The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1917. DROPPING REINFORCEMENTS

Taihape Daily Times, 13 November 1917, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 1917. DROPPING REINFORCEMENTS

(With which is incorporated The Taihapo Post and Waimarino News).

It was stated, yesterday, by the Minister of Defence tha,t, ‘‘as a Result of’ reduction in reinforcements- in New Zealand one draft will be dropped out in December, and probably another draft later on.” At present we. arc left to guess why there is a reduction of reinforcements. Is it that the British authorities have realised that we arc staking our men with a profligacy that must affect detrimentally, if not disastrously, the production of the Empire, risking a debilitation, productively, that will leave it no match for others in post war struggles'? It cannot be that reinforcements arc not available, as the first of our second division of reserves are only just being mjarshallcd. Whatever be £lhe directing force behind the Minister’s words, we are of opinion that the decision has not been arrived at any too soon. The virtual Head of the Railway Department, Mr. MeVilly has said that the railways cannot be run as they arc if any more railway men arc taken; we have not hoard any such cry from the Post and Telegraph Department, but we have concluded from experiences that compel one to pay for packets ho neve? gets, or much of it is so belated that it becomes absolutely without value. If other branches of the public service are in a similar condition it is certainly time to call a halt. At that period in the war when our men were a valuable contribution to the common cause against Germany, they were sent willingly and enthusiastically and the men went willingly and enthusiastically, but now that millions arc obtainable at quarter the distance from the fighting arena, our importunity with men can be little short of giving the British Government some anxiety. All ships going from New" Zealand will be better employed in carrying food to Europe; England and the English people are suffering more from shortage of food than shortage of soldiers, that is, if the leading British newspapers have any knowledge at all on the subject. We now never hear the cry for men and still more men, but there is not a day that we are not led to realise the terrible shortage of food that is causing some alarm in England, and is the root of a good deal of unrest and complaint amongst our Allies. It is

apparent to any man living in a producing district that the climax has been reached when to take away more men will seriously lessen production, and when our producing lands must commence to drift int 6 a non-produc-tive state, from which they cannot be 'rescued the;, expenditure of much time and labour. Thoughtless people may say, why not get food from nearer the scat of war as well as men but those people do not say where the food is available that would be adequate for feeding all the Allied armies relying upon England,* they do not realise the danger of adopting a supply that could be snatched from us at any moment and given to Britain s enemies, they do not seem to understand that calamitous conditions must fol low upon a policy that kills production in our own Empire while giving a fillip to that in extraneous countries, the handing over of our markets and our trade to foreigners. If avc do persist in stripping the land of producers, the men who delve from the soil that which brings the money to pay ■neictessarily ’increasing 'taxation, and to subscribe to our Avar loans, in addition to feeding and clothing the wives, children and dependents of the men taken, where shall we very soon financially find ourselves?-There is uoav a cry rising from every section of the people in our land for increase of production; members of Chambers of Commerce have seen the wee small cloud that is overshadowing the industry by which we live; they are watching its rapid grOAvth and they are i alarmed, .Some bay stop it by making strikes illegal; lioav farcical. Why not cut away the political element with its smoke barrage preventing people from viewing the position from a commonsense standpoint. This country can very well do AAuthout honour and glory for its politicians, but it cannot do without production of the primary necessaries of life. What avo have produced has been left to rot in store while avc have used ships for carrying men, and while avc have allowed Scandinavian countries to exploit our Motherland, and supply food to oiir enemies. Britain is fixing prices, a process our Government finds impossible, of butter and other products. Scandinavians have stopped supplying Britain because they cannot make butter at two hundred and twenty shillings pay. Ncav Zealand producers ought to be grateful at this because it will mean that shipping will be diverted from men to what men produce. It has been apparent for some time that if* production at a volume sufficient to meet financial obligations is to ’be maintained; there must be a considerable decrease in the volume of men taken. An amplification of Sir James AlleU- ? s brief statement will probably be - made available. shoAving whether .the cutting out of reinforcements is Jhe result of a mere inadvertence or. whether it is based on any economic consideration.