"THE OTHER FELLOW’S JOB."

Southland Times, Issue 17657, 15 February 1916, Page 7

"THE OTHER FELLOW’S JOB."

A GENERAL'S STRONG LANGUAGE. MELBOURNE, January 27. At a crowded recruiting meeting at Richmond to-night, the Acting - Prime Minister (Senator Pearce) said that Australians must determine what part they would play in this great and awful game. It was said that at one of th,? recruiting depots a halo and hearty-looking man from the back-blocks was examined, and told he was not fit. He insisted on a second test, but again received the same answer. As he was leaving the depot he said, with a scowl on his face: "Well, don’t blame me if you lose this war."—(Great laughter.) That man wag right. If the war—which Heaven forbid—were lost, that man at least had fairly done his part to gain victory. He did not think many Australians evaded their responsibility through fear of physical suffering or death. It was not cowardice that prevented the young manhood from realising Its responsibility. It was the spirit that, unfortunately. ran right through public life—that “It is the other fellow’s job and not mine." Major _ General M‘Cay said that he had seen fighting, and seen men at the front, who thought death was the last thing to concern them as long as they could do something for their country. Australia was not finding enough men, and that was specially true of Victoria. A Voice: "While you keep Germans in positions they won’t go. General M’Cay; Will that man stand up? Ultimately the man addressed stood up. General M’Cay (excitedly), pointing to the interjector: "He won't fight. No d fear.” A second interjector: What about the Newport workshops; 23 Germans there? General M’Cay: And thousands of nonGermans go and fight for thousands, and d tho twenty-three. They are less harm there than firing machine guns at me. The enemy had trampled over a greater area of country than Victoria possessed—over territory which eighteen months ago was inhabited by millions of prosperous and contented people. Both Bulgaria and Turkey were now tools of Germany. The area gained was 150,000 square miles, witli a population of 35,000,000, and with Austria, which Germany now ruled, she had within eighteen months nearly doubled her area, and increased her people by half again. And if Australians did not meet the enemy on tho other side of tho world, if the British Empire ami her Allies did not win against the forces of Hell led by the Kaiser, then by you will wish you had gone to fight.— (Loud cheers). We arc fighting to keep this utter damnation away. It deserved strong language.— (Cheers). Who would go with him to the other side of the world to keep Australia free? —(Cheers).