E.—ld

9

that the New Zealand cadet movement had progressed so well that people in the Mother-country were anxious to obtain information regarding it, with a view to setting on foot a similar movement at Home. It would be remembered that on the occasion of the Duke of York's visit to the colony a review had been held at Christchurch. On that occasion over two thousand school cadets had marched past, and, although the Duke had been much impressed on that occasion with the Volunteers and detachments of the Permanent Force, it was the drill and bearing of the cadets which had pleased him most. On the occasion of his (the Premier's) subsequent visit to the Mother-country the Duke had spoken to him concerning the cadet display in question in very flattering terms. Since then there had been a great increase in numbers and efficiency, and he desired to tender to Major Murray, and, through him, to his officers and boys, his warm thanks for the services which they had rendered to the cadet movement; they had done excellent service and made great sacrifices in the furtherance of a worthy object. The boys present that afternoon would be the Volunteers of the future, and if the time came—which God forefend and keep away as long as possible—when a need arose for their active service, he felt sure that he was voicing universal opinion when he said that they would do as good work for the Empire and the colony as their fathers and brothers had done in South Africa.—(Hear, hear.)— With regard to the drill shown that day, and speaking first of the individual companies which had taken part in the march past in column, he placed the Union Street School first, Caversham Industrial School second, and High Street School third. In the march back in quarter column, and speaking this time of battalions, he would award the honour to the 3rd (Major Burlinson's) Battalion. Those were the relative positions he placed them in that day, and, as competition and rivalry were great factors towards improvement md efficiency, he hoped that other schools would use their best endeavours to wrest from Union Street and the other leading schools the pride of place which had been given them. Lastly, he wished to introduce a somewhat important question—the question of the status of school-cadet officers and corps. At present, unlike the Defence Cadets, who came under the provisions of the Defence Act, they had no legal status. He felt that an injustice was being done to cadet officers and corps in this respect, and he hoped shortly to introduce legislation which would confer a status on them.—(Hear, hear.) — Other concessions—concessions relating to shooting —would also be made. The association of the boys with the cadets and Volunteers would not merely assist to develop them physically, but would inculcate a spirit of comradeship which would last through life. He wished to know, also, whether they could not in some way evolve something in the shape of an annual camp-out for the cadets, and if that could be done he was sure the boys would like it. As Minister of Defence and Minister of Education, he was glad that he had an opportunity that day of inspecting the cadets, and he hoped on some future occasion to have another opportunity of doing so. His opinion was that if the Mother-country had such a cadet system as that which existed in this country there would be no need to talk of conscription, and they would be able to get their defenders from among the Volunteers.

APPENDIX VIII.

TRAINING OF THE YOUTH OF ENGLAND. [By General Lord Methden, in the Nineteenth Century for February, 1905.J My subject is one in which I have for a long time taken interest, and on which, as a member of the Church Lads' Brigade Council, I am perhaps qualified to write. The great work carried out by Lord Meath in organizing the Lads' Drill Association, and the efforts of the Council of the Church Lads' Brigade to make their movement a success, cannot be too widely known throughout the country. The Commission on the Militia and Volunteers has drawn attention, in a way it has never been drawn before, to the difficulties attendant on our maintaining our present system of voluntary enlistment. We may say what we like, or shut our eyes to the evidence given before this Commission, but here we have facing us the deliberate opinion of a certain number of impartial men, eminently qualified to form a sound judgment, who see no solution except some form of compulsory service. Their task was thankless, for they knew well enough their opinion would not be accepted by the country ; and it is in this emergency that it seems to me so much can be done by the Lads' Drill Association and the Church Lads' Brigade to save t ie situation. Field-Marshal Lord Wolse' . Lord Roberts, Lord Kitchener, Lord Rosebery, and the Association of the Headmasters have united in recognising the importance of the Lads' Drill Association, and said very much as follows : " Mental without physical training is a lopsided experiment; there should be a curriculum of elementary training in all our schools. We ought to follow the example of our colonies and introduce compulsory cadet corps." Now, let us see what claim Lord Meath has to our support, what are the objects of the Lads Drill Association, and how far it has proved successful :— .... (a.) The attention of the nation has been drawn to the necessity for systematic physical training for all boys. . (b.) The Board of Education has been induced to issue for the use of elementary schools an official course of physical training called the " Model Course," founded on the principles which have proved successful at Aldershot. . (c.) It is hoped in the future that the " Model Course " may be made compulsory m every school, and that classes may be formed for the proper instruction of teachers in the imparting of physical training.

•2—E. Id.