THE ADVANTAGES OF COMPULSORY MILITARY TRAINING.* A GREAT deal has
already been written in these columns as to the advantages of compulsory military training, and wo have urged again and again the benefits, physical, moral, and spiritual, which we hold would result from the adoption of the Swiss system in this country. Mr. Horsfall restates these advantages in his timely little pamphlet, together with others which he claims must be enjoyed by the nation whose population is trained to arms. He has set them forth in a number of short telling paragraphs with striking headlines, so that the reader may quickly and easily grasp the main points of his argument. One of his contentions is that "a system of compulsory military training gives the Government and the greater part of the natidn not only strong motives, which our Government and nation do not feel, for desiring that all male citizens shall be strong and civilized and able to earn their living, but also a very much larger amount of knowledge of the real condition of the mass of the people than our Government and our people posseas." The need of keeping the Army supplied with strong men, Mn Horsfall goes on, " calls publio attention to the existence of causes of physical deterioration," and to " the passibility of improving conditions of life." While repudiating any idea that the German system of military training should be adopted in this country, he points out that that system, despite its drawbacks, has produced men of far better physique than we have in Britain, although social conditions here are greatly superior to those in Germany. It is to be regretted that Mr. Horsfall has drawn so largely upon Germany for his examples, for, in spite of his caveat, we fear people may be Somewhat misled. We cannot repeat too often that what we and all supporters of the policy of the National Service League wish to see established in this country is not the German but the Swiss system of universal military training.
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