Pioneer

CONSCRIPTION versus SLAVERY. SEE PAGE 7

WAS DERBY'S SCHEME A FAILURE? I LABOUR UNANIMOUS IN OPPOSITION. I JINGO B.S.P. IN ARMS. I Lord Derby's momentous report giving the suits of his great recruiting scheme was i8- ed on Tuesday as a preliminary to the Pre- ier's statement in the House of Commons on ednesday. The outstanding feature is that no less than 182,178 men failed to attest, the total figures single and married men who did not come rward being: Sitigle 1,029,231 f S?m.&sle d :?. 1.1?2,947 Most important of all,, however, is the number single men who were unstarred (i.e,, not in joupations marked out as being indispensable) id did not responded to the call. These num- rl3li1 651,160. This is equal to more than half of the single en. who came forward. The following table lows the position at a g-lance:- ingle Men. n"I Available .I z,itu,zii Enlisted, rejected or rlttestell 1,150,000 Unaccounted for 1,029,231 Sta.ri,ed 378.071 Unstarred anO. iinattested 651,000 larried Men. Availably 2,832,210 Enlisted, attested, or rejected 1,67f263 Unaccounted for 1,10,947 Stai-j,od 4$9,808 Unstarred and unattested 703,139 Nearly a million men were not medically cammed owing to the last-hour rush In the M-iod October 11 to December,. 9. when the tpcial campaign ended, 2,950.514 men showed loir willingness to serve their country, pro- dad they could be spared and were medically citable. The number of men taken for im- eulisiment in the same period was 1. c. The 651,160 unstarred single men who have >t attested and are unaccounted for are far om being a negligible quantity." says Lord erbv. and it wiH be impossible to hold mar- ed men to their attestation until the ser- ces of these single men have been obtained. Further, in his lordship's opinion, some eps msut lpe taken to replace, as far as poasi- 50. the single men now starred or engaged in ^served occupations, by older and married hen. even if these men have to a certain extent fa be drawn, from the ranks of those already Wving." fireat difficulties have 'been caused bv bad IIta..Ting, and it is essential that .the starred I list should be carefully investigated.

RAILWAYMEN'S PROTEST. I Resolutions passed at Cardiff Meetings. I Mr. A. E. Gough, Secretary of the Cardiff No. 1 Branch of the National Union of Rail- fftymen, has sent us the following resolution, Which was passed by a weH-attended meeting of his branch — That as the Joint Labour Committee took vp the work of raising 30,000 per week in order to save Conscription-being 35Sured by Lord Kitchener that this number would meet the military requirements—and realising that number: has been achieved in direct en- listment alone, in addition o 2-J millions at- tested under the Derby Scheme.. this meeting of Cardiff No. 1 Branch of the- National Un- ion of Railway-men strongly* protests against j .the actions of certain sections of the press I a.nd certain politicians in endeavouring to ignore that assurance and using every effort to enforce Conscription on the country at all costs, not for the purpose, in our opinion, of waging this war to a successful issue, but for the purpose of enslaving the workers, and thereby preventing them from achieving th-vlr economic emancipation. The eai-diff Bivanfhes Joint Committee of the National Union of Railwaymen passed the fol- Wing resolution That this committee, representing some 4,000 members, hereby c,-tlls upon.the Execu- tive Committee to use every means in their power to resist any form, of Compulsory Mili- tary Service being forced upon the workers of this country.

