THE CALL FOR MEN

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2866, 2 September 1916, Page 10

THE CALL FOR MEN

WHAT THE SHORTAGE MEANS

STRENGTH OF IHE RESERVE

The failure of the military districts to complete, their quotas for tho Twentieth Reinforcements, and the decision of the Dcfoncu authorities t-o let a shortage of 225 men stand over until the Twenty-first Reinforcements are called up during the present month, havo directed attention to the Reserve, .which consists nominally of 1000 men in training over and above the requirements of reinforcement drafts. It is being suggested that the existence of the Reserve makes, the present shortage of recruits of no practical importance, since partiallytrained men are available to fill the gaps. Another statement made in this connection is' 1 that New Zealand cannot be accused of suffering a shortago of recruits, since there are between 4000 and 5000 registered men who have been passed as fit, and are waiting to go into camp with later reinforcements..

The facts require a certain amount of explanation.. Tho Reserve, iu the first place, was created iu response to a suggestion made by the Imperial authorities towards tho end of last year. , The Minister of Defence mentioned the matter in the House of Representatives at the time, iand indicated that the Reserve would enable New Zealand to meet a sudden call ;for men at any time, and would also give a necessary amount of elasticity to the recruiting scheme. Experience has shown that the Reserve is an essential part of the training plan, since without it scarcely a draft could be sent away at full strength. Wastage always occurs during tho training period. If a reinforcement enterß camp at full strength, it is sure to fall below strength in the course of training, owing to desertions, transfers, dismissals, and the discharge of men oil medical grounds. Partially-train-ed men must be available to fill the gaps, since it would not be advisable to add raw recruits to a draft already some way through its course. But obviously the Reserve cannot be regarded as a recruiting ground. If the purpose of the Reserve is to be realised, and the body kept in existence until the close of tho war, the Defence Department must take into camp every month the full number of men allotted to the monthly reinforcement draft; plus tho number of men required to cover wastage. The system is not rigid, and a. shortage of men in/ono month may bo covered by a surplus in the next. But, broadly speaking, each month has been required to produce its proper quota of recruits, and when a draft went into camp below strength the districts have been aoked to cover their shortages as quicklv as possible. It can hardly bo claimed, therefore, that the mere existence of the Reserve is an adequate efcplanation of tho decision or the I>cpartnient to let the shortage ill the Twentieth Reinforcements stand over until the Twenty-iirst Reinforcements enter camp, especially as 'there is no apparent guarantee that the later draft will not have a ..shortage <>t its ° Nominally the reserve " consists _ of 1000 men iu various stages ot training. Its actual strength, even .on paper, probably does not reach 1000 at the present time, and its strength in men available to-day for transfer to a Reinforcement is a very long way hclow 1000 ni en. The exact 'figures, aro not announced by the Defence Department, ■ but it is known that the reserve lias to carry tho'main'part-of-the burden of the "ineffectives" who appear on the lists of men under ' training. Men absent without leave, absent on sick leave, in detention, and so on, make a, total of many hundreds on any particular /dav, and the.y must bo counted as liabilities against tho reserve, since it is essential that each Reinforcement shall contain,' at the date of departure its full complement of fully trained and entirely fit men. , ■ ' The fact that the books of the .Defence Department contain the names of -1000 or 500() men, passed as fit and set down for later Reinforcements, has no bearing upon the question under discussion. Those men are not present, assets. They havo stated their willingness to go into camp a month, or two months, or as'much as six months hence, but, they are not willing to begin their service now, and so tliey do not help tho Department to cover a present shortage. The number of these registered men tends to -increase, and no doubt tho great majority of them will enter camp sooner or later, though experience has shown that without conscription the Department cannot count upon putting into uniform all tho men who register and are passed fit. Districts have called up ten per cent, in excess of actual requirements, and havo then failed to secure their full quotas, owing to the failure of enlisted men to "toe the line."

The Defence Department will nt/ doubt continue to send away each Reinforcenient at full strength. There has been no failure in the past find tile placing of the Military Service Act upon- the Statute Book is a guarantee that there will bo no failure in the future. But a feeling exists inside Defence circles, as well as outside, that attempts to gloss over shortages in tho drafts of recruits are not good policy from any standpoint. It is a fact that the Twentieth Reinforcements went into camp short and that the Department has not succeeded in securing enough recruits to cover the shortage. The men of New Zealand should understand that fact, since the conscription law has not. yet become onerative and-the country Iwill be still dependant upon ro!unta : ? enlistment for a month or two to come.

RECRUITING IN WELLINGTON

YESTERDAY'S ENLISTMENTS. Sixty-six men who had volunteered for service returned their papers at the JJiickle Street recruiting office yesterday. Of these 31. men were passed as fit, and 3!i were rejected. Tlie names of the lit men, all assigned to the infantry, were as follow: — A. A. .Smith, laundry worker, City. H. E. Headit'en, driver, City. M. A. Grant, driver, City. A. A. Rogers, clerk, City. W; 6. White, clerk, City. J. Jones, seaman, City. H. G!. Scott, cabinetmaker, Roseneatli. P. J. Carmody, jeweller, City. F. Bishop, steward, City. H. Jrl. liells, painter, l'efone. C. E. Piper, electrician, City. L. Ji. K. Young, bank clerk, City. F. E. lipham, returned soldier, City. A. H. Mitchell, grocer, City. A, E. Webley, engineer, Lower Hutt. J. 11. J. Turner, driver, City. ,T. Fenaughty, labourer, City. C. J. Duggan, returned soldier, City. \Y. I'. AVhittum, produce merchant, City. R. T. Kruus, taxi proprietor, City. R. L. Little, jeweller, City. D. Forsyth, wireless operator, City. C. E. Lees, .student, Gisboinc. L.' C. West, porter, City. R. Prilchard, painter, City. V. Valiron, grocor, City. A. W. Wliittington, composite)!-, City. W, J. Meyer, clerk, City. T. Ritchie, dealer, City. T. Thompson, labourer, City. J. J. Gallaghan, commercial traveller, City.