VETERANS’ REUNION

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 714, 13 July 1929, Page 7

VETERANS’ REUNION

The feature at the annual reunion last evening of the South African War Veterans’ Association, attended by 65 men who were actually in the Boer War, was the large number of old Imperial Army men present.

There were two representatives ot the First New Zealand Contingent, four of tlic Second, two of the Third, four of the Fourth, four of the Fifth, six of the Sixth, 10 of the seventh, five of the Eighth, six of the Ninth, and one of the Tenth. Captain J. Stitchbury, of the King’s Imperial Veterans, was present, and the president of the Returned Soldiers’ Association, Mr. A. C. A. Sexton, Lieu-tenant-Colonel T. Dawson. LieutenantColonel E. Fraser, the president of the Takapuna Ex-Servicemen's Association, Captain J. A. Algie, Captain W. Atwell, and Mr. W. J. Leighton, representing the White Ensign Club.

The president, Major T. H. Halpin, mentioned that three remits would be submitted from Auckland to the Dominion Conference of the association. The Government would be urged in the first place to increase the South African War pension from £l3 to £26 a year, and a request would also be made that the pension should be granted in cases where disability occurred before the qualifying age of 65 years was reached. The third remit would state that South African veterans should re- : ceive preference when applying for I Stax© advances and Government loans.