SCIENTIFIC NATIONAL DEFENCE 125 



learned many things. First and foremost he grasped the fact 

 that, while Australia is a very long distance away from 

 England, Germany is very close to it ; and that there would 

 be ample time for the German Army, or a small portion of it, 

 to over-run England, before ever a single Australian could 

 reach the country to help in its defence. His visions of an 

 Imperial army marching to victory vanished. 



There were several soldiers on board the ship, and the 

 citizen heard many interesting discussions. These men, he 

 found, regarded the subject from a totally different standpoint 

 to his own. Their talk was all of force — the stronger force and 

 the weaker force, and how the latter might hope to beat the 

 former. He had always held the view that the conscripts of the 

 Continent were, in reality, slaves, and that one free-born Briton 

 would be more than a match for any three of them. When, 

 with some diffidence, he suggested this view, a curious silence 

 reigned. Finally, one said that continental armies were not 

 slaves, that they were composed of very fine and well-trained 

 troops, and that they had always fought with the utmost 

 gallantry and devotion. He, the speaker, while fully confident in 

 the capacity of his own men to beat equal numbers of any troops 

 in the world, would be sorry to "take on" three times, or even 

 double, his own numbers. For his part, he was in favour of 

 universal service ; and this remark evidently expressed the view 

 of most, if not all, of those present. The citizen was greatly 

 astonished, for he had always understood that the volunteer was 

 equal to three pressed men. 



It was gradually impressed on him that it was a great thing 

 to possess superior numbers, for that these would make up 

 for a multitude of sins. If possible, one should bring double 

 numbers to bear against the enemy; because even the great 

 Napoleon had never been able to withstand double his own 

 numbers. The citizen rather took exception to this statement, 

 for had not Clive and other British heroes constantly beaten 

 double and even treble their own numbers? He pointed to the 

 battles of Crecy, Poictiers, Agincourt. It was explained to him 

 that such battles had been fought against undisciplined — that is, 

 inefficient — troops, and that no superiority of numbers could 

 make up for inefficiency. He asked what it was which con- 

 stituted this "efficiency," and was told that it consisted of many 

 things ; that, before troops could be termed efficient, they must 



