CONSCRIPTION

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2357, 13 January 1915, Page 3

CONSCRIPTION

° lr > —I feel the time, hos come when an expression of public opinion should be taken in New Zealand as to tho advisability or otherwise of instituting a system of conscription, during the term ?£ % present great war, throughout the whole Dominion. One shudders at the thought of what would happen to us as a colony of Great Britain should Germany win this war. It therefore behoves us individually to do our utmost and make any sacrifice, to ensure success to our arms. It may he a sacrifice to us, to give up our long cherished system of a voluntary amy, but if conscription is going to win the war for us, or if it is only the means, on account of the numbers of fighting Men we could put in the field, of shortening the war, then by all means let us make the sacrifice, have consoription, and that at once. Supposing' with our volunteer system, we can win the war, but that it takes three years to do it in, if conscription is the means of winning m two years, then my ideo. is that conscription would pay for itself handsomely. Let me say at once that 1 am a great believer in the volunteer system, if all volunteer; if they do not j "° so, then give me conscription. My ideal is, that at the present time fcho Defence Department should have on fheir books the name of every ablebodied and physically fit man, between I -the ages of 20 and 40 years, who has passed the doctor, and is ready, as a volunteer, to go at any time he may be called on, anywhere, to fight or do garnson duty as required. What a P/lu da?, it would be for New Zealand it the military authorities here were in the position to say to the rest of the Empire: "We have 150,000 volunteers (or whatever the number may be) enrolled and medically examined, ready' and willing to be called on, whenever reinforcements ar 6 required, and that this number represents every able-bodied man m the colony, between the ages given. Conscription would thenbe unnecessary, either here or elsewhere throughout the Empire, because every other colony and probably the Home country, would follow our example. A lead is often all that is necessary. This ideal will. I feel sure, never eventuate; therefore, let me ask-all men who are' eligible, and not shirkers or cowards, to hand in their names for their own manhood's sake, as I feel sure that consoription will oome soon, and then the. shirker and coward will be forced to do his share. How much better to be a volunteer than a conscript? . ■ . '

■ Our want of volunteers is to somo extent attributable to the difficulty of awakening the young men throughout the Dominion to the great and pressing need of their services. A severe and possibly irretrievable reverse to our aims would no doubt do it, Conscription will also do it, without the necessity of 'suffering a great reverse:' Therefore, let us as loyal Britishers, demand from our Government that con-: senption be made law, and thus each individual will be helping, not only to win the war, but also to shorten it. New Zealand has given the lead in many reforms, why should she not'do so in this, the greatest of all?—I am, etc, - ! M. DARKE. Hamilton, Waikato, January 10, 1915. '