CORONATION PARADE

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 113, 14 May 1937, Page 8

CORONATION PARADE

SOME REFLECTIONS

APATHY OF YOUNG WEN

(To the Editor.) Sir —I have taken part in the Coronation Day military parade; . I was stirred with pride as I stood at attention in the "King's uniform and realised that I was indeed fortunate in being born a British subject and afterwards I marched in humiliation through the apathetic ranks of equally fortunate British subjects and swallowed the misplaced jibes of some of the "rising generation." I have seen service in both the compulsory" and "volunteer" days and I feel, Sir, that you will be interested to view the "ceremony" through a soldier's eyes. Every thinking soldier agrees that recourse to arms for the purpose of settling international disputes is degrading and beastly and belies the veneer of civilisation, which we smugly assume in time of peace. We' must, nevertheless realise that while foreign'nations regard our Empire with covetous eyes and are prepared (in both senses of the word) to .substantiate their demands by force, we in-turn must be ready to unsheathe the sword and moreover must know how to use it. Under the British flag we enjoy freedom and privileges not experienced in foreign countries and our constitution is built upon the sacrifices and suffering of men who were not ashamed to wear a uniform —men who realised that in training themselves in the use of arms they were merely discharging a duty to the country an which they were born. I wonder, Sir, what you found the most impressive side of the "Coronation" parade? To me it was the magnificent turnout of the- returned men. They should have been cheered to the echo but instead were received in silence and far from l/.ing honoured were rather the objects of public curiosity. They -were not on parade to display their medals and obviously were not there to bask in the wild enthusiasm of a grateful country. They are bound by the ties of fellow-suffer-ing and the knowledge that they have served their fellow-men and done their utmost to guarantee the security of our inheritance. All honour to them they should have led the parade through the city and. been a source of inspiration to us instead of being the1 butts for the inane remarks of irresponsible youths. It must be extremely depressing for the "returned men" to observe the sadly-depleted ranks of the various units under the present voluntary enlistment scheme. Thousands of men gave their best years in the service of New Zealand—thousands more gave their lives.. They have wallowed in the muck and filth of war, and despite their frightful experiences, are prepared if necessary to do so again. Do you remember, Sir, the promises we made to them when they went overseas—the honour and gldry we accorded them in the excitement of war? Of course, they were fools to go; any man' who performs military service is a fool, but thank God we still have a handful of younger fools who are conscious of the debt which we owe the soldiers of the past. Any officer of the present territorial forces can confirm the acute lack of enthusiasm in the modern "young blood" and the extreme difficulty of maintaining interest in the, young soldier under the present system. ,1 maintain that compulsory training should be reintroduced. ' Military discipline from the age of 18 to 21 is not harmful; it is, in fact, extremely beneficial. It does not make a man militaristic, but fosters a spirit of selfreliance, initiative, and self-confidence. The inculcation of a spirit of self-reli-ance and initiative is the basic principle underlying the modern system of democracy. We have inherited the spirit of adventure which enabled our ancestors to build the greatest Empire the world has seen and that same adventurous spirit will induce many young men to enlist voluntarily should hostilities again break out. Many of those men are at present untrained and apathetic. They will be given a short period of condensed training and put into the field as cannon fodder. Surely it must be obvious that the trained soldier has ten times the confidence and ability of the untrained man—is, in fact, ten times of more value to his country. To the young men who jeered as we marched through the streets I would say that we are at least conscious of our inheritance and are endeavouring to discharge our duty to the men who have gone before. We did not.parade in uniform to be admired, but were honouring our King and acknowledging the privileges of British citizenship. If the publication of this letter, Sir, will in some small measure awaken interest in public duty, you will have assisted the men who are endeavouring to "carry on" in no small degree. Let us hope that at the next parade we will not hear the remark that it was "not worth seeing," 'and let the public remember that, the men who were "not worth seeing" are giving their services entirely voluntarily. Perhaps some more able pen than mine will help to dispel the apathy of the young men and parents of "God's Own Country."—l am, etc., ANTI-PASSIVIST.