OUTLOOK CLOUDED.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 122, 26 May 1939, Page 6

OUTLOOK CLOUDED.

NEED FOR DEFENCE. K\ T.RYO.VK AFFECTED. (From Our Correspondent.) WARKWORTIL Thursday. "The international miilook still remains clouded with menace, and at la-t we can welcome soma indication from I lie linvei'Miueiit that a moice effective defence preparation is needed." said tin' |;t. Hon. .f. C. (nates, in an address to electors at. Wink worth to-night. Alioiit •2-Ml people, from a railiu- of alioiit oil milet.. attended tin- meeting in pouring rain nml ga\e Mr. L'imtfn mi uninterrupted hearing. ■•Defence," added Mr. t'oatos, "is not n political it affects everyone of us. Without national security every other form of security i- non-existent. The miration before us is whether we can depend upon voluntary effort or whether it is liot'.i fact that conditions justify a demand for ecpial contributions from all of us ill the defence of our eoimtry. A home defence force without adequate training is useless. We must consider, in the light of threats to world peace, how best the necessary decree of training can be provided."

Mr, Coates then expressed the view that New Zealand needed a Territorial Force of 2">.0(I0 men nnd appealed to everybody to assist, in building it up to this'figure, the pre-war level for New Zealand. He also emphasised how open the north was to attack and said that many of the bridge* outside those on I lie main highway* would not stand up to the weight of guns. Since this was the case and because the defence of the country could not be confined to the main road*, it was absolutely essential that defensive work should be undertaken in the side roads.