HOW MONEY IS WASTED.

Taranaki Daily News, 26 February 1918, Page 7

HOW MONEY IS WASTED.

IN DEFENCE DEPARTMENT. Lient.-Colonel Macdonald, general staff ofiicer, giving evidence at the Defence Expenditure Commission at Pahnerston North last week, stated that he considered over-centralisation a great mistake. There wqfe fouf military districts, and a camp shbuld have been established in each. The centralisation of the camps at Featlierston and Trentham would mean a loss of the amount of their cost, which might be ,£IOO,OOO or £200,000, to the country when the war was over, as they could not be used for training home forces, entailing too great an expenditure in travelling expenses. This method did not make the moat use of the efficient officers in other districts. The chairman: "Are these officers not fully occupied?" Witness: "They are finding work for themselves. I contend the present system is cumbersome to a degree. The camp commandant controls at Featherston 700 men who are not divided into battalions. He is supposed to' investigate all matters and read all evidence in all cases before applying for courtmartials, etc., and he cannot possibly do so and carry out his work." Witness did not consider Trentham a suitable place for a camp. He then detailed a scheme for the reorganisation of the whole camp system. "We have lost at least £IOO,OOO through our canteens by letting them instead of running them ourselves," he said. "We are now saving probably $25,000 annually in Featherston, selling the goods cheaper than when under contract, and making as much profit as wo got for the contract." Instances were given of tho differences in allowances between officers of equal rank in camp and out of camp. A lieutenant-colonel in caiup, who was house free, got £6OO and allowances, amounting to £l9l 12s Gd. A man of similar rank on the staff outside the camp got £6OO, but only £3O 10s allowances, and had to find his house. An instance of waste of money was the painting of all transports for the Main Body, as they linked up with the men from Australia, where this wasteful policy had not been carried out. At the end of the journey many of the boats had to be restored in color before handing them back to the shipping companies, all this entailing considerable expense. In this district there was a shortage of arms amounting to £5587 and equipment amounting to £2009. Taking the other three districts into account, there was probably £20,000 worth of these goods unaccounted for since 1914. No doubt much had gone with the men on active service, but there was not a record of how much. Lax supervision and want of proper stock-taking would account for this. Much detailed evidence was given under this head.