UNDISCHARGED SOLDIERS' BUREAU.

Otago Witness, Issue 3231, 16 February 1916, Page 48

UNDISCHARGED SOLDIERS' BUREAU.

PREFERENCE FOR CITY LIFE. AUCKLAND, February 14. Since the Auckland Discharged tooldiers' Bureau wa3 established, just a month ago, employment has been found for about 50 cx-campaigners and, men who have broken down under the stress of training in camp. There are still some 70 applicants for work on the books of the office, and others are making their appearance in greater or less numbers every day. Experience of the conditions of the bureau, so far as it has gone, seems to contradict one thing that has been widely entertained —as to the influence of the war upon social evolution. It has been assumed that as a result of a soldier's experience of open-air life in the field, the inclination of townsmen on their return will be to forswear urban occupations and betake _ themselves to the country. The disposition of the majority of the men who have applied for work up to dato is in quite, the opposite direction. Practically none of the townsmen is inclined to go to the country. Even among men whose former occupations were on the land there is a preference for city jobs. A considerable number of positions, in the way of light farm or dairy work, are now at the disposal of the bureau, but hardly any of the appl'cants are prepared to undertake them. For the last month thero has been a standing offer from a farmer at Maramarua to take several men for easy work at wages to bo fixed by thp_ bureau, according to the soldiers' capabilities, but so far not one soldier has been prepared to go. Mention of milking, on ever so light a scale, and even of the oversight of milking machines, seems especially distasteful to the applicants.