Mr. Neville Chamberlain has made known in broad outline his
scheme of National Civilian Service. His main object is to find substitutes for the men who may be called up to the Army from munition works, coal mines, shipbuilding, transport, and the land. He will ask men between eighteen and sixty who are not liable for military service to volunteer for such civil work. The volunteers will first enrol themselves, and will then, if wanted, be called up at a week's notice and drafted to the places where their labour is required. Voluntary enrolment is to be stimulated by meetings all over Great Britain. Ireland, as usual, is left out Mr. Chamberlain is already being • criticized by the irresponsibles for not having instituted a complete system of civilian service in a day, but he has shown wisdom in first trying to think out the details of what will prove a stupendous undertaking. We can, however, understand
the surprise and disappointment of the women's societies on fesdingehat no appeal is as yet to be made for women volunteers. It is evident that the available men who are unfit or too old for the Army will not nearly suffice to fill the places of the men who are wanted by the War Office, and that vast numbers of women will be needed.
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