RETURNED SOLDIERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVII, Issue 17632, 19 November 1920, Page 6

RETURNED SOLDIERS.

MEMORIAL TO THE FALLEN.

MONUMENT AT WAIKUMETE. A general meeting of the Auckland Returned Soldiers' Association was held in the Town Hall concert chamber last evening, the president, Mr. G. E. Eliott, presiding. A motion that the executive be authorised to expend up to £1000 on the erection of a memorial in the soldiers' plot at WaiKumete Cemetery was moved by Mr. A. C. A. Sexton. The mover said it was proposed that the "memorial should be a plain monument, something in the form of an obelisk, and that there should be no names on it. He said a tribute such as this was the least returned soldiers could do in memory of the bovs who would never come back. The association, he stated, had a credit balance of £3000. The motion was carried/ The .question of pensions wa s referred to by the secretary. Mr. E. F. Andrews, who said it was a lasting disgrace to the government that the returned soldier was the only man in New Zealand who was not getting a cost-of-living bonus. He read the following telegram from the New : Zealand Association : "Pensions Board allocating extra grant of £50,000 anions totally incapacitated and full pensioners Most of these get 10s a week extra minimum. First instalment December He aid not'think any returned soldier would be satisfied with this and they must fight for their rights. He advocated a petition being circulated throughout the Dominion. A ballot for five members of the execu- j tive resulted in the election of Messrs. J -A. Lee, F. fit. Cos, L. Armstrong, A* Postlewaite and R. H. Hogan. There , , were 14 candidates.