A RECRUITING PROBLEM

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2761, 3 May 1916, Page 6

A RECRUITING PROBLEM

WHERE ARE THE MEN?

STATEMENT BY CAPT. BARCLAY

Daily reporters are told by tho Defence authorities at Mount Cook that certain Reinforcements are still short of men as far as Wellington is concerned,, yet in one recruiting office alone the number of medically fit men put through practically equals tho men required from the group. It puzzles ■ nobody more than Capt. Barclay, chief recruiting officer, at the Town Hall, to know what has become of tho men, and at Monday's .meeting cf the War League he put the query, to the Minister of Defence, who was not able to give an explanation.

The situation as outlined by Capt. Barclay is briefly as follows:—At the Town Hall .a very complete register is kept of the men who are put . through there. When a man passes the doctor as fit, he is asked at what date he will be available to go into camp. The recruit nominates a date, and on that he is noted as a man for the Rciuforceme,nt that is to be called upon subsequent to that date. His address is taken, and all _ particulars _ are forwarded to the military authorities. In the ease of the Fifteenth _ Reinforcement, called up on April 8, it was reported to tho Town Hall office many weeks ago that 139 men would be required from Group o. "For that Reinforcement," says Capt. Barclay, "we sent from this office alone the names of 136 fit men—only three short of the number required, and sinco then, hearing of a shortage, -we have sent np a good many moro for the sameReinforcement." How many? "Oh, roughly,_ perhaps twenty—and yet every morning the papers report a shortage. Well, if there is a 6liortage, it is not the Wellington (No. 5) Group. Some timp in April the quota was raised from 139 to 173, but even on that basis .there co-uld scarcely be a shortage on our quota, providing that the men turned up when called upon to do so, as from this office alone wo sent

about 160 men!. "But' here's' the point," said Capt. Barclay, practically answering his own query as to where were tho men, "you iiray register a thousand men, and put them through, bnt you haven't a hold on a single one of thorn. The Minister says that wo don't lose thorn, as they cannot 'leave the country, but for the purpose we want them for at once wo lose them. The fisli may ho in-the river, but you've lost him off the hook. Our nosition isi.that we've caught tho fish, but bo's wriggled off the line into the water again, and you are faced with having to expend more time and more money to catolr him again. Oh, it's ! all very funny, this recruiting business !" Capt. Barclay states that a slight error crept into the report of what be Maid at the War League meeting on Monday. It was in reference to the number of men enrolled for tho 17th Reinforcement, which is 57, not 857 as printed. '

CITY MEETING. / The adjourned meeting of the Town Hall Recruiting and tho War Loaguo Committees will be held in the Council Chamber, Town 1 . Hall, at S p.m. on Friday. V Tlio meeting will further consider the steps to be taken to promote recruiting. Members of the exocutivo of tho men's and women's branches of the National Reserve are invited by the' Mayor (Mr. j. P. Luke) to bo present. CANTERBURY'S SHORTAGE. By Association. Ghristchurch, May 2. The shortage of infantry for the lOths was reduced to forty-two bv noon today.