BRITAIN HAMPERED

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 14, 16 July 1936, Page 28

BRITAIN HAMPERED

A LACK OP MANPOWER

EFFECT OF THE WAR

The dearth of able men in British politics at the present time is a wellknown 'fact, writes "Augur" from London to the "New York Times." The best part of a generation was lost in the World War, when the resistance of the masses of the nation' to milU tary conscription led to the slaughter of the chosen elements as volunteers. Today the Conservative party carries on with the survivors of that lost generation. The sons of the men who went to their death in those terrible years only now are beginning to come into their heritage. Meanwhile the political life of the country has become anaemic. '

This problem of man-power is particularly acute in the two careers which matter most from the point of view of national interest. These careers are the Imperial Civil Service and defence. ./; .

The other day the Government published statistics to show the inadequate supply of suitable young men for the Indian. Civil Service. For generations this service has been the preferred career of a number of families which from father to son specialised lin serving in India, and .there riever [was a lack of keen and reliable candidates from the public schools and [ universities to supplement their number. Men worthy of being described as Empire-builders were ready to pass a whole lifetime in the East, because the rewards, material and honorary, were considerable. The war took its heavy toll of this element. INDIAN CHANGES. But in addition post-\Var policy has deprived the Indian Civil Service ;of its solid attractions. Families hesitate to put their sons into a career shorn of many privileges, the highest positions in which are now reserved for the natives. When x the supply of desirable candidates began to fail, the Government appealed to a wider circle. But young men are still unobtainable in sufficient numbers to fill even a redticed number ,of vacancies. The fact .that the man-power at the disposal of the Empire is decreasing to an alarming degree is the problem now before the Government. No halfhearted measures can prevent the process of depletion from developing. If the life'force: which controls the machinery of the Imperial administration is allowed to dwindle much further the ' consequences may be wellnigh incalculable. . .; j; Still this question of recruiting for. the Imperial service, important though' it is, passes unnoticed by the masses of the nation,' intent upon home affairs. It is only when the question of national defence is raised that the masses are brought up against the problem of man-power in its most serious form. The Chancellor of the Exchequer has confessed that he introduced the increased rate of the income,tax and the higher duty on tea with the,express aim of bringing home to rich and poor alike the realities of the rearmament now becoming necessary as a result of Germany's attitude.' But it is equally true that this re-arma-ment, decided upon after long hesitation, raises the problem of the necessary man-power to back the material effort. MUST BE MANNED. •It is not sufficient to build ships. They have to be manned. It does not suffice to decree the formation of new battalions. Their complements in men must be found. It is not enough to make industry produce guns and aeroplanes. These must be served. Nobody doubts the financial power of Great : Britain to. provide thei armaments the experts require to reorganise its defence. It remains to be seen, in what way the Government .will find the men needed to make eflective the great programme of an increased force on land, on sea, and in the air. Even under the present establishment the regular army is short 12,000 men. The navy complains of the lack of skilled craftsmen. Youth is irresistibly attracted by the spirit of adventure which emanates from the air force. The latter is the only service which can fill all its vacancies and have a number of men over its requirements. Experts agree that the lack of manpower is the great obstacle to a swift execution of the re-armament programme. The men simply are not there, and the wiseacre has yet to be discovered who will devise a method of obtaining them on a voluntary basis. '; ' ■ Nobody has dared to advocate - conscription in ipublic. Yet at the back of their minds the men responsible for the armed forces; of;the nation;knowthat the subject one of these.days will have to be considered. The only allusion to this dangerous topic in the House of Commons was made, by Mr. Baldwin some time ago. In reply to a question, the Prime Minister declared, that he would never think ofimposing obligatory service in peace time. This seems to imply that the Government recognises the inevitability of compulsory service in the time of war. Yet in. the opinion of the experts it would be dangerous to postpone the introduction of conscription until hostilities actually begin.

The German Society for Spreading Christian Faith among Jews was recently asked by the Berlin police chief to dissolve itself, but refused.