PATRIOTIC FUNDS

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 245, 11 July 1921, Page 6

PATRIOTIC FUNDS

PROBLEM OF DISTRIBUTION THE MANAWATU SOCIETY DISCUSSION WITH MR. DAVIES Vrom Our Own CorreauondentPalmerston North, July 9. Some few weeks ago the Manawatu Patriotic Association received a lengthy letter from Mr. G. AV. Davies, acting-offi-cer in charge of the National War Funds Office, in connection with the proposed distribution of the society’s funds, and after the matter had been fully discussed it was decided to ask that officer to attend a meeting and give further details as to the attitude of his department on the matter. Mr. Davies accordingly attended a meeting of the association at Palmerston North on Friday evening. Mr. J. A. Nash, president, was in the chair. He said the society felt that a time had arrived when a distribution of the funds should take place. They had made promises to returned soldiers that the distribution would not be delayed longer than was 'necessary- . Several other societies had already distributed ■their funds and wound up their affairs, while others were carrying on a system of loans to the soldiers. His society had never dealt in loans, seeing that the Government had already been very liberal in that connection, but it had conserved its funds, and now hart about .£50,000 to deal with. A special committee had been set up to bring down a distribution scheme. That committee had called for applications for assistance from all tho men who could be traced throughout tho Manawatu society’s district, and hail re " ceived a large number of applications. No distribution would take place for fit men. as the moneys had been raised for tho sick and wounded men of the society’s district and for their dependants, of whom there were many. The first part of the scheme was the distribution to dependants, some of whom were aL readv participating in it. These payments were not being made in lump sums, but periodically. It was only in exceptional cases that lump sums would bo granted to disabled soldiers. The intention was that the soldiers should receive extra payment quite apart fr° n ' their pensions. The impression that the society intended to divide up the mono; and get rid of it was quite a wrong one. In its distribution the society would first consider the claims of men domiciled in its own district. Unless it did that it would be breaking faith with the people who had subscribed money on the understanding that it was for the benefit of Manawatu soldiers. It had been suggested in Mr. Davies’s letter that in some parts of tho Dominion patriotic funds were already extinct, and tho Advisory Board in Wellington had passed a resolution to the effect that the wealthier patiiotic. bpdigs should contribute towards the needs of those in the poorer districts. Mr. Nash referred to the fact that the National War Funds Office had already received large sums of money from the Y.M.C.A:, tho Salvation Army, and other institutions, which he contended might be utilised for assistin-- the poorer districts. He pointed out that whilst the Manawatu society had been willing in the first place to fall in with the national scheme, it was now too late, and the society did not think th* resolution passed by the Advisory Board should affect that district. It wished to be allowed to assist the men of its own district in accordance with the scheme it had laid down. The intention was to distribute some J!25,C00 to X35.C00. and to invest that money in good securities, and use the interest to assist cases which might crop up in the future. Several speakers stressed the point that it had K een a distinct understanding when the money .via raised that it should be use-l solely for the relief of mon of the Manawatu district, and a letter was read from the local branch of the Returned Soldiers’ Association supporting the altitude of the society. Mr. Davies pointed put that he had merely put the caso from the point of view of the statute law on tho subject Tho Department was endeavouring to assist rather than retard the society s actions. In this they had to be governed by the society’s rules and the Act, as well as . the Solicitor-General’s interpretation of them. He declared that the Government had no intention of taking. and had no power to take, tho money from the society. It had been clearly laid, down by the Act and the Solicitor-General that the society was to bo governed entirely by its rules. They were a body of trustees, and their rights must be determined by their own constitution. This being so, he said that there was nothing in the rules to confine the distribution of funds to the society’s district, and contended that the SolicitorGeneral was therefore right in his argument that they were avWablo for general distribution, in view of the information before him. He had, however, noted the fact, which had only that night come under hie notice,- that all the papers on which the funds were suliscribed specified the area for which they were to be used. That appeared to him to place them under the heading of a specific appeal, and he would bring that aspect under the notice of the Department He thought, however, that the society might have to make another account in its books. Dealing with tho question of lump sum distribution, Mr. Davies argued that this was not perniis- | sible under the Act from capital. Marlborough had made an attempt to distribute its funds that way, but it had been prevented from doing so. It might re necessary to get permission to amend tho rules to allow lump sums to be given out. as suggested.. At present, however, there was nothing in the existing rules to prevent tho society advancing lump sums by way of loans. In reply to questions, Mr. Davies pointed out that there were certain penal clauses in the Act, and that if the auditor came io the conclusion that uniter , the rules any wrong payments had keen ■ made, the members of the society would ■ lie jointly and severally liable as in the i case of a company. Ho had approved I the society’s scheme of payments with . regard to dependants. | In moving a vote of thanks to Air. i Davies for his attendance, tho chairman j said that the society wanted to keep within the law. but Mr. Davies had told I them how to break it, and they would I take the earliest opportunity of doing so. |