DEFENCE EXPENDITURE.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue LXXIV, 9 March 1918, Page 5

DEFENCE EXPENDITURE.

COMMISSION AT DUNEDIN

BY tSLEGRAPH-—PRESS ' ASSOCIATION

DUNEDIN, March 8. i The Defence Expenditure Commis- ' sion sat here to-day. Colonel J. C. Nicholas, Officer Commanding the Dis- I trict since 1914, said that as far as he could see he had no discretion to do anything in the way of expenditure to keep things going. - Everything had to be referred to headquarters, Welling- j ton, which meant delay. He quoted a ! case of applying for lamps. The re- \ quisition was sent to Wellington in October, replied to in February, but the lamps had not been supplied yet. If the Officer Commanding had power to spend up to £100 for incidentals it would save a lot of correspondence and worry, and make for efficiency. He knew there was a conflict of authority between departments. He thought there should be one big camp for ; South Island Territorial training, and to have the whole pferiod of training for the year at a time when the country would not be harassed. Major Cooper, General Staff Officer, an Imperial soldier of seventeen years' standing, said his two years' experience here made him think that headquarters didn't give, district headquarters enough latitude, everything being centralised; and; the instructions were often vague, coming from various officials. Major Hickey gave evidence regarding the delays m obtaining stores. He favored the old system of calling for contract prices at the beginning of ! each year, and obtaining authority from Wellington to procure what was required. He also thought that money could be.saved in Connection with the Territorial system. With regard to the loss incurred in rifles and equipment since 1914, 22 rifles had been lost out of 222. Witness mentioned a case where two sets of orders had been received in connection with wire for detention Money might be saved if. the useless ordnance stores brought back by transports were thrown overboard, or burned immediately on arrival,. instead of being carted about and handled several times before being destroyed. The commission adjourned till Saturday.