THE TRENTHAM OUTCRY.

Gisborne Times, Volume XLV, Issue 4002, 7 August 1915, Page 4

THE TRENTHAM OUTCRY.

THE LSYCHOLOGICAL VIEWPOINT. EFFECT l"PON THE MEN. (Presi Association Telegram.* WELLINGTON. Aug. 6. At the Trentham inquiry to-day. Colonel Gibbon, on being asked whether he had any observations to offer, said: "In all my soldiering. I hare been taught that the great principle i> to handle men from the psyehologv.:’ point, of view. !> •• cholera camp, tie instance, the v. -min aim siigui ! b, to

keep the men's spirits u]>. On Jum fiStli, when, to my personal knowledge. Cohmel Yaliniinc was worknig day and night, we had people coming out "i ili - camp. and. instead of ismxt ng is by doing work theinseivt«. n e found every endeavor made in ;'u

press to iin<l fault with what we v, i ri doing and to impress on the men thar thev were not living properly Linked after—to try and break down tin

bonds of discipline, with tlie iV'iik that, on .July Ist we had a- r-cord number of men admitted t-o hospital. !; you applied the same principle to a cholera camp, you would have half th regiment dead in a few days. How art we to carry on the training of recruits in this country if we are to have th--whole of the press and other people trying to pick out every fault- that, they can—trying to impress on tieminds of the men that everything we do is wrong, that they are being absolutely neglected? The result wiii he that we shall lose all hold over the men. All this outcry lias had an immense effect on the 7th reinforcement' and the Trentham Regiment. I put down 50 per cent, of the sickness to the off eel this outcry has had on the Hum. It is quite true that complaints should ho looked into when we don’t try to rectify them. It is then tune for a public outcry. If we are going Jo continue to handle men at all. ye should, have the chance to do it. and the whole of our discipline and authority should not he undermined ns lias been done.