MILITARY TOURNAMENT FUNDS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXX, Issue 8, 11 January 1899, Page 2

MILITARY TOURNAMENT FUNDS.

ANOTHER LIVELY MEETING

QUEEN'S STATUE COMMITTEE

GETS THE MONEY

A MAJORITY OF ONE

A meetiug of the Military Tournament. Committee was held last evening in the officers' room of the Drill Hall. Lieut.-Col. Banks (President of the. Committee) presided, and there were also in attendance Capt.-Com-mandant Le Roy, Surgeon-Lieut. Col. Dawson, Surgeons Walker and Watson, Captains Grant, Parker, Robertson, O'Brien, White and Major, Lieut.Commander Graham, Lieuts. Smith, Watson, Spinley, Oakes, Bosworth, Cox, Skinner and McCullough, Sergt.Mujor Carpenter, Messrs Ewen, Montgomery, Tunks, R. Farrell, W. C. Speight, S. W. Somerfield and Capt. Clemens .secretary), and Captain D. Miller (treasurer).

' Before the minutes of the previous meeting were confirmed Major White rose and asked the Chairman to rule if the. last meeting, at which a resolution was passed devoting the Military Tournament funds to charities, was legally constituted.

The Chairman said he ruled it was not duly constituted.

Surgeon Dawson said he was going to protest that the meeting was illegal owing to the manner in which it had been called. He got his notice on Tuesday, December 20, saying the meeting would be held on 'Tuesday next,' which clearly meant Tuesday, the 27th, but the meeting was actually held on the 20th. Some of those in the room said they had not received notice of the meeting until the following day, and others said they did not receive any notices. The Chairman said he did not receive a notice at all. Captain Grant said he acted as chairman of the last meeting and put his signature to the minutes of previous meetings. He thought the secretary .should read the minutes of those meetings, which was done. The minutes were confirmed and re-signed by the Chairman as correct. At this stage Colonel P. Dignan, exMayor, raised a question of how many votes he was entitled to. He claimed two. Captain Parker's status at the meeting was also questioned. Colonel Dignan claimed a vote in his capacity as Lieut.-Colonel. The Secretary said he was not on the Committee in that capacity, but as Mayor.

Col. Dignan said he was not Mayor, and as they would not recognise him as being on the Committee as Lieut.Colonel he would leave the room. Col. Dignan then withdrew.

Captain Parker said Col. Dignan had a vote.

The Chairman: Let us get him back

Several left the room to induce Col. Dignan to return to the room, but he had vanished.

THE BALANCE SHEET.

Captain Miller then read the balance sheet of the Military Tournament for the three days as follows:

Receipts: Gate money £705 5/6, sale of tickets £71 13/6, side shows £16 12/6, programmes £30, entrance fees £11 10/, interest of fixed deposit £3 15/. Total £838 16/6. '"'

Expenditure.—Prizes £152 12/6, printing and advertising £64 10/2, catering and refreshments for navy men, permanent militia, police, bands, volunteers, committees, etc., on Juna 22, 23 and 26, 1597, £99 5/6, rent Drill Hall £30* rent cricket ground £7, timber £19 4/6, brake, and cab hire £7 15/, hire of tents £5 12/6, Defence Department £3 13/6, amount voted to celebration committee £21, cartage and wages £89 2/5, assay fees £11/, painting pavilion £6 13/6, legal expenses £1 1/, bonus to Yates £5, Cleniens £20, Miller £10, telegrams, postages and sundries per secretary £5 1/8, sundry accounts £10 14/9, balance National Bank. £278 18/4, Miller's trust account 10/2. Total £279 8/6.

List of Disbursements for which no vouchers are produced:—Cartage and wages £51 15/9; prizes, sundry payments, totalling £87 12/6; Grant Cele- ( bration Committee £21; sundries, £8 14/9; refund Parker, £1; refund O'Brien, £1.

