THE IRON HEEL.

Taihape Daily Times, Issue 220, 20 September 1917, Page 3

THE IRON HEEL.

IN NEW ZEALAND. Our Ractihi contemporary, the "Waimarino Call, publishes the followingcaustic criticism of the manner in which the Medical Board conducted its examination of recruits at Ohakune at the last sitting held there. There is no doubt its criticisms are only too well founded. Travelling in the' same railway carriage on' Monday last as some of the men who were returning from Marton after being medically examined, our representatives could not help remarking the feeling of resentiment and contempt expressed by the recruits at the attitude and conduct of these same "brass buttoned gentry," which quite bore out the remarks of our contemporary. The "Call" says; We come now nearer to the immediate cause upon which we base this exposure of the growth Prussianism which appears to be getting a hold in the ostensibly Democratic military organisation of this country, We refer to the conduct of business at the Medical Board at Ohakune on Tuesday last; and we say straight here, that that conduct is distinctly injurious to the interests of recruiting, incomparably more so than the more or less technical offences for which civilians are being frequently imprisoned in this country. From the outset it appears that these brass-buttoned gentry regard the subjuct before them in a hostile light and the conduct of business is on that footing. That, all will agree, is absolutely wrong in principle, and distinstly prejudicial to the interests of the recruit and to the form of militarism which we conceived ours to be. Who gave tSjese junkers to usurp the proper functions of the Appeal Board? What right have they to express their odious and suggestive opinions regarding a recruit’s personal affairs, when an Appeal Board has been constituted to properly investigate such matters? These questions; and others, are being asked by victims of 1 the foul-mouthed bullying and blustering tactics which were in evidence at Ohakune last Tuesday? Surely an atmosphere of cigarette smoke - and disgusting language of the gutter kind, back of which is an attitude of bombast and "You’re. Ours” ill-fits an officer’s uniform and are not calculated to inspire the harmony that is essential? Certainly a more propitious intrduction is in every way desirable. 'A£ a matter of fact there is absolutely no need for any of this aggravation. What is absolutely required after the recruit has come from the medical officer is a simple performance, viz.', the filling of forms of medical classification and a parade order and allocation if the recruit is of Class A. This is the work of a junior assistant; if the table full of "We’re the Ones" are of any use at all, work should bo given them elsewhere and the country should be quit of the needless expense of their little flaunty jaunt. If they have been instructed to intimidate recruits, presumably to hurry them into camp on the aforesaid assumption that every conscript is necessarily a shirker, a very grave mistake has been committed. There is a menace, and it should be nipped off. The country does not want'this kind of thing. We are fighting to crush it in Europe and that is enough. We want, we demand, that these matters- be looked into by the head of the Defence Department, and their continuance, prevented with- i out delay. j