CONSCRIPTION IN AUSTRALIA

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2861, 28 August 1916, Page 6

CONSCRIPTION IN AUSTRALIA

■ $ 1 . - DISCUSSED BY FEDERAL CAUCUS 'Auatralian-JTow Zealand Cable Association. i Melbourne, August 20. ~ ,' Tho Federal Caucus discussed conscription. Mr. Hughes in a statement to the Press said that tho defence of . the Commonwealth had been taken through tho preliminary stages, although, nothing definite had been decided. The conference has adjourned. A DECIsiOQEACHED AFTER PROTRACTED MEETINGS Australian-New Zealand Cable Association. (Rcc. August 2", 5.5 p.m.) Melbourne, August 27. The Federal Cabinet and the Federal .. Caucus held protracted meetings yes- - torday, discussing defence matters. *■ Quostioned whethor a decision had been reached in regard to-conscription,' ■ ' ' Mr. Hughes replied "Yes." When '" asked if ho would say what it was he replied, "Certainly not." I Other Ministers are similarly reticent, i CONFERENCE SYDNEY SIGNIFICANT CIRCULAR (Rec. August 27, 5.5 p.m.) Sydney, Aiienst 27. A movement is afoot to call a conferonco of Labour Unions for Septem- • ber 4 to disouss the conscription issue. Ono union circular asks all unions to send delegates to confer as to what action unionists should adopt in tho ovent of a Bill being introduced into . Parliament to conscript human life. IMPROVEMENT IN RECRUITING. (Rcc. August 27, 5.5 p.m.) Sydney, August 27. Recruiting - during the past week • showed considerable improvement. NO DECISION REACHED! A COMPROMISE SUGGESTED. (R-ec. August■' 27, midnight.) Melbourne, August 27. '," The caucus sat until 11 o'clock on • ; ' Saturday night discussing the Govem--1 ' _ merit's military proposals, without jeaohing a decision, and then adjourned +o Monday afternoon. No official information is obtainable An unofficial rumour is to the effect that tho caucus had been asked to • sanction a compromise.' Probably no official announcement will be'made till the session opens 'on Wednesday.

S; COMMENT BY "THE TIMES" BRITISH ADVIciNOT WANTED '">■■ ■">■"■' ■ ■■'• '■ — ' '■:'■■ ':;•:.:.. v".'.v ■ '■: •'■■•.■•-. ("The' Timeß.") v t . : .X- ■ ;;y" ■'."'• ■ ■•'''■", London,; August 25..": J ■.'. .';'■ ■'.'•: "The Times," in a leader,-states:— it' :;.. -■'■' "Whether Australia will resort to con- , i'X-".;'■'.■ '' scription-;onlyi Australians can/declare. ■■■■ i.'■'. /British ; advice /would be impertinent, ../•'and isjnot .required. /.Australia,, has ;.;>',: grandly established her right to .-.■ settle .:', "the- question' herself. ; New. Zealand's .. .'case does not apply, to Australia, be- ;'■;■ /,".- ! " '■cause voluntaryism has not. sufficed to ;•". ■'','■'; /' ,'. fill' up the promised New -con- ;': • tingents: • Australia throughout : . has ': ': had as many_ volunteers as.she has been -;' ;- able to .equip even with 'such help, as : . ;, the ; BrLtish War Office was ..able to ;:::'-• ;;giye.^ f - r •' : /:-.;, / '.-■}■ -''V/:.;;/. , ; /' ,

' AN OFFICIAL DENIAL STATEMENT BY HON. JAMES ALLEN. "I want to givo that cablegram a complete denial," said the Minister of Defence when the foregoing message was submitted to him. "We have not conscripted a single-man in New Zealand up till now, and we have fulfilled to tho full every obligation we had to meet, and this purely on the voluntary principle. We have four Reinforcements in camp at the present time, enough to meet our obligations for four months'ahead. These also_ were' obtained.on the voluntary principle. In addition, we have sufficient men registered and waiting to be called up for at least two other Reinforcement drafts, and these have registered voluntarily. It is therefore perfectly evident that the statement that the voluntary system in; New Zealand has failed is not in accordance with facts. 'We

put the Military Service Act on the Statute Book as a stand-by and a safeguard, for we realised' that the war — might last for another year or two years, and we were determined to fulfil '."; our obligations to the Empire and to ourselves so long as we had men available to go. Wo had to put tho Bill ';■: through while Parliament was sitting. ■We did not want to call Parliament to-' . gether again specially toi pass this Act. tdeny absolutely that New Zealanders are not as willing to volunteer for service as tho men of any of, the other Dominions of tho Empire. We have .■ ■ / always proved our loyalty. We have never been behindhand in this, and we !"■ ■ are not behindhand to-day. "1 make no comparisons, but wait confidently until tho end of the war, , until tho historian shall say whether ;• New Zealand. has done her part. I . vest absolutely confident that when the ; story is told no one will be able to cast a slur on New Zealand, not even '" the London "Times," as to the part she has taken in this war. I could ■. give figures, but J will not do so. I simply make this official statement — / that wo have done our share, and we . aro going to do our share until the ■•■ end.

"Not only have wo sent our share of men away—and I believe more than our share —but we have kept our Territorial training going during the whole of the war. Our home army exists to-day practically as strong as when the war broke out, and available for service here if required." Mr. Allen might havo added that in Australia . the Territorial training scheme was dropped at the beginning of the war, but the Government have since realised that this was a niistaKo, and have taken steps to re-establish it. Only approximate figures can ho given R6 to the men sent by Australia and New Zealand, and the data are so uncertain as to be valueless for purposes of comparison. Approximately Australia should have raised, on a. population basis, a fraction less than fivo times as many men as New Zealand has raised. Australia has raised just four times as many as New Zealand.has raised, and if tales are true Australia has not raised its men with any great ease or surety.