THE LAST MAN ON THE FARM.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLII, Issue 10112, 20 October 1917, Page 5

THE LAST MAN ON THE FARM.

ST VTEMENT OF CHAIRMAN OF MILITARY SERVICE BOARD.

(Peb Pbess Association.) NEW PLYMOUTH, Oct. 19. At the sitting of the First Wellington Military Service Board the chairman (Mr D. G. A. Cooper. S.M.) made the following statement: —"With reference to tho National Recruiting Board's memorandum relating to the appeals of men engaged in farming, it has been wrongfully inferred by a number of critics that this Board lias taken exception to the Government declaring a national policy with respect thereto. This is an entire misconception. My Board takes no exception to the Government declaring a national policy, as that would bo absurd. There is a wide difference, _ however, between the Government delating a, national policy and its directing the Military Service Boards as to what, determinations the Boards shall give in any particular class of cases without consideration of the evidence presented in such cases. For the military service Boards to give determinations without, regard to evidence would be. for the Boards to take the positions of mere recording machines. It is within the knowledges of my Board that farms have been divided up, evidently with the object of saving members of a family from being taken for military service, and that in other cases sons are on farms, but their production is trifling, and that in some instances the application of the general rule set out in the memorandum referred to would result in sheltering family shirkers of the worst kind. My Board cannot see how any general rule can justly be applied which ignores the special circumstances of individual cases. Captain-Walker, the military representative pointed out that the memorandum witli regard to the exemption of farmers was more far-reaching than a cursory reading would indicate. The exemptions recommended were under three categories, namely (1) The owner-farmer doing all the work on his farm ; (2) the last son on his infirm parents' farm; (3) the skilled agricultural labourer. , . The. memorandum distinctly indicates that in the third category (skilled agricultural labourers) exemption should be granted unless efficient labour is available to replace them but as to the first atkl second categories (farm-owners and last sons), exeniption should be granted, even though efficient substitutes are available. The Government had very forcibly laid down its policy, and it was his duty, as counsel for the Crown, to follow out that policy in future appeals. At present he was not in a position to say whether the Government wished the memorandum to be read strictly literally; if so, it would be left for a parent, for the sole purpose of saving his son from military service, to send away, just before the appeal was heard, another son not liable for military service, but hitherto tho principal worker "on his farm. In other ways, it wouJd allow farmers to deliberately evade .'the Military Service Act by bringing themselves within the first and second categories, .itt.ie memorandum showed that the Government viewed the shortage of farm labour *nd producers as very serious, especially whenjlt was stated that"the work was now as;important and as essential as military service. Mr McLaren said he had been surprised 1 at the number of cases where young nieo, liable for service, had been kept at hon\e since the outbreak of the war, and for no other reason that the Board could fathom, except to evade service. Had the present proposals been made absolute, applying from the commencement of the enforcement of the Act, the Board would have had a'lot more of it to face.