MI r.J"ERS AND COMPULSION. I S uth Wales Council to Attend Trade Union I Congress. A specially convened meeting of the Exe- cutive Council of the South Wales Miners' Fed- eration took place at Cardiff on Tuesday for the purpose of further considering the Gov- ernment proposal for Compulsory Military Ser- vice and the agenda of the special Trade Union Oono-ress to be held in London on Thursday, When the matter will be further discussed. Mr James Winstone presided over a practi- cally full meeting of the Council, among those Present being 1?-1 he Mr. T? Richards? M.p • the Measurer. Mr Alfred Omons;a.nd ?e Right E w Abraham (Mabon), M.P. rioW i?at the whole of the Council a sitting lasting nearly two hours, it *Wld attend Thursday's conference London. loilS discussion took place The which the Council should atlopt. 'No re? solution was pa*<sed on thte point, but it WJlS understood t' future action would depend largely upon tiio course pursued by the Con- gress. It was also understood that, if neces- sary, the Council should meet separately in Lotndon to consider the question in the light of the trend of events.

SIR J. SIMON TO SPEAK AT CARDIFF? I There is every indication of a great gathering at the ^Conscription" meeting to be held at the Cory Hall, Cardiff, next Saturday after- noon. The local Labour party are giving the movement their enthusiastic support, and Mr. William Williams, one of their vie" '-eBI'dents, has been selected as chariman. The principal speakers will be Mr. J. H. Thomas, M.P. for Derby, and the Rev. M, H. Hughes, president or the Union of Evangelical Churches for Wales. "An attempt has been made," says Mr. Allgood, the organiser, "to induce Sir John Simon, If he resigns from the Cabinet, to come down and speak, That probably is too niufih to expect, but if Wednesday shows that there is Bather a big resignation of Ministers I the meeting is ready, and we shall certainly make an attempt to get him down."

NO-CONSCRIPTION FELLOWSHIP. I For Reasons of Conscience." I The Cardiff Branoh of the No-Conscription fn elilowship passed the following resolution on Tuesday: That the members of the Cardiff branch of the N o-Oollscription Fellowship are unalter- ably resolved, for reasens of conscience, to resist any attempt to impose Compulsory Mihtary Service, a.nd to adhere to their re- solve, even if Parliament enacts a measure imposing Compulsion.

OUR LEADERS' VIEWS. I No War-rant for Departure from Voluntary I System. Several Labour leaders were disinclined on Tuesday to make any statements on Lord Derby's report to an enterprising pressman un- til they had read it fully. One of these., Mr. J. H. Thomas, M.P., said he would offer no com- ment, but he would make a statement on the report in the House of Commons Wednesday. Mr. Robert Williams, Secretary of the Trans- port Workers' Federation, said he was utterly opposed to Conscription, whatever the num- bers of unstarred men might be, because he thought Conscription was being rushed by a section of the press, which would be ready to strive for an inconclusive peace in order to have a large standing Conscript army in this country for all time. A prominent Trade Union official. who is m close touch with the scheme, said it would be grossly fallacious to assume that the residue of unattested single men, after all necessary deductions had been made, was likely to con- tribute such numbers as to warrant the Gov- ernment in departing from the Voluntary sys- tefti. "Do not let it be forgotten," he said, that a very large percentage of the 650,000 unstarred men mentioned have been medically rejected at one period or another during the 16 months of direct recruiting, aind if the pro- portion of the rejected men then was anything lik", it proved during the last weeks of the "De,rby rush, I question whether the remaining men would prove anything- like the source of strength some people expect. It is an undoubt- ed fact that the proportion of medical rejectons among single men between, say, 19 and 28, is far higher than among the married. Apart also from the question of fitness, you have to consider that a certain proportion of the residue will be found to be indispensa- bles. Many others will come under reserved oc- cupations, and there will be yet another class requiring special treatment as having depend- ents. If the figures are analyzed honestly on these lines, can one honestly sav Compulsion is now justified?"

