AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 31, 7 February 1939, Page 7

AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE

ESTABLISHMENT OF REGISTER TORPEDO BOATS ORDERED INFANTRY UNIT AT DARWIN [By Telegraph—Pres* Association—Copyright] Received Feb. 6, 7.5 p.m. SYDNEY, Feb. 6. The Sydney Morning Herald’s Hobart correspondent says the Federal Cabinet at a series of meetings beginning at Hobart to-day will probably approve of a proposal to establish a national defence register, either on a voluntary or a compulsory basis. A message from Hobart states that the Minister of Defence, Mr. Street, announced that the Federal Government has ordered six motor torpedo boats, and will order six more as soon as the tests of a new type have been carried out in Britain. The hulls will be built at Cockatoo dockyards and the engines imported from Britain. The first will be launched before the end of the year. A militia unit, probably consisting of 200 infantry, is to be raised in Darwin to co-operate with the permanent mechanised force which is to be stationed there shortly.

NEW MINISTER’S DESIRE NOT ONLY STRONG BRITISH DEFENCES DOMINIONS’ HANDICAP OF FINANCE Received Feb. 6, 8.8 p.m. LONDON, Feb. 6. The new Minister for Co-ordination of Defence, Lord Chatfield, interviewed, emphasised his desire to make all the defence services strong and inter-reliant, not only in Britain but throughout the Empire. He added that the Dominions must be strong enough to defend themselves. There was no doubt of their willingness to co-operate, but the great handicap was finance. DEFENCE REGISTER OPENED AT SINGAPORE Received Feb. 6, 10.30 p.m. SINGAPORE, Feb. 6. A defence register for British and European citizens whereby in every emergency a person does the job most suited to him, was opened here to-day. British, Asiatics and Europeans have been already enrolled in air-raid precaution schemes.

WORLD PEACE

OUTLOOK MOST PROMISING LORD NUFFIELD'S OPINION. Received Feb. 6, 11.5 p.m. FREMANTLE, Feb. 6. The outlook for world peace is most promising, declared Lord Nuffield, who arrived from South Africa today. He added that the people of the Dominions need not be pessimistic about Britain’s defences. The army and navy had never been in better fettle and any impression that Britain shirked a war was entirely erroneous. She simply desired to avoid it in the interests of humanity. England today was ready for any eventuality. Lord Nuffield has come to Australia for a rest after a strenuous year in England. He visits Sydney and returns on March 3.