SCIENCE OF WARFARE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 142, 18 June 1930, Page 15

SCIENCE OF WARFARE.

DEFENCE OF NEW ZEALAND. IMPORTANCE OF PRESENT SYSTEM. DEPUTATION TO MINISTERS. (By Telesrapi.—Own Correspondent.) WELLINGTON, Tuesday. That the defence system of New Zealand should be retained was the plea which was made by a large deputation from the National Defence League which to-day waited upon the Prime Minister, Hon. G. W. Forbes, and the Minister of Defence, Hon. J. G. Cobbe. Major-General Sir Andrew Russell, president of the league, said they felt that defence was a form of insurance that was needed perhaps more than any other. Speaking as one with a very wide experience of the defence system, both volunteer and compulsory, he would say that the volunteer system would never aive them what they wanted—adequate defence. It was at best a camouflage and would fall to pieces under the stress of war. Preparation in national defence was just as necessary as it was in a business. • Mr. W. Perry said many people contended that the era of disarmament was at hand. There was no real evidence of that. The nations of the world were still heavily armed. "I submit," he said, "that if we reduce our defence expenditure we are not doing our duty as a member of the Empire." Lieutenant-Colonel H. E. Avery, formerly of the New Zealand Staff Corps, said the league had no desire and did not intend to lay down any particular system of defence. That was a matter for the Government. Reduction in Expenditure. The Prime Minister, after hearing five speakers, said that one of those who had spoken had stated that the expenditure on other Departments should be adjusted so that ft would not be necessary to touch the Defence Department. He only wished it was such a simple matter as that. There was a demand right through the country for a reduction in public expenditure. "We have to recognise," said Mr. Forbes, "that there muse be a considerable reduction in expenditure in regard to the land defence vote. We will have to see if we are getting value for the; money we are expending.' . At present, said the Prime Minister, they were carrying on the territorial system in the face, of some opposition. He did not know how many thousands of prosecutions there had been for offences under the Act. Mr. Cobbe: There were 860 last year. Mr. Forbes said men who were put into camp against their will were not likely to make very good soldiers. During the* Great War they had been told time and time again that the raw material, was better to woxk on than the material which came from the territorial forces. He had heard that stated time and time again. The arguments advanced by Sir Andrew Russell and Mr. Perry had not been heard very much during the war. Study of Position. Since the introduction of the military training system in New Zealand there had been a considerable alteration in the science of warfare. Aviation was a branch of defence that was being developed very considerably in other countries, and it was a question whether New Zealand should endeavour to advance with those developments instead of spending money on land defence.

It was not the intention of the Government to scrap the whole defence system. What the Government intended to do was to make a close study of the position, to overhaul the system in an endeavour to improve it so that they would get value for the money. He was not one of those who believed that the day a of war were over. He believed, however, that they were making a certain amount of progress toward that happy goal, although he agreed that they could , not afford to completely abandon defensive measures.

In considering the question, said Mr. Forbes, Cabinet would keep before it the representations made by the deputation.