PROGRESS OF THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2663, 7 January 1916, Page 4

PROGRESS OF THE WAR

Frosi every standpoint the introduction of legislation in the Imperial Parliament providing for the partial application of the compulsory principle to recruiting is an event to be welcomed. It answers any possible objection to the departure from the voluntary system which is involved, that although it is proposed to apply compulsion to only a limited section of the male population, the passag& of the legislation will make available over a million rccruits, the great majority of whom have been obtained by voluntary enlistment. It may be a matter for regret that any departure from the voluntary system has become necessary, but the die-hard supporters of this system will be able to console themselves with the reflection that under it Great Britain has accomplished wonders. Without resort to compulsion she has secured the enlistment or attestation of nearly four million men, thus not only maintaining the greatest Navy in the world, but rising fromthe condition of an insignificant military Power to that of one whose armies almost 'rival, in point of numbers, those of the military Powers of Europe whose armies are established on a basis of conscription. At the outbreak of war such an achievement as now stands to the credit of Great Britain was regarded as Utopian, even by many convinced opponents of compulsion. As for the advocates of compulsion, a largo and influential band, it has long been their text that an adequate muster of the nation's manhood was impossible under the voluntary system. Their view has been _ almost falsified by events, but it is beyond doubt that the limit of possibility under the voluntary, system has now been reached, and that it has achieved all it U capitblo of achieving. JJvon now, and in the light of all that Jw*

been accomplished, it is not ccrtain that the retention hitherto of the voluntary system has been a wise policy, Under it there has been a largely spontaneous response to the call to arms unparallelcd-in the history of the world, but this result, in itself magnificent, has been reached at some sacrifice of order and method, and with soma departurt from a just apportionment of the burdens of the war. The comprehensive question thus raised still remains open, but 110 question is open where the measure of compulsion now proposed is concerned. It is justified absolutely and indisputably on the grounds of practical necessity, and an elementary regard for justice.

For this there is the conclusive and weighty authority of Lord Kitchener. In a speech in the House of Lords, which is reported to-day, the Secretary for "War at once pays an unstinted tribute to the response made by the manhood of the nation under the voluntary system, and _ states definitely that this system is no longer effective. Speaking as a soldier, Lord Kitchener says that' the voluntary system has given results far greater thai? most had dared to predict, and certainly beyond anything our enemies had contemplated. Until a few months ago men came forward as fast as they could be trained and equipped. So fine a response was made, that Lord Kitchener came to hope that the voluntary system would suffice to the end. Latterly, however, there has been a fallingoff, and the passage in Lord Kitchener's speech upon which public attention will fasten is that in which he affirms that in the special circumstances of this unprecedented struggle the existing system, without modifications, is uneqikl to maintaining the army needed to secure victory. 1

This is the answer to all that has been said, and may be said,, by those who oppose the legislation introduced by the Imperial Government. It is-a plain statement by the highest military authority in the Empire that the measure of compulsion proposed is an essential condition to winning victory in the war. By a great majority of the members of the Imperial Parliament and of people throughout the Empire, Lord Kitchener's dictum will no doubt bo accepted as final, but it is nevertheless evident that a body of opposition has to be reckoned with which cannot be regarded as negligible. So far as the defection of Sir John Simon is_ concerned, there need be no uneasiness, for in seeking to justify his action in resigning, he has succeeded only in demonstrating that the case of the devil's advocate in this matter is hopelessly bad. As ho is reported, the only points he made in his personal explanation, apart from a general objection to compulsion, were that the Derby canvass was not exhaustive, and that the actual minority of unencumbered men declining to enlist is negligible. Even admitting his premises, and they are invalidated by weighty evidence, ho is thus committed to the remarkable position that it is wrong to cnforce the enlistment of a negligible minority of shirkers, though it would presumably be right to resort to compulsion if the number of shirkers were larger. We have Lord Kitchener's and Mr. Asqmth's assurances that the number of men who should have attested and.declined to do so is not' negligible, but in any case the idea that shirkers should be entitled to exemption from compulsion because of their being in an insignificant minority is an oddity which Sir John Simon or anyone else will find it hard to defend. The retiring Minister plainly stands convicted of opposing the reasonable action of the Government on absurdly inadequate grounds,' and his current speech and any others he may deliver in the same strain should form excellent campaign material for those who undertake the task of overcoming opposition to the Bill.

