Kaitaia Town Board Favours Conscription

Northern Advocate, 13 February 1940, Page 4

Kaitaia Town Board Favours Conscription

The Kaitaia Town Board unanimously favours conscription. In a letter received by the board last night, the New Zealand Defence League stated that the difficulty in finding sufficient men, even for the Second Echelon, convinced them that in the very probable event of a long war the necessary manpower could not be found by the voluntary system, which, in a'ny event, was not an equitable method, in that it left to individual decision a matter of national imporance. They believed that personal service should be as universal as the liability to taxation, or as the privilege of the franchise. The Town Board was therefore invited to express an opinion on the subject of universal compulsory national service, whereby all citizens may be allotted the tasks to which they are best suited in wartime, whether as combatants or otherwise. Right to Express Views. The chairman: Some take the view that the matter is one for the Government alofie, but we were all free men, with the right to express our opinions. Mr L. A. Mclntosh: I am definitely in favour of conscription, which is the only equitable method. Those volunteering in this district are largely from the farming community, which was not in the interests of the country. It looks as if we will have to conserve our power over a long period. The R.S.A. is in favour of conscription. As a citizen and a member of the board I favour conscription, which should have been brought in under the emergency regulations. Mr Mclntosh moved, that the board favours conscription. Mr McKinnon seconded. Wealth Too. Mr Thompson said he would go further and would like the resolution to include the conscription of wealth. He did not think that all earnings should be on the same level, but they should be placed on a more equitable basis. Mr Mclntosh said he did not think it necessary to include wealth, which would, by maans of taxation, be conscripted in any case. The town clerk: The league aims at what Mr Thompson suggests. The resolution was altered so as to bring it into line with the principles laid down in the letter, and was then carried unanimously.