killed in North Africa. Mr. Edward Grebby was out there with the Royal Corps of Signals and was killed by being tossed from a lorry on to the road, which was a very bad one, and he died on the way to hospital. This gives us some idea of the unthought of risks besides the fighting which our men had to go through. Grebby had operated in France with the original Expeditionary Force and was eventually retired from there via Bordeaux. Afterwards he w a s w i t h t h e F i r s t A r m y a n d w e n t a l l t h r o u g h t h e c a m p a i g n i n Tunisia. We give below a picture of him in happier days of 1938 cleaning his .22 rifle. He is in the right of the picture whilst Mr. F. Eldon, the president of the club, is in the centre and the well-known internationalist, A. Johnson, is on the extreme left. In the words of t h e l a t t e r " We h a v e l o s t a g r e a t m e m b e r a n d t h e S . M . R . C . a prospective Internationalist as his shooting was becoming worthy of that distinction. We all mourn his irreparable loss." Sir Ian Hamilton's Tribute to Adopted Son ;— A large and sympathetic group of friends, including a detachment of Home Guards assembled at the moving ceremony at Kilmadock Cemetery, Doune, on Wednesday, 21st August, on the unveiling of a WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK42 T H E R I F L E M A N September, 1941 tablet to the memory of Captain Harry Knight, Scots Guards, who died of wounds in Libya, 17th June, 1941. Set in the wall of the corner of the cemetery in which Sir Ian Hamilton's wife lies, the tablet bears the inscription ;— R e m e m b e r w i t h H o n o u r HAROLD KNIGHT, Captain, Scots Guards, Beloved Adopted Son of Jean Hamilton, Died of wounds in Libya, June, 1941, aged 24 years. General Sir Ian Hamilton, speaking from near the memorial said : When my beloved wife bought a plot of ground in this corner of the Kilmadock Cemetery it was with the intention that it should be a resting-place not only for herself and myself but, in the course of time, for her son by adoption, Harry Knight. He had many ties to the place, his childhood having been spent between Deanston and Doune. When he was close on three yearsold, my wife thought he might profit by a glimpse at the dark shadows which accompany life, so she led him up to the cemetery, but was rather shocked when, on seeing the tomb stones, he joyously shouted, " Here they all are, Guardie—all of them are here!" .As he grew up it was Just this gay courage in the presence of dark and dubious surroundings which made him a leader to whom his fellows instinctively turned. At Wellington College, it was Harry who took the School O.T.C. past H.R.H. the Duke of Connaught. At Sandhurst, it was again Harry who marched at the head of the Cadets and gave the words of command. Never once during this period, or indeed at any time, was 1 called upon to e.xercise any influence on his behalf. There are folk who long for adventure, and when it comes they fight shy of it, Harry was not that sort ; he took life as it came, and when the adventure came he went for it with a will. To wards the end of his career at Wellington, trouble developed in his leg, and he was told he would have to put the limb into an iron cage. The moment they told him he realised that this meant giving up the captaincy of the Rugger XV, and the master wrote to me afterwards praising him for the philosophical way in which he took the dreadful disappointment. In due course he joined the Scots Guards, and shortly afterwards they were presented with new Colours by the King. The ceremony took place in the gardens of Buckingham Palace, and amongst the spectators were all the Colonels of the Guards Brigade. They stood together, and 1 posted myself hard by to profit by any r e m a r k s . T h e s e r e m a r k s , a s a m a t t e r o f f a c t , w e r e r a t h e r c a u s t i c , and to the effect that things had been better done in their day. At last came the climax when the Company advanced in slow time with the old Colour carried by an officer in advance of the line, who had to lay it at the feet of the King. Here the Colonels changed their tune. "Perfect!" they cried with one voice. The officer was Lieutenant Harr\' Knight. When he fell fighting bravely at the head of his men on the battle field of Libya, close to the Egyptian frontier, the Colonel of the Scots Guards, as well as his battalion Commander, wrote conveying the .sympathy of the whole regiment. " Had he lived," they said, " he would have gone far." Another tribute, unique perhaps in the annals of war. was paid him by the men of his Company. They composed ;i poem in his memory. Here is the first verse :— " Four sad and lonely days have passed Since our great loss befell. A n d i n o u r h e a r t s w e m o u r n t h e l o s s Of one we loved so well." Some people might criticise that as poetry, but to me there is .some thing very touching about it. If this little story of mine of Harry Knight has a moral it is that, wicked as these everlasting wars most certainly are. heroes may spring from their conduct. There is hardly a family in all Scotland that has not sent a boy or girl to the war, and in this thought may they find comfort and hope. Sir Ian, having unveiled the memorial, the Rev. .1. Gardner Smart olfcrcd the prayer of dedication and blessing, the bugler sounded the Last Post, and the Home Guard saluted, the plaintive strains of" The Flowers of the