LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 201, 14 May 1918, Page 6

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

THE UNITED STATES

WHAT IT HAS DO.NE AND IS D0IN&

Sir,—An opinion )ms found expression which will only cause dissension. It is that we should allow tho United States to carry on our war effort. There is no plea better suited for German prona-, guiida, and it will be exploited to thu hurt of tho Allied cause, in March last, a British 'assistant-provost marshal established his headquarters in New York.. That oilicer, Lieutenant-Colonel I. irnser Hunter, found it at onco necessary to publish a request to tho people of theUnited States not to bolievo the lies o! German agents that llio British were a race of slackers. He told how five million Britishers voluntarily enlisted, how" tho British lvecruiting Mtaon twentv-ilve battalions of British volun-

teers from our nationals who had settled' in the States. Pnrt of Lifiut.-C'oloni-l Hunter's duty will be to deal with Bri-

tish shirkers', but fortunately the percentage of dodgers is small, file peoplo of tho States are. willingly bearing sacrifices the like of which wo have not faced, in New Zealand. The total volume of their war effort is wonderful. The money authorised for war purposes to the- end: of December was equivalent to thirty dollars for every minute since the birth of Christ. The regular farm crojis wcro increased by ten billion bushels, and! tho wheat fanners, 'after garnering tlw greatest crop they had over grown, submitted to ivliMtfesfl days and meatless days. It took much time and more talk to secure conscription in Great Britain, \ united though our peoplo were. Fortytwo days alter tho declaration of war, President Wilson had signed the Selective '•■»

Draft Bill. Seventeen days later nearly ten million men were registered. On July 21 the balloting for recruits bftgan,. and by September i, 687,000 conscripts were in camp. Wo now know that theUnited States Army then in France exceeded 100,000. Who 'couH have expected, such team work from a country containing 60 many enemy aliens, so innny vur haters, and so many utterly indifferent, to the world conflict'P Petulant criticism, of the President n.nd people of the United States can only spring. from ignorance or disloyalty. And equally suicidal, is the plea that we arc justified in dodging our responsibilities becauso our total, effort is so small in comparison to that of the States. The Yankees measuro tho spjrit of Riving more than its extent, and to even suggest our hiding behind them will dry up the springs of their activity quicker than anything else.—l am, etc., H. B. I^ENCH'.