The Gun, the Oath and the Jail.

Maoriland Worker, Volume 3, Issue 54, 22 March 1912, Page 8

The Gun, the Oath and the Jail.

Many Labor lnoti in Australia, and soino in New Zealand, excuse and justify Compulsory Military Training on the ground that as between Capital niul Labor the rrbitrament of the g\in must be requisitioned.

This view recently found able and forcible expression in the editorial columns of the Queensland "Worker," and we. notice that its article on the subject is reprinted by the "Weekly Herald and quoted from by the '■Evening Post" of Wellington.

Now, we have no objection whalovor to the ''Weekly Herald" and other papers utilising their Queensland contemporary in. behalf of Force and Violence, but we do tnke objection to Iheso papers and their supporters forever accusing the Federation of Labor of being advocates of an unwise policy which (they say) implies violence, if Ih-ey themselves beliovo in the newssity of the g-ui n-i decider in the Class War.

If they believe, in the necessity of the gun, thon nil their cry of "the ballot and no I t!ie bullet" is so muHi wind and hypocrisy—and plainly, since they infe.renfcially uphold conscription because it will arm the workers, they arc tho very last people wlio should attack another organisation on the ground:} that the said organisation seckt; revolution, whereas evolution is tho way, etcetera. For our part, we prefer to believe that tho pooplc of whom wo are treatin.g are quite genuinely opponents of syndicalism, because they think present betterment arid the final .supremacy of tho working-class will en mo through tlit> use of tho voto; equally, for our part, we prefer to believe that the same people uphold conscription because tiio Australian Labor Parly has sanctioned it and imposed it, mid not because, they really believo in the necessity of the gun. The gun argument, however, happen:- to bo argument of weight with so mo workers, and likewise an arguiiH lit strongly supporting tho allegiance a'.endy .riven to compulsory military training—hence its avid t seizure. The remarkable situation in New Zealand is that liie organi.s.'itiyns classed as violently "red" and bloody avo actually tho organisations for poaop. Thoy are siiila-niiliLarisls, and tJi-c.y preach one thing a-j fundamental and as tnoro than eillirr Lallot or bullet, viz., worliing-clas.i organisation upon the lines and in the spirit of In- | dustria! Unionism And '"I'iic- i\!:>ori!:.:k! \\\n-:-.-j" h'6 i.o a:;y (!:r; ! " >■>.& '■ of the general sink" at JSrisbi.n , .- can no more rii>.-;miiibly be a(■! i iinni ■'': (o the lack of guns than to the pleM/iiid" of vt,L <;, but e-u \r-- ,iH ribu!c-j, nuile lo,;i----e;l!y and dcnhvi-irab:.,', U> {'■,•■ ;:'»- I cc 01 seiciiiific ci/'ini.-'ali-iii ::.. : 1 to \.', n , of r ;'i:e Oi-:-enslaiid | '" V/--:j-j.-t" kl:'.iU.- ; :ij l).'):.C v. ho fJV.otlt ;fc J'jiprovin.dy ];:ww, that !l;• ■ 1 r\cvy j ;■]-rikor b. i<l gun nnd arnntuiiitinii. n )t a iieiVtT, out a worse ending had been the .-tiike's. ■• Witliont arguing the matter at length, let us remind our n aivs of the K^'nniiding refutation of the giui ;i::';v::ient r.-M-.'p.i'i-r"] ir the f?>< ' that in conscript count rie-i the sirik'TS fan? v. - o:'o0 ih, n in o!.!:t countries—.".nfl, in r! her, that in the , !■ I'rench railway str'ke the strikers were beHeii preeisfly beon.ii>'' l.he-y lield puns, precisely 1,-ecnuse t!i'\v v-iv under conscription, and preoi.jely beeausA as national gunhoidcrs i-hey could be in ado soldiers in place of strikers and as soldiers* be msdo scabs. Let not the workers of New Zealand

swallow Ihe bail made m-..'iv paLiLJilr as if in their interests to swallow! Everybody knows how bitter ami vindictive tin* "Kveui'ig I , list" is in its antagonism Lei Soeiaiisiu, mid -liow alilc, enthusiastic aikl unscrupulous it is for conscription- yvi thu "Tost," to got its conscription accept* d, uses ilio Queens* land ''Worker" and the gun argument! If guns were used in the lu-xl strike, certainly the 'Tost" might be oore.-id-(•rod accessory to tho act. ■\YhiUt dealing with nesv -spap'TS, what of tlii , . crocodile tears of some ol' them over ilμ- awi'ul rrinie oi lads refusing to fake il:i' military α-atii? Not ono of then; any indignity or absurdity i:i a in i nov being compelled to take an oalli. Oaths are for grown men and w iiien. and the taking of them must always imply the- understanding of them. At any rate, the military oaili is altogether foreign to the democratic and oven the constitutional traditions and observances of New Zealand, and again, though part of the Defence Act is at variance with the Defence Act itself—if protagonists nro to be believed who insist that under tho Defence Act aggression 13 not contemplated. However, it is as much a mockery to compel lads to take the defence oath as it would he to compel an oath when starting at school. Our citizenship is not founded on an oath, but on birth —we vole not because we are on oath, but because wo are born into its privileges. As well ask a baby to take an oath that it will subsequently bring children into the world as nsk a lad to take an oath l'nre-vcr binding Him to the King and successor* aivl his military roprevTitatives. The- evil of suggestion and the general evil could be no more m.irk "1 in the fwrniT ca.*! than it- is in the latter.

