The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24. MR. HOGG AND DEFENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 247, 24 November 1909, Page 2

The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24. MR. HOGG AND DEFENCE.

iu tiic course of his speech at. Hastings h lasl week, AU-. Hogg ridiculed the uc- "" fence proposals uiul the naval agreement. J. uc author of the former, he G said, was suffering from military lever, ti contracted from scaremongers, while the is pruposed training-grounds would re-jo semble the concentration camps in Soutli It Africa, and the man who conjured uji ti such things must have escaped from a .somewhere. The statements are char- U aetcristic of Mr. Hogg, who is nothing v if not irresponsible and extravagant s lie acts the pan of a political scare- e crow, and his lugubrations are dis e counted accordingly. His views on de- f fence matters are—happily lor the wel- f fare of the country and' the Umpire- t not shared by many, lie holds that we t should be interfering with the liberty o. i the subject by compelling men to learn ( ■how to carry out that duty of defending this country, should " need arise, which we all admit in theory to be the most sacred of duties. Curiously enough, this very point was met some two hundred years ago by a certain Captain George St. Loe, a naval oflicer and | pamphleteer of great humor and abilitv who wrote on naval and military affairs of England during and after' "le. glorious revolution" of IGBS. One of his pamphlets is entitled "A Discourse about liaising Men." The pamphlet advocates universal service, and asserts' that therein ''all objections are answered, and particularly that popular one, namely, that this way of liaising Men is a Violation of Liberty and ' I'roperty". "This," lie declares, ''is the objection which has prevailed most against this way of raising men, aud which trie gentlemen that oppose it insist upon more than any other; not, I Suppose, because it's any better than the rest, for that it is not, but because to sceni to assert, and talk for liberty rind .property, is always popular, makes a greil show, and gives a man an air, thoueli it be nothing to the purpose." l.a:'. on the gallant captain deals in a passage of ironic humor with what he calls tile "liberty not to fight for one's country":—"All Englishmen then have, as you say, gentlemen, a libortv not to fight for their country, anil no' body can make 'em do it, unless they, kind hearts, should happen to be in a good humor, and offer their service themselves; Iho the English Fleet should he sunk, am the Army destroy'd, vol Englishmen may stand still with their Hands i: their pockets anil look on. ami no hodv I can make 'em strike a .stroke. This [■ their liberty, and no hodv has a word to say to it; nay, thnMbc Kindlon J itself were sure to be lost, our laws liberties, religion, Government and ali k with it, yet neither the Kin;, nor the . Parliament, nor both of them tnjieilicr [ with all their laws and all tlioii- mi > thority, can make a man of 'em lisih' I to prevent it." Ineidenlally he draw, i from his own times an example which i> r not a little amusing of how our co ,1 [ matlders sometimes forgot (lie saer'il I liberty of the subject, lie begin,' I, f describing liow "the late Viiu/.lnmc, > we7it away ami left his armv on Kalis I bury Plain; he knew Englishmen rmi'i [ not bo made to light against foreignert without violating their liberties,'" am' [ therefore, rather than make 'em do' tha: | he chose, out of a tender regard to tie [ lilierties of England, to go Ms way nii- > lose his Kingdom. . ," . And so, i t seems, our Admiral did, that we had' ii [ the beginning of this war [no doubt re i fcrring to Ixird Torrington's withdrawal \ from the action off Beaehy Head J. f When the French came up to him, near I the Isle of Wight, he bore away from | 'em as) fast as the wind and tide wouh, . carry him, bravely maintaining th<- > liberties of England, quite from Spit [ head to the river's mmith":—"Hut hi: l successor, gentlemen, one may say u > among friends, lias not behav ; d hiniscll | so well in this point as he did, for. hap i Jiening to meet with the trench' llec, | some years after, much about the sunn > place, what docs he do but full on then: > without any regard to our lilierties, ami , there was he at it for above an hour. > fist to list with Admiral Tourville, am, [ all the while the poor seamen's braim , and their liberties flew about togethei J in the saddest manner. 1 protest to you. , gentlemen, 'twas a shame to see it. > Iletween you and me. gentlemen, he mav , be an honest man, but really he. docV , not understand the business of liberty ; 1 believe lie means well, but he lias no: , seen so far into that matter as you ' have done: Pray, gentlemen, take a little pains with him, and set him right, and give him a copy of the English liberties to put in liis pocket when he goes to sea again." What was .penned , two hundred years ago has as much ap- ■. plication to affairs of to-day as it had • then, and to the affairs not only ol , Britain but of the colonics. A duty . which belongs to all should be per- ; formed by all, and the State is doing , jthe right thing in proposing that the ; citizen be trained in his' youth to do . that duty efficiently.