A BENEDICT'S PLAINT

North Otago Times, Volume C, Issue 13223, 19 February 1915, Page 3

A BENEDICT'S PLAINT

YOUNG MEWS OBLIGATIONS. .*.*. \*• r - '_i. ■ ■'■ V ( THE' ENLISTMENT /QUESTION. (Piom "the Press."' '•■lt was'" in' th'o train 'tha't'l met Brown—a young Married man of my. •■Acquaintance-rand' he was looking particularly, and unusually lugubrious. • ' ' In 'teply to a friendly question, ho ' glared for a moment, and then pro-. ■ eeeded' to unload the following story on to rnq^:—". r e were talking," he »aid, "about the enlistment question—- • tho necessity for-all single men without rosousibilities volunteering, and said 'I liko yon married men, I do sheltering behind your blooming marriage certificates, that's what you're - doing.' ">"' '"Well, thai hurt, and tiiciuore 1 think about it the more unfair I his remark seems, and the more wild I gel, It's a remark that's hard to ge't an . L imswer to,on Ihe spur of the moment, .and yet I feel that it is fairly lowdown'Tgibc, .One can point to the men who have alrcay vlounteered, a large . : .percentage of whom nie married, but that's no good answer, because 1 feel that, some of those married men should not have 'been allowed lo volunteer. They would have served their, country '

better if they had stopped at home and ; ' looked after'their families, instead of •.lejiyUtajjJiem for the country to look af ,has occurred already. 1 am satisfied ih.il young married men in this country do not refrain from volmi- ■• teering' because they are while •livcred '.- —they aro not shell ering behind I heir marriag certificates—but they cannot ''Wit'their eyes to their responsibilities. ;,> Eveir when these are plain enough il is hard for some ofuslo stay here and :.;-be out of-it all. Take my own case for ■"' example:'l believe that I am physically lit, and would pass tho doctor .ill ': right, and- goodness knows 1 am will- - ing enough to go, and do my bit, but • < bow can" T? Of course it wouldn't hurt ,me, I should get on all right, my food ;: an'd''clothes all provided,' but what nbout.tlie.responsibilities—my wife mid kid—that J leave behind.' You know : what my screw is, £4 lUs a'week, and -.. though, no doubt, my linn would keep • my job open for nie, that would not \ bring in any money'in the meantime, My pa'v as n private would be "is a day, aiid if 1 allocated the lot over to the wife, it would be ,'!'>s a week for lie*, ft is certain that she could not ' pay rent and feed and clothe herself

'/anil the kid on that, so it-would mean giving' lip the house ami selling or storing- the furniture. Possibly she might go and live with her people, but ■■-■• ihey *lso could not-afford to keep them both, and I think that it would not be fair to ask them to do so. If I'sold up. the home, there would be a loss to mc '"on that which I could not afford', I've got a little cash invested, but that would only bring in about £ls a year, even'with that and the; pay, I don't tlirnk'fhe missus could make a do of it. This is looking on the bright aide.of things, amll am supposing that I come back safe and sound' to go on with my work where I left off, but I might-be killed, or even worse.ulesper-- . atelv:.inainred. and in the latter case I should'be an added burden instead.; • of -a Help, for the wife-wouldn't even get the insurance money! ■• "A single man's position is entirely different. Some single men, I admit, may have as big a responsibility as a married.man; they might be the support of a mother or sisters, and if so, they are just as much out of it as the married man. On the other hand, a married man with an' assured incojne-. sufficient to keep his;wife and family;, properly in the case V his being|<*il»lQttfe]i'.;out/'or disable*, hak everpight. gofalidtit is.a matter for his wife to decide-for themselves. But" the usual.single man without anyone to think of but himself, for him to go and say that we are sheltering behind \ our 'marriage certificates—well, the next ono who says so I 'll "—and Browu waved a large red fist in the air. "Responsibilities or.not," he wont on, "when the single chaps who are. in a position to go, have all gone, and, more are Mill 'wanted, > then have ust nut -by all- nieans. In a ease of necessity and if :urgent need all thoughts ':'i]smiJ?.Bnv.hardships for the women and behind will have ,to.be ••' forgotten. After all the Empire is of more importance than any individuals, ' pnd'we must take our gruel and <to our duty—as we shall do/don't forgpl it. I - should like to see tlie. Government 'ifakea tallv of all the men between the '' ages of 18 and 50, with particulars . . about their circumstances, and all that and then we would have a good idea oofr-what •: our resources v really , were. ' With voluntary enlistment, such a list .would not be of much use, I admit, but ■ extremity, if compulsion, had,to lie'used'to:make men,serve well, the "odds, are that the men who should go, would go. , ■ , lT . "All the.same," said Brown, I Iwoiild.'not. not -like to-: sneer at the 'Viowds of young men you se'e.in the streets of 'a Friday night. Just re.member, tk medical rejoctlons-pi'ol)-ablv some of the young fellows have 'volunteered and 'been turned* down, audit's not their fault they are not 'with the lads'in Egypt."