ARROW PATRIOTIC COMMITTEE

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 4484, 10 September 1940, Page 3

ARROW PATRIOTIC COMMITTEE

A meeting of the Arrowtown Patriotic committee was held in the Council chambers on Tuesday evening- last. Present: Messrs W. H. James (chairman), J. W. Eeed, John Eeid (Cave Farm). J. H. Douglas. E. L. Fletcher and E. J. Saunders (housecretary). The committee decided to support the resolution passed by the Wanaka District committee, viz. That a compulsory tax for patriotic funds be instituted of Id in the £.

Correspondence was received regarding 1 the Otago .Queen Carnival, which, would commence on September 7th and finish on November 2nd next. An art union was to be held in connection with the carnival, the first prize in which would be a house and section in the best part of Dunedin, valued at over £3OOO. Books of tickets, 6d each would be forwarded at an early date. Miss Mary Prtatt bad been selected as the Air Force and Country Queen, her division including the Clutha county in the south, the Lakes district in Central, and up to the Waitaki river in the north, inccluding Oamaru. A. E. Bussell, secretary of Otago Provincial Patriotic Council, wrote in reply stating that the purpose for which the funds of the Council were being used were: (1) Care of men in camps and on troopships and in hutments at the front; (2) comforts and parcels for men on. active service with all branches; (3) care of sick and wounded on hospital ships and at the front; (4) care of sick and disabled soldiers on their return from active service overseas. Writer further stated that, as the committee was probably aware, a special fund had been set aside for the after-care of the men from the Otago province serving in all branches of the service. and the present patriotic effort in the Otago province was directed towards building up the fund to a substantial amount to meet all contingencies. The disbursement of this fund will be carried out by the existing patriotic organisations, comprising the Provincial Council, zone controlling committees and sub-zone committees. The advice and information which those latter committees will be in a position, to give regarding the merits of applicants should be invaluable. and prove in every way. effective for dealing with each case impartially and on its merits. , The chairman said that the letter referred to the “after-care of the men from the Otago province/” He had also noticed in a newspaper report that the executive of the Otago Queen Carnival wishes to "stress the point that the funds of the Queen. Carnival rae to he earmarked for'the: rehabilitation of Otago soldiers.’* Mr James said that up to the present all monies raised in the district had been sent to the Otago Provincial Council, but as the men going overseas from this district belonged to the Southland military district, he considered that it would be necessary to ascertain definitely if the soldiers from this district would benefit from the Otago Queen Carnival funds*. Members agreed, and the secretary was instructed to forward to the Lakes Zone Patriotic Controlling Committee a copy of the following resolution. proposed by Mr James and seconded by Mr Douglas—That this committee view with concern the news’ paper report and contents of letter received from Otago Provincial Council; re men from Otago province only being provided for, and would stress the necessity of having the position defined, so as to include our district soldiers who are in the Southland mill* tarv district. The committee unanimously approw ed of the appointment of Miss Joan Scaif© (Glendhu) as one of the maids of honour for the Air Force Queen (Miss Mary Pratt). The meeting closed with a vote of thanks to the chair. s