THINK OF IT!

Feilding Star, Volume XII, Issue 302, 19 August 1916, Page 3

THINK OF IT!

TO TIIE EDITOR OF THE STAD Sir, — What is being done to meet the demands for hospital material which the present war-casualties make? The Feilding Red Cross Sewing Guild, with the help of country committees, has boon working week in aud week out throughout the war period, despatching a large case DI goods monthly, and very highly is the Feildhm" case appreciated iv Wellington for the excellence of the work it contains.

AY hat do we now find ? The Red Cross committee has been informed that it must take part in raising its own finances. Think of itl AVometi who have douo their own household duties at top pressure so as to spare regular time for work at "the rooms," have to turn to and hunt up money, have to carry through afternoon teas, sell sweets, golliwogs, and tickets feuconcerts, disxioso of pictures kindly offered for the purpose, bring horses iv from the country and arrange for their sale, beg for donations, etc., in order to get the material with which to make hospital necessaries.

Shame, shame*on. this community. Cannot tho patriotic associations and individuals alter this? The war is not over. Endless hospital equipment is required. AA-'hy cannot, say, £50 a month be placed at the committee's disposal, with a request that they concentrate their efforts on preparing what tho doctors and nurses need, and'leave the .finding of _ money to those who cannot sew. Fifty people giving the Patriotic Committee £1 a month, and earmarking it for. Red Cross,'will solve the problem. Then there will be no chance to say, after two years'of work, and latterly of much worry, "the ladies who were to benefit by our committee's six weeks of worry and preparation refused to sell tickets," as your correspondent, H. T. Daley, stated last night. The ladies' work lies elsewhere.

It is the soldiers who benefit, not the ladies. Let money be provided so that the ladies can concentrate on the work of making. Let us keep the right point of view, the soldiers and their needs must be above everything, and the first need is to keep the hospitals, now alas! so full, vvell equipped with Red Cross material. The Patriotic Committee seems the natural body to take steps to provide sufficient funds to free the ladies from financial effort.

If. instead of handing £10 a month to (lie Sewing Guild, and when funds run short, the Guild to arrange for its own, finance, it would placo a definite £50 a month for the Red Cross committee to draw on, us action would be endorsed on all sides. —1 am, etc.,

11. H. RICIIAKDSON "Highfield," Feilding August 19, 1916. '

[It will interest our correspondents to learn, that a satisfactory settlement of the issue raised by recent developments over the object of next AVcdnesday 1 s benefit concert has been arrived at.—Ed. ■Star.]