Evening Post. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1907. ENROLLING THE MILITIA.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIV, Issue 78, 28 September 1907, Page 6

Evening Post. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 1907. ENROLLING THE MILITIA.

♦ 1 Tho statement made by tho Premisr in the House of Representatives yesterday with regard to tli9 Council of Defence and tha militia was disappointingly bald and negative. He said that I the question of preparing the militia rolls had been considered by the Council of Defence, but not by tho Cabinet, the Minister of Defence, or himself Similar statements wore made about the same time by tho Minister of Education in Auckland, and by tho Minister of Labour in Dunedin. Even by tho Council cf Defence the question of calling out the I militia has not been considered, but at two of its meetings held during« the present month « memorandum from Colonel Robin, Chief of the General Staff, recommending that the necessary steps be taken to carry out tho provisions of sections 4 to 11 of the Defence Act of 1900, has been discussed, and at tho secorid of these meetings the recommendation was approved. The sections in question do not touch the calling out of the militia, but provido that for tho purposes of enrolling and organising it the colony may be divided into military districts and sub-districts, enrolment ofiicer3 appointed, rolls compiled of the persons liable to service, and the force thus availablo arranged in suitable divisions and officered. Unfortunately tho Minister of Defence, who is also the Minister of Lands, has had plenty of othor business to occupy him at this time of tho session, and the result is that he was not present at either of the meetings of tho council at which the question came up, and he was thus m, ignorance of tho important step that was contemplated in his own department. Technically, we presume, there must be some other means than the persona' knowledge of the Minister by which the council's proceedings are formally communicated to tho Government, but in this case it seems tlfafc Ministers received no actual knowledge of tho subject through any official channel, but were left to pick if up from statements in tho press like ordinary private citizens.' The icsult is certainly unfortunate, and tho Premier suggests that in futuie tho bettor couTse Avill be that such things should 9nly be given out by tho Government, as misunderstandings are likely to arise from the procedure adopted in tho present case. Probably lie is right, but it also follows that tho Government must take hotter precautions for informing ltwlf of tho proceedings of tho Council of Defence. It is not suggested by any of the Ministers who dealt with the' subject yesterday that tho council hns.exccetlr ed its jurisdiction in issuing tho ipstructions for the compilation of the militia lists without the sanction of the Cabinet. If, then, the council' has power to act, the public is clearly entitled to uccurato oracial information as to tho action that is being taken, and Ministeis havo no Tight to keep the information back because tho Minister of Defence is unable to attend tho meeting of the council at whiub tho decision is arrived at. The misunderstanding cletuly indicates' a defect in tho mechanism of tho new system to which prompt attention should be paid. As to the substance of the council's proposal, it seems to us that both the Premier and tho Minister of Labour approach tho matter from tho wrong point of view. Tho Premier declares that he does not favour "conscription m any shupo or form" ; and, according to the Minister of Labour, "there is no founI dation for any bolief.thut the Government meditates a modified form of conscription, and Unit this is ths thin edge of the wedge." Conscription, like Socialism, is a wide, a vague, and, to British ears, an ill-omened term. It is of much moro vnluc, therefore, us a term of abuse than as tho basis of profitable and informing diseussiou. When tho land policy of the Government was attacked as socialistic, j Ministers woro content to show that it was a good policy, and to leave others to catalogue it under whatever "ism" suited their critical fancies ; and tho defence policy should be treated by the Government in tho sumo broad and positive spirit. Conscription of tho German type is a thing as unthinkable in this country as a hereditary House of Lords ; but horror of tho military autocracy of Germany should no moro frighten us out of v. rational system of self-defence than contempt for tho hereditary principle ia allowed to mako u« repudiate » rational , Second... Clitmibw,

No change is needed in the principle of our law to give us a defence force woithy of tho name, and very little change in its express provisions. If a hostile squadron were signalled off Farewell Spit to-morrow, tho Minister for Detencs has a "power, which is not deemed inconsistent with the eternal rights of non-conscripted Britishers, to call out tho militia. Whether they would come if ho did call on them is at least as problematical under present conditions as the compliance of the "spirits from tho vasty deep" with Glendower's summons. They could not, afc any rats come till weeks after the enemy had effected a landing, and then they would came individually, brave men most of them, individualy bravo men, most of them, and as capable of making good soldiors as any in tho world, but collectively, from the lack of discipline, of marksmanship, of organisation, of equipment, a disordered and helpless rabble, no better fitted to face a regiment of trained soldiers than a mob of naked savages. Ih this the pnss to which th© patriotic displays of Thursday last and the familiar talk about ruling the waves aie to lead us? Or are wo to follow the lead of the Council of Defence when it bays that the power of calling out tho militia is useless unless some precautions are taken to teach them their duties before the call comes? "Tut, tut," says Falstaff, in answer to Prince Hemy's disparagement of his motley troop, "good enough to toss ; food for powder, food powder; they'll fill a pit as well as better ; tush, man, mortal men, mortal men." Is our ideal of a citizen army to be that of Falstaff, or that of Colonel Robin? These aro tho alternatives before tho people of New Zealand, and they must decide upon the merits without paying any heed to idle and misleading cacklo about conscription. .