AN APPEAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2513, 14 May 1902, Page 33

AN APPEAL.

{Per the favour of the Editor of theO.D.T.) In the early part of 1901— thanks to tho generosity of Mr- Bland Holt in tho first instance-, - aided afterwards by substantial I donations from persons who were disappointed 'at finding that the bulk of the money subscribed for the Patriotic Fund ■was being remitted to the Lord Mayor of London — a fund was organised for the assistance of the families and nearest of kin of Otago troopers who might lose their Hives on the battlefields of South Africa, or ■who might become the victims of the i dreaded enteric and other deadly fevers. The administration of the fund was placed in the hands of the signatories. As occasion demanded we instituted immediate and necessary inquiries, generally through the mayor of the borough, if a local authority •was in existence, or the resident clergyman or officer of police if no municipal official could be appealed to, with the object of ascertaining the circumstances of the bereaved family; and from correspondence in our possession we have reason for stating that our proffered assistance was in every instance acknowledged with thankfulness. (When the fund was organised it was thought that not more than four contingents would be despatched from this colony. As a matter of fact, 10 have been cent, and the calls on our fund have in consequence been unduly eevere ; indeed, we have well nigh ex- j hausted it. As the oolony has yet three contingents operating in the field, and the hoped-for peace- has not yet been reached, we are 'forced to make an appeal to the ' generous . publio of this district to put us in 'the position of continuing until hostilities have ceased the .work of benevolence that wo have undertaken since 190 L We have, witb the approval of a number of ' citizens whoee. opinion and counsel we sought, entered into a business arrangement ■with the Key. John Ward, of Chicago, -who on the evening of the 20th inst. will lecture in the Agricultural Hall in aid of the fund on "The Uses of War." The { credentials of the rev. gentleman as a platform speaker are of the highest kind ; those ■who have been privileged to hear hun lecture at Invercargill and elsewhere inform us that a rieJr oratorical treat is in store for the people of Dunedin. But, apart from this consideration, we ask the people of Dunedin to give us material help by purchasing tickets for the lecture, so that the proceeds shall be sufficiently ample to allow us in the future, as we have done in the past, to deal with cases of genuine distress with promptitude and in the spirit that makes the act of giving ac pleasurable to the recipient as to the giver. Since our purpose became known we have received many offers of voluntary assistance, which, however, are beyond the scope of our present undertaking. We ar© grateful all the same to those individuals who have so freely placed their services at our disposal. If the war ahould unhappily be prolonged, and the' funds we hope to eccure by means of Mr Ward's lecture be exhausted, we shall bear those offers in remembrance when we decide to make a fresh appeal to the public. In the meantime we are hopeful that the generosity .of Dunedin, which has always made itself conspicuous in the support of a. - good cause, will be extended to us in such degree ai,to render further action on ©ur part quite unnecessary. — We are, etc, Eabdlht C. Reynolds, Makk Cohen, E. F. Dcthie,

The Lyttelton Times slates that the old Snan Swarm, who has been missing from jfhis home in Madras street, Christcrmrch. for the last three or four days, was found on Sunday on the Port Hills. He was very "Weak, and had evidently been without food