NATIONAL DEFENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 259, 26 October 1908, Page 2

NATIONAL DEFENCE.

Si'EECii BY THE PRE.\IIER,

By Xelegraph.-Press Association , Inycrcargaj, Last W. Ihe Prune Aimister arrived at tuveri;,' i Lh. o mnn tl ; l ' llay ,U ' t , el '" 00U " ud went to Ut. lilull to spend Sunday th . i".it Mr .Joseph Ward ~l wi| /,,■ /. n"- 1 u' I t? i r tthe , iiJu "' u " <^X n'g 1, and the result was ~ speech m ,,c u " ":• ""Wt'i-'t of jntci-uuj defence 1,, Wiiaiiei lie ivus favorably to ibrimri,,,, out the militia for three weeks'YiM every year. J„ the li~t • V Zealand, but he realised the j, defence m N«,v Zealand, and was kn presse with the the system to assure tliut oven- man capable of taking up arms shoul, ". " good shot aad trained in the se / arms. "Wo have to look first m ijj: toning of the younger general™,," satd the Premier, "to brmg that about. I was nonsense to talk about improving the volunteer lore, by making t . luo ° e attractive until it should be Z "nough to repel an attack from a - v b!'."n Jr. 1 * 1 T ° l "' *""»■ Jt "•""I'' D« next iloor to impossible for ar,v nit.on to land an army i„ ,\ (nv Zl .^ d and if we had to make provision f<„' defence agaist armies wc should remiire to have not only every man but eVerv

[ woman ,„ the country trained to take . up a musket. The most experienced - !'w ai ' J \? ,cn ,VWO "" of on « "Pinion, j. that m New Zealand and Australia we l had not to make provision for possibility j of invasion by a foreign aruiv, but B only for minor attacks by wav of raids t and tt raid was as different from invasion by an army as daylight was froln dark. Protection against such raids

we ought to secure, and in order to do that we must bavo a sufficient number of men from all walks of life, trained to take up arms, ami prevent a suoerasful attempt by a couple of foreign snips of war which might land detachments to put up (lags, destroy a town, or take away bullion or specie. it. must be remembered that we are not m the position of Switzerland, Germany i'Kinee, Italy, or China, surrounded on all sides by nations likely at anv time, to become enemies. AVe are divided from ,our enemies l,y thousands of miles at sea. We had no nc*d to fear attacks from armies, and any system framed with the idea of fighting" such armies wna the most impossible "in Uic [ world. If wo did need such an elaborate system of defence, as, say. Canada it wtfttM be a very tad thing [ ()r t]l ,; country if its manhood was compejl.-d

to serve as militia. It would interfere with the industrial life of the community, and enormous reduction of the earning power of the co'iiuumitv. The people of the country did not" intend that any such system should be introduced; on the other hand We oeionged to a nation that had a stronger licet than any other two nations in the world.

Our whole being rested on .the preservation of the safety of the track across the ocean for ships that carry our cargoes. That spelled safety, freedom and progress for this country." Sir Joseph Ward admitted that the volunteer svs-' tem was not so good as it might be. and he hoped to have ifimproved bv the extension of the school cadet system which was already a very fine system. He would like to see established 'a sys-

tem of senior cadet coups, intermediate between school cadets and adult volunteers, and also to see. the age limit for joining volunteers reduced. We could then be reasonably sure that our young men would not grow up unskilled in the use of the rille and in field work. Twenty-live per cent, would drop out of the ranks every year, and practically become reserves. If we had a voluntary system of that kind, we should have the nucleus of a force strong enough to prevent a raid being successful, and probably also to help the Old Land if the need arose. Tiie Premier's main address will be delivered at Winton on Monday night, and he will apeak at various places on the way.