THE WAR EFFORT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24326, 17 June 1940, Page 11

THE WAR EFFORT

TO THE EDITOR Sir,—lt would apoear from his reply to me thrt Mr James Begg has not a full appreciation of the point I made in my recent letter to you, and as a result, my questions are as yet unanswered. It will be recalled that he strongly advocated, in a recent address, that New Zealand should send 30,000 men to Europe. With reservations. I agreed that stronger forces should be sent overseas, but at the same time I considered it pertinent to suggest that Mr Begg might, from his high place in the commercial community, well advocate measures to make it easier for potential soldiers to_ join the colours. It seemed a fair question to ask how many of the companies with which Mr Begg is associated are making provision for employees who enlist by making up their military pay to a level somewhere near their peacetime civil standard, or, if this is not being done, then how many of these companies are making provision for the insurance premiums and superannuation payments of employees now in the army. Reference was made to one company’ in this respect, merely for the purpose of illustration. It is the welfare of the soldiers' dependents I have .in mind, for what man with a spark of decency in him would wish to go overseas knowing that the burden left for his 'dependents to bear would mean their recourse to an icily statistical charity? Speaking generally, it would seem that there never was a more opportune time for a wider and more practical application of those Christian principles for which we are fighting, and which should permeate every stratum of life. I am, etc., Sursum Corda. Dunedin, June 15.