MR LEADLEY'S WORK.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16714, 21 April 1922, Page 4

MR LEADLEY'S WORK.

MEMBER'S ALLEGATION. At the annual meeting of the Christchurch Returned Soldier?’ Association last night. Mr T L. Drummond, a former member of the executive. objected to an item in the balance-sheet of £184! for salaries ami wages. He considered that the ticcrotary’s salary of £4OO was too much, ?nd he contended that Mr Leadley spent 100 much . of his time on various public todies. In his opinion. most of these positions could he filled by the president or some member of the excontire. nml the seeertary would then he able to devote more of his time to the affairs of the. association. Mr A. IT- Spratt, a member of the executive, said he was the member who had mostly moved that the staff rece.ive increases in salaries. They had a good staff and should pav them well. He pointed out that Mr Leodley had recently refused the general secretaryship of the association at a salary of £7iso a year, and could easily get £IOO a year more from mercantile firm-s if he cared to resign his position- As for Air Headley's positions on various bodies, he was doing good work on

them for retiimwi soldiers. Hr T.eadley was on the Hospital Board, and it was very necessary that lie sliould be on that' board in order to watch the interests of the men in Cashmere Military Sanatorium - Then be was on the Patriotic Fund, and no one would say that he had not done :j;ood work in that capacity. He was also on the Canterbury Repatriation Board, and Irad been instrumental in obtaining assistance for thousands of returned men. He had sometimes thought that Mr headier should give way to other members of the executive in some of the position*, hut- owing tr> the Time involved in attending the meeting*. Mr Lend Icy was best able 1o represent the iation on those bodies. ( Applause A The Her TV. Heady wirt it was a c OSI . of “ scratching their nose to spite their face ’’ when they objected to the secretary sitting on various public bodies, because the work he did in that capacity was invaluable to the returned men. (Applause.) Air Drummond, asked leave to move the following resolution: That it- he a recommendation to the incoming oxe j cutjv© to go into the question of the j number of committees and public bodies on which the secretary sits, and sec if it is not possible to arrange ” The chairman nt this stage intervened. end said the motion could not be moved at that, stage. Air Drummond: When can I move The Chairman : When general bud- j ness is taken. When the motion for the adoption j of the balance-sheet had been carried, ! the president, the Rev W. Walker, ! said that the association had a staff 1 of eleven, and at the present time it was absolutely impossible to reduce that number. Members should remember that included in the salaries and wage* there* were amounts paid to the buffet workers, the stewards, caretaker and the men who looked after the garden. Regarding the list of bodies on which the secretary sat. which was published in the annual report, there was not one organisation of which it vras j not imperative arid necessary that the j secretary should be n member. More i than that, ihe* executive of the asso- j eiat’On had appointed him to every i hoard and every association on which • he sot. and the executive, of which Afr Drummond at the time was a member, nominated Mr Lead ley for the Hospital and Charitable Aid Board, and worked for him while he was absent from Christchurch. There were many hard-worked men among tltose present. but there were few who lie thought, worked harder than Afr Lead- | ley. During that week, to his knowledge, Air lycndfoy had left his home I between eight and nine o'clock every morning, and hod not returned until late at night. “ Mr Lead ley ca.n take it. from this meeting that the association as a whole has every confidence him as secretary.” concluded Air Walker, •amidst loud applause. At a. later stage Air Drummond again brought up his raotiorv., but no one voted for it. ATr Lead ley referred to the matter at the conclusion of the meeting, stating that he was quite willing, whomever the executive asked him. to relinquish his seat on any of the bodies on which he represented the association. (Applause.)