OCR Text |
Show BORDEN REPLIES TO I FARMERS OF CANADA Premier Answers Arguments Argu-ments Against Conscription Conscrip-tion of Agriculturists. OTTAWA." May 14. Canada's farmers today presented their cooscription case to the government. Spokesmen for the thousands of them representing Ontario, Quebec, and Manitoba argued against the proposed new military regulations cancelling can-celling certain exemptions favoring agricultural agri-cultural interests. Farm production would be reduced 25 per cent in some provinces If the regulations were made, the farmers asserted. Manning J. Doherty presented a memorial from the United Farmers ot Ontario emphasizing the need of food pro. duction. Sir Robert Borden, responding for the government, said more manpower was needed on the western front. "I know whereof I speak when I tell you," he declared, "that if the channel ports should be reached through the breaking of that line, it would be, to say the least, extremely problematical whether wheth-er any of that production of which you speak could be made of service to the allied nations overseas and to our men who are holding that line. I regard it as the supreme duty of this government to see that these men, some of whom have been fighting for three years, are sustained sus-tained by such reinforcements as wlil enable them to hold the line." |