CADET TRAINING

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 287, 28 August 1920, Page 9

CADET TRAINING

EFFECT UPON CITIZENSHIP

AN IMPORTANT PART OF EDUCATION

A® 9 asenti&l Defence effort could be sustained without great expen•Sw<2 r i said Lieu-toant-Colond J. L, Sleeman (Director of Military Training), in the coureo of an address whioh ho delivered at the Garri2Jn Officers' Club last night. lb "ould not be emphasised too strong ly, said Colonei Sleeman, that cadet tralninjf afforded the best possible chance of improving national oitiasnship. Thn Dominion already possessed an excellent system of cadet training, which compared moTe than favourably with anf j I 1? .°? ,strac<! ' Reference to the oudet training manuals of other conntora would prove the truth of this assertion. Unfortunately, the system was handicapped in manv respects. It would be recognfred that the first essential in T«srnrd to th<> training of bovs was that they should become attracted by their training and enter into it with'enthus. | asm. In some esses this was so, but Jn others the drill accommodation was inadequate. Before the. system oould produce pood results, well lighted, clnnn, spacious, and attractive drill accommodation must be 'available. In some cases cadet unita had to nerform their training at nieht time in ill-lichted str-"-ot?, or open spaoea. Under such conditions ■it was almost impossible to make parades attractive, or to oxnect trainee to trvlyi an _ on<|oyablo interest in them, "adet training must be regarded as a very Important part of a bov's education.- In vounff and plastic minds a sense of the important duties of citizenship could tw imtiTnniFed with the utmost success. Th° present cadet trainine offered a. snmid system of physical training, instruction m oitizenshin Bubi'oots, and a certain amount of drill and musketry. menare the cadets for the advaWed Defence Instructions they would receive later. In order to teach these derfrablp subirets exnert instructors were boHi of oommiswloned awl non-commi«ioned ro.uk. from the lenTth and hrondt-'i nf fUe Dominion. At the pre«ent. time there was » rerfous shortatre of cadet officers and this would remiire to 1* rectified before cadet training could become as efficient as it should be. - ' ' Public Support Needed. The task of tEe cadet officer _ was a most self-sacrificing one. He received no peyment for his services, was expected to devote many hours each week to cadet training, and should consequently receive the utmost consideration and Teepect of all within the Dominion. Cadet training should, therefore, not be regarded as a, Defence matter alone, but ns a matter of such importance that the whole of the general yublic shoul,d ibe impressed with its importance and need, and support those in ohaTge of this training to the utmost possible extent. Where cadet instructions could be given by expert instmtora in spacious, well lighted, comfortable drill halls, it was found that cadets very quicklx entered upon tbeir work with tho utmost enthusiasm, and spent tKeir evening hours to greater profit than would otherwise be the case. Where such instructions and accommodation was not forthcoming parades were uninteresting, <lreary and dull, and proved repulsive to tho cadet. •The lecturer urged that the general public should take an interest in thin valuable training and witness the conditions under which the cadets of their respective towns worked. In some parls, the conditions ■were excellent; in others a ■ great improvement could be made. It .was a task which- could not entirely be performed by the Defence Depart- ' mentj for ii required the encouragement J of parents and employer; if the full results were to be expected. The Great War discovered an enorm- j ous percentage of unfits among our popn- , lation. Under the Military Service Act ' 77,900, men wore rejected out.of 135.282, f on account of medical disalibitiea. This j was between 40 and 50 per cent. 01 ( these, 15 were rejected for every 1G pass- ; ed for'service between 20 and 25 ysaTS . of age. Thi9, in a healthy oountry like , New Zealand, with all its magnificent ■ opportunities, disclosed something enor- , mously wrong. Certain of these men { were placed in a CI camp, and after a , perio<f of training 55 per cent, were e trained to a standard of physical fitness J high enough to allow them to enter for c Expeditionary Forco service. If this could j be done with men oven 20 yeare of nje, i tow much more could be done if atten; 1 tion were paid to physical development a during the earlier years of oadet train- r ing? - , Valuable Opportunities.

Not only was cadet training attractive ■work for boys during susceptible years of their age, but it afforded the only opportunity given to growing youths aftei leaving school to obtain lessons regarding the necessities for citizenship and for future defence. Those in charge of cadet training should always remember that whether a war occurred again or not, they were engaged upon the most valuable work that man could do. The good instructor saw in his company of 100 cadots, not 100 trained soldiers marching into battle, but 100 healthy, vigorous, moral and strong citizens performing theij- duty to the company with pleasure and profit to themselves, a credit to the nation to whicli they belonged.