AUSTRALIAN REINFORCEMENTS.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 December 1917, Page 3

AUSTRALIAN REINFORCEMENTS.

FORECAST OF THE NEXT MOVES. (Wellington Post Correspondent). Sydney, Dec. IS. '"Well, how is it going?" is tin; inva risible greeting in Australia to-day. If anyone imagines that the enquirer means tlie war, that jnst shows how ignorant or misguided he is. '"It" is tile referendum on conscription, and the problem of whether it i 5 to be : "yes"' oi' '"no" has got all Australia guessing. The whole tribe of petty,' restless yapping politicians are having the time of their lives; the hooligan ele-1 r.ient finds excellent and diversified forms of" entertainment in breaking iin ''pro ' meetings, the newspapers are reluctantly giving space to war news, and little else except' the referendum;'and, altogether, the great Australian democracy is enjoying itself thoroughly. Russia may full to pieces, Italy may cry for succour, the tramp of the German armies assembling in the West may echo across Uie world; Australians are much too busy fighting Australians, tussling over side-issues, indulging in invective eompetions, watching Hughes and Ryan spit venom and brimstone at each .other, to ■thing of what is passing outside Jiifi happy land. That is the impression one gets of Xustralia to-day. But by the time this reaches Xew Zealand the spree will be ever—the vote will have 'been taken, and it will be possible to say what the intelligent electors have decided.

If "Yes" its carried, we may expect to see the conscription machinery put ints .operation most rapidly. It is understood that the Defence Department has the machinery all ready, and it will be running almost immediately following the declaration of the poll. ' In that event some people expect such big unions as the minors and wharf laborers, and similar organisations of the more ignorant class of worker, to try to cripple the system by strikes. It'is said that, the coal miners are all ready for such a struggle. But the fact tTiat these unions' exhausted their funds and their fighting enthusiasm during the recent big strike will act as a deterrent. Labor, thoush very sore and sulky, may be expected to accept conscription as it was accepted in Xew Zealand.

' If "No" is carried, there will lie quick and spectacular developments. The Federal Government will immediately resign. Mr. Tudor, the Labor leader, mav be asked to form a Government. If h*e does, he will not last long. Then the ardent eonscriptionist, Sir William Irvine, may essay the task. He may get sufficient support from the Nationalist? to carry on. If he does, lie will immediately seek to re-introduce unrestricted conscription by Act of Parliament. If such an Act. went through, in defiance of the "No'' majority in the referendum, it. i,- almost certain that the operation of the system would be resisted by armed lorce. Out of the chaos (bus created there would prohablv emerao Mr. William Wiitt and a Cabinet of the <nore ,tdvnnced Nationalists. Much of this is jrucss-work. but it is certain that if "No" is carried. there v/ill lie an aitcnv)!: to introduce conscription by legislation, which will cause a most serious crisis '