13 APRIL 1918, Page 2

Mr. Asquith reinforced Sir Donald Maclean's plea for a lower

age- limit, urging that the older men could not be spared from their businesses without injury to the nation. He objected also to leaving the Tribunals at the discretion of the Executive. In regard to Ireland, he said that the arguments against Compulsory Service were stronger now than they were two years ago. Auktralia had twice rejected Conscription, but no one would dream of asking the Imperial Parliament to pass an Australian Military Service Bill. We would remind Mr. Astinith of the 69.86 of Quebec, Which 'ie a true parallel, whereas the case of Australia is not. Conscription has been rejected by almost every constituency in Quebec, where the English Protestant minority is very small. But it is being enforced by the Dominion, against the will of the Quebec Legislature, and the troops did not hesitate to use a machine-gun to quell a riot.