The Dominion MONDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1916. NEW ZEALAND'S SHARE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2897, 9 October 1916, Page 6

The Dominion MONDAY, OCTOBER 9, 1916. NEW ZEALAND'S SHARE

The high praiso which Sir Douglas Haig has just bestowed upon the fighting qualities of the Now Zealand soldiers engaged in the opic atrugglo which is now in progress in toe Somme region should make' the heart of overy man and woman in the Dominion glow with patriotic pride. We have tho right to ho proud of tho quality of our troops— they have' behaved magnificently. Recent heavy casualty lists have assisted us to realise something of the, spirit which has inspired theso men, and it is partly becausc of this that we would dircct special attontion to the message which wo-publishthis jaorning, addressed to us'from London by Mr. S. A. Atkinson. Me. Atkinson is now a member of our Expeditionary Force. Before he enlisted ho was well known hero as an cnergotic advocate of more vigorour and cxtensivo military measures. He urged again, and again that the number of our reinforcements should be increased: Now that he has got to the centre of affairs ho is more convinced' than ever that New Zealand should bo aroused to a truer idea of her war responsibilities. He thinks the present position is not croditablo to tho Dominion, and in tho light of tho facts he mentions few will care to dispute his view. How can it be creditable to New Zealand that, on a proportional basis, Britain should have put two soldiers in the field for every one that New Zealand has sent to the front? And on tho subject of tho Navy also Me. Atkinson speaks plainly, and wo think convincingly, If any of us has ever had any doubts as to whether tho Empire is getting good value for the money spent on the Navy the war has effectually dispelled them. It is quite impossible to over-estimate the debt'which New Zealand owes to His Majesty's ships and sailors. "Do no part of iho Empire is sea power of more vital importance than it is to us. But tho Empire's naval supremacy can only be maintained at great cost; and we are not bearing anything like our fair share of the expense. , As Mr. Atkinson reminds us, our contribution is only equal to about one-twelfth of our proportional share of the expenditure as it stood prior to the commencement of tho war. In 1887 our contribution was fixed at £20,000 a year. In 1903 it'was raised to "a sun} not exceeding £40,000." In 1908 we agreed to pay £100,000 a year. It must he plain to everyone that the amount' Ave pay is quite insignificant when compared with the value we receive in the shape of naval defence. Is it right that we should continue to enjoy the protection of the Navy, upon which all that we have and are depends, without accepting a fair share of the sacrifice which its upkeep entails 1 The present position should be regarded as intolerable by any self-respecting State. The Minister op Defence has stated that the whole question of naval defence will have to be reconsidered. It is a matter of men as well as money. It will have to lie dealt with as an essential part of the general problem of reorganising the Empire for defcnce purposes—naval and military. New Zealand knows that sho ought to do more for the maintenance of the Navy than she has done in the past. And her people arc quite willing to do more when their leaders show the way.. But what of the presout'! The successful prosecution of the war means as much to us as it does, to the Mother Country—perhaps more. Tho only question we should really consider is: Are wo doing all that we can do to onsure that full and completo victory that Mr. Herdman spoke of on Saturday night in his admirable address before tho Orphans' Club'! Obviously we aro not. Mr. Atkinson, a New "Zealandcr himself, one of those who made great sacrifices to go to the front to servo his country, and who has seen something of, and been immensely impressed by, the sacrifices chat aro being made by the people of Great Britain, tellß us only the plain truth in his message to-day. We. have done a great deal, but wo can and should do more. Wo can . .begin lut sending: mono men,-