NEW ZEALAND RED CROSS

Otago Witness, Issue 3397, 23 April 1919, Page 43

NEW ZEALAND RED CROSS

SOUND FINANCIAL POSITION,

DISPOSAL OF SUPPLIES.

(Feom Odb Own Coehespondknt.J

LONDON, January 24. As chairman of the New Zealand Red Cross, Colonel the Hon. R. Heaton Rhode*, M.P., mentioned at the meeting held a few days ago that he had recently been aorosß to France and to tho New Zealand Division whioh is now in the neighbourhood of Cologne. Ho found only two New Zealandora in hospital in the Boulogne area, and there being now no necessity tot keep open the ohib there or the Now Zo*r land Red Cross depot, both had been closed, and the stocks in store handed OT*f to tho paymaster of the N.Z.E.F. He mat the Field Ambulance near Cologne and the base, hospitals at Staples, and ynm assured that no assistance from the Red Cross was needed at that time. A oabU had been sent to the Red Cross in New Zealand asking that a supply of ham* newspapers should be despatched to Colons to meet returning transports there. The Canterbury Centre had cabled to Colonel Rhodes asking him to pay to a Canterbury nurse the sum of £2 &s » Christmas present. A oheque to each nad accordingly been sent, and the amount thus expended was £lO6. Entertainment* for the men at Christmas were undertaken by the Hospitality Committee of the War Contingent Association, tho Red Cross providing the funds. The Red Cross sent * present to each man in hospital in England and France, each nurse had a Christmas card, and a few extra dainties were added for the nurses' Christmas dinner. Tha executive was to provide a kinema for_ Oatlands, but as this Now Zealand Auxiliary will shortly bo closed nothing further -will bo done. As for the workshops for limbless men at Oatlands, it is possible they may be used as long as the Walton Hospital remains. On its evacuation efforts -will ba made to dispose of the buildings when they are no longer needed. The chairman had cabled to New Zealand for £15,000, and a letter whioh had been received from the executive in the dominion mentioned that of tho total funds of " Our Day" collection £BO,OOO had been reserved—this sum, no_ doubt, represented an estimated expenditure for 12 months, based o* the estimate of £40,000 for six month*, Therefore.they could feel quite comfortable about finance. The actual balance her* on the 14th of January was £6298. Against this there were liabilities of £2OOO for Sidcup Hospital £2137 due to the War Contingent Association for entertainment, etc., diunng November and December; and there were- also a number of claims for. supplies ordered and still to come. The New Zealand Red Cross had asked if tho Allied Red Cross Societies were m need of clothing, eta Neither the British Red Cross nor the Order of St. John needed any more, so the chairman was consulting the French, Italian, and Serbian authorities, and he believed they would b« very glad to have further supplies for the benefit of refugees and others who had.lost their homes and been driven out of their country. When the hospital at Brookenhurst £* closed, as it will be quite soon, all the. Red Cross gocjds in stock are to be sent to the Red Cross store at Southampton and to the Red Cross depot in London; all the invalid chairs from Brpokenhurst are to bo UEed a* Walton. Lord Plunket hoped that in tho distribution of surplus Red Cross goods special af* tention would be _ paid to the needs ot Belgium and Serbia, as the necessity for assistance in Franco was not so great. Th« chairman said that f this opinion would be given every consideration. It was men« tioned that Mrs W. H. Parkes and Mi Guthrie-Smith had resigned from the com* mittee. They would soon be leaving foi New Zealand. In- an appreciatory letter Brigadier-genej ral Richardson wrote to the New Zealand.. Red Cross: "In the future we shall bs ' able'"to recall pleasant memories of that otherwise tragic period, 1914-1918. We have seen the dark side of the picture of war, with its anger, hate, and destruction, and the work of the various Red Cross organisations has provided us with a vision of the other side of the picture—with love, devotion, and restoration, administered by the workers in this organisation, who, during the past 4£ vears, have earned the thanks and gratitude of millions of soldier* and their relatives." Lord Plunket brought up the subject of grants to British hospitals which, at Christmas time, contained New Zealand patients. The chairman promised that grants would be given in the case of certain hospitals.