The second part of Lord Rosebery's speech was devoted to
military defence, and showed that he has grasped thoroughly the essential principle that the defence of the kingdom should be entrusted to the population, properly trained, armed, and organised, and that this organisation could be made effective without conscription,—i.e., by an improvement of our present Auxiliary Forces, and the de- velopment of the national resources in the matter of men. Any Government, declared Lord Rosebery, which appeals to the nation on the sacred duty of the nation to defend its own territory against the possibility of foreign aggression would meet with a response such as would sur- prise our present rulers, and would enable them to place the defence of our islands on a far sounder footing than it now rests on. "My Lords, if you wish to call upon the nation to raise Militia, Volunteers, and Yeomanry to take their part in the defence of these shores, you must pursue a very different course from that which you have been pursuing. You must not starve, you must not discourage, you must not look with dis- favour on these Auxiliary Forces ; you must foster them ; you must encourage them ; you must see that they are not out of pocket by their exertions. Let every form of Ministerial and social, aye, and I would add, Royal, favour be shown them; and I believe that you will soon have in existence a Volunteer Army, a Militia, and a Yeomanry adequate to, and exceeding, the utmost necessities of the defence of your country." on this point we find ourselves in the heartiest possible agree. ment with Lord Rosebery. There is no reason why the Militia, Yeomanry, and Volunteers, if properly encouraged and properly organised, for nothing can be done without organisation, should not give us a force equal to meeting any and every emergency. But then the Auxiliary batteries must not be without guns and horses, the Auxiliary regiments without transport, and only half the officers required for the Auxiliary Forces available for service.
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