Item 58: Internment camp diary, October 1916-October 1917 - Page 13

<p>[Page 13]</p><p>no matter what. If we can&rsquo;t wear the English down with our U-boats, we probably can&rsquo;t succeed at all.</p><p>The battles on the western front must have come at great cost to the English as well, because the clamour for more human material from Australia is growing louder by the day. There is no conscription here except for the defence of the country itself, and for battles elsewhere they have to rely on volunteers. But after the initial enthusiasm, volunteer numbers have dwindled considerably, and it seems other measures are not yielding the hoped-for material either. Thus, for weeks now, a political war has been raging over whether to introduce conscription. A referendum was held on the 27th, and despite inflammatory telegrams from French and English politicians, a majority of 9,000 voted against it. The campaign for the referendum went so far as to inspire the major newspapers to resort to the tasteless idea of publishing a telegram reputedly sent</p>