MILITARY TRAINING.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10582, 13 March 1912, Page 4

MILITARY TRAINING.

In dealing with some young men at Napier who refused to take the oath of allegiance under the Defence Act, Mr S. E. McCarthy, S.M., made some remarks which have a special application to the system «f compulsory training. The Magistrate said that, looking at the .matter from a broad and common-sense .. light; he .fiome-. times wwdsred if those who objected to .serve under the Act could ever recollect that- they were units of a great Empire, if they considered that that Empire was worth preserving, and if so was it not their duty to take part in defending it. That was one aspect of the case. Another aspect forced itself on his mind. He found, not only among young men and young women, but also among their elders, people who revolted against all authority, and .there was a tendency among them to evade their duties to the State. He found also, that there were persons who had no scruples in entering a court of justice, flippantly taking the oath and proceeding to give un,true evidence, sometimes with the view' s 'of preventing some person who had committed a crime receiving the punishment that was his due. This revolt against authority was far too common, and it seemed to him that some form of training (might at least -tend to ameliorate the evil by inculcating among the youth of the Dominion habits of obedience. They would find, if they (followed up their training, and abstained from banging round hotel bars or paying nightly visits to the pictures, - they would be more healthy and in every way better citizens.