PARTY WOUNDS

Auckland Star, Volume LXXV, Issue 285, 1 December 1944, Page 5

PARTY WOUNDS

CANADIAN CRISIS

Vote Of Confidence Expected On Conscription Issue

Rec. 11.30 a.m. OTTAWA, Nov. 30.

Although the Prime Minister of Canada, Mr. W. L. Mackenzie King, is expected to get the vote of confidence on the conscription issue because of the overwhelming majority his party enjoys, it is doubtful whether he can heal' the wounds in his party and throughout the country. The former Minister of Defence, Colonel Ralston, told the House of Commons that he resigned because the Cabinet failed to accept his recommendation for overseas conscription. He said the reserves in the Canadian infantry reinforcement pools overseas at present would be almost if not entirely exhausted by the end of January. The Army would be without reinforcement and units would be slightly under strength. Colonel Ralston said he did not think . the voluntary system had failed, but it had not provided under present conditions a regular flow of the men required. He would support the Government on the confidence motion but proposed to keep his eye on the ball, which meant getting infantry reinforcements overseas without delay. Voting against the Government would mean further delay.

Military camps in British Columbia are normal to-day. All ground floor windows of the Montreal French language daily newspaper Le Canada were smashed last night by over 1000 young men, who also broke windows of the selective service offices. The demonstrators came from a meeting, where they had heard M. Andre Laurendeau, Quebec leader of the Bloc Populaire, say that a majority did not have the moral right to bind French Canadians to conscription.