Y.M.C.A. WORK

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2602, 26 October 1915, Page 2

Y.M.C.A. WORK

AMONG THE NEW ZEALANDERS

AN INTERESTING LETTER

The following letter is from 3lr. Jamos Hay, field secretary, representing the New Zealand National Committee at Zeitoun, Egypt. The letter is dated August 15, and Mr. Hay states that they are going at such high pressure thero from early morning until late at night that it is impossible to make reports to tho home base as often as desired. "The regular camp work has been reduced somewhat to a routine, but with the over-changing units I am continually coming in contact with new men. 1 find that our canteen is a great draw. Hera the men can get' what I have described on my notice board, 'a good square feed at a reasonable rate.' !t"o; want to live in Egypt for a .while U know what this means. I ran a 'welcome' concert for the sth Reinforcements, and it went off very well. Then you have no idea what work is involved lust before the men leave for the front. Private Finance. "Some have brought money with them, and as it is folly to take any largo amount to tho front, they are in a quandary just what to do with it. I foresaw the difficulty, and arranged to have an account opened at the bank in my name, and the men have availed themselves very fully of this privilege. I have already handled somo £300, mostly in small sums, ranging from £2 to £10. I think that this is one of the most eloquent testimonies of tho confidence the men have in the Y.M.C.A. All sorts of men, most of thorn not what you would call 'religious,' come to md with their money and ask me to look after it for thorn. J take the namo and address of a relative, and in the evont of death the money is remitted to that relative.

"1 also communicate with relatives of those who are gone, and of sick and wounded men. This, of course, entails a. vast amount of correspondence. The men afao leave valuables with mo, and only this last mail I had the sad, but what might be termed the pleasant, duty of sending a sot of glasses to the mother of a young fellow who was killed in action. Had the chap taken the glasses with him the mother would probably cover have seen them again.

Parcel Post. "I have- also been able to help the boys in another sphere. They have been .sending a great many parcels, mementoes, etc., home, and there has been non-c«}ivery of them. The Post Office comes in for a good dea.l of abuse, unwarranted in many cases, concerning tho loss of parcels; but my experience in a mail order business' tells me that the inadequate tying up of parcels ib a frequent cause for their going astray. If you could see the attempts some of our boys make' at tying up a parcel you would not wonder why they were lost in transit. Hence I have tied up scores and scores of parcels for the men, which have gone through the mails ill safety. Then there are the hundred and ono details which keep 1116 going at full speed. The sending of cables, tne making out of wills, dispatching money, etc. There is some splendid talent among the men. Our tents are packed, and we have to let down iiie sides, wish as many more men outside.

Right to the Trenches. While the work in the tent requires a. largo amount of my time, there is a big work developing between here and the men in the trencheß, and among the wounded in the ; various hospitals, Wo now have two men on the Peninsula, and we are sending writing; material _ right up to the trenches. This permission has only reoently been granted. Then when the reinforcements go forward we give them packages of paper to take with them. You have 310 doubt heard about the fly pest at the front. The returned men describe it as their worst enomy, and having managed to get hold of a little money I got a lot of mosquito squares and a friend-who loft for the front this morning has taken them with him, and will see that they are distributed properly. Hospitals.

"Then you will know by now that every hospital around here is 6iniply crowded with, wounded men, and there is a vast work to bo done among thera. I give every spare minute I can to the hospitals, and the poor fellows need every bit of cheering up they can get. In our camp a convalescent hospital has been established, and in a day or two there will be a thousand men there. We have already got to work among them. One of the inmates of a hospital walked about a mile yes'terday to dig mo up, althoiigh I had only met him casually. He will probably get a D.G.H. for his gallantry at the front, although he is very modest about the matter. You see we have access to all of the hospitals, and there are twentythree secretaries now working at thirteen centres—a continuous lino of Y.M.C.A. effort' from Cairo to Gallipoli. Work Appreciated.

"To show you how the boys appreciate our efforts, they have put over £35 in a little box on my desk for the work. If I only had from £50 to £100 I could purchase many little comforts for the New Zealand boyß in the hospitals. Urgent requests are being received daily to commence work in some hospitals or camps, and we cannot do it because of lack of funds. I notice that the Y.M.C.A. and Red Cross Funds as they appear in the New Zealand papers are very disproportionate. In Egypt the Red Cross and Y.M.C.A. are working hand in hand, and the very strongest appeal can be made to assist in our work. The fact that the British Red Cross gave lis £250 and the Australian Red Cross £500 towards our work in Alexandria, is testimony enough of the worth of the Y.AI.C.A. here.. If I only had £50 right now to send some things badly needed to the treno'hos it would bo most welcome.