WHY TRAIN SOLDIERS?

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1728, 19 April 1913, Page 2

WHY TRAIN SOLDIERS?

IMPRESSIVE WORDS/ FINER MANHOOD COMING, (By Tclcgrath.-Presa Association.! ' , Christchurch, April 18. An impressivo service took place at the Cathedral this afternoon, when the col■ours of tho old Canterbury Yeonimry Cavalry «re handed over by Colonel the., bishop Julius in accepting tho custody o|t o coours, dcliverod.a somion.'.m.tno wuvw ot which ho said;-"Wo have auopted a system of military- trainingn thi* country, and 1 think ft w" 11 "o „ uhnito advantage to every ono"of u. J lie first purpose of this system is obvious cnough-tno men of New Zealand arobeing trained for tho defencei of tu"? country. There is another, which, at though secondary, is perhaps.of primary advantage to tho country. . aKtne discipline and training of our mahhbod I belicvo that, for certain purposes, there ™h°i gr °" t0 , a,ld r no '«ttCT school in tho is?- ;. • ln i Ul ° - 1110 ° £ > - young- tountvy Uko this thcro is-absolute for such training. First of aH>wo d,velWif : cities. Largo numbers.of.yfi.Ung.inenim engaged in sedentary 'occupations, and thus loso no littlo>bfjpliysicaL-maJihood. Iho growing physical' weakness of our raco in tho Old .Cduijtry appears to-i/o duo to tins and othqr causes,'euch .as poverty. In tho next place .it is; a soft age, Men do not;;cultivate hardness' l;hsy prefer scats With cushions;"and to.' ride ruther than to walk.' -Thirdly, it is' an undisciplined agfe. ..Theto.is-no discipline in tho home'very little out of it; and self-disciplino: is not reckoned asV necessary clement to tho development of tlio man. _ Last)y-and you will not mind my saying it—we want training in manners. There aro many of the manhood of Now Zealand who think it is the right thing to push thoir own way no matter who| is, pushed into the, gutter • and assert- their independence by discourtesy and rudeness. They do not realise that man shows liis own self-respect most certainly when ho learns to respect other men, and gives to them that courtesy and civility which ho rightly believes are due to,himself. Now, I believe that good military training . is qualified to meet just such needs as these. The system is not a class movement. The whole country ia brought under it, and that is as it ought to be. The timo will come and Will not bo long in coming, when men will ccaso to complain about tho quality of tho food or about anything else. , They will understand that it is possible for a man to lie on a plank and sleep on it, and to sleep in wet clothes and enjoy them. It takes a man a while to discover that) ho is a much greater man,than ho thinks himself, and that ho is a much stronger man because ho can taste a little hardship without whining about it. Tho system will teach men obedience. , It is a good tiling for any man to obey—to enjoy tho luxury of doing what lie is told—instead of doing what ho likes. Lastly, it will teach men comradeship. They conic out of an isolated life into tho companionship of men of all classes and all kinds actively employed, and tliat, lob, is good for manhood. I am looking forward to the timo When military training, in this country, so far from stirring us to'strifo and war, will mako our men resolute, strong, and hard, and'will raise.up a manhood amongst us that will be greater than tho manhood of the past.