Compulsion Suspended

There were not enough chairs so some of the Cabinet sat on camp stools. They had met in the plain, business-like office of Australia's new Labor Prime Minister, quiet; vigorous James Henry Scullin (TIME, Nov. 5). After a long, tense session last week they jolted all Australia by announcing suspension of compulsory military training.

First English-speaking Commonwealth to adopt compulsory military training was Australia. Australian conscription began at the time of the Japanese war scare of 1911 under the Labor Government of Andrew Fisher.

In area Australia is almost exactly the size of the United States. Her entire population is a little less than that of New York City. To defend this enormous area, the Australian conscription law provided that boys must register at the age of 14, that those physically able must serve as citizen soldiers between the age of 17 and 21, must drill two hours weekly, attend camp one week each summer for field instruction. There is no regular army. A skeleton force of 1,582 instructors is retained as a "permanent" army. To defend the continent last year there were just 45,273 citizen soldiers potentially under arms.* Said Prime Minister Scullin:

"The entire matter of Australian Defense will be reviewed with military officials with a view to adopting a more satisfactory and more efficient system.

"We expect to save $900,000 by substituting volunteers for State trainees and the Royal Military College at Duntroon may be closed."

Australian officers wagered that the result will be the creation of a small Regular Army like Canada's (circa 3700).

*The U. S. National Guard, whose training is slightly more severe than that of the Australian conscripts, numbered 181,221 in 1925