B.S.P. MANrESTO. I Responsibilities of the Unattested Bachelors. I The Executive Committee of the British So- cialist Party, which throughout the campaign .has been folowing the Jingoist lead of H. M. Hyndman, has been shaken out of its patriotism by the near approach of Compulsion, for in a manifesto issued on Tuesday relative to the Cabinet's decision to pass a Bill dealing with Military service, it asks — Will this measure of Compulsion material- ly increase the British armies? It must be borne in mind that after a oert,ain age the percentage of unfit unmarried men is greater than that of married men. Then there are those of "starred" occupations, who, know- ing they 301'6 "staÙd," have ti.(Yf, taken the trouble to attest. Further, there are among the unmarried rnn said to number 600,000, those who have to suppert mothers, brothers and sisters- in some cases all of them—and who musi, there- fore, be regarded as married men so far as their domestic responsibilities are concerned. Is it worth while, from the military point of view, to introduce C-ompuisi- on for this small increase, roughly, 4 per cent, of the number of men voted by Parliament, in our military forces ? Why are the Conscriptionists so eager to rush through this measure,? The War Office cannot even now cope with the training and equipment of those who have volunteered and attested. What sinister motives, then, lie behind all this undue haste? Does Mr Lloyd George, who has failed with his ill-digested Munitions Act. desire thus to propitiate the Northeliffe Press for the support they are according him? Are there not in the Cab- inet Ministers bent upon obtaining powers which, while apparently for war powers, are in reality to be used against the indus- trial population? Let the Ministers take the nation into their confidence, which they have never done. We adjure the delegates of the Trade Unions who meet on Thursday next to decide what action organised Labour shall feke to vote against the partial Compulsion which the Government now propose.

The Gospel of Christ. -1 REFRESHING SERMON BY ABERCYNON I PREACHER. jt is a. rare event nowadays to enter a church and hear something different to what one can read in the "Weekly Dis- patch." Last Sunday, however, I attended the evening service at the English Baptist Chapel, and enjoyed one of thei,e rare events.. Tho preacher was Mr. Richard Evans, a local ministerial student, of Bangor University. Mr. Evans- forcibly appealed to the congregation to put aside the gospel of hatred and learn, as Jesus taught, to love one's enemies and to remember that all men are brothers. He took his text from Romans 1, 16, "For I am not ashamed of tlio Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that belie veth." This text, said Mr. Evans, was a great one, ,and was written by a great man. There were three kinds of greatness—Greatness or aristocracy of birth, whioh, happily, is now losing its power; greatness of intellect, which, in the past, we have ignored, and at present are prone to lay too much stress upon. Cleverness is of little avail without the greatness of charac- ter. Character is the most important of all. The writer of the text, Paul, was of noble birt' was clever, and possessed a noble charac- ter. The epistle was writ, en to a section living in Rome who were surrounded by Romans who believed in temporal power and force of arms. What had the Romans to do with a Gospel which taught turning the other cheek when struck, and the slave morality of loving others as themselves? Yet Peiil said that the power of God was greater than all other power. That i» generally accepted in Christian nations to- day, but do we really believe it? The spirit of conquest and love of temporal power did not die with the Romans. We sing: — Sufficient is Thine arm done, And our defence is sure." Did we believe it? Ought we not rather to sing- "Sufficient is ThinG ii. m, along with a few Dreadnoughts, And our defense is sure'' ? if we believed that the power of God is more powerful than anyother power, why not throw ourselves on His .ncrcv and trust in Him? It was an insult to pray "Thy Kingdom come," if we did not believe that it would come. On the plains of France and Flanders we eaw the effect of temporal power and farce. God's power was not a power for destruction, but for salavation to all who believed. This salvation is not confined to any race or nation. It is an argument which no Christian can re- fute. Mr. Evans is to be congratulated on his cour- ageous start in a New Year.

