DEFENCE FORCES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18541, 29 April 1922, Page 6

DEFENCE FORCES

PROVISIONS FOR EFFICIENCY. (Pie United Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, April 27. An interesting statement as to his intentions in regard to maintaining the efficiency of the Defence staff so far as receipt .retrenchments will permit him, was made by the Minister of Defence (the Hon. Sir Heaton Rhodes) when laying the foundation stone of the Green Park Memorial Jttall to-day. The retrenching in the staff had previously been referred to by Mr R. Macartney, who expressed the opinion that every young New Zealander should 'be so trained in arms as to be ready whenever the call came. Sir Heaten Rhodes said that Mr Macartney's ideal was a very proper one. The task of reducing the_ forces had been a necessary one. Other Ministers had had to dispense with the services of part of their staffs, but his own task had been all the harder fdr him, as he had to dispense with men who had served loyally and well, not only in’ New Zealand, but also overseas. However, the necessity for economy had made the step imperative. There had been a demand from Parliament and from the country for retrenchment; in fact, a certain of the community wanted no De- ' fence Force at all ; but lie was determined that that position should not arise. The department's object now was to keep an effi- ' dent, well-trained staff of officers and n.c.o.’s. Such a trained staff they veto determined to keep, as it had been shown : that in war a force could be trained in a , comparatively short time, but it was not so as far as officers and n.c.o.’s wore concerned. and the smaller the staff that was ; retained the higher trained they must be. That principle would give an efficient skeleton force about which a larger force could comparatively quickly be built as occasion demanded.