PATRIOTIC EFFORTS

Southland Times, Issue 24819, 11 August 1942, Page 2

PATRIOTIC EFFORTS

Sir—As New Zealanders are 100 per cent, supporters of the Red Cross, and as 43 per cent, of Patriotic Fund money spent is for Red Cross, your readers will easily see that my complaint is merely against the leaders in Southland who refuse to help to raise that 43 per cent., knowing that the figure is likely to grow in the near future, following the recent campaign in Egypt. The £610,000 raised by New Zealand for Red Cross was by this year reduced to £165,000. On November 20 last the National Patriotic Fund Board s budget asked for £467,000 for general purposes, and for £285,500 for Red Cross (Sick and Wounded and Prisoners of War). That meeting decided to keep the Sick and Wounded Fund up to £250,000. Is the convention of Geneva preventing local Red Cross leaders from aiding that object, or even from informing Red Cross workers that this large sum is being made available for their work now and for a generation to come? , The Otago Red Cross at its annual meeting, appointed Mr C. V. Smith as its representative on the Provincial Patriotic Council. Why is such a course impossible in Southland? Mr Sturman’s report to the local provincial council (December. 5, 1941) says: “Moneys lodged for specific purposes, including Red Cross, are scrupulously recorded, and remitted to Wellington for the purpose for which they have been subscribed.” Mr Hayden, secretary of the National Board, will confirm this at the Invercargill meeting on August 26. Many people are still unaware that much of the money contributed directly to Red Cross in the past two years has been devoted to. local needs, to peace-time activities. Mr Hall-Jones drew a red herring across the trail by eulogizing Red Cross workers. We all admire their work for the Services, but a failure of leaders to co-operate does not bring the rank and file into this discussion. Neither Red Cross nor Patriotic can alter the Government policy of including Red Cross money in the National Patriotic Fiind. In our case, we box on, raising huge sums for Sick and Wounded, but Mr Hall-Jones refuses to recognize this fact. In six months, to March 31, the National Patriotic Fund paid out £llO,OOO to Red Cross for Sick and Wounded and Prisoners of War.

W. J. BENNETT. Winton, August 10, 1942. •