THE HOSPITAL SHIP AND WOUNDED SOLDIERS’ FUND.

Otago Witness, Issue 3196, 16 June 1915, Page 61

THE HOSPITAL SHIP AND WOUNDED SOLDIERS’ FUND.

{The Governor’s Appeal.)

THE OTAGO DAILY TIMES LIST.

ATo be devoted to equipment of hospital ship and to tho provision of comforts fertile wounded; Bto be devoted to equipment of hospital ship; Cto be devoted to tho provision of comforts for tho wounded.

We have to acknowledge the receipt of £49 8s 6d for tho above fund, represent ing an amount collected in tho Waikoikoi district. Following is a list of the individual subscriptions:—W. Spittle, £2: W. Fretwell, £2; James Black, £2; Greenbank Farm, £2: Jas. Robertson, £1 ss: J. Meek, £1; W. J. M'Kenzie, £1 10s: J. Macnee, £1; T. Spittle. £1; M. and J. Stark, £1; A. Mitchell, £1; F. Spittle, £1; A. Simmers, £1; G. Cooper, £1; A. Gray, £1; D. M'Boath, £1; D. Crawford, £1;. John Spark, £1; Jas. Crawford, £1; A. Reid, £1; Jas. TJ'Call, jun., £1; J. S. Bruce, £1; G. Crawford, £1; J. W. Shaw, £1; James M'Call, £1; W. Kirk, £1; W. Orchard, £1; Jas. Burnett, £1; Thomas Kirton, £1; C. Macpherson, £1; George Reid, £1; C. F. Robertson, £1; W. J. Stark, £1; J. M'Donald, £1; John M‘Call, 15s; Mrs Sinclair, lls; D. France, 10s; W. Kemp, 10s; A. J. Crawford, 10s; FI. M'Call, 10s; Mrs Cooper, 10s; Mrs Russell, 10s; Scott Bros., 10s; P. Scott, 10s; FI. Brown, 10s; W. Kirk, jun., 10s; R. M'Donald, 10s; IT. C. Chittook, 10s; _D. M'Call, 10s; J. A. Borrie, 10s; ‘‘Sympathiser,” 10s; Miss Cornish, 7s 6d; D. Kirk, ss; J. Kirk, ss; F. Bayly, £l.

DONATIONS OF EQUIPMENT. Tho following articles have been sent for the hospital ship by the women of Knox Church (per Mrs Davies): —40 pyjama suits, 2 nightdresses, 36 bed-jackets, 2 nightingales, 29 undershirts, 102 pillowslips, 12 pair bcdsocks, 41 pairs socks, 3 pairs cuffs, 5 scarves, 12 balaclavas, 4- caps, 10 facc-cloths, 36 wash-bags, 6 handkerchiefs, 13 pillows, 10 cushions, 1 pair blankets, 1 gross safety pins. The following articles have been forwarded from Palmerston for the hospital ship:—32 blankets, 51 sheets, 8 feather pillows, 10 suits of pyjamas, 7 nightingales, 6 bod jackets, 2 operating gowns, 1 scarf, 9 dozen pillow cases, 6 dozen faoo cloths, 8 pairs socks, 9 under flannels, 3 balaclava caps, 16 towels, 1 cushion. There are still some articles to finish, which will be sent at once. Besides this list a number of things are being sent to the troops in Trcntham. , , , m . . , Tho ladies of Mosgiel and the Taieri, who are working in conjunction with the Taieri Red Cross League for the hospital ship, are requested to send in their work to-day to the Mosgiel Borough Council Chambers.

SUGGESTED CLOSING OF FUNDS. WELLINGTON, June 10. The Governor has issued the following notice regarding the hospital ship: In view of the splendid response which has been accorded all over the dominion to my appeal for equipping the hospital ship, I think the timo has arrived when a date should be given for closing the fund. I shall be glad, therefore, if no further contributions are sent to the Under-secre-tary for Internal Affairs after Wednesday, Juno 23. As soon as all expenses connected with the hospital ship have been paid I propose to place the surplus money on deposit at the Bank of Now Zealand, and to utilise it for purposes which in any way affect the well-bcitm of our sick and wounded, whether by the replenishment of comforts for the hospital ship, v*ase hospitals, stationary hospitals, or

