The Marlborough Express. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 1910. LORD KITCHENER'S REPORT.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 57, 12 March 1910, Page 4

The Marlborough Express. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 1910. LORD KITCHENER'S REPORT.

The country lias not had to wait very long for the publication of Lord Kitchener's report on the defence system of the Dominion and the best methods of making it more efficient. It has now been made public.property, and is accompanied by a lengthy and important statement by the Prime Minister. Both report and statement—the latter bearing mainly on the financial side of the questiondeserve the most careful consideration. On the whole the recommendations made by our distinguished, visitor are very much on the lines they were expected to follow. The same system is advocated for New Zealand as was recommended for the Australian Commonwealth. The Dominion is to be divided into so many military districts, or areas, each to provide a certain defined proportion of a unit and to be in the charge of an instructional officer, assisted by non-commis-sioned officers. Under such a system there will be a distinct incentive to a healthy rivalry in discipline and ■general efficiency, and the fact that a trained officer will be permanently stationed amidst the citizen soldiers will, we believe, tend to a greatly enhanced' interest being exhibited by the public, in the training manoeuvres and general conduct of the district unit. Much, of course, must depend upon the selection of these instructional officers, and on this point Lord Kitchener's advice that "no social considerations, no influence, nothing but efficiency" should be taken into consideration, will be universally approved. # The recommendation that a certain number of New Zealand cadets should be sent every year to a Military College, on the West Point (American) system, which is to be established in Australia, has received the approval of the i Prime Minister, as no doubt it will receive the commendation of all interested in defence matters. Sir Joseph Ward, indeed, has properly pointed out that no other course would be open to New Zealand, for some years at least, than to co-operate with Australia in the training of young officers, for the expense of a separate and similar institution here would be too heavy. The provision of an adequate permanent staff corps will, of course, entail a large expenditure, but it is satisfactory to learn on the authority of the Prime Minister, that the total cost of a defence system run on the lines laid down by Lord Kitchener will, after all, be very little more, comparatively speaking, than the estimated cost of the system authorised by Parliament last year. That is, not for the present. As years pass by, however, the expense will -be greater, but the additional cost will not, so Sir Joseph Ward _ considers, be in excess of the financial capacities of the Dominion. In a word, the position seems to be that the new system will not, for some years at least, necessitate any in-

crease in taxation. For which relief much thanks. As ib is, however, the annual burdon must necessarily be very heavy, and it is quite possible that in certain political quarters cries may soon be heard of "extravagance, "mad militarism," and so forth. Rightly regarded, however, the annual expenditure on defence can be considered only as a national insurance premium, a necessary provision of safeguard against national disaster. Even should the cost prove heavier than is anticipated—so heavy, indeed, as to necessitate, at first sight, the new taxation which the Prime Minister seems to be certain will not be required—ways and means could, we believe, be provided by which the additional sum required could be raised without the Finance Minister being obliged to resort to new taxation. No one who will take the trouble to go carefully through the Estimates—even the largely/reduced Estimates of last year—can fail to come to any other conclusion ( than that in many directions the Dominion iis spending large sums of money to j very doubtful advantage. We will not specify any particular department, but simply lay down the principle that in almost every branch of State service and Stato expenditure money is, wo will not say exactly wasted, but spent on enterprises and objects to which the State has really no right, and certainly should not be compelled, to grant financial aid. I Necessities should come first, and there is a substantial majority of opinion in ivew Zealand that an adequate and thoroughly efficient defence , system must be considered as coming within the category of real, not imaginary, national needs and requirements. It would not, we feel convinced, be difficult to specify quite a number of directions in which money, could be saved wherewith to meet any additional expenditure that may be rendered necessary by the adoption of Lord Kitchener's scheme, j For the present, however, in view of, the Prime Minister's declaration, j which isj we sincerely trust, not unduly optimistic, there will be no need for new taxation. That being so we need not meet troubles half-way. There are, however, other points to be considered besides the probable cost of the scheme. It appears to us that the system approved of by Parliament last year will have to Be much more materially amended than Sir Joseph Ward seems to think will be necessary, that is, if we are to follow closely on the lines laid down for the establishment of the Australian defence system. There is, for instance, a distinct difference between the Australian Territorial service system and the one which has recently come into fore© in this Dominion. According to the division by four theory, the force we should have to maintain would be 20,000. But the Australian period of compulsory service extends to the age of 25; with us the limit is 21, after which service is only optional. Now, seeing that it has been calculated that we have only some 10,000 to 12,000 adult soldiers here, how is the difference to be made up—the difference which will enable us to provide one-fourth of the Australian total (of adults) fixed'oy Lord Kitchener at 80,000? Will our young men, .after having- served as cadets and recruits up to 21, be willing to go on further? If we were permitted to retain our age limit at 25 we should have more than the proposed quota, for under last year's Bill we should have, it is estimated, a force of about 30,000. But this is 10,00ttj more than Lord Kitchener apparent!/ thinks- necessary. The difference is tnat compulsory service would hjfre cease four years earlier than in Justralia. A citizen army composed merely of young men of 21 and under is not, we think, exactly what Lord Kitchener aims at, and yet to make service after 21 purely voluntary might not give good results. It is on this point of the actual composition of the defence force that the report is by no means so clear as it might be, and Sir Joseph Ward, who has confined his remarks to tfie financial side of the question, does not add much further light on what is one of. the most important matters to be! considered. Perhaps within the next rew days some official communication may be made to the press, in which the views and intentions of the Government on the actual constitution of the force will be made public, and so clear up the difficulty to which we have alluded. Meanwhile we can only trust that when Parliament comes to consider the scheme, as it will have to do when considering the amending Act now rendered necessary, the various propositions submitted will be dealt with, not only with the greatest care, but with a complete absence of anything approaching party prejudices. Lord Kitchener has himself emphasised, the necessity of ruthlessly excluding all political considerations from the selection of the cadets for training as officers, and in the choice of the instructional officers, and in other ways has made it clear that .there should be no political interference. His counsel will, we hope, be scrupulously' followed, and it w#l be for Parliament next session to set an excellent example, and eschew, when dealing with defence matters, any suspicion of party spirit. i