PATRIOTIC ASSOCIATION

Evening Star, Issue 17394, 2 July 1920, Page 2

PATRIOTIC ASSOCIATION

report® of the Otago Patriotic and General- Welfare contain the following matters of interests .The executive report that the balance at the credit of the Belgian fund—viz., £7,142 9s' 7d—was remitted to the High Commissioner for New Zealand, accompanied by a strong recommendation that -he should give special consideration to the claims of the Belgian orphan fund, and advance as he thinks proper, that' fund having the approval of their Majesties the Kinjc and Queen of the, Belgians. The credit balance of the ambulance fund, amounting to £152. 6s 3d, was paid to the Bnriedin branch of the St. John Ambulance Association, which organisation had done an immense amount of voluntary • war work in connection with the transport, i etc. of wounded soldiers. * . ' The Soldiers' Committee during the year hold 49 meetings, the average attendance at each meeting being 2.12: while the .Relief Committee met. on 45 occasions, with an average attendance of 3.4. The .committee held a regular monthly meeting —l2 in all— and one special* meeting.

The total number of applications from sol-, diers dealt with by the sub-committees wiring the year was 4,566, verv considerably in excess of last year's total of 1/ soldiers' applications, and showing the great increase of wotlc on the committees as the result of demobilisation. Four hundred and forty-nine dependents' cases were considered during the year, and the nun> creasing, the total number of dependents ber in receipt of allowances is rapidly deat present receiving assistance from the committee being 41. The following summary of the manner in which the 4,566 soldiers' applications have been dea't with an indication of the heavy expenditure, due largely to the clothing allowances of an average value of £6 10s which were granted in cases where necessity was proved on the applicant's part. The" committee does not recognise a grant by right of' services, but in view of the greatly increased cost of clothing it was deemed considerate to make such a grant to returning men whose allotments had been absorbed in the maintenance of dependents. The assistance grafted to soldiers was as follows—viz., to 2.924 applicants clothing grants totalling £19,405 2s 6d were made, while allowances, in some cases extending over a' 2>eriod of a few weeks and aggregating at the weekly rate £531, 03 Id were paid to 279 applicants. Grants amounting to £3,892 7s were made to 796 gratuitanfs, and the sum of £6,795 7s was advanced ;in loans to 129 men, the majority cfwhich loans 'have secured by registered seecncTmortgage. and others by promissory notes. Consideration of 201 applications was deferred, while 144 were societies ""'with a recommendations from the committee, and in nine "cases- in'structi6B3.from war expenses in connection with the; disposal of war gratuities were carried out-; The sum of £36o'was granted to 72 patients of the Montecillo Convalescent Home, the Dunedin Public and Woodside Hospitals, who had been granted 10 days' leave at peace time, and were without the necessary cash to go to their homes for the peace celebrations. The committee have been frequently surprised in dealing with claims to find the .large number"of cases of men who, in some instances, after having been discharged for two and three years, have again broken down in health, due to some war disability, and in such cases immediate assistance is given pending an increase of pension. In other instances men who are suffering severe war disabilities have found difficulty 311 securing employment. The committee have ■ during the year supplied the inpatients at the Wakari, Pleasant Valley, and Karitane Sanatoria and the Seacliff ■Mental and Dunedin Public Hospitals with hospital comforts, games, smokes, etc. The plain diet of the patients at the Dunedin Hospital has also been varied by the provision of extras and delicacies for the tea table.- An idea of this phase of the work may be given by the following statement of the quantities of tobacco and cigarettes distributed to these men durin" nn e lf J ear ', viz - :—5621b of PiP* s tobacco" 20,100 packets of cigarettes, of cigarette tobacco and tissues, and 994£ dozen boxes of matches. The committee have received many j«ms of money from the War Expenses Office, in the shape of overseas war service gratuities and retrospective married and children's allowances, to be disbursed in the best interests of the soldiers' (or in most cases the deceased soldiers') children. In each case this has meant close investigation of the circumstances_ of the dependents by our honorary lady visitors and a subsequent recommendation to War Expenses. The monevs received from War Expenses are-.—Retro-spective married and children's allowances £1,769 15s 9d, and overseas war service gratuities £779 18s sd. During the year the sum of £6,795 7s has been granted in loans to soldiers, though only £5,556 Is 6d of this amount was actually paid out. •In every instance security is given for these loans, which are, when under £IOO granted free of interest. When the loan is on property, the advance is invariably eecujced by a registered second mortgage, though in a few cases promissorv notes have been taken. The loans are repayable within a period of three years, and the manner in which repayments are being maintained is regarded as highly satisfactory. .

OTAGO AND SOUTHLAND WOMEN'S PATRIOTIC ASSOCIATION. The work during the final year has naturally not b&ea so strenuous as during ibepast five years, but a-'great deal of usetul work was carried through by the many loyal voluntary women workers of the association. Parcels of warm underclothing were given to all returned soldiers on application to the Soldiers' Welfare .Committee, who kindly undertook the distribution of these gifts from the "Women s Patriotic Association. £IOO were given to the Otago Motor Club fund, which, provides outings for soldiers from the different hospitals. Mr S. T. Spain, of Earnscleugh, supplemented this by a donation of £IOO, which is to be spent in providing cars for any wounded soldiers irom the Hospital who dmre to' attend the races. The committee take this opportunity of thanking the members of the Otago Motor Club for much valuable assistance throughout the war. When the Women's Association were sending thousands of parcels monthly overseas the Motor Club members provided hundreds of .petrol cases every month for packing purposes. During the year it was decided to discontinue the supply of pies and puddings to the soldiers' wards in the Dunedin Hospital, and as a more eatisfactory way of giving, extra comforts to appoint a cook, whose time would be exclusively given to this work. Dr Falconer made arrangements which allow Miss Smith the use of one of the ward kitchens every afternoon, and from many reports received this plan is proving very satisfactory, and the soldiers are quite satisfied with the comforts supplied in ( thJB way by the women's association. The Peace Celebrations Committee asked the Women's Association to run a canteen for returned soldiers during the celebrations, and arrangements were accordingly made and duly carried out for providing light refreshments twice daily for 2,000 soldiers. During the year, in conjunction with the Returned Soldiers' -Association, the committee arranged several social evenings during the winter months. These were held in the Art Gallery Hall, and were well attended. Members of the association met all returning drafts at the railway station, and each soldier was presented with' a gift parcel, attached to which wa3 a card of welcome. On two occasions when troopehips came to the Dunedin \vharf .tea was provided for some hundreds of soldiers.