Greymouth Evening Star. AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE. FRIDAY, MARCH 18th, 1910. DEFENCE MATTERS.

Greymouth Evening Star, 18 March 1910, Page 2

Greymouth Evening Star. AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE. FRIDAY, MARCH 18th, 1910. DEFENCE MATTERS.

According to to-day's telegrams, Lord Kitchener has impressed upon the Government the extreme desirability of extending the age of compulsory military service up to 25 years. The Cabinet, we are told, lias not yet come to a final decision on the matter, but in any case, the change as desired by the Field Marshal requires legislative

authority, so that an alteration cannot bo made before the reassembling of Parliament. A telegram from Wellington brings to mind the fact that, in regard to defence matters, we are just now in a transition stage. Thei volunteers ceased to be, and were instantaneously resurrected by Act of Parliament as territorials, but there is a feeling of uncertainty about future operations. The military authorities are unable to completely enlighten th-2 public just now in regard to future developments, but it is clear from what has been done so far that the territorials, otherwise the volunteers, have an immensely improved status. Capitation lias been substantially increased so as to enable old liabilities to be cleared off and full equipment provided, and a scale of pay for camp attendances has been provided which will bring in more revenue to the battalion coffers. As soon as the whole scheme becomes operative, there need be no more trouble about recruiting, for in the absence of volunteers the commander will simply requisition his district superior for the men required to Jill the deficiency, and will get them from the general training section. Old volunteers who are still attached to their company can remain under the new and improved conditions., and need not retire until th* usual retiring age of fifty is reached. Eacli regiment of the territorial forces will have attached to it a permanent instructor. It is to the non-volunteei that the new Defence Act. will come a? a call for self-sacriiice. Eliicient volunteers are to be exempt from the com pulsory training, but the young mat who has not gone- in for volunteering will now be obliged to do a certaii minimum amount of military training. According to an official statement (here are 21,550 volunteers or territorials in the Dominion, but military experts are of opinion that -30,000 highlytrained nun should be available ; f New Zealand is to defend itself effectively, and the whole of this big force van be obtained by training the phy- • sically lit males between the ajies of '. 17 and 21. To equip tins increase 1 ' number more arms will have to be im- . ported, while the arrangement of training camps and provision for instriu-,- . tion is a big preliminary task before , ,e eligible men can be called upon , to put- in 'heir training. A proclamation will shortly be issued, adds the - telegram, calling upon all eligible persons to register their names with the prescribed officer according to the Act. The enrolment under the register of .i school attended by the individual is ;. sufficient registration, but failure to enrol under other circumstances renR dels the defaulter liable to a line. As a man who serves in the territorials s will not be required to put in time at the training cam]), it is anticipated 1 that a great impetus will be given to • the volunteer side of. the defence 1 movement. One of the chief difficulties in carrying out the general scheme is (lie liability to cause dislocation, or at any rate serious inoonvonience, in some branches of industry, but to avoid this the general training period will be spread over five or six months of the year, and batches of several hundreds will be taken periodically from the different distric»s The preparation of the list of eligible males will go on almost immediately and it is anticipated that the first batch of men will go into camp about the beginning of next year. Of course, many details still require to be arranged but in completing the scheme Lord Kitchener's report should be of inestimable value.