New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-04-15

All the UINf CLASS i-uiOptH'l l"'N-'
at war. democracies and autocracies al He
have adopted CONSUMPTION. have witnessed
the bitterness, the dissatisfaction. the con
fusion that hysterical efforts to adhere TO
The voluntary enlistment system have
caused in the three greatest "whito' Sal
governing units of the British Empire
Australia. Canada. New Zealand, one by
ore. have had TO face the TO be or not to
be" Of conscription England and New Yea
land have had to abandon YoluntarylSm.
Australia hes been torn asunder-and ttat
during war time, when every ounce OF en-
crgy was needed for the prosecution Of hos
tilities-by acrimonious conflict between en-
ponents Of the old, haphazard, soi-dis"ht
voluntary method and those who urged
adnption OF the modern efficient and just
principle Of compulsory service. Canada,
too. for some time now has had strong
organized movement for conscripuon,
movement that owes much to the forceful
exponency of the Domnion's former Minis
ter Of Militia. General Sir Sam Hughes.
1t may. perhaps. aid Americans to a bet
ter understanding Of this matter If they are
informed Of the phases-the bitter, conten-
tious. energy ipa,ing phases-throu2h
which sister democracies passed.
Not the viii Of Democracy
Observation-Disclosures have made much cap
ital of the Australian peoples rejection OIL
coupulsion. The "antis" assert that TINS
rejection voices the will of democracy
against the principle Of CONSUMPTION. And
:bc "antis" speak without their book, for
il does nothing of the Kind. Tho real facts
are these:
Ont of total population Of 100000
Australia hal raised--Or had within reason
able sight an army of 100000 citizen sol
dicrs. enlisted voluntarily. We will waive
the fact that this could not nave been ac-
compIishcd If the country had not had years
Of compulsory military training before The
war We will waive likewise the facts that
employers had eXerted powerful presS're
upon employees who showed no Willingness
TO don khaki; that girls had decorated
'civvies" or military age with white lea'"-
or. that. in face &c general public opinion
lie had become no: worth living 'or me
Young mar VINO. eligible for service Tef-
sisted in lodging that service; that the
Prime Minister had issued recruiting a7-
peal so stroag that it was thinly Ne"ed
threat: an appeal, moreover, backed oY
COMPULSORY registration Of males; that TINS
registration involved a QUESTIONABLE ask
ing whether or not a man was wiling 20
enlist: # go, when if not, why not.
The plebisc,c was rot the unanimous 'X-
pression Of the people at all. i was not
the unprejudiced. passionless' comparison
voice Of reason a. all. 1t was several th'"fs'
but it was rot these.
The Australian Piebisc,re
First and foremost. il was the reg'st'a-
ton Of organized labor's persona! dispieas-
ure with ". ". Hughes, the Premier "1o
returned from London committed to com
pulsion. Before the war Hughes was JUST
nlsin labor leader-a demagogue, even. Not
50 many months before Armageddon hughes
then a Cabinet minister, narrowly escaped
arrest for sedition in CONNECTION with
rss,sIooying strike OF workers in the ccal
.rade All Hughes had and was he owed
~ labor. Came then his visit 20 London
MI, noisy cspousal Of Imperialism, has COM
INITIAL Of Australia 20 the expenditure o.
$40 600 900 FOR cargo boa.s sans shade" o.
authority from Parliament or people ms
PRIV Council pirouettnC' so dista'teiu' 10
mis- old Trades Hall associates, his misrcp-
resen,ation Of his country's willingness to
make certain sacrifices that she was not
willing 20 make (st least without a chance
to be heard; his ludcrous failure to real
,ze that British tariff refcrmers were mere
IL playing him OF against British i'ee
traders Of the Manchester school
Then. ano.ler factor, due entirely % ne
country peculiar geographic situation on
tered largely into the defeat Of conscr'p-
ton. Asia is very near. The yellow pm
there is more than mere bugaboo Of sen
sational oratory and journalism; il IL a
hard, concrete, ptiless fact, carrying within
ii pOtentialities of life and death. The rep
pie are taking no chances They are play