A DEMAND FOR INQUIRY

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 91, 11 January 1919, Page 8

A DEMAND FOR INQUIRY

THE CLEMENS CASE LETTER TO THE MINISTER We have received from Mr. C. H. Clemens a copy of a further ieller to the Minister of Defence concerning tho circumstances surrounding UlO death of Private Eoy Clemens; M.M., a returned soldier. Mr. C'lemens's statemeiit of the position and the Ministerial reply appeared in our columns last month. Writing under date January 3, 1919, Mr. Clemens states that he has obtained definite, information which goes to show that the explanation supplied' to the Minister by his Departmental officials and made public is wholly inaccurate or else distorted, so .as to conceal the real'.facts. While he exonerates tho Minister for per-, sonal responsibility for those statements he expresses tha opinion that ho should havo verified them, before placing them ,on' record. Continuing, he remarks: "In my letter dated December . 5 i said:— <

The orderly placed in charge of my boy was'one of those who nursed

some of the Niagara patients, and I have been informed, and although I absolutely believe it I cannot vouch for the statement' that on October 27 he was, nursing influenza patients' till about 4 p.m., and at-G p.m. ho ,took charge' of my boy.' This; I do know to bo true: On arrival at Hanmer the orderly was immediately isolated, and' on November 4 about nine-

toen of the Staff were suffering with, influenza.

The following is taken from your reply to this guarded statement:— , " Tho evidence does not support Mr, Clemena's statement that tho orderly who, accompanied hia son was nursing influenza patients up till wjthin two hours of taking. charge of tho soldier. The flergqantordorly states that he had not nursed any influenza patients for fourteein days , prior to taking chargejof the deceased.. As a matter of fact,'tho orderly himself" contracted influenza on the journey.

"I now say, definitely,,that tho orderly nursed, or assisted to nurse, Niagara patients; that lie waß nursing, or assisting to nurse,' influenza pationts almost up to the, time when lie dame into contact with .my son; that there is no evidonco to support your statement that the orderly contracted influenza. while en route to Hiinmer, but that all evidonco points the contrary way: that the orderly'was isolated, immediately, oil his . arrival at Hanmer; that Niagara influ'enza was not known at Hanmer till it was introduced there owing to the action taken by your officers; that ■ seven -or eight. New Zealand soldiers'died at Hanmer as a tdsuH of tho action taken by your officers, anr that your Department is directly sponsible .... "In my letter, dated 'December 5 stated that the orderly sent from Aucli land did, so far as • I.know,..everythin he could. ,The following is taken froi 7 of Medical ' Services issued the necessary travelling warrants and provided sergeant orderly.. The sergeant was a member of the staff of a .'hospital ship and had been connected witl l

jt/'john Ambulance for fifteen years. "Tour Department would have been veil advised. to. have allowed my statement tp stand. There was no need ,to say more about the orderly than can bo said by'me, but when your officers gave a statement it should have been a truthful one. > • i "I repeat that so far as. I'know tho ordea-ly did all he could. He, had received his. instruction's; lie had no power to alter them; he had been told to leave Hanmer on a given date; lie was .obliged to follow His orders. The hospital ship experience,, emphasised ih'your. statement,' commenced, on January 25, .1916, and less tliah four (1) months afterwards (on May 21, 1916). the orderly, owing to medical "unfitness, was discharged from the Expeditionary Force. I luivs stated his hospital ship experience was less than four months; and I now state that his : actual nursing experience ■on the 1 sliip was only, few days.; The orderly , joined the 'Expeditionary Force as a private, and as a private ho was discharged. l . It is' a fact ho .was a member of . St.. John Ambulance, i You are personally aware of the infinitesimal experience'gained .by the St. John Ambulance in pre T war days, and the value placed 'by your own Department on . the orderly's knowledge is shown by the fact that it made liim, and kept him, a private; while others witty no iireyiotis experience obtained - non - commissioned rank!. The 'orderly may hold non-com-missioned rank in the Territorial or some other-branch of the Defence .Force,, but while on duty with my son he wore the Expeditionary Force -uniform of a private, and the statements regarding his beine a sprgoant, and' in' reference to hospital ihin experience, :wero' rnadj simply''for D&T)firtir>entnl purposes nun are an example of those half-truths, which are worse .than lies, _ •• ",Tn your Ministerial explanation (soft paragraph fl"ven) you state, it seems clear that if my soil had not tunately contracted wnnld have been alive to-day. Admitted that, my ?mi . contracted influenza*. tiroved thnt the . orderly, had nnrsed i .Niagara nnd other influenza natienM proved tf"t the orderlv was placed in'contact with my ran, then T. claim you mlmit. that but for the nction of your officers illy son . would have been nliye^this dnv. ] I 'libva' nn. doubt about beinr- able to prove that the manner in which my son was fjTiWeri'Pd from Aufljclnnrt tojKn'n'raw made his death' almost inevitable, ■and your o.wu statement. quoted above, Is a terrible indictment.of your Depart-, ment. ; . -I

"I hone to ba advised of vo" r derision 'to .trant -mv r*qtimt for a inqiiiry. awl, therefore, am witlilioldinT mv replv to vonr letter n f , De' , em | l ,0, • 18. 1918, and also n.full reply to the Miuistwial explanation. • . . "(Ripied) C. TT, CLEMENS."

Miss C. W.'Christie, national lecturer, Thcosophicnl Society, will; driver tho seooiiA'of a series of public lectures 011 "Man, Know . Thyself," in the Theosopliical Society's. Hall, Matign.Street, tomorrow evening, at 7. I

"Tt is sate to sav (soys tho "Outlook ) that\. Griffith" has (succeeded, in "Hearts of tlio "World," in presenting tho essence of tho groat war struggle in this production, and has very probably accomplished the feat better than anyone elso could hnvo done. Certainly there boa been nothing produced dealing with .tlio world war which can be comnared with 'Hearty of tlio World.' The climax of the story comes after Robert Harron, as The Hoy, has entered tho Germanoccupied village* as a spy and. has by chance come upon his 6weetheart\Jiillian Gisli) outside tho village inn. Discovered, they take-refuge in one of tho upstairs rooms, and there the situation is worked up with great power." TV.UAT DYSPEPTICS SHOULD KNOW. lIELPraL ADVICE TO SUFFERERS. Tho fact that few dyspeptics really understand the cause of their troubles is proliably the reason why hwrinful drugs aro still used to such an alarming extent. The practice is wrong, howover, and is strongly condemned by many physicians. #