THE URGENT CALL

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2576, 25 September 1915, Page 6

THE URGENT CALL

' WHAT. ANSWER 2

WEIIINOTT MILITARY- DRTIiICTS •" POSITION

A SPLENDID CHANCE s; ; -v .VSV.' ■ ■■ . ; -■ ■ ■U-V •. The urgent .'need of the moment is men. ... . • .-The that .need, is; to. make i'S'VW.'clear ;theyj arfe wanted. ■'■■■■ ■-? An. articls.Tm-.yeserday'S'.Dominion made .clear do. To- ■:■ dayV.article->proposesv--io -ishow ■. what do.'. r \ . rPrcsnming 'that''whei'tho last of tho, '-'Octoberrforces :go linto. camp,-on October 1 I;!-other presumptionis ViV rZealimiivHas'- only . three, weeks.' in'.fwhich. ■■ >■ .i.to'find.tho'men who aTeiwantedsearly m . . " iN'ovember.' -. Those. November;'. require-. : ; inputs 'aro 4000. ..'in. January T a force of . ' : nlmost : similar - si£e;.- wi}l\ bo \ required. 'SVrfiOmittihgj.the 'ii.c.o.'p 'for ithe Twelfth Re-; immediate.'calLon' New ; r :-:^ yA , ;C : v.; ; , ' 1 ; ...'ffhe Tenth, (by.November 8) 4000 forh; the,-. Eleventh '':■■■ 400, : r;;Tlio Elevwitli (by early January)4ooo .I V' Total ■ ...u;........ ...; S4OO S'JThefirst achievement 'must be'the'rais-::-..-iiii; of the Tenth;; Eeinforcements,'> the . •. ; November .force of 4000. • It is New Zea"land's d'utj^.-to;..raise 'allstheVdOOO.;; It is ■■ -. tho . Wellington' Military i District's . duty ; -j-.-' to, raise portion of the force. What portion ' :K>:- •.'.The Wellington:Military,District;is.the i- Vtf j! most-^populous'ofthe. four ' New 'Zealand. ' 1 is; shown; ;-'.'.in.the censiis ;figuresj: and the'.fol!owii.g •.. . .is "an 'estimate of the .inalp populatiou '.. .'strepsth; of tho ipur districts in 1913:—. Males s ';; r 'i: • •; ' . ' • of all ages;District ...'.V'.1T1,540 s. --'WGaxiterbury ''Military '134,655iUickland!i Military- ;D555ict.133,245' 100,122. .:. ' 'So, : oh a population basis,' when a force the;coiitributions'.of^■.tßs mili- . ' ; ,tarv.district should be:r-; : >.-y Wellington M D 317 per cent. ' • 'Canterburv M.D. ... 24.9 per cent. . ; Auckland-M.p.. .... v 24.7 per cent. .' Otago M.D. ; 18.5 per cent. . :H ; S:;.;";Por ' , '.tiim'iV-.j;ho^'Wcnirigtoii.' 'Q: Jlititiify District should'-. supply 31.7 ? per : .: cent, of tho total of its . - share on a jiopnlation basis;:';;; That share . . . in'figures will be 1271.'. . ' . . ; . .C'The'contributions from all. .districts : . ■ ' -ought to be: — , Wellington MD .1271 Canterburj MD . .918 - i Auckland M.D 990 ( Otago M.D 741

Total 4000 V But. there is'an important difference be!j:;^: requirements., : lf'-.w,e; need 4000 fit'men, it is riot safe' to - aim at securing any fewer, tiiaii 5500 Tecmitv b'eoaus3 feri •><. '• ejections, "etc'.'.:, may; :edsily,'amount >to ■25 : . . ■per.' cent.' Therefore, tfiri districts will ; ' lecfuiro to'raise:—.. ■ SC- .' V /.-Wellington M.D:;; • 1748 ' : Canteiburv M D 1372 Auckland M D . ... 1361 Otago M D 1019 Total 5300 for" ,the.. Wellington '-'district. ; - This district must? gaugo. the - call to 1m i^v^mafle'Upqn it: not'.merely .by 'ascertaining ' .. ':w:hh.t. figures • represent; its : .bare.duty,/.but -/also!, in:the' ligiht', of 'experience.. Experidh; the past '•. v ton-district has Tiad to do more than its -ft share. Wo supplied' nearly.'.half' of, the; :: 'men for;the main.'arms'of tlie :Eightb! Reinforcement?,' and' liave to.find; about■■ 40 ": per cent.-of tlio; men : for tlie November •forcesV'.. Therefore,: we; cannot: reasonably rely on .tho country getting its 5500. tcS: ; :'. cruitstime ; unless ,we'make sure of raisingvat least: 40c:per,-cent.: : of 'thein in ithis,[district.;. If .thedjstrict.shoulders, this■ .responsibility,' its figurcs will be:l- - Recruits . Fit men, wanted. i*. -Wellington M.D. quota 1 ;.1600 < 2200 Wellington districtneedsf22oo men to register. at once. If the- books are depleted when the November forces go. into camp, thero w:ill be three'weeks: in which . . . to raiso our share. /.-Therefore, tho dis- > i;trict must ; gather? men .'at the iiate of' 734 -. .'per week,-or. over. 120 j)er day.- . ••• ; -.V 'The ,Wellington. district must still : hav» • v'/i j'a'boait . 20,000 •' single men of ' military., age : ; v^;: iwlio liave not; yolunteered; so-.there.Should 'V;;; 1 not.-. be any.y'great.i difficultyiviii inducing ; :one-tenth of them that.,their duty, is' to. . . «nlist at once. ' i"' . . ..After the Tenth.'. Boinforcements have '?;ifc'en Raised,': there must be no slackening, because several: hundred'N-C-O/s will be ; . Tequired shortly afterwards, and tho-men -Eleventh! Beiaforcements . will: be : :..,VS Tequired in time, to go: into camp: early . in January. ' . : Tlie call is urgent: for all. It is : . • ,'. • moro_ urgent for the' men! of "tho' Wellington Military District than -.:for other men, Ijeaouso as Wei- - •: lington has done more tlinn it 3 . . sharo in tho pastthere mayibe re- . :V? liance placed on the apparent cer- ' tainty that if will do more than . • ; its sharo in tho future. Figures . ' •.show. what, the .Wellington dis- •' trict's answer- miist be. If tho .■ district Ijerids its, energies in a big .' ■ . effort of the most practical patri- "■ . otism, it will raise tho whole force. ; • That would '.be an • achievement r ; worth any effort. ■ ■■■ i---x