THE CALL OF DUTY.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 13697, 29 May 1915, Page 7

THE CALL OF DUTY.

MEN FOR ACTIVE .SERVICE

(Special to Herald.) AUCKLAND, this day. While there are hundreds of ablebodied eligible young men m Auckland who are known to be shirking their duty (states the Star) there is some satisfaction iv knowing that tiie call for men for active service has beess more readily answered m- this province than m any other m New Zealand. In Otago, for instance, since the war began the province has oil only one occasion out of six been, able *to supply its quota., and the last draft was 50 per cent .short of requirement.. The statement made by the Minister for ,Ucfence that Wellington was the only centre making ssp its last draft m it's entirety, and that Auckland was 450 men. short, is quite without justification, for the quota has not only been completed, but something like £00 men have been available for tilling the gaps m southern centres. In tact, since the war began,- Auckland has supplied nearly twice as many as Wellington, and out of the 15,000 men sent away from- the Dominion, Auckland has contributed 5000, which is a third of the total. As Auckland's quota, . strictly speaking, was 3800, it Avill be seen that over a thousand men have been sent from here to make up deficiencies m other centres.. 'The Wellington, military distlict, moreover, includes a far greater recruiting than does that of Auck--laud, for it comes as -far "north as Gisborne and Tauiiiariuiui. Under . these circumstance.-, it is obvious that some parts of th. Dominion are not doing their duty, and the Minister for Defence may be justified m feeling some concern m view -of his undertaking to supply 15,000 additional reinforcements within, a stated period. , VIEWS OF CHIEF JUSTICE.

The Chief Justice, Sir Robert Stout, who has two sons on active service, was asked by a Star interviewer to express an opinion upon the question of how best to bring home to the youth of the Dominion generally a realisation of what was expected of them. His Honor's reply was that he liad read with interest the views of leading citizens expressed m the Star, but be felt that iv his position it was undesirable that he should venture- an opinion upon matters which, really came within the range of politics. He thought it might b_._ of interest,, however, .to relate wnat li. knew of his own knowledge to-be happening at Home. In. Sir Robert's native place, for instance (Ledwick, Scotland), out of a population of 4000 no less than 500 had enlisted during the first week of tlie war. From Lewes, m the Hebrides, with a population of 28,000, 4000 had gone to the front m August. At North Nist and South Nist there had been wholesale recruiting, and at Venvecula it was stated that every man of a, recruiting ago had left, with the exception of one, and he had been waited on/- by a deputation of women, and asked how long it would be before ho went. ''Throughout the North of Scotland/ added his Honor, '"every town and village has subscribed more than its quota, and it. is evident that there has been a wonderful response to the call to arms. As to the position m New Zealand, I feel that it would not be wise for me to discuss the* issues raised, but I liave no real doubt that the young men. of this country, when they realise the true position, will -willingly come forward assd do their duty." STATEMENT 1. V DISTRICT O.C.

An issterests'ng statement upon the position -was that mside by Colonel Hume, officer commanding the Auckland military district. "L'p to the present," said the colonel, "there had been no need to feel at sill anxious concerning recruiting isi Auckland ; m fact there cari be no doubt that this di.trict hsis done remarkably well, and. so far it has been our experience with every draft that more men have given m their names than can be actually' sent forward. This ha-s been an advantage, since it means that we luiive been in 'a position to till the gaps m districts where recruiting has not- been up to requirements; If we are asked to fill any gaps now -we can do as we* have repeatedly done before. At the same time there is admittedly justification for a good deal that has been e-aid abouit the failure of many young men, fit and eligible, to send m their names. One can see them m the streets, hotels, and places of amusement. In the drafts we have sent away there have been a great many married men, and tlie position seems to be somewhat unfair. Another objectionable feature is that many of these young men hstve given m their names, and have then failed to respond to tlie call for service. Their names are now ; being compiled, and will shortly be haWcfed over to the* newssp_s.pers for publication.! • < t < "Is there any ' course of action you consider, advisable 'in order to bring the shirker to a sense of his responsibility ,"• was a question put to the colonel. "It is difficult to do that,' answered the' officer coniraaiidin^, "because the man pressed into service is never as keen as the volunteer. 1 prefer the .volunteer always. . Later it. may bo necessary to take- more stringent action, but just at present I think moral suasion, will serve a useful purpose. These young men are being . nindo. to feel Uvit unless they have home ties they should be at tlie front, and m this respect 1 think the women of New Zealand can do a. great deal.. Meantime there is some satisfaction m the knowledge that every Auckland quota has been oversubscribed, and that the difficulties of recruiting, whatever they may have been m other parts of the Dominion, have not so far been felt here."

• COMPULSORY SERVICE DESIRABLE. Lieuteant-Colonel T. H. Steadman, oflicer commanding the 15th North Auckland Regiment, was outspoken m his remarks. "Auckland has done very well," he said, "but that there are* shirkers is obvious to everyone, and if our compact with the War OHnce is to be observed some course of action must- be taken. Some men without ties, and physically fit, think it enough to give to patriotic funds and neglect their real responsibility. I believe that the operations of the present Defence Act should be extended, •*> that the clauses relating to the enlistment of men m the militia for home defence should apply equally to \ men required for actsve service 'witli expeditionary forces. In that way men who are clearly evading now would be liable for service at home or abroad when wanted." ■

A NEWSPAPER'S ADVOCACY. The Auckland Star' m the course of a leading article, says: "In tliis war above all others nothing but numbers will secure final victory, and at the ve'vy best the vol unitary system is too slow m its action to, give us the numbers we need so sooii> as wo ought- to have them. Further, a. Lord Milner has pointed out, the voluntary system is uinius.-, because it throws the heaviest burden upon tbe patriotic and -willing, and allows those who are not yet aroused to a full sense of their responsibilities to shelter themselves iv comfort and safety far behind the firing lines. ■We havo seen tho effects of the system m our own country, where a few days sigo the Minister for . Defence felt forced to appeal t> the married mesi to remember that failing sin adequate supply of single men tlie responsibility foi" the safety of their country and tbe Empire is theirs sis well, but apart from every other consideration no form of voluntary service can possibly 'provide 'for England and the Empire: All the men are needed now, and needed urgently, to bring the. war t> the only possible conclusion, and therefore we hope that the new Government will be induced to put the case for compulsory service before- the nation without further delay."