Sticking to thr papers, that 'good Australian" :iii'i jxiwi-rfnl : \!?ulle!in" isn't t<lo particular at "scoring" in behalf Of its O«'ll viewpeill l , Hlid IlOllf'O the following:—•■The combined attempt of the red-raggers ;>tid wTiiteilaggcrs to knock out Maoril.nid's Defence, SchciiiO has proved the worst rizklo on record, Instead of whole squadrons of youngsters refusing enrolment, lit scons, according to an official stat<*-mc-nt by the Commandant, that, in a total of 35/30 D snnior cadet,; and 27,000 territorial, the. Defence Department can trrok down only ; r >:t defa'iliers." Seeing 1.1 in I more than double the number of '•">' defaulters" have boon proceeded ag,un-.l in. two cities of *N>y;V Zealand-spring lii.it bi'J'orc such proceedings hundreds of lads were terrorised into registration—seeing that tho compulsory drill is treated with contempt by largo numbers in many centres —seeing that in the more militant localities (notice-ably, the mining fields) nearly all the juvenile, nialo populv tions liavo rejected registration— jeeiug that "wholo s-v.rulrons of youngsters HAVE refund ■ ■nrolnioijt and pro ready for tho prison—and sceiny that Intls exceeding in number ''53 defaulters" have already bc-n fined and jaiied —tho jibo of t'jo "'-Bulletin" is the meanest of lying, \vliit'll can be regarded with the pity and μ-oit, it merits. We- shall all live to see the day v/hen Wause of its conscript !ve policy tlm "Bulletin ,, and tho L-.ib.ir Party of Australia vi 11 stink in tin.- i.,>tional iK)stril.s and bo execrated as th- , rrai to patriotism, conseieiicOj and dciiiocracy.

Wo repeat Hint noUiii:^ —absolutely nothing— can j't'.lify the jailing of our anti-conscript kiv.-;, ai:i we reaffirm that Hie handnifliing of them, tlio juridical recording of ilioir iin<f-.<r-prints :intl of Mn-ir the broad-arrow £.innei:!s and liard I,'iLor thrust upon tlit-in, aic an upon docrncy and p: ipirss, ami unreservedly coii-lonm ;;.! <-!iiir--'ly dek-stublo the magistracy and t!ie rnilit.iry niulady whi'ili impose tl)"in.

Y\\: OHK in f> re very seriously warn t!ic KorVw- of N.-.v Z.ml;pi'l 'h ■' I'io military is alxay-; utilised a<nin ;' the t-ij.jil-iy.'es aii'l for tiio on;),;,>;,•<■; s us in Gc-MT);;i;,y, n:i-;L!i-'r <-o'm;ri;.t viii.l, lasi vv-cnlv—:itnl ,s liio !!;;i,.jlik'J' ;>nd dpf-.udci' of t!i:ii; C■; • ■ t):;n::u 1 :i:!'l C;i:"1(.' in>!ii i-lsc I'o;' ,: :;!.::ip; ;i ni'iiiify:!! (L;;;:;cr 1(. |vn;,!-. Tiic- co.--t s-iul ill Of.-i.-;( .■---( ii"-S'- l,f- 1 ';.' Iv! UIT3 Of i'v)iisci'i|)l;.)]i iiNj'.'i'iili:;!. l ; ilio civi'i.in rm-1 !ii.s ri; : So'iii iii Z-ahiiid U,- l--c;iu.;c of i:ir'..;i"'];|. LciiJ■.■i:'-i>« \\\- >]*~]] liavo li) <I(-c):!; , (.> v'l'Vi-'.K'j Ih'.k l(!!r ; :s,'S 0: tlie miliL-ij-y arc to rulo Z<"'.:)lh;"l~and \io do «-i:;(»ly to ivmoml^i , t!;:it iiiiylliiii;'.; wliich the soldier also Uiif.i i --.-.sna liiiii us oii,:,n iliio and jiluio- < v i'a(;c iim|]()lJ<m' of prolil, property a.nd pow.i'ly. "I'iicro never was a slave but a s-ildior mado lihii one —there ncvor was a slave but a soldier kept, liim olio." To conclude, it is imperative th;>t the anli-ruilitamb movcin.o.iit of our land bo with cyclonic eiiorp;v and activity, and that alnu-.st fanatical zeal bo our answer to the misrer>resoril.atio!ijs and mockeries of a

(e'cj-, .--,■! s!(llk<'ii a.-, to cohcciic any vile innuendo aud rascally epithet the dc•;'Mi.-, W. sUilwyrt and righteous bfiy.s «lie. refuse to be cajoled or intimidated in!.i base betrayal ol their !!.-i:t:ej,e and of posterity's liberty. One nie;u:-.s of protest remains to be trie.], and that means the pre-enlat i. -rt oi a huge petition to I'arliamcul agaiii-t (he Defence Act. Licetrio ,'iud sell -s-icrifieiiig devotion ami work from no a- till June should sc Parliament. cnii■ routed with a record demand for the ;v]>ea[ of an oii.'ici.menf or a system repugnant (o English freedom-lov-er.-, and disastrous to the world.