MAN POWER

Nelson Evening Mail, 2 October 1916, Page 7

MAN POWER

NEW ZEALAND'S RESERVE TOTAL <OF 200,000 MEN. 80,000 IN. THE FIRST DIVISION. PREPARING FOR THE: BALLOT. Since the closing of the period, for enrolment in the Expeditionary Force Reserve the Grovernmewt, Statistician (Mr IVlalcoSim Fraser) and "his staff have been IbusSly engaged in dealing with applications for enrolment certificates, notifications of charage of adidlress,. fresh enrolments, sending out acknowledgement cards, and completing and purging the registers. The amount of work thus involved is neoessari'y huge, and to cope with it Mr Fraser has had his staff increased to over 90. The work, however, had sufficiently progressed by this morning for Mr Fraser to be able to ©ive a Post reporter an approximate idea of the results of the recent enrolment. These were (briefly started in yesterday's' Mail. Altogether, during, the enrolment period proclaimed and directed tinder the Military Service Aofc, about 7000 fresh enrolments were received', says the Post. These, however, include a fair number of men who haviiii«: previously registered under It/he National; Registration Act did not require to enrol again; and it is. expected that when the rolls have been completely checked there will.be a fairly substantial reduction in* the list of new names.

New Zealanders all aflong have had thereputation for being a migratory population, but the results disclosed under the •Military Service Aclt. requiring all men who hadi changed their address since the taking of the 'National Register to notify £he same, sro to show that this renortis even better founded t'ban is general!*- supposed. Altofrether, under the Military Service Act, between 40.000 and 50.000 men have notified changes of address. Considering that onlv ten months had elapsed -since the taking of the National ■Reci«ter, the -total is- rema.rkah.le; it is more than was, expected and has consequently -thrown more work.on the -=h<"»'Wers of tJhe Government Statistician's Department. Of course," said Mr Frn-ser. "a good many of these men,have .notified changes which were not cbarfires; they have .played for .safety and have thus erred on the ri"-ht side. These notififationa are all -being acknowledged, and the trouible now lis to lo:.ate the men in the particular districts to which they belong." In all, .rap. to "Uhas morning, 18/2,650 men bad applied for enrollment certificates. They axe all enft-itledi to acknowTedigemenfc cards, and practicall'y_the whcrle of these ■have now 'been sent out. In fact, all back work under this head has now Ibeen overtaken, and cards are being sent out daily as fresh applications are received. This will he' kept up. As for the enrolment certiificafces (themselves, !Mir Fraser expects l that (he will commence sending these out some t/imie during; October* and willi probably complete the -undertaking in a montJh or six weeks from that date. These will be deafflt wwth in- alphabetical order, taking the "A'is" first, then the "B's," and so on.

"My .first duty," lie said', ."is to com- ! pkte the Register, and be in a position to take a baltot. I ami <•onqgtt.tralti.ag' on. that work now, arid in the meantime the other work is 'being proceeded with, as required." # - Asked, (how <many .Reservists he estivtateti would) 'he on *he completed roll, Mir Eraser said about 200,000. Of these, there would be ajbout 70,000 or 80,000 in the Ist (Division, or there might he more, and- the .haiLance would! be In. the 2dd r 'Division. These total numbers, however, diid not (by any means represent the number oT men who would 'be able to. serve, as 'they incfadiedi tjbemaimed, the blind!, tJhe deaf aixl and other unfits. "The...position," he observed', "is that every man of (military age can only •be. in one of two places—either, in the Reserye, whether, he is fit or unfit, or in the .Expeditionary Korcia" He" intimated! that altogether albout 20,000 men had) not applied!. for enrolmerit certificates, .but these included ,a considerable number of. men who .had already .gone into camp. .'. The others, evidently, were not in a. hurry- to get them,, but they were worth,. having for a man's own protection', and would be supplied' on application. "I am now get.tiiri)g. the .rolls purged," condhidied the Government Statistician, "and I .am convinced. that they- will foe pretty complete. .There will net. be many are off them, and. l when we are ready" we wili taWe immediate steps to trace them. We have ample powers for that.. The Ist Division had already been sorted out; this mile adopted, when ithas been a question! as to whether a man should fee placed in the Ist.or 2nd Division, 'being to place him.' in the Ist Division. This is in. accordance with the spirit of, the Act J'