The Palace. I To maintain the good reputation already ach- ieved for up-to-date and attractive pictures, Manager Hall-J ones is ev«r on the look-out for what he knows will please his numerous pat- rons, sparing neither time nor -expense in his search for the best. This week's programmes are as usual—all that can be desired, and in- clude for the last three days a really charming story of the French Revolution in "A Revolu- tion Marriage," featuring a popular and de- lightful actress, Betty Nans en, who takes the part of "The Lady Alaine Do L'Estoile," and Valdemar Psilander, who is also well known, plays as "Colonel Marc Arron, of the Repub- lican Anmy." The story is stirring, naturally, and the settings are true to the time it repres- ents. This play last- an hour, an d is one that will please all who see it. A special feature Is also in the bill, "The Barrier of Flame," which, as the title suggests, will be a play full of excitement. There are several very amusing comedies, and a special war number, War- planes," as in use in the present war, and fur- ther war pictures in the Gazette. On Monday a great Drama will be screened, he Temptations of Life/' featuring the great French actress, Mistinguette," whose appear- ance on the screen is always welcomed by pic- ture goers. This play, in 4 parts, is one that al shoulGl see. A new Chaplin corned is to be shown throughout the week, entitled "Char- lie at the Baiik"of coursv. we cannot say what he is doing there, unless he is drawing his princely salary ■ anyhow, whatever is the business," it will create endless amusement, and the two parts to be shown will be packed full of Charlie. The war picture will deal with the "Suez Canal, and the ryst of the prorgam- fme will bq largely of an amusng character. On Thursday of next,veek Charlie Chaplin continus to amuse in his latest comedy, "Him- self at the Bank." The exclusive picture will be an adaptation of the well-known story by John Strange Winter, the author of "Beautiful Jim," with the title "Grip." The story is forceful, ctean, and a delightful tale of a strong man wronged, who yet conquers his base feeling of revenge, and who, in the end, is led bv the hands of a little child to a reconciliation. Two other interesting and entertaining dramas are "A Baby Benefactor" and "Those who Live in Darkness." "A Trip to Italy and a picture dealing with Hungary are in the programme. The Gazette will cona-in the latest and most important news in animation. With programmes like the above no wonder the Palace continues to draw large and appreciative audiences.

Has your name appeared in our 10,000 Shil- lings' Fund list P If not, let it be there next week.