Forest," played by the piper, marking the close of the ceremony . Alec Edward Elliott, one of Dunstable's most promising young mtirksmen. Guardsman Alec Edward Elliot, of 24, Northfields, Dun stable, has died of wounds in a Middle East hospital. His parents received the news on Friday morning. A few hours later they read, in a local paper, the story of an interview their son had given to a military correspondent describing how, in the battle for Wadi Akarit, he saw six of a formation of eight Stukas shot down by anti-aircraft gunfire, and the remaining two chased over the horizon by a flight of our lighters. One of the German pilots who baled out said they had lost their bearings and thought they were over their own aerodrome. Guardsman Elliott, who is 20, served in the Home Guard before joining up, and at once showed aptitude with a rifle. He was a mem ber of the 31st Home Guard platoon rifle team and held championship medals in the S.M.R.C. summer and winter leagues. He was em ployed as a carpenter by Messrs. Robinson and White, Dunstable. His father is weapon training officer in the 6th Beds. Battn. Home Guard. On July 1st, following a brief illness of a few days, the death took place at his residence on Quay Walls, Berwick, of Capt. E, H. Crow, dentist. He joined the 1st Volunteer Battalion, N o r t h u m b e r l a n d F u s i l i e r s , i n 1 8 9 6 , a n d w a s t r a n s f e r r e d t o t h e Territorial Force when it was formed in 1908. He served in all ranks, rising from private to the rank of captain, taking his commission in the early days of the 1914-18 war. He saw service in France with the 7th Battalion. He has taken an active part in Civil Defence work in the present war and was recently appointed as [Chief Warden for Berwick in succession to Councillor A. Graham. He had acted for many years as President of the Berwick British Legion Rifle Club. Reported as a prisoner of war in Borneo we now learn that A/C/1 James Robertson, who was in the R.A.F. from the early days of the W a r h a s d i e d i n a B o r n e o p r i s o n c a m p . A m o n g s t h i s o t h e r interests at home was that of shooting. He was a very fine shot and took an active part in the competitions of the Fort William Gun Club and won many prizes. He was also a member of the Small-Borc R.C., where he was one of the highest scorers. To his father, mother brother and sisters, our deep sympathy has been extended in the loss of a particularly fine young life in the service of his country. The death occurred on Saturday, September 4th, of Mr. G. E- Fulton, of Brookwood, Surrey, in his 86th year. Mr. Fulton was b e s t k n o w n i n c o n n e c t i o n w i t h h i s s u c c e s s a s a r i fl e s h o t a t W i m b l e don and Bisley. He joined the Queen's Westminster Rifle Volun teers in 1885 and served with that regiment for thirty-three years. He won the Queen's Prize at Wimbledon in 1888, using the .45 Mar tini Henry Rifle, the Grand Aggregate in 1890, the first year at Bisley using the .303 Lee Metford. He reached the final stage of the Queen's and King's Prizes thirteen times in all. Other successes included the St. George's Challenge Vase 1896, and 1900, the Association Cup 1905, the Wimbledon Cup 1905 and 1906, the Secretary of State for War 1913, the Duke of Cambridge 1925. He shot for England and the Mother Country in the International Match eleven times, the Kolapore three times and the Mackinnon three times. Apart from his own shooting he was extremely interested in beginners, and would help them by every means in his power, telling them without reserve, everything he knew. His son, Arthur, has won the King's Prize three times. Mr. G. E. Foulton was a great advocate of accurate rifle shooting as a means of National Defence,, and very insistent that it should take as practical a form as possible, while recognising that it must be made attractive a s a s p o r t , i n o r d e r t o m a i n t a i n i t s p o p u l a r i t y . H i s o t h e r interests were fishing, particularly fox salmon and pike, and fruit grow ing. As a young man he studied Art and won the National Bronze Medal at South Kensington for a charcoal drawing. In recent years he has given most of his time to efforts to direct attention to the great need for improving the purity of our rivers and the consequent im provement of the supply of valuable migratory fish, which would follow upon this ; also he was greatly interested in re-afforestation. The funeral took place at Pirbright on Wednesday, 8th September. In addition to the relatives of the deceased, there were present : C. R. Martin, Acting Secretary, N.R.A. (also representing Lt. Colonel Sir Philip Richardson, Chairman, N.R.A.) : Lt. Colonel Sir Lionel Flet cher, R.M., Chairman, S.M.R.C. (also representing Brigadier H. D. Weir, Chairman, R.M.R.A.) ; Messrs. G. F. Booth, G. W. Downs, H. W. Lowe, City Rifle Club ; W.L.S. Alton, E. Wi Kerr-Thompson, North London Rifle Club ; L. Freeman late Q.W. and C.S.R., and Mrs. G. F. Booth. The funeral of Mr. Thomas Sidney Moore, of 64, De Frevillc Avenue, Cambridge, took place on Monday, 5th July, at the Borough Cemetery, following a short service in the house, Mr. Moore, who was 74 years of age, was hon. secretary of the Cambridge and District Photo graphic Club during the past 13 vears. Mr. Moore was also closely associated for some years with the Cambridge Cage Bird Society and the Cambridge Miniature Rifle Club, in