The arguments employed by the opponents of the Bill are largely self-destructive. In particular the contention that fclie men whom the Bill is intended to reach are available in some way or other without resort to compulsion is obviously worthless while these men remain outside the scope of the recruiting scheme. Some of the speeches made against the Bill would almost implythat the men whom it is proposed to enlist compulsorily have been living beyond sight and hearing of the appeal for recruits, but since they have not, the case of those who have adopted this line of argument necessarily falls to the ground. Bad as is i the case of those who oppose the Bill, their opposition commands attention by reason of its dead-weight importance, and must be regarded for the time being as a factor giving serious cause for uneasiness. The opponents of the Bill in Parliament, the Irish Nationalists and a minority of Liberal and Labour members, are not likely to exercise any decisive influence upon events, but there is a threat of Labour opposition in the country which may yet pro'-to formidable. Mr. Thomas claims to be the spokesman of 300,000 railwaymen, who arc resolved to go to any length in opposition to compulsion, and there is more than a \int of trouble in the news that the miners are withdrawing their representatives from the National Labour Conference in order to hold a conference of their own.

The merits of the issues at stake will be best grasped by considering how they must be regarded by the enemies of Britain and her Allies. It will fill these enemies with pleasant expectation to see a minority in the House of Commons and a minority of Labour extremists in the country doing their utmost to deflect Britain from the one step which would decisively perfect her organisation for war. Much would be done to quench these expectations if an end were made of domestic brawls, and the country unitedly endorsed the proposals which the Government has introduced. Evidently these conditions are not to be attained in full measure, but the hope still, survives that a strong majority in Parliament and a strong force of j.ul.lie opinion in the country may yet avail to sweep away an agitation" which rests upon no real foundation and can only be regarded in its ultimate tendency as suicidal. Those who are opposing the enforced enlistment of men who should undoubtedly bo serving their country i:i the field are upholding no principle, and their objects, if they have any, are visionary, but they represent a force making directly against the victory of their country in tho war. Time alone will disclose the actual strength of tho opposition to the Bill. Meantime there is rmtiefdet/irv evidence liM- tlu\ Imperial Gov-

eminent intends to carry out its undertaking against all opposition. Mr. Bonar LAW has stated in the House of Commons on behalf of Mn. Asquitk that the latter will resign if the House does not enable him to carry out his pledge. This means that the Government stakes its fate upon that of the legislation it has introduced. One looby correspondent predicts a general election within a few weeks, but on present indications the Government is less likely to bo seriously impeded by opposition in Parliament than by the opposition of a section of organised Labour in the country. Even this danger may be averted. It must be averted unless Britain is to fall back in disarray from mi uncompleted task, to resume it ultimately with much leeway to make good.

A period of extreme tension, not in itself healthy or favourable to the efficient prosecution oi the war, seems at best to bo inevitable. Some relief may be afforded by a revival of attestation and enlistment amongst the men at whom the compulsory legislation is directed, .but it has'to be remembered that the Government is now committed to pushing through the Bill in any case, and heavy enlistments and attestations at the last moment would no-doubt be'seized upon by opponents of the Bill as evidence that it was unnecessary.

The Bill itself calls for little remark. The exemption of conscientious objectors may seem to open a wide doorway of escape, but no doubt the exemption is hedged with reasonable limitations, as iu the case of similar provisions in the Compulsory. Training Acts of_ the Dominions, upon which it is said to be based.

A very brief advance summary of Sir lan Hamilton's dispatch upon the Gallipoli operations covers some important The failure at Suvla Bay is attributed by General Hamilton to tha divisional commanders in that area not pressing the attack. It is further shown that after the failure he asked for reinforcements totalling 95,000 men. These were refused, and _ General Hamilton was asked to estimate the losses involved in evacuation. He replied that evacuation seemed impossible, and was thereupon recalled to London. So far as the evacuation of Suvla Bay and Anzac were concerned, events have demonstrated that General Hamilton's opinion was wrong. *

Though the Russians are still pressing the offensive on their southern front, there is no news at time of writing of sensational developments in any of the • campaigns. A message forwarded by the High Commissioner states that the Austrians admit the partial evacuation of Czernowitz, the capital of Bukowina, but the latest Russian communique in hand claims only that further positions have been captured on the approaches to Czernowitz. Dealing with the Balkans Mr. Ward Price suggests that the inaction of the enemy is accounted for by the refusal of the Bulgarians to extend their operations unless they are promised further accessions of territory at the expense of Greece—a demand Germany is unable to grant. Though in some plausible, this explanation of the conditions at present, ruling in the Balkans is open to objection. Even if she is unwilling to incur further losses for Germany's sake, Bulgaria must be prepared, to fight in her own interests, and she has little to gain by leaving the Allies undisturbed to perfect their preparations. Moreover many reports have declared that Bulgaria is now very completely under German influence. Whatever the true explanation of _ the halt called in the enemy's operations may be, there is definite -evidence that the Allies are improving their position./ Reports from Rome state that the Italians are firmly established along the Albanian coast, from Yalona to Durazzo; and at Salonika the Allies appear to 'have taken time by the forelock and scotched an elaborate system of espionage by their action in arresting enemy consuls and other enemy subiccts. In the unending stir of artillery and other fkhting on the Western front the Allies a-re shown to be much more than holding their own.