THE CALL TO ARMS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXX, Issue 15003, 25 May 1909, Page 7

THE CALL TO ARMS.

MR M’NAB’S MEETING. AN ENTHUSIASTIC RECEPTION. • Tlio Choral Hall was filled last evening, when Mr Robert M’Nab gave an address in favour of compulsory training. There was a fair number of ladies in the audience, which was orderly and enthusiastic throughput, tho speaker being frequently applauded while ho spoke and cheered when he finished. Mr M’Nab was supported on the platform by the Mayor, who presided, several city councillors and prominent Volunteer officers and members of tho Navy League, and leading citizens. Tho proceedings opened in a particularly enthusiastic manner. After Mr M’Nab and the other gentlemen had taken their places on the stage, tjio Scottish Society’s Pipe Band marched to the front of the platform and, aided by vigorous drummers, the pipers played a Stirling march, which raised approving shouts, applause and cheers from .the audience. The Mayor said that there wero several world movements of late that had attracted attention, notably the rise of Japan, the abandonment of the policy of isolation by tho United States, and Germany’s now naval policy. When the first Dreadnought was launched, Britons thought themselves safo until 1911, but recently they had been rudely awakened. It was apparent that. Britain had only incited rival nations to further efforts, and it was necessary for ihe Empire to look to the maintenance of its laurels. Mr M’Nab, who was received with cheers, thanked the people of Christchurch for an invitation to addross them on Empire Day. The nation, he said, had done wisely in sotting apart a day for observance, and political differences would he sunk in such a celebration. On the question of defence, all party political opinions should be sunk. Me was there to represent no party; lie was in touch with no organisation, and" had no claim to put forward ; he would not ask the meeting to pass a resolution. He thought it unwise to let an audience hear one side only and then ask them to pass a resolution, for if they came to a conclusion on lines which he would suggest it would be a thing that would affect the hearths and homes of all the community." He spoke as an old Volunteer to tho rank and file and officers, and he wanted also to voice the feelings of Volunteers to the people. He had gone into Parliament with tho idea that, if he evor got to the highest placo, lie would make the Volunteer system perfect. He had reached a high place, and had looked behind 1 the scenes, and in justice to those concerned he would say that the fault of tho Volunteer system did not lie with the men who administered it. They were enthusiastic, more so than men in other departments, and, were it possible to bring Volunteers to a. proper footing, there was no other country that had such opportunities as New Zealand had. He had tried every expedient, but the only remedy was for tho Volunteer Force to be swept entirely away and a new system instituted. (Applause.) Tho dominion paid capitation for about 13,049 Volunteers. Tho liicqiector-Genoral had been stent from tho North Cape to tho Bluff to find those 13,049 Volunteers. He looked for them everywhere. When he came back ho reported that ho had been ablo to find only 7109. Tho Volunteers were called out all over the dominion to attend the Easter encampment, which was tho nearest approach to a state of war, and there were only 5935 men in attendance. In other words, of tlio men paid for, tho Inspector-General could find only 54 in every 100, and tho Easter encampment produced only 45 in every 100. The defence of tho dominion last year cost a total of £196,354. although a portion of it went to Cadets’ rifle clubs and permanent artillery. In former days, when he was an officer, it was possible to give men three-quarters of their training in the drill halie. But improvements, in weapons brought about fresh conditions. Recent developments had produced an entirely new not oh circumstances, and the main part of instruction should be done out in the field, which was not possible. A man should he ablo to. get away to attend training operations without being brought into conflict with his employer. He should get the time as a right, not as a privilege. The employer should not be able'to penalise a man for turning out for the defence of the country. Indeed; tho employer should bo compelled to turn 1 out himself. (Applause.) The present Volunteer machine was turning back into private life every year only 3000 men to go into a reserve. And for that the dominion was paying the sum of £196,000. It was, in fact, paying £6o por annum per man for men partially trained on tho standard of the training given at tho Easter encampment. Lord Roberts was tho only general of ancient or modern times who had led any force, British or otherwise, to victory on tho field of battle without one single pressed man in the service. Lore Roberts, therefore, was naturally prejudiced in favour of tho Volunteer system, as it was tho system under which ho had done so much. Yet Lord Roberts, while ho gave high praise to officers and men, uttered absolute condemnation of tho system. In 1906, when fresh from tho battlefields of South Africa, Lord Roberts had said: “It would be tlio height of folly for us to enter upon a campaign with a civilised „ Power, depending on am army constituted as ours is at the present time. In the war between Russia and Japan, Russia had carried on tho fight 6000 miles from her capital, and had one railway lino only, yet she had takoi] 750,000 drilled men to Manchuria, one Japan had had to put 800,000 or 900,000 men into the field to meet them. Had Russia sent those men to the. frontier of India she would have had onlv half tho distanco for transport ail'd two lines of railway. How would Great Britain have mot them? Tho Home fleet would bo required for Homo defences, and it would be only by universal depletion of the troops* ol tlio colonics that 520,000 men could be irot to opposo Russia in India. When tho time came to fill the vacancies in that army there was nothing that they could draw on. Tho Australian Prime Minister had announced a scheme of compulsory training, and lio had not, boon forced into it. Mr IV atson had supported tho proposal in Australia, in view of the present conditions, and had advocated tho military training of all citizens and tlio abolition of standing armies. He did not advocate a. system of conscription, such as was m force in Franco and other European countries. It was not necessary to da more than to take a man for a time out of industrial life and train him. A member of a Cliristcliurcb deputation to tlio Prime Minister had said that the employees could not shut up their businesses for a month if compulsory 1 training was established. There would bo no necessity for doing that. It was only intended to take men between eighteen and nineteen years, for a term not exceeding thirty days in the first year of training. What businesses were run by young nisa between eighteen and nineteenP it would not bo necessary to close a business 1 for one day. Ono year’s compulsory service would turn out 10,000 men, and that would not cost anything like tlio present payment. Tho country might say that tlio time was not ripe for tho change ho advocated. But he asked tho people not to tinker with the present system. They should not try to improve it. It could not stand 'improvement. It should be swept away, and modern conditions should he substituted. Tho invitation to the Prime

Minister to visit London, to discuss defence questions, showed that the matter Was all-important. The gift of a Dreadnought to Britain—(cheer’s) —was recognised by the people of the Mother Country as an indication that those api'Oj** the sea realised the difficulty. Livery person must bear a share of the burden of defence aa each bore a portion of the joy of the glorious heritage handed down by the forefathers of the nation. (Applause and cheers.) A hearty vote of thanks was passed to Mr M’Nab, on tho motion of _ the Hon G. J. Smith, the audience rising and cheering for some time, and there was another buret, of cheers when Air M’Nab thanked the meeting.