THE RETURNED SOLDIER

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 170, 14 April 1932, Page 12

THE RETURNED SOLDIER

Assisting Needy Cases

WORK OF WAIRARAPA BODY

Mastertqn, April 13.

“The gross proceeds from the sale of poppies, including sundry donations, amounted to £221/12/2, equivalent to the sale of 4432 poppies at 1/- each,” states a section taken from the annual report of the Wairarapa Returned Soldiers’ Association to be presented to the annual meeting of the association on Thursday, April 28. “After deducting the cost of poppies and sundry' expenses, £59/13/4, the net sum of £l6l 18/10 was added to the fund for the relief of ex-service men. The Canteen Funds Board contributed £l9O, and the Wairarapa Patriotic Association donated £250 to the association for relief purposes, and these grants were pooled with the poppy fund, making'the total receipts in .the fund for the year £683 4/8, plus £lO9/18/5 brought forward from last year. The payments from the poppy fund account amount- to £682/14/7, and a balance of £llO/8/6 is carried forward to next year.” “A sub-committee of Messrs. L. S. Nicol, R. Lee and the secretary, Mr. A. E. Prentice, was set up to administer the poppy fund,” continues the report, “and the general scheme decided upon was to make a grant to each approved unemployed ex-service man of a sum equal to his weekly earnings on unemployed relief work, the grant to be paid in orders for provisions, one week in every four, the payment coinciding with the week in which the men had to stand down from relief work. This scheme applied to Masterton only, and the number of orders issued was 377 and the cost £344/0/9. Seventy-eight men were assisted in Masterton, including 21 single men and 57 married men with 203 dependents.”

“In the centres of Carterton, Greytown, Featherston and Martinborough sums aggregating £2OB/6/2 were allocated to the various borough councils to provide relief work for unemployed exservicemen, to carry them over the week when relief work under the No. 5-scheme was not available.

“In addition, a number of ex-service-men were found casual employment’with private employers in the way of gardenii g, etc., the wages being subsidised by the association up to 50 per cent. Under this system the subsidies paid absorbed £74/1/3, but the total wages received by the soldiers concerned was £l4B/2/6. Owing to the exceptional call on *thc funds, assistance was restricted to exservieemen who could establish residence in the Wairarapa for not less than three mouths, and every case was inquired into before assistance was granted. The claims of ex-servicemen passing through the district were declined, as preference had to be given to permanent residents.