AUSTRALIAN FORCE.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 December 1917, Page 7

AUSTRALIAN FORCE.

INTERLUDE FOR REST. ONLY FOUR ACTIVE DIVISIONS. London, Nov. 18. General Birdwood lias arrived in London, high-spirited, unpretentious, and with no signs of fatigue. He speaks with pride of the recent achievements of the Australians, and says that they did extraordinarily well, not failing whenever tested. The majority are iiow resting, and the others are on an easy sector, the situation permitting hope 3 of a lengthy quietude. The general suggests that his recent promotion is a complement to the Australians and recognition of their part in the war, rather than of his own personal merit. He does not mean to relinquish the Australian command. His son, who is under 19, will qualify for a commission soon, and will join his father's staff. Asked in Melbourne how long it would be before the reserves in England would be exhausted as reinforcements f or the Australian Imperial Force, Mr. G. V. Pearce, Minister for Defence, said: "I do not intend to give facts and figures which might prove useful to the enemy, and perhaps the best reply that I can give is that General Sir William views the outlook for reinforcements with such misgiving that he has withdrawn one division from the field, and is keeping it as a reserve division.

"General Birdwood does not regard the camps of Australians in training in England as reservoirs which cannot become exhausted. As a matter of fact, we must be continually sending reinforcements forward, as men enlisted now may hot be put into the field of battle for six or eight months to come " According to a statement issued in Melbourne on November 20, recruiting figures for the last week show? an in. crease over those of the preceding week, the totals being:—Last.'week, 729; preceding week, 644. Details are: Queensland, last week 83, preceding week 56; Ne\y South Wales. 348 and 324; Victoria 109 and 139; South Australia, 31 and 52; West Australia, 43 and 29; Tasmania, 55 and 44.

. An official return shows that the Australian casualties, exclusive of men who have returned to duty, total 117,284, comprising the following:—Dead, 36,369; wounded, 50,155; missing, 1616; sick. 25,963; prisoners, 2933.