CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XL, Issue 7942, 25 October 1904, Page 4

CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME.

Some well-meaning but rather indiscreet., individuals in';Christchurch have been endeavouring for some time past to raise funds for the Japanese wounded. There' are always a lot of emotional people m the community who quickly respond to' appeals .of this description, so that a fairly decent sum has already been subscribed in aid of the fund. The affair would probably escape general notice were it not for the fact that there are large numbers of returned troopers in New Zealand who are in anything but satisfactory circumstances, and we think that before any money is sent abroad to assist a foreign nation the wants of our own people—especially those who fought and bled for their country—should receive attention. We have in our mind the case of a returned trooper who died at Auckland recently from a terrible disease which attacked him as the result of injuries sustained in the South African war. This unfortunate man died in absolute poverty, and it would have been more to the credit of the public to [have subscribed on his behalf instead of setting to work to raise funds for people who have not the slightest claim upon us. If his case was an isolated one [the position would not be so bad, but it is well known that there are other troopers in the colony who are in need of help and would be grateful for it. Japan is certainly Britain's ally, but that does not justify a distant outpost of the Empire robbing itself of its surplus cash for the benefit of a people who, under ordinary circumstances, would scorn such assistance. The sooner this "wounded fund" business is dropped the less likelihood there will be of New Zealand making itself the laughing stock of other countries. And it will not be out of place to remind our misguided friends at Christchurch of that well-worn but very true axiom, " Charity begins at home."