both of which he had held office as hon. secretary. A former mathematics master at Rugby School, Mr. Samuel Bar- hard, M.A., died at Leahurst, Towyn, Merioneth, on 24th July, at the age of 79. He was a Scholar of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and afterwards a Fellow, was Fourth Wrangler in 1885, and was appointed WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKSeptember, 1943.T H E R I F L E M A N 43 to the staff of Rugby School in 1888 by Dr. Percival, retiring in 1919. He was the joint author of several well-known text-books on arith metic, algebra and geometry, which were in use in Rugby School for many years. He was also the officer comanding the School Rifle Corps. This announcement recalls that, on the " authority" of tradition as officer commanding the School Rifle Corps (later the O.T.C. and now the J.T.C.) he marched the corps through the City of London with fixed bayonets, an exclusive privilege extended to few regiments. We deeply regret to record that Sir Howard Stransom Button, D.L., J.P., died suddenly on Wednesday, 14th August, at his residence Fircote, Ibstone Common. The tragic news was received in Uxbridge and district with profound sorrow. Few Uxbridgians have gained greater distinction in municipal and business life than he, dis t i n c t i o n s w o n b y h i s o u t s t a n d i n g a b i l i t y, p a r ticularly in financial matters. Not only did he build up one of the most successful provision businesses in the South of England, but served the district in outstanding fashion, first as a mem ber of the Uxbridge Urban Council (on which he served his apprenticeship in civic affairs) and later a s m e m b e r , a l d e r m a n a n d c h a i r m a n , o f t h e Middlesex County Council. He also sat in Parlia m e n t f o r a s h o r t w h i l e a s M e m b e r f o r t h e W r e k i n division of Shropshire. Some years ago he was elected an alderman and sheriff of the City of London and would, had he lived, probably have been Lord Mtiyor of the capital of the Empire. He was also president of the Chamber of Trade, a governor of Bishopshalt School, president of the Uxbridge Rifle Club and other bodies. C a p t . Vi c t o r A l b e r t D o n n o l l y, B l o e m f o n t c i n , h a s b e e n k i l l e d i n a n a i r a c c i d e n t a t N a i r o b i . H e was formerly captain of the Pretoria Garrison shooting team and a holder of the B.S.A. pre sentation rifle. T h e d e a t h i s a n n o u n c e d f r o m D u r b a n o n 1 2 t h July, of Mr. J. E. Borain, a foundation member of the Natal Engineprs'and Founders" Association. H e w a s o n e o f S o u t h A f r i c a ' s b e s t k n o w n m a r k s men, and was a member of the South African team which visited England in 1902 to compete at Bisley. First reported missing in North Africa in Sep tember, 1942, L.-Cpl. .lolin George', author of " English Pistols and Revolvers " and other works o n a r m s a n d s h o o t i n g , h a s r e c e n t l y b e e n r e ported killed in action with the British Army. At the opening of hostilities George was among the first to volunteer. He enlisted as a private and was seriously wounded in the debacle at Dunkirk. When he recovered he went to Africa with the Queen's Own West Kent Regiment. His going will be keenly felt by the shooting fraternity of which he was such an active and enthusiastic member. His first book published in America achieved considerable success and m a d e h i m w e l l k n o w n t o m a n y A m e r i c a n shooters and collectors. A companion volume by him will be published after the war. Just before going to press with the June issue of The Riflemcw we were shocked to learn of the sudden death ot our good friend John C. Kcene, of Knights Farm. Burghfleld, near Reading on the 12th May, 1943. For a number of years he was the leading spirit in the Hilliers Rifle Club and in National Com petitions he reached | International standard. Therefore, to lose such a first rate member and marksman at the young age of 40 through contracting infantile paralysis was indeed a blow, not only to his many friends, in the shooting fraternity, but also to his family. Whilst his duties on the home farm kept him busy, any moment ol his spare time including his tholiday was spent in rifle shooting. He said little about his successes, but the tact that he had 45 medals and 28 btidgcs and chevrons, gives some indication ol his skill as a marksman. Furthermore that he had been Match Secretary of the Hilliers Rifle Club since 1928, during which period he was always ready to help and coach new and less experienced members up to Match standard and thereby incalculate his own enthusiasm for accurate marksmanship, immensely adds to the feeling of loss by his many friends in the shooting fraternity, and especially those in the area of Reading. We deeply sympathise with his parents and his sister for whom his passing is,indeed'a very sad and'irreparableiloss. [DUNFERMLINE M.R.C. Names'-—Stmld/ng; A. Dick (Match Secretary), D. M. Foster, J. W. Wilson (Hon.'.Secretary), ^ R N. Gatherum (Chairman), J. Rose, and J. Laing. s/it/ni!- Tom Walker, Geo. Pethard, M.B.E., Miss TT Armstrong, W. O. Bosshardt (Hon. Vice-" ^ President), W. B. Robertson M.C. (Hon. Vice-President) PERTHjCITY ANDiCOUNTY R.C. AND SOMEjOF||THE CHALLENGE TROPHIES WON. J. D. Nicoll, the Champion, is fourth from left in back row. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKNext >