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A.W.N. League. ANNUAL MEETI G AT IOItSHAM. i The first monthly meeting of the tr Horsham branch of the Australian 11 Women's National League after the th summer recess was held in the 3lecha- .f nics'. Hall on Saturday afternoon last,: whein a highly satisfactory attendance ,f was recorded. The president - of the al branch (Mrs. .W. F. Allan) occupied the tc chair. of Correspondence from Central was in read -. by ' the secretary (Miss Jean AT McPherson), and the usual routine II league business was discussed and ad- H justed, after, which Mrs. Allan read a at fine paper, written by Mrs. Arthur tl Robinson, entitled "The Call to-Arms." F We publish the following extracts :--. R "Are we Liberals ready for the great lI occasion, are we girding on our armoul ait for the great battle, do we realise our ii responsibilities, and are we determined A co do the best that is in us to reach 7: to our ideals and give Socialistic 'legis- 1i lation ,"nd- Socialistic Government such I a set back that its voice shall not be f heard in our land for many a year to ti come ? Thi' is quite possible, for if 0 victory is ours at the aoing elections the path will be ~iasier when the next si elections come;-once let us stem the tide and more. than half the battle is 1 won. With a double dissolution in the a Federal Parliament, and a general elec- Ii tion in the State Parliament late in e' the year, we, as a League, have before n us -what surely promises to be the most 'v strenuous year since our foundation. ri "The League has grown ;enormously w in.the years of its existence, blut' do t not let us forget-so have its responsi- 1 bilities,. for 'the. greater -the' power"'the greater becomes' the responsibility.:The I eyes of the Liberals ofia:notf only our, dwn 'State, but those' beyond it," are upon h ,s . and what is more-their hopes are to a:large. extent centredon' our -great,; Leapue to come :to the W country's aid We must dot ifail I "To rpalise what is required of us we c must first get into our minds the pre- c sent impossible position in the Federal e Parliament. For this purpose we can- a qot do better than quote the words of the hbn. tthe Prime Minister, *Mr. 8 Joseph Cook. In thq course of an ad- 3 dress to the Farmers' and Settlers' I Association at Cowre (New South Wgles) recently, Mr. Cook said that the present position of affairs in the Federal Parliament was practically im possible. He continued : 'Some of our friends say "Stay where you are. Hold on to keep the other fellow out." The iact is we cannot stay on with I a sense of dignity under present con ditions. 'During the last session we r held our own, but it is purely a battle 'I of wits, and only by the straining of the Standing Orders and such lile I methods were we able to hold on at all. This kind of thing cannot be re peated without a severe loss to every function of government, as well as the reputation of the country. (Cheers.) Parliamentary business cannot be con ducted with an absolutely even House, such as this has been, with the Speaker in the chair. Moreover, there t are tremendous financial and business problems requiring treatment, and ewhen we attempted to deal with their we found ourselves burked and scotch ed at every turn by our opponents. It was said that we shouhl submit non contentious legislation. Well, we did so, but our opponents immediately made this. non-contentious business highly contentious by introducing their socialistic anns into it. Is is not ab e surd to talk about passing non-con d tentious legislation in the House as it 0 is ? The fact is there are two highly conitentious parties in the House. Any

legislation submitted must always be the subject of party contention. While this is so those reformers who are so anxious to see non-party government should address themselves to the.elec torates outside. "This indeed is a call to arms from the Liberal leader, anid it should re sound throughout the country. ' We have to see the thing throigh~'-those are his words of unfaltering courage. But the Courage of one man is not enough-the responsibility is not. his alone-'the taxpayers must make up their minds to return one 'party or the other in sufficient sLrengtli to govern the country.' We should, each of us weigh these words- -ve, the electors, the taxpayers; have the issue - in our hands, and with -strong men suci as we are proud to possess in the- present Cook . Ministry; surely we as electors Will rally round them and return them with a decent lighting majority at the coming elections. - • "Then the Senate. Do- the Liberal electors of: Victoria realise that they are represented by only, one member in the Senate as against five members of the. Caucus-?, In the whole Senate there' are only seien, .Liberals out of a total of thirty-six- senators.: Small wionder, then, that the `business of the country was' blocked by the -Labor Senators last session. It devolves on the electors ofUVictorih. to elect the whole six Liberal Senators ,for- this State at the election resulting, .-from the double dissolution which is expect ed as the result of the coming session. The League should get "to work at once especially with regard to the Se nate-our whole machinery should be overhauled--our membership increased, a thorough and systematic canvass-of each electorate should be begun, each branch its the electorate doing its part, putting -people --on the irolls, '-eadeavod? ing to interest those who have hither to been but lukewarm-thus slowly and surely attending to those details so essential to success. "We need to get hold of.the young and teach them what, in the Iwords of Lord Mlorley, we should never forget regarding' ourselves-'that .they' owe a share of their energies to the great stru?arle which is in ceaseless progress in all societies in an endless variety of forms, between new truth -and old pre judice, between love of self or class and solicitous- passion for justice be tween the obstructive indolence and inertia; of the many and the generous mental -activity of the few . . . .. those virtues .of fortitude, tenacity, silent patience, outspoken- energy, readiness to assert ourselves and readi ness to efface ourselves, willingness to suffer and resolution. to inflict suffer ing which few of old knew how to show for their gods "or their sove= reign." tMrs. Allan, commenting on the palper, reminded all present- that they must not only 'strive to keep their most worthy reifresentative in the Lower Mouse, but to do their utmost to increase tihe.Liberals in the Senate, so that instead ol only having one re presentative, thlie.will have the whole 'six seats represented by Liberals. The singing of the National -Anthem brougiht-the proceedings to a close.

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