TERRITORIAL SYSTEM.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 231, 30 September 1929, Page 6

TE RRITORIAL SYSTEM.

"SIXTY PER CENT VALUE" ? i. do the Editor.) I read Quentin Pope's dissertation in n "ytiir," the ,„„ k of it co ;a«'criticism of the present scheme, with a • sketchy "hack to the voluntary system" rem P 7 to finish up with. To such as Quentin v 7 I would like to say that the effect of T present hubbub over military train;,, • tha knock the heart out of the' l, o ys a 2 " , to them feel that they are wasting 6 in training. That they are not°dohS\ amply proved by the standard of cL Is attained each year; and it is tt tribute boys themselves, their Territorial nrtin he N.C.O.'s, those lloyal New Zealand officers (who are not of philosophic^'• 7 aud their kindred breed, the staff corns o ffi 1 that, despite the adverse condition *£T comparative lack of public interest, such ai, ? standard is actually attained. I w «, lr ,!? h volunteers, and also the Territorials L that little war occurred during which th P r of so many thousands of volunteers w~r„ . . ficed while the rest were making their acquaintance with rifles, guns, harness, LS ling, etc., m the process of "getting readv" process which took live months in most I commanded a six-gun battery in France 2' ing such minor battles as those of 1018. I took an active interest " the Territorials after the war, and, ffffi} then really exist "an apathy that was dead? ing and a stupidity that was extraordinarS must have survived such without beiL actually aware of their existence. As I ,i still mildly interested in artillery. I ally watch the boys at their drill and W also seen some batteries do their shootin"! camp. As a result of my observations I°am convinced that the standard of efficiency w never higher than now, even in the so-called good old volunteer days. It is easy to toll of waste of money. At present I should snv we are getting sixty per cent value for t'm money; if the squeakers would stop squeakiii« and give a word of encouragement instead Jo the boys we would soon get eighty per cent value for the money; and if, in addition there was sufficient money to bring every youth into the scheme either for drill or for physical training (instead of exempting those who are an inch too small round the chest or an inch too short and thus penalising the most ner fectly-pliysical youths), then I believe we should very soon get nearly one' hundred per cent value for our money. ÜBIQUE