The Dominion. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 26, 1016. "A NATIONAL LENT"

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2960, 26 December 1916, Page 4

The Dominion. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 26, 1016. "A NATIONAL LENT"

Mr. Lloyd George's suggestion that "a National Lent" should bo proclaimed/for the period of the war should sot us all thinking. The proposal was addressed directly to the' British public, but no one can seriously contend that the limits of Now Zealand's capacity for sacrifice and' service have yet been reached, or nearly reached. The folk at Home are bearing a, much greater share of the heavy burden of tho war— 'our war as well as,-theirs; and it behoves us to p.a,y close heed to the appeals Earnings contained in Me. Lloyd George's first public utterance m Prime Minister.' His speech rings out as an urgent Imperial call to greater, and still greater, Effort. The unassailable ' prinoiple of compulsory , national service is about to be enforced in i Britain on a vast scale. The whole ' of the industrial power of the country is to be thoroughly organised in ' order that waste and inefficiency i may be reduced to a minimum, and 1 the available labour put-to the best possible use. There are .indications that the New. Zealand Government will soon have to make a move in 'the same direction. In a recent speech made at Auckland, the Minister of Internal Affairs stated that tho women of New Zealand must ;bo prepared for \ further demands ; upon their time and energy. They will bo. asked to undertake part of the work which was being done by the young men who have gone, or are going_ to'the front. The women of Britain are .doing - this—they have risen to the occasion magnificently—and it only requires a clear and definite call, to. ensure that tho women of New Zealand will follow .this splendid example. In tho months to come our civil population will have to make sacrifices moro commensurate with the sacrifices which are being made by thoso who are risking life and limb at the front, . The people of New Zealand : could with advantage join with tho public of Great Britain in tho observance of that' "National Lent" which Mr. Lloyd George cominends so strongly t-o their serious consideration..

■Into that striking phrase "a National Lent;-" the British Prime Minister compresses a wealth of meaning. Mb. Lloyd Geokge possesses in a, remarkable degree the gift- of picturesque and incisive speech. He has a wonderful way of driving home a point which he is specially desirous of impressing upon his Hearers by the apt use of epigram, simile,, and illustration. '"A National Lent" is a phrase on which the mind fastens. It provokes thought and quickens imagination. Lent is the time when men and women are called upon to discipline themselves.' with ; the object of strengthening their characters ■ by bringing; the oody into subjeotion to the spirit. The observance of Lent involves Spartan simplicity of life —plain living and high thinking. Enervating luxuries are given up, and men learn how to endure hardship. Self and selfish desires are put into the background, and selfdenial _ is_ practised.' The object of this discipline is. to make men stronger . and bettor and. harder, and to fit them to fight manfully in the battle' of life. The athlete knows what it is to keep Lent. When he goes into training he voluntarily places severe restraints upon his appetite; his diet is plain; his habits are strictly regulated; his desire for amusement is kept in check. If men will submit to these restrictions in order to win a race or a football match, it is not unreasonable to. expect a nation to submit to wholesome discipline for the_ purpose of winning a war in which all that it values most highly is at stake.

The British Empire is now called upon to observe "a National Lent" by throwing aside all that hampers and hinders it,and all, that prevents it from putting its full into the gigantic struggle in which it is engaged. It is required to lessen expenditure, on food and ' pleasure, to sacrifice ease and comfort, and to make itself fit to endure to the end, and to outlast and rmtfiflht its enemies. Tho issues at stake in tbis conflict aro so tremendous that the nation should be preparod rbenfully to make whatever sacrifices may be necessary to ensure tho ceri tainty of victory. The willing observance of "a National Leut" would strengthen the moral.'fibre of •the nation, would increase its physical fitness, and would enable it to strike with greater power and effect. It is the duty of every man and' woman—and not merely the physically fit men of military ageto serve the State in war time. All must be ready to put themselves at the disposal of the Government, and to do that form of national work which . they are best fitted to do. This is what universal national sorvice means.