2 MAY 1914, Page 14

A WARNING.

[To Tar Earn's or Tim .SrEcraron."3 Snz,—On February 19th of this year, Mr. J. W. Barry, a member of the Society of Friends, and organizer of the Australian Freedom League, made a speech in Warrington full of gross misstatements concerning the working of National Service in Australia. I entered into a newspaper correspondence with him, which promised to be interminable, for his replies either ignored plain facts or confused the main issues. Accordingly, with the object of arriving at the truth, I asked Mr. Barry to prove before an impartial Committee any one of three main statements which be had made in print, and which were matters of plain fact, not of argument. I promised, if he could prove that he was right on one issue alone, that I would give £50 to the local Bowling Associa- tion. Mr. Barry has declined this opportunity to prove his case on the ground that as a Friend be will have nothing to do with "sporting offers." But the real truth is that he cannot substantiate the assertions which he has put forward. I am myself a member of an old Quaker family, and I now write to warn Friends against the inaccuracies of Mr. Barry. By his wild, misleading, and gravely exaggerated statements about the working of the Australian Defence Act he is doing no good to their Society.—I am, Sir, &c.,