Compulsory Military Training

Te Aroha News, Volume XXVII, Issue 4414, 22 May 1909, Page 3

Compulsory Military Training

ADDRESS BY MR ROBERT HcNAB There was a large and appreciative audience at the Thames Miners’ Union Hall, when Mr Robert Me Nab (formrrly Minister of Defence) delivered an address on National Defence and Compulsory Military Training. The Mayor (Mr E. H- Claxton) presided, and on the platform were Mr E. H. Taylor, M.P., and some members of the local committee of the National Defence League. —Mr McNab’s Speech"

Mr R. McNab said : Referring to the Defence report of last year, they saw that the forces reached the respectable total of 19,947. But they were not to go away with the idea that in this country they had 20,000 men on whom they could call. That 19,947 men included 3,450 defence cadets and the feelirg of the country would prevent them calling on these lads in the event of war, when there were hundreds of thousands of men ■who could well afford to defend their country, if there were only legislation to make them do so. In addition to these cadets, there were 3669 members of rifle clubs. Personally he would give place to no one in his high opinion cf what could be done by men who knew how to use a rifle well. The use of a rifle as an instrument of destruction was more than 50 per cent of the training of volunteers, but there should also be the knowledge which would enable these men to be marshalled and placed in the most advantageous positions for th e use of their weapons. This would be —The Disadvantage with Rifle Clubs, — and therefore Ihe was prepared to eliminate them from the defence forces of the country. Of this 19,947 they would thus effect a reduction of 13,420, which was practically the paper strength of the defence forces in New Zealand to-day. The Minister for Defence annually sent round the InspectorGeneral to inspect the iforces of the country. During the year under review there were men last year, the In-spector-General was unable to find on the parade grounds more than 7,107 men. When these men were called on to turn out for real field work they only gathered 5935, so that —Although the Taxpayers paid for 13.049

when the necessities of the service required these men to take the field for four days’ instructional camp, they could only muster altogether 5.935. Thus, out of every 100 men the country was paying capitation for, only 54 could be found for the Inspector-General, and only 45l when they were asked to go into camp at Easter During the year they paid £176,426 out of the Consolidated Fund for their payment, and there was also expenditure in respect of drill halls and rifle ranges, bringing the total to £196,356, pr actically £200,000. —What Did We Get for the Money ? He did not say that all this money went to these 13,049. Far from it, but the question he asked was what did they get for their expenditure i J The average life of the Volunteer in New Zealand was two years. The only way they could estimate the value of the volunteer force was by tbe number of men who were trained and put back into private life every two years. He did not tbiirk that would exceed 3,000. men. Thus they were paying £196 000 per annum to get 3,000 men trained He considered that was an appalling cost for the result obtained. He would try to give the reason why the results had been so unfatisfactory. Mr McNab then read from the report of Colonel Davis upon the volunteer foi ce, and said that the demand upon the time of the volunteer was tiecoming greater each year, and at the same time the conditions for getting a living were even harder, with the reßult the men found they had fo give up the volunteering. The volunteer system had also broken down in the Mother Country. To prove that he would quote the opinion of Lord Roberts.

—Volunteer System in England Mr McNab said the volunteer system was investigated in the Mother Country after the Boer War. He referred to the voluntary system of service as well as the actual volunteers. The Commission reported that both the militia and volunteers in the Mother Country would not be qualified to take the field against a regular army. Lord Roberts, while complimenting the volunteers and inilitia for the sacrifices they had made, said that without considerably more training they could not face the regular forces of foreign Powers, In 1906 Lord Roberts said : “It would bo the height of folly for ’is to enter upon a contest with a civilized Fower. dependent upon an army such as ours at the present time.” Lori Roberts then went on to advocate compulsory military training. (Applause). The voluntary system was in operation in Australia, which was a larger country close up alongside another country peopled by millions and tens of millions. Australia had abandoned voluntary service. It was the worker’s government of Australia -hit first brought down a clear cut seb in) for the defence of the country —Trained Men Wanted—

It cost £65 per head per man for the | effective volunteers in New Zeatyucj. ifud >ye ODjy got four ejaj’s’ field put oj: theip. He did npt advoc »'te copspyiptiqn. His was a system that would put all men shoulder to shoulder in the ranks first, and the officers would only get their positions by merit, When their time was dono the men would go back to civil life, Hehdvocatcd universal military training, so as tp have trained rgen -\yhen way byoke put, ■ i Cpgt of Universal Training— Under the Australian syslpm the total cost of this universal training in this country would be about £340,000. Last year our system cost something like £220,000, and that only dealt with a system which turned out, very partially trained, some three thousand men. This Australian system in New Zealand, after three or four years had run, would „jspe turning out into civil life all the young men who reached the age of maturity. Each year the number of young men in New Zealand who reached the age of from 19 to 20 was 10,000. On the motion of Mr W. H. Newton, seconded by Mr E. H. Taylor, M.P , a hearty vote of thanks was accorded to Mr MeNab for his interesting and instructive address.