LEGTON OF FRONTIERSMEN.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIII, Issue 142, 14 June 1912, Page 6

LEGTON OF FRONTIERSMEN.

TO BACK THE TERH.ITOE.IAXS. 'A. COMMAND IS APCKTiAND. The public meeting held in the Town. Hall last night, in connection with the steps being taken to establish an Auckland command of the Legion of Honour, resulted in the enrolment of some forty new members. Mr. G. Elliot (president of the Chamber of Commerce) presided, and T9ith Hm on the platform were Mr. W. F. Massey, M.P., Colonel Allen Bell, Captain Colbeck, Professor W. T. Mills, Mr. X IVEsterfe (hon. sec.), and others. Apologies for absence were received from the Prime Minister, the Minister for Defence, the Bishop of Auckland, Mr. Vernon Reed, M,P., and the Mayor. They all expressed sympathy with the movement Mr. Elliot said thai the meeting had been called to give publicity to the fact that a command of the Legion 6T Frontiersmen bad been formed in Auckland. The movement had started eight years ago in England, and since then had grown wonderfully in every part' of the Empire. The idea was to bring into the legion those not directly connected -with any branch of the service, more especially those carrying on pioneer work— miners, stockmen, surveyors, police, road and bridge-builders. The movement did not appeal to the man who said that he feared neither God nor man, and did not love Ms country, but it did , appeal to the loyal citizen, and the majority of people were imbued with love for their country. If the legion did nothing more it would justify its existence if it ehowed that behind the ordinary armed forces there was a body of men who had fought and worked for their country. Colonel Allen Bell said that the legion would .bs an inspiration to young New Zealandjrs. It had been found that, owing tb the expenditure involved, the universal training system could not take in even, - able-bodied man in the. country. If the country was faced with war—and there was every probability of this in a few years' time —a large number of the young territorials could not be pnt into the field. The legion would organise the useful men who had lived the hard, strenuous life of the pioneer and could stand the strain. These men could take the field at 24 hours' notice. In the first section there would be men who had' seen service, and men who, by the ■nature of their dailr occupations, were fitted to be very useful men in time of war. There would be no age limit; if it came to war. men of 50 years of age would probably be more useful than men 20 or 30 years younger. An auxiliary force wonid be composed of men with no active service, but with a certain amount of training There would also be an honorary members' list for those who were in sympathy with the movement. Colonel Bell concluded' with a- tribute to Mr Massev as one of the first politician it i'w Zealand who advocated universal military training from the be- " Professor Mills, in the course o» an interring address, said that the men who had -been the foundation of Amencan defence were the men who wexe ready at a minute's notice, the men who went about their daily work with a rifle in their hands. The man who would lie the most useful would be the man wao could not .be lost in. the back country, the man who could see the furthest, and would shoot straight as far as lie could see. There was always a tear that a trained army would be used tor the. subversion of the people's liberty; the wav to counteract any danger of teat sort was for every man to be something of a soldier. •Mr Massey said that he was at the meeting to show that he was in sympathy with the object in view. He uttered a warning as to war preparations being made by other countries, and emphasised the fact that every part of the Empire was inter-dependent, and every part should be prepared to defend itself. Mr Massey referred aleo to tye useful work which the early settlers and their sons had been a-ble to do in assisting the regular troops during the Maori wars. He hoped the time would come when one could point to the men of New Zealand and (like the Spartans of old) cay, "These are the Empire's walls, and every man is a brick." On the motion of Captain Colbeck, seconded by Mr G. Galbraith Brown, the following motion was carried with only six dissentient*:—"That this meeting of the citizens of Auckland endorses the movement for the establishment of a Command of the Legion of Frontiersmen in this province, expresses hearty approval of the aims and objects of the Legion, and commends it to the notice of the people of New Zealand." On the motion of Mr E. D'Esterre, seconded by Captain Colbeck, the following resolution was carried with the same degree of unanimity as the previous this provisional committee set up to arrange the preliminary work of the organisation of the Legion of Frontiersmen, together with those vho : have applied or who apply at this meet- ■ ing for enrolment forms, be appointed a general provisional committee to carry on till a command is properly established." The dissentients referred to above were apparently concerned lest the object of the legion was to be strike-breakers. Incidentally, they showed by interjections at other stages of the meeting that they were opponents of universal military training.