The feelings of the ordinary soldier/sailor/airmen being involved in the war were nothing like the feelings of the soldiers from the Great War. There were some excited by the idea of war, and some soldiers from the Great War tried to reenlist, but most of the feelings were that it was their duty. They thought they should support Britain. Recruitment for the war was slow. By the 13th of October only three thousand, four hundred men had enlisted in NSW and it wasn't much difference anywhere else in Australia. There was more interest in joining the RAAF.

The public felt the same about the war as the volunteers. They agreed that they should support Britain. They had learned some lessons from the Great War. Rather than feelings of excitement, their feelings were one of duty. This doesn't mean they weren't excited at all, because they were...