THE CALL FOR MEN

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2745, 14 April 1916, Page 6

THE CALL FOR MEN

SHORTAGE BEING REDUCED

YESTERDAY'S NEW RECRUITS

Up till yesterday afternoon there was a shortage of 59 men for Wellington's quota for the Reinforcements. Four men were sent to Trentham by the 1.10 p.m. train, their names being as follow:—A. J. M'Artlrar, — Sheldrake, L. J. Still, and G. Delancy. New Recruits. The following six men were declared medically fit and accepted for military service, at the No. 5 Group Area Office yesterday: - James Leslie Still, labourer, City (Infantry). Alan "Shaw, grocer, City (Infantry). James Anderson, labourer, City (Infantry). Ernest George _ Keys, carpenter, Upper Hutt (Engineers). Archibald John M'Arthur, busbman, City (Infantry). George Delaney, butcher, City (Infantry). AUCKLAND'S'SHORTAGE MADE GOOD. By Telegraph—Press Association. Auckland, April 13. Eighty recruits were dispatched from Auckland to Trentham to-day, to make good the shortage of 77 in the 15ths last week. IS COMPULSION NECESSARY? SPEECH BY SIR JOSEPH WARD. By Telegraph—Press Association. Cisborne, April 13. Sir Joseph Ward continued his recruiting campaign by addressing a crowded audience of about 2000 persons in His Majesty's Theatre, Gisborne, tonight. The meeting was advertised for eight o'clock, but long before that hour the hail was full, and hundreds of people were turned away, every nook and corner of the hall crowded, and at every door and window there v.'ei;e eager listeners. Young fellows climbed up in the roof and were content to peer in at the gallery windows, so intent were they all to hear Sir Joseph Ward speak. "The Mayor (Mr. W. G. Sherratt) presided, and on the platform were Sir James Carroll, members of -the council, members of the Recruiting Committee, and prominent residents of the district.

Sir Joseph Ward, who received an ovation when he appeared on the platform, said they were all- interested in the returned soldiers, and also in. those who were not taking up arms. They appreciated the fact that no man could do more for his friend than give his life for him-^-(applause)—and he strongly appealed to his 'audience to do everything in their power.to induce eligible men to enlist and thus save the voluntary system, which was on its last trial. The Government was anxious to see that all'the men needed went to the front without being forced to go, and the new recruiting scheme was voluntarism's last say—Parliament would be asked this session to put compulsion into operation if it wore found necessary to take that step. Personally, ho did not like conscription. Canada, Australia, and .South Africa had avoided- conscription, and New Zealand wanted to do. the iaine,' but ho would not only support it, but would regard compulsion as a necessity if the men required did not como along voluntarily to do their duty. (Applause.) ,He pointed out that in many cases single men had responsibilities just as great as married men, and such had just as much right to be exempted as the married men, and no man or woman had a right to send a man a whito feather and pronounce him a coward. (Applause.) He stressed the point that Germany, in. her oversea colonies, had lost one million two hundred thousand square miles of territory ( while in return theAllieshad lost something like nine thousand, square miles, but Great Britain had not lost an inch of land. In the face of -this, Germany had thrown out impudent hints for peace, suggesting that we should restore her oversea territory, which he thought would never bo done. (Applause.) At the conclusion of his address Sir Joseph Ward was warmly applauded, and he was accorded a hearty vote of thanks by acclamation, the meeting closing with cheers for Sir Joseph Ward. ' ' ''. _ Sir Joseph Ward had an exceedingly strenuous, day. He arrived at Gisborne at 5 a.m., after having spent 22 hours in the train coming from Auckland, and nine hours at sea. At 10 o'clock he was accorded a civic reception. He then received deputations. At one o'clock ho was entertained at lunch by the citizens of Gisborne; at two o'clock he left for Ngatapa by motor-car, a distance of'2s miles, to inspect the first section of tho Gisborne-Napier railway, recently completed; at 6.30 p.m. he was ontertainod a't,dinner by the Waikohu County Council, and .at eight o'clock he. addressed a monster recruiting meeting. He leaves by motor at six o'clock to-morrow morning, and will motor 130 miles to Napier in order to catch the express for Wellington on Saturday. He leaves Wellington for the south on Saturday night and addresses a ro- . cruiting meeting at Christchurch on Monday night. A. E. M. Rowland, the Public Service Optician and Jeweller, has beon appointed spectacle maker to the Wellington Hospital. Further, the firm offers IS per cent, discount to soldiers and their friends when purchasing for them. See Bowland's "Get-rich-quick .Sale," SO Manners Street.—Advt. .