convalescent home. —(Signed) Liverpool, Governor. TAIERI RED CROSS LEAGUE’S EFFORTS. On May 25 the ladies of Mosgiel met to organise workers for the purpose of helping forward the equipment of the hospital ship. As a result, the first consignment of articles made was forwarded yesterday, comprising 4 sheets, 130 pillow cases, 15 white night shirts, 62 towels, 19 bed jackets (flannel), 20 sets pyjamas, 84 knitted face cloths, 12 bed jackets, 80 to-welling face cloths, 7 nightingales, 4 dressing gowns, 5 operating shirts. 1 woven vest, X pair woven underpants, 2 taped pyjamas, 8 knitted scarfs, 34i pairs bed socks, 31 pairs socks, 3 balaclava caps, $ pairs cuffs, 3 feather pillows, 310 handkerchiefs, 16 many-tailed bandages, 23 dozen and 5 assorted bandages, 1 bundle old linen. The foregoing were forwarded to the secretary of the St John Ambulance, Dunedin, APPLES EOR THE WOUNDED. WELLINGTON, June 10. In connection with the appeal from tha New Zealand wounded in Egypt for applet the Minister of Defence states that, forty* nately, the department has in hand about 150 cases presented by various people for H.M.S. Philomel. Mr Allen says this stock will be divided equally between tho warship and the wounded, and the troops’ shard will be forwarded in the next transport to leave the d'orninion. Ho hopes to send additional supplies in the hospital ship, which will leave for the Mediterranean about tho end of the month. Apples have come from Nelson, Motueka, Hawke’s Bay, and Palmerston North. TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS. WELLINGTON, Juno 11. Tho Hospital Ship Fund contributions received by the Internal Affairs Department have reached £30,205. APPOINTMENT OF CHAPLAINS.. THE MINISTER’S DIFFICULTIES. WELLINGTON. June 14. A deputation, consisting of the Rove. Dt Gibb, Dr Patterson, W. Shirer, and Mr W. M, Hannay, waited upon the Minister of Defence this afternoon to convoy to him the protest of the Wellington Presbytery with regard to the announcement that only two chaplains—Anglican and Roman Catholic- —■ would be appointed to tho Hospital Ship. Dr Gibb said it was regarded as unjust—almost insulting—that a Church -which numbered nearly a quarter p- million adherents in New Zealand should be denied the privilege of nominating haplain for tho Hospital Ship, while a . ;rcli with a much smaller following was allowed to send a representative. Tho Presbyterian Church had rights which should not bo disregarded, and from its point of view the decision. which tho Minister bad announced was absurd, and could not be endured without protest. The Minister said ho very much regretted that Dr Gibb, or any other member of tha< Presbytery, had not interviewed him and ascertained the facts before adopting and handing to the newspapers a resolution which ho could only regard as containing a personal reflection upon himself. Ho had been grieved and pained by this attitude of the Presbytery on tho subject. Ho felt that some passages in the letter which Gibb had written touched him personally. Dr Gibb had said it was “well nigh incredible” that the Imperial authorities should have laid down a rule requiring only two denominations to bo represented by chaplains on hospital ships, and suggested that Mr Allen must have “misread his instructions,’’’ and had asked if the Minister had sought directions regarding nurses and doctors as well as chaplains. “I can only read those questions as a suggestion that I was untruthful or dishonest,” said the Minister.

