WAR MISCELLANY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17089, 22 August 1917, Page 6

WAR MISCELLANY

FOOD RATIONING. (Fkom Oub Own Cobbesfondbnt ) LONDON, Juno 15. Mrs W. Pember Reeves, of the Food Ministry, speaking at Whiteficlds, said that for some months she had been working on a compulsory rationing scheme. They had taken the German system to pieces, word for word, had taken other schemes also, and considered everything carefully, so that if thoy were obliged to resort to compulsion they would have the best possiblo scheme. A oertain amount of injustice was inherent in every compulsory scheme, and those people who wero now writing to the Ministry saying that it was the only fair way out of the difficulty would be tho first to complain of that injustice. England was too proud, independent, and great to bo rationed. FALL OF THE MARK. The German mark and the Austrian kroner are rapidly falling on the neutral exchanges in a way that spells tho ruin of the enemy credit. At Berne tho mark, which reached the record low level of 73f 10c per 100 on Thursday, fell again next day to 71fr 50c. At Zurich it was quoted at 72fr. The normal rate is 123fr 45c At Amsterdam, Copenhagen, and Stockholm the mark and kroner also touched now low records. SOLDIERS* MEDALS. A Royal Warrant deals with tho disposal of medals and decorations belonging to persona dying while subject to military law. If_ there is a will, then the person named will receive them. Otherwise, tho medals ; will be sent to tho next-of-kin in the followI ing order of relationship.—.Widow, eldest surviving son, oldest surviving daughter, father, mother, eldest suarviving brother, eldest surviving sister, eldest suriving halfbrother, oldest surviving half-sister. In tho caso of a universal or residuary bequest to more than one person, either in common or jointly, they may be sent to any relative or other interested party who, in the opinion of the Army Council, will preserve them with due care as a memorial of the deceased ; and in the case of orders and decorations, other than medals, issued, after death, tho insignia or decoration will be handed to the next-of-kin. A SHIPOWNER'S ALLEGATION^. Mr Hourton, tho Liverpool shipowner M.P., alleged in the House of Commons that a British steamer which loaded in a certain British port was ordered to another British port, then to a French port, where she arrived at 2.30 a.m. on May 3, but was prevented from entering that port by the examination boat, which came out and ordered tho master to hang off till daylight, when a pilot would be sent to him, that two hours afterwards the steamer was torpedoed by an enemy submarine. He asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Shipp-'ng Controller to take steps to prevent further disaster of a like nature. Sir Leo Chiozza Money said the vessel was unavoidably kept waiting outside a French port for about two hours because there was reason to 'believe that mines had been laid. At the end of that time she struck a mine m what was supposed to be a safe channel, and more mines were afterwards discovered. He thought the arrangements made were quite proper in the circumstances. WAR AND LIFE INSURANCE. A Liverpool gentleman and a big assurance society aro responsible for an important decision affecting the life insurance interests of men in the army- Plaintiff insured his life for £50,000, and "asked for a declaration that the policy was binding. According to tho policy, plaintiff should not engage in military service without the license of the directors, but if ho had not previously joined of his own accord and was compelled by law to join, then he would be covered without the payment of extra premium. Plaintiff attested under the Derby scheme, and defendants alleged that as he had joined tho army of his own accord, they were entitled to an increased premium to cover the additional risk. In giving judgment, Mr Justice Coleridge said business was business, and to ask that insurance companies should be debarred from making any distinction between the risks run on the ground of public policy was, in his opinion, trying to force public policy too far. Judgment for defendants. UNEXPECTED PRAISE. Remarkable testimony is paid to British organisation by the Munchener Neuste Nachrichton, which says:—"Tho English, in creating armies of millions out of nothing, have < shown a capacity for organisation, of which, to oUr great disadvantage, we never believed them capable. Even more wonderful is what England has accomplished in the economic field. With resistless energy hitherto unfruitful soil has been converted by the aid of innumerable agricultural machines into fruitful fields. v» hilst we are still discussing whether we should resort to forcible measures to increase production, England, with steam ploughs, has been transforming barren soil into fertile arable land." The paper criticises tho lack of organisation in ; certain branches of German industrial life. NO NEW MAGAZINES. In order to economise still further in paper, it is provided that a person shall not, without a license from the Board of Trade, publish any new magazine or other publication issued periodically or in serial parts. For the purposes of this order, the expressiou "new magazine or other publication" means a magazine or other publication which is not being published at the date of this order, and includes a magazino or other publication which, after the date of this order, is published at more frequent intervals than those at which it is published at that date. ARMY POST OFFICE. No fewer than 75,000 post office employees have joined thej services, and the roll of honour numbers 3829. Distinctions gained number 755, including three V.C.'s, Id D.S.O.'s, and 205 Military Medals. The Army Post Office consists of 85 offioers and 20C0 men. Every week 900,000 parcels and 10,000,000 letters are despatched overseas. There aro 42,830 civil and military British prisoners in Germany, and they receive 85,000 parcels (two each) every week. We hold 58,113 such German prisoners, but they receive only 9260 parcels per week— half the number sent last year. Money orders are sent here in preference, probably because of the shortage of goods in Germany. Every week 4,000,000 payments of pensions and allowances are made through the post office, which has collected £191,000,000 for the War Loan. Between £35,000,000 and £40,000,000 has been withdrawn from the savings bank, but the deposits still stand at £185,000,00, which'- is only £3,000,000 less than when war broke out. ELECTORAL REFORM. It is doubtful if anything but tho war and the passing of the Conscription Act would have led Parliament to tackle the present comprehensive scheme of electoral reform on anything like agreed lines. Before 1832 there were fewer than 500,000 electors on the register, and the great Reform Bill only doubled the number. The population then was about 24,000,000. In 1867 the population had grown to 30,000,000, and the Bill added about 1,500,000 electors raising tho total to 2,500,0C0. When the Reform Bill of 1884 was passed the country contained 34,000,000 people, and another 3,000,000 wero put on the register, brino-ing up tho aggregate to 5,500,000. Thirty-tnreo years have passed since then; and tho population has grown to 45,000,000, with an electorate of 8,000,000. By the present measure, it is proposed to put a further 2,000,000 men I on the register, making 10,000,000 in all. As to the women's franchise, everything depends upon the age agreed to by Parliament. Putting tho age at 40 would mean adding 3,000,000 wpm<en to the register; 35 would raise tho number to 4,500,000. But the Government has reduced the age to 30, and that means putting 6,000,000 upon the' roll. Total, 10,000,000 men and 6,000,000 women.. RIVER TRIPS FOR SOLDIERS. During the past two summers tho Port of London Authority has placed its steamer Conservator at the disposal of the British Red Cross Society for the purpose of giving trips on the Thames to wounded soldiers. The authority has made arrangements for tho Conservator again to be employed in this service. Invitations will be extended to wounded men in various hospitals in London and _ the vicinity, and the guests will bo provided with plain tea end ciga rettes, and will be given souvenir maps illustrating the places of interest along the river's course. Last summer the vessel made 83 trips, and carried 4873 convalescents from 54 hospitals, together with 44- nurses in attendance. Another steamer—His Majesty—will be used for up-river trips, and the two should provide a restful excursion for between 13,000 and 14.000 men.