The Gisborne Times PUBLISHES EVERY MORNING. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8, 1916.

Gisborne Times, Volume XLV, Issue 4183, 8 March 1916, Page 4

The Gisborne Times PUBLISHES EVERY MORNING. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8, 1916.

The Problem of Die War Armlets.

I —— [fc is quite clear that a number of important details have yet to be settled before the system of issuing armlets can go on smoothly. What is proposed, it is well known, is that official armlets shall he distributed to all returned soldiers, to men waiting to be called up, to exempted men, and to unfit men. But according to our Wellington correspondent the authorities now find that they arc being hampered in this regard'on account of the fact that, in the initial stages, the work of keeping records of all men offering for enlistment, but rejectee, was not carried out as thoroughly as proves to have been necessary. The chief difficulty that has been discovered, it would seem, is in connection with men who received exemption on the ground that they did not come up to the standard of fitness in vogue at the particular time when they enlisted. As the war has progressed the standard of fitness has bean reduced, and no “unfit” badges, it would, appear, are..-to be issued to any applicant unless he will submit

himself for ro-cxamination. The fee for examination of every recruit is ss, and if some hotter record had been kept, many fees, it is quite evident, might have boon saved. Months ago men were rejected fur bad teeth; but, nowadays, a man who has had teeth is given such treatment as will make his mastication efficient, and, if ho will submit to treatment, he is accepted for service. No man with no other defect than bad teeth will get an “unfit” badge. There is another difficulty about badges, viz., in the case of men/who have enlisted for arms of the service «'>l- - full for months ahead. The Minister for Defence has said that he hoped to have the lists for these arms purged, hut no definite and effective action to achieve this seems to have yet been taken. Presumably it will now he necessary, because it will he manifestly absurd to allow a man who registered for, say, the Medical Corps, when it was already full for a year ahead, to wear a badge for a whole year* with a reasonable chance that he may not he required at the end of that time. In the same way it will not be possible to issue badges to men who volunteer for, say, the 27th draft to he called up in March, 1917. As in the caso of “starring,” the badge business has, it is well known, proved a very troublesome difficulty in the Mother Country. Many men, it has since boon found, received a “star” who did not continue to 1)0 engaged in “reserved” trades at all. The War Office has not, however, insisted upon all rejected men undergoing a further examination before they arc granted a badge. What has been decided upon is that men rejected since August last may obtain a badge if. they do not already possess one. In this regard we feel that the Defence Department- of this Dominion should follow a similar course. ]f a man has been rejected on account of unfitness during, say, the past three or even six menllts, he should be granted a badge on the production of his exemption certificate. As to the host of men who wished to he attached only to the Medical Corps and know that their sen-ices may not be required in that capacity for months ahead, what should be- done is, unquestionably, that all applications since a given date should be made subject to reconsideration -by the authorities. The badge business is certainly going to load to some hardship, for on the one hand there are plenty of apparently fit young men who are prevented from offering their services on account of underage, and, on the other hand, plenty of men over ago who appear much younger than their years. What will be done for them!' Young married men, too, will have no protection ns against single “slackers” who have no dependants. On a previous occasion we suggested, it will be remembered, that the system of ai,uiots might be simplified by compelling single men who have no reasonable grounds for withholding, their services to near a badge of disgrace. Another matter which we think is also well worth immediate attention by the Defence authorities is the. question of relaxing the regulations regarding the maximum age limit for recruits. In some district's it would seem, quite a large number of men are free to offer their services but are prevented from doing so although their only disability is that they happen to be a few years over the age limit. As to this point it is, we feel, a matter which might well be left to local recruiting committees acting in conjunction with local medical and military advisers. Unquestionably, then, it will take a little time before the proposed system of armlets is put on a. reallv satisfactory basis.