NATIONAL DEFENCE

Waihi Daily Telegraph, Volume XVII, Issue 5882, 9 April 1920, Page 3

NATIONAL DEFENCE

POLICY OF NEW LEAGUE

STATED BY GENERAL RUSSELL, A WHITE NEW ZEALAND. (Special) WELLINGTON, this day.

A policy statenrd.it was issued to-day by Major-General Sir A. H. Russdll, President of the recently-formed Naj tional DeOcnce League of New Zealand. •‘ln explaining the policy of the re- ( cently formed National Defence League \of New Zealand, of which I have tno ■ hcir'Ui to be president, I desire,*'’ says j the general, “to emphasise several im- | porta’nt factors for the consideration of : the people of this country. The fact of the matter is that the world to-day is tired o! war and its abominations,’ tired of everything it brought in Its tra/h, and all that it mealnt, and not unnaturally a feeling of 'lassitude has crept over people, and made them inclined to

put the whole subject out of their i minds, and relax friido an attitude, not 1 ' exactly of jadiifference, but of dislike for the whole thing. People, in conse- ' qucnce, have been asking whether there is any need again to take up national defence It was in order to emphasise that need that the National Defence League was formed at a largely-attend-ed meeting held in Wellington some time ego.

j “Plenty of people have been taking ' as a motto of dictum—of the Presideat ; of the limited Skates, I think—that the Sate war was 1 a war to end war.’ There i has been no greater fallacy. Not only do such people say, ‘tui),i your swords into ploughshares’ ; they urge us tb turn our backs on the whole question*of national defence. There are plenty of these false prophets (abroad to-day. They speak smooth things, but we must not listen to them. There can be no question of a wav to end war. War cannot be driven out by war, any more than an efficient police force can do away with crime. The abolition of war domaVids the removal of causes which He deeply j mbodded in human nature. When the individual and the nation have becti edu-1 cateJ to a full realisation of their duties j and responsibilities, there will be ho; need for police, or de'tence leagues, or j c( mpuhory military service; but that | day is mot yet. . There is. therefore, need ) for a league of this kind to wake people up to the importance of being prepared to del end their ideals and their property, as Well to bp able to do' their duty, not only to this country, but to the empire and to the race to which we belong

WHERE EAST MEETS WEST. '•'As to the policy of the league ‘to j ( maintain a Whllte New Zealand,’ I would ■ 1 point cut that the storm centre of the i world a few years ago was in the North • Sea. To-day it has shitted. It is moving Eastward. So far as New Zealand \ is concerned it is nearer home. We in ) New Zealand, a|od our cousins in Aus-Jd trail;;, are actually the outposts of ' Western civilisation—of the white raw. i

Outposts arc very honourable positions, | but those who ar© on outpost win k must look out for surprises n'nd hard knocks, a/nd act accordingly. We are at the point where East meets W]est ; both of I them probably in their highest stage id j 'development. It is true that the East | meets the West in the Eastern Medi-

terrnnean littoral; but there, there is a certain fusion. Here there is no fusibn. <! A White New Zealand,’ means no fusion. That to the working man of New Zealand is of greater importaj.iee than to almost anyone else; for fusion means a lowering of the standards of life which have hcon built up in tihih country, ft means the clashing of the idoah of the East with the 'ideals of the West. Of the two, ours may go under, unless we keep our shores inviolate. “Regarding the rest of the paragraph •1 have just quoted, I have tb state that if Vf'c can convert the manhood of this

country into good citizens wp shall have a fighting force that will represent a , great deal more 'hr the eyes of a com- I mandor than, would appear on paper. Good citizenship lies at the back of the best soldiers.

OPPOSITION TO MILITARISM

“One of the bogies raised by opponents to the introduction of sound defensive training in the past Was that an attempt Was being made to introduce militarism. So far as the members of the league are concoiViod, they loatloe and despise anything that breathes of 'that spirit, and thpy will have nothing to do with it.. Another objection has been that compulsory traint/!ig is contrary to democracy, and has a tendency to produce a golf between officers and men. Any other than a clenJodratic defence force i!-.i New Zealand is unthinkable, but a special clause to ensure 'this ’ is included in the objects of the league. Tliis clause reads; ‘The acceptance of the principle that in fu'i-ure no one, ox- ' copt 'in the case of the public interest, J eala become a commissioned officer of the New Zealand Citizen. Defence Forc es [ unless he has served throe years in the ranks.’ I. do not say that a period ac,in'ccratic army cannot be obtained withthat clause, but with it, the accomj phshment of the ideal should bo pcr.cctjly safe. MORAL,AND HEALTH ASPECTS.

“There arc four other proposals in the constitution of the League which eal'l for special consideration. These are; j ‘ The devotion of special alto-n/tiUi lo the moral training of the youtli ol th s country, a,nd their education in the ideals o; good citizenship. | ‘llie rjtrifh suppression of all had ■ language in camps,- ‘making its use pun- , ishaWe as in civilian life. The league j insists vhnt : this evil must be put do'vti with a strong hand, and demands that tke Defence Department shall take practice: steps to (secure its eiatnc... ticKl •‘The taking of every possible prcca i- ; lion to pieservc the health oi h°> s " j nndeigoing training in camp or e.sc ; where, with endeavours to imping I the same, under proper nodical sttperl V ;s-.ou; also educating; tnmmes upon >

the observance of health principles during both civilian and military life. '‘The era ploy moat of selected women to assist in cooking, ambulance work, and in a,ll the institutes in camp whore they can be profitably and suitably employed.’’