BRITISH SEAMEN'S FUND

Timaru Herald, Issue 170299, 19 August 1920, Page 2

BRITISH SEAMEN'S FUND

MEETING OE SUBSCRIBERS.

NOT A HAPPY FAMILY,

From our Parliamentary Correspondent

"WELLINGTON, August 18. The wooigrowers iwiio met Mr Ifl. Newman, iYL.Jf., to-ctay in connection with the sheepowners' acknowledgment of their debt to the Jirrtash. Seamen'a j'und were r.ofc altogether a happy family.

' Mr Newman explained that aiiout a quarter of the JNew Zealand tamiers had agreed to hand over their s'lare of the surplus wool profits to the Hind, and he expected that the fund would receive about £2SO,UUU, out of the sunt of. £1.600,000 now about to be distributed. Ho mentioned that a few men had withdrawn from the fund, and that others had indicated a desire to limit their contributions. The fact that the fund was receiving only £250,000 of the sum of £1,600,000 paid over by the Imperial authorities indicated that many of the big farmers were not contributing. Mr A. Fisher, Culverden, and other delegates objected to any men. being allowed to withdraw from the fund. Mr Fisher said that some men had found the surplus profit to le, far larg"er than they expected, and now they were repenting of their generosity to the sailors.' Several delegates stated that the big farmers in their districts had not signed, and that the contributions were coming from the small men,, who wore suffering under a sense of grievance. They felt that they had lieen misled, since they had promised their contribution under the impressioa that they were assisting in a national movement.

Mr Newman agreed that some men had been carried away by enthusiasm in 1918, and were disposed now to retract their promises. He thought that in 'some cases the reconsideration of the promise had been justified by circumstances. Ho could quote the cases of farmers who had lost sons at the front who had been compelled to carry on their farms in the face of increasing difficulties, and who felt now umible t> sacrifice their share of the wool profits. Some of these men had written to him, and their cases could not be ignored. About forty-four men had applied to hare their names struck off the list. The trustees, on the aavice of then- solicitors, had agreed to> delete these names, but they were Advised that after the carrying of the resolution constituting the trusjt the listcould not be amended. The men whose names were on the list must stand by their x^romises. An emphatic protest came from one of the farmers present. He stated that he nad been misled. He was a small farmer with a large mortgage. He had signed because he believed ti at all farmers were signing, but lie found now that the big men in his district were pocketing their surplus wool profits, while he was paying his to the fund. He felt that Jie could not ; fiord to make the gift in these circumstances. Mr Newman repeated that the list of names must now stand. After seme discussion the conference directed the trustees to make an effort to increase the number of subscribers by circularising farmers who had not contributed and asking them what portion, if any, j of their surplus wool profits they were prepared to hand to the trustees.

The Minister for Lands stated that arrangements would be made for the publication of a list of subscribers. Twelve gentlemen, representing dif- , ferent districts in the Dominion, were requested to act as permanent trustees' for the fund. Among those named are Mr J. G. iS'. Grigg (Longbeach),- A Boyle (Christehurch), and A. Scaife (Waimate). It wag resolved that _ the dividend from the profits now in process of distribution shall be the-final dividend payable to the Seamen's Fund, and the trustee? were authorised to invest the whole or any part of the monev belonging to the fund with, the Public Trustee, to deal with it as directed by the trustees.