Dr Gibb: “No.” The Minister; “That is the way lj read them, and the way others read tnem.’ After mentioning his admiration £or many members of the Presbyterian ministry, and the great assistance and encouragement h® had received from his own personal friend® in that ministry, Mr Allen sketched the history of tho arrangements mad© in connection with tho Hospital Ship. Ho read cablegrams from the Imperial authorities Living down what should bo done in tho appointment of medical men and nurses, and referring him to tho volume containing the official army establishment for further information. Ho had found that tho volume made no provision for chaplains on hospital slrips, and ho had cabled on May 21 as follow,:: “Are chaplains to be appointed to the Hospital Ship? If so, what religious denominations are customarily represented?” The reply received a few days later had been that one Anglican chaplain and one Roman Catholic chaplain should bo appointed, lie had proceeded to act upon that direction. A Roman Catholic chaplain had been recommended to him and accepted. Regarding the Anglican chaplain, several recommendations had come to hand from tho bishops, and no appointment had yet been made - but he had in view a man who would bo highly suitable, and would be acceptable to a very wide circle. A prominent Wesleyan had told him that tho Anglican minister would be acceptable to the Wesleyan body. Under these circumstances, he had hoped to avoid any suggestion of sectarian feeling, and it was a bitter disappointment to him that the issue had been raised in Wellington. “You tell me in your resolution,” added tho Minister, “that you prefer the request that a chaplain nominated by tho Presbyterian Church shall bo appointed to the Hospital Ship. The decision regarding the appointment of any chaplain must rest with the Minister of Defence, and his commission must rest with the Governor. I am not going to accept a, demand from any Church in connection with an appointment that is a purely military one, but J have so much regard for the work that has been done by Presbyterian ministers in connection with the military system that, if tho Presbyterians like to recommend fo mo a certain clergyman, who, I think, has done more for tho forces in New Zealand than any other clergyman of any denomination, and who has broken down as a result of work at Trentham, I will go out of my way to make that appointment. He is a personal friend of mine, and one of my great sympathisers in tin's time of heavy work, and if ho likes to go I will be only too delighted to send him.” Dr Gibb assured the Minister that no personal reflection had been intended the Presbytery. All the members appreciated the difficulties of the work the Minister was doing, and sympathised with him in nig labours. If ho could see his way to appoint the minister ho had indicated, in th.o face of his directions from the Imperial authorities, the Presbytery would bo extremely grateful to him.

Previously acknowledged £4298 8 0 Trustees of John Douglas, Palmerston B 100 0 0 H. E. Shaddock (Ltd.) A 50 0 0 Collected In the Waikoikoi district (per Mr D. Crawford) 49 8 6 Ladies of Outram A 11 13 6 Collection at Mornington Retiring collection West Taieri Presbyterian Church (per Mr A. Grant) C 8 10 0 Methodist Church B 7 2 3 Otago Farmers’ Co-operative Association (Ltd.), con5mission on cattle and sheep sold at Winter Show 5 19 4 Proceeds of social at Brighton 0 5 11 7 James M'Keeman, Oturehua 5 0 6 James Dunery, Rocklands ... 5 0 0 John Maxwell, Waikouaiti ... A 5 0 0 Mrs Wm. Grigor, Clifton ... B 5 0 0 Mrs Jones, Mornington B 5 0 0 Seamen on s.s. Monowai 3 14 3 “ D. N.” -. C 3 3 0 H. Barr, Alexandra A 3 3 0 Teachers and pupils of Flag Swamp School 2 13 6 Glenroy Social Fund “ Corrie and Dot,” Palmerston proceeds of sale of gollywogs made by them ... 2 10 0 1 15 0 Collected at intercessory service at Waikouaiti Methodist Church (per the Rev. A. Allen) 1 13 2 Bray Bros., weekly contribution 0 1 10 0 Employees of J. and J. Arthur 0 1 5 0 “ Good Cheer ” 2 0 0 Members of North-East Valley Bowling and Lawn Tennis Club (per Mr 0. P. Williams) 1 4 0 Collected in train by F. J. Turner C 1 3 0 Pupils Highcliff School A 1 2 1 “H.S.A.” 0 • 1 1 6 Mrs J. J. Cairney. W'aikouaiti B 1 1 0 D. Messcnt, Wedclorburn 1 1 0 Collected by railway staff at Balclutha 1 0 0 “J. K.” A 1 0 0 “Edith,” Kaihiku 1 0 0 D. Nicolson, sen., Oturehua 1 0 0 “E. C.” 1 0 0 Proceeds of sale by T. Paterson and Co. of pair of rabbits on account of Martin Wilson, North-East Harbour 0 18 0 “Ngata, Tui, Ted, and Jock” 0 0 10 6 Employees British Bye-pro-ducts Co., twenty-first contribution 0 10 0 Proceeds of sale by Hyde School children of copies of verses presented by Mr J. J. Ramsay, Alexandra 0 8 0 D. Nicholson, jun., Oturehua 0 3 0 Total £4699 2 8 [This fund is now closed.]