A MARE'S NEST.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8864, 25 October 1907, Page 4

A MARE'S NEST.

Mr A. W. Hogg, Member for Masterton, appears to have discovered a mare's nest. Keen to scent irregularities in official quarters, he propounded a double-barrelled question to the Acting-Minister for Defence, in the House of Representatives, on Wednesday. He asked first of all whether the Minister's attention had been called to a public statement said to have been made at Christchurch recently by Colonel Davies, one of the paid officers of the Defence Force, to the effect that the volunteers of the dominion were weeds; and then asked if the .Minister proposed to take any action in the matter. The second part of Mr Hogg's question was whether the Minister's attention had been drawn to the alleged public advocacy by the same officer of a question of State policy—compulsory universal military training—and whether the Minister intended to take disciplinai-y action in the matter, seeing that members of the Defence Force are forbidden, under the regulations, to take any public a part in political agitation? Here were two first-class grievances not to be missed, especially as one of them had a bearing upon the Government's recent action in regard to McCullough, the Railway Workshops tinsmith, who was discharged for taking a public part in politics. Un-

fortunately for himself the Member for Masterton had not read the report of the speech of Colonel Davies in the Christchurch papers, but evidently only a Press Association wire. The Minister, therefore, had Mr Hogg on toast, for the, report of the speech delivered conveyed no suggestion that the volunteers of the Dominion were described by the Colonel as "weeds"; he had merely defended universal military service in other countries from the charge of bringing into the ranks of soldiers only the weeds of the country. The , Minister pointed out that in his re- j port on the dominion volunteers, published in a recent Parliamentary paper, the Colonel had spoken very highly of the New Zealand volunteers, and had said that the men were of superior education and intelligence, and of good physique. Mr Hogg had overlooked this report. As to the second question the Minister said the officer did not express any opinion on any political question. Addressing the gathering he had urged the ladies present to endeavour to secure "by sentiment, and not by politics," universal service amongst the young men of this country. It was quite a proper thing, said Mr McNab, for officers to urge everyone to train for the defence of their country, and to enjoin, the volunteers to do so.