Bond or Free ? I INNER MEANING OF UOMPULSION. I By W. C. ANDERSON, M.P. I I am writing this article before the Govern- ment measrure foi Compulsory Miliary Fervice is introduced, and before the Conference to de- cide Labour policy is held. In the circumstances it is difficult to anticipate the events of what must be a critical week. The main features of the proposed legislation are common knowledge, but there is always the possibility, owing to pressure from this or that quarter, of drastic alteration before the Bill is introduced. It is not claimed that Conscription is being brought in as a result of military or national necessity. There is no military necessity in the matter at all. Two years from now the soldiers will not be armed amd equipped who are now available. The Cabinet decision is purely a tac- tical victory for the Compulsionists. They have advanced from point to point by a series of tricks and stratagems. They have introduced various wedges into the working class move- ment, dividing attested from unattested, mar- ried from single, and creating division where previously none existed. An Astute Game.. I As the Compulsionists ran forward from ) cover to cover, they induced many honest sup- porters of the Voluntary System to run after them. The Voluntaryists believed they were working to save the Voluntary System, but the Conscriptionists knew better. When the Conscriptionists obtained from the Prime Minis- ter his famous pledge, they felt that the hour of their triumph was at hand. Let them make the most of it, for, sooner or later, the conse- quence will be very different from what they expect. It is plain enough that the advocates of Compulsory Service were determined that the Derb- Scheme should be made a stepping stone to the realisation of their hopes. Stripped of all the heroics," says the "Times," the sim- ple truth is that the Compulsion Bill is only the sequel, plainly foretold and universally ac- cepted. of the great recruiting campaign un- dertaken by Lord Derby last October." "Un- der the guise of a last attempt to save the Voluntary System," writes Mr. John Dillon, M.P., who of all the men-on the Irish Benches is keenest for the rights and liberties of the "a most skilfully devised plan was started having for i's obje 1 and its almost inevitable result > situat; n which has now ari,qen. Let it be understood, first of all, that the pre- sent situation has been created by deliberate trickery on the part of the Conscriptioniet minority. Having gained what they think is a very strong position, they begin to bluster, to threaten general elections, the making and un- making of ministries. Their position is only strong superficially. The moment they begin to force it they will have to face difficulties of which they have apparently no conception. What are the Facts? I The country is to be rushed into Conscription on the strength of figures which have even not been analysed. There are 650.000 unattested single men. Who are they, and what were their reasons for not attesting? A very large percentage of them, it is generally urged would oe found on examination to be medioally unfit. Many of them are engaged on work" which would be regarded as vital from the standpoint of the War. Some are men holding deep re- ligious or conscientious objections to the taking of life. When these and similar deductions have been made, how many unattested men would remain? What is to be the position of Labour ? The Trade Union Congress last September passed a strong resolution against Oonscription, and the supreme moment of the Congress was when that great and fearless leader of the miners, Mr. ltobert Smillie, thrilled the delegates by his outspoken declaration. Labour was called in to help with the Derby Scheme, and "save the country from Conscription," but when th& Prime Minister was jockeyed by the compul- sionists into giving a pledge which reduced the campaign to a farce, Labour was not consulted. Behind all that is going on is not military or national necessity, but the sinister power of a restless and irresponsible peer-pressman, who thinks the War should be run for the special advantage of his papers, a.nd the over-weening ambition of a member of the Cabinet who thinks he sees his chance of cleaving his way to the chief place. A Word to the Married. I Of course, there is more in it than that. If we consent to this Conscription of the single men, it will not be long before we have been overtaken by universal Conscription. Indeed, [ that would be on the whole a fairer thing, for to attempt a dividing line between single and married men is utterly untenable and absurd. No Conscriptionist would rest content five min- utes with such an arrangement, the Northeliffe newspapers would once more get into full blast, and reaction would at its leisure reach out for fresh victories. Let us have military Conscription to-day, and we will be faced with industrial Conscription to-morrow. Does anyone doubt that irrchistrial compulsion is the real aim of many of the peo- ple who have been engineering this agitation? Compulsory service is necessary at this time when the people are getting out of hand," re- marks Col. Sir Augustus Fitz-George. CC Na- tional service is required as much for the effect it will have upon miners and munition workers as for the part it will play in the actual rais- ing of armies." What will the worker think who imagines he is merely giving a prod to the 'slacker in the next street when he finds he has actually put a. halter round his own neck? And what will he think of Trade Union leaders anty representatives who, for fear of a passing un- popularity, or of a general election and the los- ing of their seats, are prepared to bring a new bondage upon the workers and mortgage their future still more heavily? The workers have severe struggles ahead of them in any case, looth before War is ovei- and after it is over; if they have to fight with the shackles of Consumption about them. God help them. Industrial Conscription will Follow. Mr. Dillon has no doubt that this is part of the Conscriptionist plot. "The working clas- ses, he says, "will do well to remember that a large number of those who have carried on. this campaign have been predominantly influ- enced not by a single-hearted desire to win the war, but by considerations of the condition of England after the war is over, and by a de- sire to create an instrument which can be used hereafter to resist and put down the struggles of Labour which they anticipate will follow on the conclusion of peace. In a letter in the "Manchester Guardians," Mr. Frank Rose puts the same point with admirable clearness and force: The proposition which I wish to put to the workers is simply this: once they accept the principle of Military Conscription. in whatever form, and to whatever degree, upon what will they base an argument against In- dustrial Compulsion? It is so clearly that which lies beneath this Conscriptionist move- ment. The attestation of skilled operative en- gineers shows what is in the minds of these militarist intriguers. There is not the least idea of sanding any of them to training; the sole idea is to get them under semi-military control and set up what will be an industrial tyranny, hard, if not impossible, to shake off after t.he war. Sir John Simon has resigned, and it is pos- sible that Mr. Runciman and Mr. McKenna may follow. They are known to be opposed to this apparently endless expansion of the Army. It is impossible for this country to be at ene and the same time a great military power, a great naval power, a great industrial and finan- cial power. The Chancellor of the Exchequer knows that, and so does the President of the Board of Trade. The attempt will end in dis- astrous failure, and may even lead to the de- feat of this country in the European struggle. Last September Mr. McKenna put the esti- mated year's expenditure at £ 1,590,000,000, the loans and advances to Allies reaching £ 413,000,000. We have now 4 million men ei- ther in the field or preparing to take the field; our war expenditure has mounted up to 5 mil- lion pounds a day, end our advances to Allies are sufficient to maintain and equip an addi- tional 3 million men. The Militarist Mind. To the militarist mind aU this is practically nothing. lie, war » -C hpuisit ;> for its own sake. Compulsiw td him is a good thing in it- self, and the father of good things. Organised Labour must speak, and promptly. The Conscriptionist case is shallow and super- ficial. It has only to be explained and under- stood in order to disappear. But war is always a favourable time for political reaction, for people are caught in the grip of a common fear, and theitr minds in many ways are im- prisoned. It is at any rate the clear duty of those who see the certain dangers of Conscrip- tion to speak out plainly and to make an un- flinching stand, be the consequences what they may.