Mr .J. F. Buddie, auditor, reported that he had examined the statement of receipts and expenditure handed to him by the Treasurer of the Military Tournament Fund, and he certified that it was a correct summary of the same. On comparing the statement with the vouchers he found that sundry disbursements were unsupported by any receipts. The balances at credit on the National Bank were certified to as correct. '

Mr Speight asked for Information as to the £30 rent for the Drill Hall.

Capt. O'Brien said the amount was charged for the use of the Drill Hall for four months prior to the Tournament and for gas burned.

Colonel Dawson said he was glad to see the itenio f £95 odd for refreshments was made clear in the balance sheet. In the last, balance sheet it looked as though the money spent on refreshments was for the committee.

On the motion of Major White, seconded by Surgeon Walker, the statement of acounts was adopted.

An account of £8 8/ from Messrs Cooke and Ijhiddle for auditing the accounts was submitted and came in for hostile criticism. Eventually the payment was passed on division on the casting vote of the Chairman. zAn account of 5/6 for printing circulars was also passed. This left a balance of £270 15/ out of the £838 16/6. the gross receipts of the tournament. THE DISPOSAL OF THE FUNDS. The Secretary read a number of letters from different organisations claiming the money, including the Chairman of the Charitable Aid Board, Vermont street Children's Home, Helping Hand "Mission, Queen's Statue Committee, Door of Hope, Church. Mission to the Lanes, Salvation Armjr, and Central Mission and Parnell Orphan Home.

A letter, under date January sth, was read from the Secretary of the Queen's Statue Committee, saying the statue was landed, and asking the Committee to be good enough to give effect with as little delay as possible to the pledge they publicly gave in 1897.

Captain Clemens advocated the money being given to the Children's Hospital.

Surgeon Dawson then moved, 'That the balance of the money in the bank be handed over to the Statue Cosamittee.' He said that if the Committee did not devote the money-to the statue

that it should come back to the Volunteers, to be spent in improving the Drill-hall.

Captain Parker seconded. Major White proposed an amendment to the effect that the money be divided between the Queen'e statue and Children's Hospital . Captain Oakes seconded. He said by carrying the amendment they would only be supporting a minute in the books: (Hear, hear.) The statue was a side issue. The Chairman said he did not think the volunteers ought to claim a single penny of the money. (Hear, hear.) Lieutenant Major said in accordance with the resolution of the citizens ot Auckland the Committee must pay over the money to the Children's Hospital. Captain Grant pointed out the money was at the credit of the Committee. It was for the Committee to decide what should be done with it. At this stage a number began speaking together. The Chairman: Let us get oft to bed; you never will if you go on like this. '

Mr Speight said when the tournament was first started the Friendly Societies sold tickets under the impression that the money was to be given for the Children's Hospital. The meeting of citizens in the City Hall had declared for the Children's Hospital. The Queen herself had expressed a wish that any memorial of her x-ecord reign should be in the shape of a charitable nature, and not for statues. A lot had been said by the Statue Committee about the disloyalty of the volunteers. The Chairman (heatedly): I will not have the loyalty of the volunteers discussed in this room. Mr Speight, continuing, said 'he wished to speak in defence of the volunteers. He knew they were loyal, and he thought they would do their duty by voting for the Children's Hospital. Captain Leßoy favoured the money going to the statue. He said they were the only people who had done anything. Lieutenant Spinley thought the Children's Hospital had not the slightest claim on the funds. On a division, 17 voted for Surgeon Dawson's motion, and an equal number against. The Chairman gave his casting vote for the motion. Secretary Clemens again advocated that the money should go to the Children's Hospital, and moved an amendment accordingly.

Lieutenant Bosworth seconded. The second amendment was* carried by 19 to 14.. Lieutenant Spinley said if the money was paid over to the Children's Hospital it would end in litigation. Mr Tunks advocated the money being devoted to the Queen's Statue. Captain Parker proposed that £250 be given to the Queen's Statue Committee.

Mr McCullough seconded,

This was agreed to by 17 votes to 16, the names of the voters being taken by the Secretary.

A question was raised as to what would become of the balance, and on the motion of Mr McCullough it was agreed to vote the remainder to the statue also.

A vote of thanks to LieutenantColonel Banks for presiding concluded the proceedings.