Between the devil and the deep blue sea - University of Canterbury

- Chapter 10 -
The Furore over Leave and
Demo bilisa tion
You have to be a soldier to realise what it means at such
moments to learn that you are not allowed to [go on] leave.
L. j jordalill (1916/
If only they would see that the Netherlands' army, like the armies
of the other small neutral-minded states, guards as the police
officer who attempts to prevent the crime, that it is as prepared
as the dyke, which may at any time have to withstand the
battering of the storm tide. Who would out of repugnance for
crime fight the police, who would out of aversion for floods
lower or weaken the dykes or even undermine them?
c. C. Gelder (1918/
Quite apart from the problems of material supply, another pressing concem for
High Command was maintaining adequate numbers of men in the field to protect the
country and its neutrality. There were several factors influencing High Command's
numerous requests to the govemment for increasing the number of mobilised troops. These
included the need to keep up (at least propOliionately) with the growth of belligerent armies
and burgeoning neutrality responsibilities. In February 1915, Snijders wamed that the
200,000 soldiers available were stretched to meet all neutrality requirements, and
consequently the Field Anny would have grave difficulties in successfully withstanding an
invasion because it had to be dispersed over such a wide area. 3 The need for men
continually increased as the tasks of maintaining border integrity, especially against
I "Je moet soldaat wezen, om te weten wat 't betekent op zulk een oogenblik te vernemen datje niet weg moogt" (L.
J. Jordaan, 1916, in Roogterp, "De geschiedenis van Fort Spijkerboor" p. 26).
2 "Mogen men toch eens inzien, dat het Nederlandsche leger, evenals de legers van de andere kleine, neutraal-gezinde
staten, waakt als de politiedienaar, die den misdaad tracht te voorkomen, dat het gereed staat als de dijk, die mogelijk
eenmaal het beuken van den stormvloed zal hebben te weerstaan. Wie zal uit weerzin tegen misdaden de politie
bestrijden, wie zal uit afkeer van overstroomingen de dijken verlagen ofverzwakken, dan weI ze ondergraven?" (C.
C. Gelder, "Ret Anti-Militarisme" [Anti-militarism] Militaire Spectator. 87, 1918, p. 233).
3 Commander-in-Chiefto Minister President, 22 February 1915, in ARA, "Archieven van de Generale Star' entry no.
2.13.70, inventory no. 2.