RETROSPECTIVE MARRIED ALLOWANCE

Patea Mail, Volume XLIII, 28 July 1919, Page 1

RETROSPECTIVE MARRIED ALLOWANCE

PAYMENTS IN PROGRESS.

The Defence Department's undertaking that payment of the retrospective married allowance would commence during the first week in June has been adhered to, about two-thirds of the total number of warrants having been issued up to Juno 17th. The warrants, 5123 in number, represent a total payment of £191,408. The distribution of tho remainder is rapidly going on and the accounts of deceased soldiers are being looked up so as to pay their widows the amounts of retrospective allowance to which they are entitled.

An analysis of the individual payments shows that the wives or guardians of motherless children of men who went away with the Main Body, embarking on September 23rd, 1014 are drawing £132 3s od. There is a large issue of warrants for the sum of £SI IGs Od, which is payable in respect of men who embarked on October (ilh, 10.15. The wives of those who embarked a year later draw a little over £44, and as the date of embarkation comes nearer to the 31st December, 1917, when the allowance was made up to 3s per day, the warrants correspondingly decrease in amount. The largest sums paid out are to wives of lieutenants who embarked with the Main Body, as these did not draw any allowance in the ordinary course until January Ist, 1918. The warrants now being distributed mostly represent the country's liabil- I ity in respect of men undischarged on 30th April, 1919. Payments of retro- ! spective married allowance in respect of men discharged or deceased prior to that date is mado after application has been forwarded to the Officer in Charge of Wq Expenses, Wellington. A large number of the applications have already been sent in, and warrants arc being prepared for payment and despatched daily.