DEFENCE MATTERS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLII, Issue 9783, 5 October 1917, Page 6

D EFENCE MATTERS

CHRISTMAS EXCURSIONS FOR SOLDIERS IN THE CAMPS, In Parliament yesterday afternoon ' Mr J, Vigor Brown, M.P. for Napier, gavo notice of his intention to ask the Prime Minister: “Whether the Government will provide the usual Christmas holiday excursion fares this year, 'and will they make a greater conces- \ aion than usual in all the children’s tickets, allowing children to travel up to, say, five years?” “While we are at war,” stated the hon. member, “it is felt that as much, opportunity as possible should he given to those soldiers who are in camp to visit their . relations, as it will be a long time before some of them will,bo able to see them again.” THE LAST MAN ON THE FARM. “When the Minister for Agriculture was in the South Island some time ago urging the farmers to grow wheat, -i he gave us to .understand,” said Mr W. J. Dickie, M.P. for Selwyn, in Parliament yesterday, “that the Military Service Boards would exempt the last man -on the farm from going rnto 1 iuainp.” - 1 The boards, however, ho added, had not carried that out, and ho had just had brought to his no- , tico a case in which a man -with <WO acres, who had put 150 acres in wheat,' had been sent into camp, though ho was the last man on the farm. What, ho asked, was-the intention of the department in connection .with such cases? The Hon. W. D- S' MacDonald said that ho had been fully convinced that the Military Service. Boards would adjourn such cases indefinitely. Mr G. V. Pearce (Patea): “'They won’t do it.” Mr MacDonald said that tho Minister for Defence had practically passed his word and the word of tho Government that wherever the last man ne- ‘ cessary for carrying on the work of a 8 farm was called up, his case would ho adjourned indefinitely Ho hoped that the Defence Minister and the ‘ Prime Minister would look into the matter arid see that the last man was not taken off the farm. Mr Massey,said that the whole matter was now under consideration by Cabinet;- but he.might state that it was not the intention of the Government to take the "last man off the farm if the than could not be replaced. He trusted that either tho Detence Minister or himself would he able to ; make a fuller statement in the course of a few days. WORK OF N.Z. DIVISION. CASUALTIES TO DATE. Sir James Allen stated that ho had requested that a report should be furnished each month as to the work ox the Now Zealand Division. The re- ' port for September was: “Tho Division has not taken part in any opera'tiona during the past month. The total casualties to date, ho added, were:— • Dead Missing, and prisoners 141 Wounded 21, S - 50,027