THE SHIRKER

Otago Witness, Issue 3342, 3 April 1918, Page 6

THE SHIRKER

"THIS COUNTRY HAS NOT DONE ENOUGH." Scathing remarks concerning the man who will not fight for his country, but prefers to go to gaol, and also those people who say that New Zealand has done enough in the war, were made by the Rev. H. N. Roberts at a welcome home to him. and other returned soldiers at- Woolston a few evenings ago. " Since I have returned to New Zealand,"' Mr Roberts said, "I have seen several letters in the papers in Otago suggesting that this country has done enough in connection with the war. It would be one of the most wicked things we could do to refrain from further effort, and for people who stop at home to say, 'Let the Americans carry on. The man who wants/another to fight for him is no good. I would not imprison a man who would not fight for his home, I would put him outside the pale of the law. If he possessed a house, 1 would put it outside the jurisdiction of the police; anyone could take it. I would not let him have a say in the government of the country; I would not give him the advantage of any law court. If he came along, the street I would like to push him off. 'I would not make a martyr of him. That man is too good for this world. He has no right to make money in it. He has no right to the protection of any law. I leave my mother and sister at home, knowing that they are safe because of the police. That is power. The only -thing in the world is power, and a man is really living under the power and protection of the army. Wo have not done enough in New Zealand until every single able-bodied man is either fighting in France or producing war stuffs, and every able-bodied woman in this country is working on war work. Then wo have not done enough—until we have smashed the Germans." Mr Roberts asked if a maniac were running around this city, would wo consider we had done enough until we had secured him? The German was out to conquer th«j world, and he was out to do the same to us as to every country he had conquered. His Government gave a bonus to every soldier in the army to breed children who wero brought up as Germans. And ye* people said we liad done enough. Why, they had not as much pluck as the Leghorns in his back yard. That Chaplain Roberts's remarks met with the warm approval of his audience was evi* denced by the frequent applause with which they greeted them.