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Taranaki Daily News, 31 October 1916, Page 4

A STINGING REBUKE, Some of the methods employed by the "Antis" in the Referendum campaign were as low-down as they perhaps could be. For instance, the "Antis" openly suggested that men of other nations should fight their battles, and so save Australia from the ravages of the Huns. One of the arguments of the No-Conscription Council of New South Wales was that "no attempt has yet been made to exhaust the great reservoirs of men to be found in the Russian Empire. The population of Russia is about 174,000,000. Recent events have shown that the Russians mala- excellent soldiers, and we know that the cost of equipping, transporting, and maintaining Russian soldiers is immensely less than that of Australian soldiers." It is hard to believe that any section of British subjects would be capable of employing such an unmanly, mom, and despicable argument. Russia should send its.millions to save the skir.s of these miserable wretches! Russia, that willingly sacrificed nearly a quarter of a million of her best troops at the beginning of the war to relieve the pressure on the western front, making possible the defeat of the Huns at tho Marne; Russia, that fought With a tenacity and courage in the terrible retreat last year; Russia, that for the past five months has been hurling its [thousands against the enemy's ramparts in .Volhyaio and Galicia| Eussia,

that lias never failed to give her Allies all the help and co-operation required! This attitude towards the Russians drew a stinging rebuke from Lim Russian Consul-General in Australia, lie .said: ''Art a Russian, 1 cannot allow to pass without comment the anU-conscrip-tionist proposal to 'hire' Russian troops to tight instead of Australians. Tin mere idea of such a thing is not only ridiculous, but extremely offensive to tvery Russian, and I hopo it is at least equally offensive to all true Australian manhood. Has not Russia, ever since the outbreak of the war, been lighting just as much for all the Allies including Australia, as she has for her own self? Has not every drop of Russian h'Kod shed on ihe battlefields of Galicia and Armenia contributed to the safeguard of Australian libcrt"?" The Consul goes on to tell these would-be hirers that the Russian soldier fights, not because he likes to, not from business motives, but "for God, Czar, and country." 'tit is despicable enough for a man to refuse to fight for his own country/' added the Consul, "but it is—at least in Russian eyes—far more despicable still to hire, aliens to do so." This stinging rebuke was richly deserved, but to think that any citizens of our cousin States should have laid themselves open to it! It is this class that has soiled Australia's fair escutcheon in tlie eyes elf the rest of the Empire, and it is this class that, unless checked, may do a great deal more mischief. To suppres? them, however, is another matter. Kvidently they now occupy the box seat, and can say and do pretty well what they like. To such a pass has Australian public life co»>e to I