THE PATRIOTIC FUND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 16025, 17 September 1915, Page 6

THE PATRIOTIC FUND.

The meeting held in the Town Hall yesterday should be regarded by every Aucklander as a fresh startingpoint for the Patriotic Fund. Whether by direct subscriptions or by carnivals and similar inducements to generosity the Auckland Province has yet to find a very large sum before we can be confident that we are able to provide adequately for the needs of all disabled soldiers and the dependents of those who have given their lives for the Empire. The casualties already reported among the men who have gone from Auckland cannot be much under 2000 and the actual deaths are little short of 500. Many relatives will make no claim on any fund, but there must be an increasing number to whom local assistance must be generously given. In his speech yesterday, Mr. Elliot emphasised the weakness of all State pension schemes, in that they are inelastic and necessarily take little account of the varying needs of those in receipt of pensions. This is the great strength of local committees and the exceptional value of local funds. Ever}- case can be fully investigated and dealt with upon its merits. The present Auckland fund is substantial, but it is far from being, as it ought to be, the strongest in the Dominion. This should be the aim of the campaign for funds now being inaugurated. With energetic action on the part of the Patriotic and War Relief Association and the generous help and interest of all the people of the province, the quart er-of-a-million pounds, which is the present objective, should bo speedily reached.