HOW MANY HERE?

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 70, 24 March 1931, Page 10

HOW MANY HERE?

NO RECORD POSSIBLE

A THOUSAND IN BILLETS

A -week or so ago the t-stimales of the number of refugees or guests from Hawkos Bay in Wellington varied from two to five thousand; to-day tho Bed Cross authorities aro oi" opinion that there are about a thousand Napier and Hastings und other Hawkes Bay district people in Wellington, but they admit that they do not know, for there is no way of arriving at even an approximately correct number. About 7000 people were received in Wellington, as shown by the Eed Cross records, and up till yesterday afternoon permits and railway passes had been issued to 1950 adults and 611 children, leaving about 4000 not accounted for on tho Red Cross books.'A. considerable number of passes have' also been issued by tho Railway Department, about 20 per day during the last eight days, and a great many Hawkes Bay people have been taken back by friends in cars. Others, again, havo paid their own railway fares, and there were many who camo to Wellington in private cars and, preferring to fend for themselves and to leavo monetary and other assistance fop thoso in greater need than they were, have at no time supplied their names to tho authorities. It is very likely that if these absentees, staying with friends and rcla* tives, could be counted up .the number in Wellington and the Hutt Valley would bo found to bt; considerably over a thousand, but nobody knows. The official records show that the people are returning from Wellington at the rate of about 100 per day, but, again, that takes no account of car transport o of people who pay their own fares. The number of refugees in the .Hutt Valley is thought to bo in the vicinity of 350. IN THE SOUTH ISLAND. Hound about 1000 Hawkes Bay people wore recorded as going to the South Island, and seemingly not a great many have returned to their homes; the number of applications for return fares, at any rate, is small. The cases of these people is, however, rather .different in that practically all of them wished to go to the South Island because they had friends to go to; theirs were not cases of billeting with good Samaritans, and. if their friends, aro willing that they should remain for weeks instead of days that would 'appear to be a matter for private arrangement. It may be, of course, that some of these visitors havo obtained ,their through boat1 and train passes in the South Island or have paid their.own fares, but that seems unlikely.' VERY LITTLE GRUMBLING. Where 7000 people were befriended by those who were complete strangers, remarked Captain Galloway to the "Post" reporter, it was .inevitable that there should be • some misfits and disagreements, but it said .-. great deal for Hawkes Bay and for Wellington people, too, that tho number of complaints was very small, indeed: they could be counted on the fingers. There wero one or two cases :where it was apparently not possible to smooth things out, and there the society had simply had to say that it declined any further responsibility1 and had advised the refugees to. return to Hawkes Bay. Captain Galloway said that he couid not express an. opinion whether refugoes whose husbands were in employment should pay their hosts, something for their board. No doubt, ho said, many were doing so, but that was a private matter, outside the society altogether. -