PATRIOTIC COUNCIL

Evening Star, Issue 23832, 12 March 1941, Page 12

PATRIOTIC COUNCIL

MEETING HELD YESTERDAY A meeting of , the Otago Provincial Patriotic Society was held yesterday afternoon. Those present included the mayor (Mr A. H. Allen) and Messrs D. C. Cameron, J. W. Dove, Arthur Barnett, J. J. Marlow, H. M'Dowell Smith, F. W. Mitchell, W. G. Kindley, Edgar Hazlett, J. Sutherland Ross, J. L. Salmond, J. W. Smeaton, A. C. Cameron, W. Begg, H. L. Paterson, James Hogg. J. M. White, and Dr W. Newlands. Before the business of the afternoon came before the council, a visit was paid to the basement, where the packing of gift parcels for convalescents was in progress. This visit revealed a high state of efficiency. Everything was standardised, and the workers are now able to pack a total of 5,525 parcels in two days. There is, of course, much preliminary work, and these willing people are busy for many days before the despatch of parcels. Every three mouths a consignment is sent away. The quarters were a hive of industry, despite the heat of the day. A welcome was extended to Mr G. A. Hayden, secretary of the National Funds Board. Accounts totalling £604 0s 9d were passed for payment.

Mr Hogg detailed the steps that had been taken in regard to the current appeal, which is being made on behalf of comforts for soldiers. All funds for general purposes will be merged in this fund for tho next three months, the duration of its running. The Air Force Relations Organisation (Taieri branch) applied for space in the basement of the Town Hall in which to continue activities on behalf of providing comforts for airmen overseas.—The matter was left in the bands of the mayor to negotiate with it, and also with the ladies at present using the premises on behalf of the soldiers. The Mayor referred to a film entitled ‘ One Hundred Crowded Y T oars ’ offered for screening. Since tho council bad turned down the offer of the picture theatre managements to show a selected picture on Sunday evenings, that course was impossible. He thought, however, that the film should be obtained. If the use of a projector could bo got, lie saw no reason why it should not be shown in the Town Hall. In committee, the council was addressed by Mr Hayden on matters of current importance. DETAILS OF EXPENDITURE. Answers to questions by the council on various aspects of expenditure for the current year to end next December 51 were supplied by Mr Hayden. The main items on which the council requested information were as follows Huts in Fiji, £12,500. —Regarding these the national secretary explained that in Fiji there were two main camps, numbering several thousand men, and in addition an Air Force group detached from both camps. In the two camps it was intended to erect recreational lints, which would be staffed by the Y.M.C.A., and a hostel would be erected in Suva to which the men could go on evening and week-end leave. Owing to climatic and social conditions, it was necessary for the huts to be built on a different and more expensive pattern to those in New Zealand. An ■ interesting statement made by the national secretary was that both in New Zealand and overseas all nonconformist churches worked in conjunction with the Y.M.C.A., and that attached to each Y.M.C.A. institute was a chapel. In addition all padres overseas were provided by the National Patriotic Fund Board with a weekly allowance for extra comforts for necessitous members of their units. It was also stated that a large part of the expenditure of the board was in the nature of capital expenditure, and would be non-recurrcut in future budgets. It was pointed out that, whereas in the last war the finance for recreational huts and other facilities provided by the Y.M.0.A., Salvation Army, and kindred organisations was collected direct from the public by these organisations, in this war these organisations had no worry over finance, the only work they had to do being attention to the comfort of the men,, the finance being supplied through the patriotic organisation. In the same' way, in the last war other institutions collected money direct from the people for the assistance of their kindred institutions in Great Britain. In this war all organisations overseas were assisted direct from the National Patriotic Fund, and provision was made in the estimates for this purpose. The mobile canteens, Mr Hayden said, were necessary owing to the different disposition of the troops in this war as compared with 1914-18. Then it was possible for the men. in the line occasionally to visit Y.M.C.A. huts in the forward area. In this war, on account of the great distances and the scattered nature of the troops, it was necessary for the amenities to bo taken to the troops. The mobile canteens were, in other words, Y.M.C.A. huts on wheels.

In answer to further questions the national secretary reiterated the advice that he had given in a letter, that the beer forwarded recently to the Middle East was not in any way financed from the patriotic funds. It was purely a business order from the Navy, Army, and Air .Force Institutes (N.A.A.F.1.) to the breweries in New Zealand.

At the conclusion of his statement Mr Hayden was accorded a vote of thanks for his lucid explanation of the budget and the work of the Patriotic Fund Board.