CANTEEN SCANDAL

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 8852, 1 October 1914, Page 7

CANTEEN SCANDAL

INDIGNANT TROOPERS CONTRADICTIONS OF THE MINISTER'S STATEMENTS. MEN AMAZED AT HIS IGNOK- . ANCE. Disclosures made by Hie “New Zealand Times,” in respect to tho exorbitant charges imposed by tho canteens on the troopships hnvo created a considerable amount of interest, not "unly among the members of the expeditionary force, but also among tho general public, Tho subject was a very common topic of conversation in itho city yesterday, indicating that Jho action of tho Government regarding it is being closely watched. At 'various periods of the day, wo were interviewed by successive deputations of troopers from tho different transports in tho harbour. In every instance the mon expressed themselves bs being highly indignant at the statements mado by tho Hon. J. Allen in regard to tho canteen prices and his denial that tho charges were excessive. Air Allen, in the course of his speech Sn the House of Representatives on Tuesday evening, had denied that twopence was charged for a penny stamp, fraying that tills only happened in the Base of one trooper selling a stamp to another. The whole ;of the men who waited upon us wore unanimous on this point; that they had repeatedly purchased penny stamps themselves, l&nd had soon others buy them also, ttt the price of twopence.

THE EXCHANGE RATE. With regard to tho charge of sixponce for changing a XII note, which Sir Allen also denied, the troopers # aid that not only was sixpence deducted in oxchanging a note for silver, hut, if a man when making a purchase offered a £1 note in payment, sixpence was deducted as well as the cost of the goods bought.- ‘‘l (am surprised,” saidi one trooper, “that Mr Allen, has dared to' deny this. Does he not know 'that on our own ship, tho Athenic, one of the canteen stewards was actually placed under arrest hy an armed guard for charging sixpenop for the exchange ®f a £1 note?”

“As for the prices of goods not being excessive,” proceeded, the same speaker, “why, i after we left Lyttelton ■there was tL state of things approaching insubordination on tho ship because of the canteen charges. Since pur arrival in harbour here for a whole pight the men on our ship maintained p, boycott against the canteen, the lonly purchases made being tobacco end matches, which we regarded as bidispeußablo.” ' ;, “LET HIM DO HIS WORST.”

Another Hooper who was equally emphatic in contradicting tho • statements of Mr Allen, said: “Soldier or Bo soldier, I am prepared to publish, my name and address with my statement of the way we are being imposed upon, and let Mr Allen, even though he is Minister for Defence, do his worst with me.” Proceeding, the trooper declared: “Mr, Allen in, the House last night that the Government was going to take the canteen over and charge lower- prices, hut only this morning, when one of my mates, being ill, I went to got a bottle of mineral water for him, 1 bad to pay Is for it. I consider this was extortion.” Yet another trooper remarked that JVlr Allen had said in his speech that the«men could get a glass of lemonade for threepence. “What a yarn I” exydaimed tho contingenter. “There fs no lemonade supplied in a glass for threepence or at any other price. You get a bottle for sixpence or a shilling, vs the case may be, and they will not even draw the cork for you. 'ln view ®f the prices we pay and the scant consideration shown tq us, every empty bottle goes overboard; we don’t give them any chance to make anything out of the bottles.” “About that honey,” said another trooper, “I belong to the South Canterbury Mounteds, and I know that there was honey given for our use, but we have not seen an ounce of it. We also know that thousands of eggs Were sent aboard for our use by the Settlors whore we came from, but we have only seen eggs once, and then Shore was only one for each man. We we all interested to know what became of the other eggs.” i {TROOPERS INVESTIGATE TOBACCO PROBLEM. A member of a subsequent deputation had something to say on the subject of tobacco and Mr Allen’s statement that some of it was free of duty and some had .paid duty, this being the Minister’s defence of the fixing of tho price at 8s per pound. toSfow,’ said this man, who belongs to the Athenic, “we have taken some trouble about this tobacco matter. Wo fiave been to the Customs officials ourselves, and in answer to Mr Allen we have found that every pound of tobacco that went on tli© Athenic was (free of duty.” Quito an interesting story was told by another trooper of tho exertions ’ jnado by tho chaplain of his detachment to provide reading matter for the men apart from the canteen’s Itock of literature. Discussing what She charges would bo for the magazines and books required by the men, the chaplain got a plentiful supply in She form of gifts, and had it convoyed rarriedly on board in time to antioirato the rights of the canteen. If o had Been a few hours lately there (would have been a canteen prohibition pn his supply of literature. Probably forty or fifty men in all balled at our office during the day, (representing the different ships. Individually and collectively they reiterated the statement that sixpence bad been charged on tho ships for exchanging notes and twopence for benny postage stamps. ' They all expressed amazement that Mr Allen, in his speech in the House, had ventured to deny the charges made. If he spoke from want of knowledge, the/ said, they wore surprised that the Minister for Defence should be so ignorant of what was going on in regard to matters so vital to the interests of the troops. Several of them contrasted this want of knowledge with tho personal attention displayed by tho late Mr Seddon to tho interests and comforts of tho men composing the South African contingents when he was sendtog them away to the front.