THE HUNLIY PRESS. PUBLISHED WEEKLY AT 1 P.M. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1916. Recruiting..

Huntly Press and District Gazette, Volume 4, 4 February 1916, Page 2

THE HUNLIY PRESS. PUBLISHED WEEKLY AT 1 P.M. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 1916. Recruiting . .

[Contributed], The holidays are over, but although there lias been an increase in the number of recruits offering, there has not been the satisfactory increase which was confidently expected. Locally, recruiting seems to be quite dead, although there is a very large proportion of eligible men here, and although the majority of them are keen advocates of the voluntary system. The fact of recruiting being so slack here, makes one wonder. Residents are louder in their advocacy of voluntaryism, than in any other place I know of, and yet the number of recruits is proportionately small. This makes one wonder, why voluntaryism is so warmly advocated., It cannot be, that these advocates of voluntaryism, are greatly averse to standing shoulder to shoulder with pressed men, because they don’t stand shoulder to shoulder with anybody. One wonders whether their keenness is for freedom to volunteer or for freedom to stay at home.

There is one point worthy of consideration, and that is, that any man who takes an active part in advocating this system, should be prepared to give it his practical support and make it a success, and that he can only do by volunteering for active service.

When -everything is brought down to bed-rock it seems to me that it is the bounden duty of everyieligible man to consider,that m this war, one side or the other is contending for a great principle the decision on which will have a great effect on the whole human race, and that it is. the duty of every person in the world to do his or her Share in aiding the side which he deems to be in the right. There is no place for the rail-sitter in this war and it seems to me, that whoever is not for us is certainly against us, and even though his enmity may be concealed and may take a, passive form, he is still an enemy and would be less harmful actively assisting the other side, than passively injuring ours. One could wish to see a little more active sympathy shown in this place with the Allies, and that there should be more support and encouragement given to those who do enlist.