Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING GISBORNE, FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 1939. DOMINION’S DEFENCES

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 19895, 24 March 1939, Page 4

Poverty Bay Herald PUBLISHED EVER Y EVENING GISBORNE, FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 1939. DOMINION’S DEFENCES

The address delivered by Sir Andrew Russell in Gisborne this week should go a long way towards awakening the people of this district to a fuller realisation of the implications of recent international affairs and of the need for greater preparedness on the part, of the Dominion. Without being unnecessarily alarmist, Sir Andrew was able to give a clear impression of the dangers which confront this part of the world and his remarks provided a timely antidote to another recent speaker who ridiculed New Zealand’s defence plans and suggested that this country should place its faith in Soviet Russia, of all places. Sir Andrew Russell’s review of postwar history was one of the most clear and concise that has been given, the speaker showing ixow the various efforts at peace and disarmament had failed. The League of Nations had not succeeded in its objectives and one pact after another had been shattered until, at the present time, the old rule of force had been re-established. In these circumstances, British interests were inevitably threatened and British defences had been immeasurably weakened, this provoking a situation in which not only the Mother Country but every part of the Empire, including New Zealand, must look to its defences.

Sir Andrew Russell summed the position up in the phrase that if the Empire went everything went. In other words, the future of New Zealand is irretrievably bound up with that of the rest of the Empire, and the defence of the Empire, therefore, must be a collective responsibility. It is significant that, speaking almost at the same time, the Prime Minister expressed similar sentiments in different words. ’’New Zealand, said Mr. Savage, "will be found wherever Britain is when Britain is in trouble. . . . When Britain is in trouble, we are introuble.” Further endorsement of these views came almost simultaneously from the Leader of the Opposition who offered the support of his party to the Government “when it discusses defence and a programme of complete co-operation with Britain." This unanimity of opinion in high places is to be welcomed, for it is a necessary prelude to any attempts that may be made to educate public opinion to the needs of the situation and to any steps which may be taken to improve the contribution of the Dominion towards the defences ol the Empire. Again it should be emphasised that the question of defence is beyond the bounds of party politics and that without adequate defence the time might come when domestic politics will cease to count and when the political ideals and traditions which arc cherished to-day might bo eliminated.

The question as to what steps should be taken to improve the defences of the Dominion is open to honest differences of opinion and for this reason authoritative and expert, views should be welcomed. Few people in this country are more competent to express an opinion than Sir Andrew Russell, and lest there should be a tendency to assume that he is only one man with a craze of his own it is as well to recall that he has been whole-heartedly supported by practically every high officer in New Zealand with war-time experience. The league which he represents was formed by ex-servicemen who are able to appreciate the dangers of unpreparedness and lack of training and it is supported by people of every shade of political opinion. With this background, Sir Andrew strives to educate the public as to the real needs of the situation. While to some extent he is critical of the Government’s policy, he rightly points out that the Government cannot be blamed for not getting things done if the general public is apathetic to the defence needs, be cause no Government can move far in advance of public opinion, although sometimes, perhaps, it may fail to keep in step with it. The first need, therefore, is the enlightenment of the people and when this has been achieved any subsequent steps will be facilitated.

There is nothing new in the programme Sir Andrew Russell advances; It is in line with the proposals that have been advocated for the past two or three years. New Zealand’s first contribution to the defence of the Empire, he says, is that New Zealand should be able to help itself; that it should be an asset and not a liability to the rest of the Empii'e. To-day, this is not the position because whatever may have been done in ilie recent past the all-important factor of manpower has been overlooked. The Government has fixed 9000 men as the number it considers it necessary to train as soldiers. Sir Andrew Russell and all other authorities, however, consider that 30,000 trained men are necessary for the defence of the Dominion. The disparity in the estimates is greater than it appears, because of the present establishment of 9000 there were only 7100 men enrolled last, year and of these only about 4000 went to camp for training, and of these 4000 the real efficiency of many was open to question. The real need is summed up in Sir Andrew’s statement that if war broke out the nation would need trained men — soldiers, and not mere recruits —as otherwise it would be sending men out to be butchered. At present New

Zealand has between 7000 and COOO recruits; what it needs is 30,000 trained men. This is the position in a nutshell—the first step towards the reasonable defence of the Dominion —and it is for the Government to see that measures are adopted to meet it.