DEFENCE EXPENDITURE

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 9954, 25 April 1918, Page 4

DEFENCE EXPENDITURE

COMMISSION OF INQUIRY

WORK FOR DISCHARGED SOLDIERS.

PAYMENT OF ALLOWANCES AND PENSIONS.

Another sitting of. tlio Defence Expenditure Commission was hold yesterday for the purpose of taking evidence. The members of the board present were Sir Robert Anderson (chairman) and Mr C. Rhodes.

Mr J. 11. Samson, officer in charge of the Discharged Soldiers’ Information Department, was examined. He stated that there were nineteen paid officers and 100 voluntary officers in the department. Dp till February, 1918, the department had passed accounts amounting to £7995. This did not include rent for tho head office, which was paid out of the Public Works vote, nor the salaries of Internal Affair's cadets. After deducting amounts paid to soldiers for special tuition, allowances, railway fares and medical examinations, tho average cost of tiro department was £2642 per annum. Tho salaries for two and a half years averaged £1639 per annum. So far as expense was concerned, he did not sea how the Returned Soldiers’ Association could administer the office more economically than the Discharged Soldiers’ Information Department. There wore forty local voluntary committees. Practically the whole of the organisation was voluntary, apart from the head office. Although the experience with regard to soldiers assisted to learn new trades had not been ,so favourable as might' be desired, there were signs of improvement. Industrial re-education and provision of employment for disabled men was regarded as a matter of tho highest importance. A scheme which might involve considerable expenditure running into thousands of pounds per annum could not be handed over to an association of private persons not subject to the control of a responsible Minister. The proposal would involve the destruction of the organisation that had been built Up, including looal committees of a representative character, who gave much time and attention gratuitously to tho department’s work. Those committees were ordinarily sub-committees of the patriotic societies and embraced various sections of the community. The local brandies of the Returned Soldiers’ Association, representing, it might he said, only one section of the community, and consisting entirely of persons for whoso benefit the department existed were not likely to be a satisfactory substitute for bodies containing employers and prominent citizens in a position to provide tho assistance desired. The department was on the best terms with the association, and wherever practicable worked in conjunction with it, but the idea to hand over the whole of - the department’s work to tho association, with a small Government subsidy, was such a revolutionary step that, in the absence of any details of the scheme,', it was difficult to criticise. It was impossible to conceive that public opinion would approve of tho whole of the responsibility of providing training and employment for disabled soldiers being handed over to a private institution in exchange for a subsidy of £SOO per annum, the Government presumably, thereafter washing its hands of. re-, sponsibility. No complaints had been received from the Returned Soldiers’ Association or other quarters that,, the men were not being properly attended to. Indeed, satisfaction with the work of tho department had been expressed by tho association officials ns well as by the press members of Parliament, civilians, and soldiers, and at no time had there been any suggestion that the expenses of the department wore unwarranted. SOLDIERS’ PENSIONS.

Mr George C. Fache, Commissioner of Pensions, and' secretary of tlio War Pension Board, stated that he did not know of any complaints against calender monthly payments. Ho saw no advantage to bo gained by making payments four-weekly. He did not think that a fortnightly payment of pension would give any more satisfaction to the pensioner than the present monthly payment. They had now been paying war pensions for two and a half years, and ho had not yet had a request to have payments made oftener than monthly. Ho preferred that tho method by twelve instalments i n the' year be continued. His objection to payment every IT days was .that bo did not think tho added, -.expense would justify tho change. H© was now paying five different classes of pensions, . and there was little doubt that if war pensions wore paid fortnightly, old-age andi other pensioners would expect to be similarly dealt with. Tho matter, however, did not concern him so much as the Post and Telegraph Department, which acted as agent in tho payment of pensions. H© felt certain that tho rush that took place under normal conditions at the beginning of tho month (under-the war conditions it had been altered to tho 23rd of the month) would not be welcomed twice in the month. The Postal Department had received £3760 per annum for its service based on a charge of 3d per transaction. THE QUESTION OP TRAINING. Major John U. Saunders, in command of a transport, stated that he had boon at Sling Camp. The Army Council had fixed 14 weeks for training. He reckoned New Zealanders could do with 12 after their preliminary training. II is experience was that their training had varied, and ’t was necessary that they should start from tho same point at Sling Camp, the training being so concentrated there. Uniformity -was not secured. Those who wero backward wore held up there or in Franco. Tho standard generally was very fair, but some of tho men said they hud not handled a rifle at all. Some of the effects ol the preliminary training was lost on tho long voyage. Ho thought the men should he trained here less and more ou the other side. Tho New Zealnndor s ho had seen certainly did not come up to tho standard of J 0 weeks’ training. Fourteen weeks should bo sufficient to turn out a trained soldier. At Sling Camp the instructors were changed every six months, generally speaking. It was necessary for effioienicy that instructors should ho changed regularly. Infantry n.c.o. instructors, .about 30,

had been, recently sent out from Home. At present the New Zealanders weie kept a month at Sling Camp for advanced training, alter their sixteen weeks here. Giving a bigger allotment of the time at Homo, six weeks could be saved. Mr Rhodes: “That means a saving of £4O a man, and, in the case .if a thousand men, it would be £40,000.” Witness continued that the 'bat-talion-system of training pursued at Sling was the best, as it decentralised. Hero too much detailed work tame on headquarters. At Sling Gamp there wa s a lieutenant-colonel commanding each battalion. TRANSPORTS. Mr A. Walker, of the Transport Board, was further examined as to the details of alterations which had been made to ships used for transport purposes. Certain work had been performed by Campbell a nd Burke, a settlement of accounts being made with the Shaw, Savill Co. The companies wore paid for the actual fittings, checks being made by timekeepers, with a general supervision by a member of the board.

Captain Kirk, secretary of the Transport Board, explained that in the ifirst 'jin stance the Government did not make checks, but took the shipping companies’ certificates. Later the Government had a check on time and material, ■while now things wore arranged upon a per capita basis the responsibility of the work being thrown on the companies. The fitting of vessels was under a process of evolution during a period of two and a-lialt years.

Tho board adjourned until 9.80 a.m, on Friday.