Chaplain Discusses Grievances In Egypt

Northern Advocate, 17 November 1941, Page 8

Chaplain Discusses Grievances In Egypt

An outline of grievances in Egypt about gifts to soldiers from New Zealand patriotic funds was given the Canterbury Provincial Patriotic Council recently by the Rev. Father J. McKay, a Roman Catholic chaplain just back after 12 months in the Middle East. He had made it his business to inquire into the complaints, which were frequently heard, and a lot of them he had exploded as based on false ideas, he said. He knew the type of man who was writing home some of the complaints published in the newspapers. The position about cigarettes issued through patriotic funds and then being sold by canteens was that in the first place men had been issued with free packets, and had exchanged them at N.A.A.F.J. canteens for chocolates, and the canteen haa sold them. Complaints had been made, too, about apples ueing sold, but they had in fact been bought by the New Zealand Forces Club, and sold at a less to the club.

One trouble was that the patriotic fund did not make known all its gifts. He had heard complaints from men in hospitals about receiving nothing, when, in fact, the pyjamas they wore, the soap they used, and the patent medicines they were given came from patriotic funds. But the men did not know until they were told. Patriotic gifts supplemented army rations to a big extent. Then free cigarettes were issued bearing the label “New Zealand Y.M.C.A.. Cairo.’’ “The boys thought that they were given by the Y.M.C.A.. whereas in fact the Y.M.C.A. was only a distributing agent." The Y.M.C.A. was doing excellent work, but in this it created a false impression. All the men who had come home in such a hurry from Greece and Crete had not been given much-needed parcels when they arrived, although some had got them, said Father McKay. The reason w r as that there had been considerable disorganisation and also secrecy about the arrival of ships. Discussing parcels. Father McKay said that while they were in good order when they left this country some of them looked when they arrived in Egypt “as if they had been kicked around Lancaster Park by the All Blacks for an hour or two." Then there were transport difficulties in Egypt: which sometimes made their condition even worse.

One thing he should say about hoarding complaints was based on personal experience, said Father McKay. Some men in hospital after Greece and Crete had no razors. He tried to get one man one from a quartermasters' store, which had them from patriotic funds, but he was told that they would not be issued as there was a fear men might sell their razors before they entered hospital. Even if one in 10 did that, the other nine would still need them, he said. Perhaps the position was caused by those in Egypt ’aking too seriously requests to keep down expenditure. Asked whether the Australians were better served than the New Zealanders, Father McKay said that the Australians were big enough in numbers to get what they wan ; ed from the British authorities, and what was mere Australian patriotic funds were administered in Egypt by businessmen, who gave their services free.