Electric Theatre. The prestige of the Electric is fully main- tained by its popular programmes. which are so well arranged, always re.lia.ble for high class, .and a variety of subjects,. On Thursday night an intensely dramatic subject was screened, "Hero of the Yser," which is a story of the great wa.r, and should certainly nor be missed. In addition, there is a strong variety of ex- oellent drama, comedy and interest subjects all view. On Monday next ,a magnificent Edison film, "Out of the Ruins." an adaptation from the fa.mous story. "Miss 318 and Mr. 37." featur- ing the weli-know-n actress, Mabel Trunnelle. A fine picture, embodying some of the most spsctacuhvr and realistic fire scenes Qver photo- graphed for the screen. The effect at the close of the second part, when the whole wall of a building collapses, with Miss Trundle in the midst of the raging cataclysm, has never been surpassed. Miss 318, a sale girl in the Ma- mouth," a, departmental store, is busily waiting on customers as the local fire inspectors survey the big stere. The inspectors are not favourably impressed with the conditions, and inform the proprietor, Abraham Kirschberg, that unless more means of egress aaue provided the building will be condemned. Miss 318 attends a cinema show, and when a. woman in front refuses to remove her large hat, Miss 318 is obliged to stand in the aisle, Mr. 37, a fireman doing duty in the theatre, informs her that she is not al- lowed to stand in the aisle. The next morning Mr. 37 meets Miss 318. What happens next is fully depicted on the screen, and should cer- tainly be seen b-v, all. Next Thumda-v. "Tlte -Four Feathers." adapted from Mason's famous story. Those who havo read the novel know its dramatic possibilities, and the producer has not failed to make the most of these. From the moment when Captain Feversham, suspected of cowardice by his bro- ther officers, is presented by each with a white feather, the story begins to move. And until the last foot of the last reel, there is no cessation of thrilling, scenes and hairbreadth escapes. Th pictures of fighting in the desert, of the prison va.rd. and the "'House of Stone" at Omdurman are remarkably fine. This is a picture which will make you talk. Keep your eye on the Electric—•especially "Cabiria," the talk of ev- ery town. Merthyr will be included. Hall Caine's "Eternal City" is also coming shortly The Orchestra has been augmented, and is ur doubtedly the finest in -the district. Special pure is taken that appropriate music is rendered to each picture.

"PROPAGANDA, NOT PROFIT," is the motto of the Pioneer Presc." If you are alive to the tremendous social improve- ments that the Party the Pioneer represents stands for. then it is your duty to all that all your Trades Union. Co-operative, and General Printing comes to Williarrsl Square, Merthyr, the Home of the Pioneer."