AUSTRALIA'S "NO."

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2928, 14 November 1916, Page 9

AUSTRALIA'S "NO."

TRAVELLERS' IMPRESSIONS SHOCK TO .PATRIOTIC PEOPLE . Passengers by the Manuka, who reached Wellington.last night, left Sydnoy when tho result of the referendum was practically certain. There seemed still a possibility last week that the "No" majority ■would-bo wiped out in the later counts, but it was a very slight one, and tho genoral feeling in Sydney was that the Federal Government would have to accept defeat on the conscription proposal. Many thousands of Australians wore keenly disappointed at the .verdict, w'hich they regarded as a betrayal of tho men at the front, and of the Commonwealth's duty to the Empire. But there wero. others who rejoiced loudly over what they called the "defeat of militarism" and the "triumph\of democracy." "The result of the referendum came as a shock to patriotic people," said ono passenger in conversation with a. Dominion reporter. "Australia has been falling behind with her reinforcements for many months past, until to-day the divisions in the field are reported to bo below strength, and tho .success of tho 'Noes' means simply that hope of recovering tho lost ground must bo abandoned. That seems to bo tho general understanding of the position. The failure of the recent recruiting appeals has shown clearly that tho necessary number of men cannot be obtained under tho voluntary system, and tho Federal Government now has no power to do anything more (than accept the men who come forward voluntarily and let tho shortages stand. I suppose that will mean a gradual reduction in tho strength of the Australian forces at the front. _ There was some uncertainty in Australia as to whether the verdict at tho referendum would entail the fall of the Hughes Government, and possibly the formation of a new Ministry on national- lines. Apparently Mr. Hughes and some of his colleagues were being formally expelled from the Labour Party, with boll, book and candle, and they do not appear to be the sort of men to take that treatment without a kick. But when we left Australia nobody seemed to have any cleatidea of what was going to happen. "Tho point that impressed me about the referendum was that the conscription issue was mixed up with a dozen purely political and party issues," said another passenger. "I do not believe myself that a majority of the Australian people \vould have voted against conscription if tho issue had not been befogged for them by the political partisans. You must understand that the line of cleavage in the Labour Party was not new. Tho split began to show itself a long time ago, even before the outbreak of war, and the opponents of Mr. Hughes used the conscription issue for party purposes with a great deal of skill and apparently without any regard at all for the Imperial questions involved in it. They raised all sorts of catch-calls, and thousands of Australian peoplo voted 'No' without clearly realising that they were voting to withhold Reinforcements from the Forces at the front. Tho 'antis' were careful not to discuss the Reinforcement question at all, except to suggest that Australia really had been sending more men than were required, when the truth was that the divisions at the front were falling below strength. I don't know what is going to happen now. The one certain thing is that tho Labour Party is wrecked beyond repair. Its most capablo leaders have been driven out of its ranks, and if there was a Federal election now the official Labour Party would bo defeated utterly. Some , regrouping must now take place."