MEDICALLY UNFIT MEN.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XLI, Issue 11104, 21 December 1916, Page 4

MEDICALLY UNFIT MEN.

ASKED TO ENLIST AGAIN. Per Press Association, Auckland, Dec. 20. An important statement dealing with the recruiting of men for the Expeditionary Forces reinforcements was made to-day by the Minister for Defence. It refers particularly to men who have already enlisted for service, but have beet/rejected owing to medical unfitness. ‘ ‘The Defence Department would be glad,’ said the Minister, “if men in the First Division who have in the past volunteered for the Expeditionary Forces, anti have been passed out as medically unfit, would volunteer for service again. All who so volunteer will have to attest. They will :he examined by the Medical Board, and, if passed by this Board as medically unfit, their names will not be included in the ballot, but will beplaced upon the reserve list. Some of these men will be invited to volunteer for home service in the training camps if they could satisfactorily take up werk which is now cbeing done by some of the staff in the camps, who might thus be let away for service Those who are passed by the Medical Board as fit for service would be invited to join one or other of fbe next two reinforcements. It has been found necessary to adopt this practice in order to relieve the First Division of the Reserve of a considerable number of names of those who are medically unfit and have previously volunteered. It also becomes specially necessary because of the fact that in some districts the volunteer principle has prevailed entirely, and in others varying numbers have had to be balloted for where ;ballots have had to be imposed. In a word, the practice is adopted in order, to some extent, at any rate, to clear the rolls and to avoid unnecessary trouble in regard to the ballot. This invitation to men who have already enlisted, but not been accepted, on account of medical unfitness, is offered to No. 1 Group first,” added Mr Allen. “The idea is to extend the principle as the department is in a position to do so. 1 bops all Recruiting Committees and Patriotic Societies in No. 1 Group will assist to the best of their ability in inducing these men to come forward and enlist at once.”