WANGANUI PATRIOTIC COMMITTEE.

Wanganui Herald, Volume L, Issue 14697, 31 August 1915, Page 3

WANGANUI PATRIOTIC COMMITTEE.

The usual weekly meeting, of tbc'abovc was-held yesterday afternoon, -Mr T. JJ. Williams (chairman;'.presiding.. TBENTHAM , BAND.—The', action of the chairman in forwarding: .£25 to the Trentham Band\funds was endorsed, and it' was decided to .ask the military authorities at Wellington to; allow the Band to visit Wanganui ■ with one of the; battalion’s companies. HOSPITAL ipOB NEW; ZEALANDERS..—Matron McKenny,- of the Wanganui; Hospital, wrote enclosing a letter she had received from Miss. Strachan (an ex-sister of the local Hospital and now at the N.Z.; Hospital in London), soliciting aid oh lie-, half of a new hospital established at WaJ-. ton on Thames, Surrey; to accommodate 100 New Zealanders. . The ; writer stiit«l that the matron of the . new Hospital (Miss Tooibbc) w’ps a prominent; of the; N.Z. Nurses’ Association, and twj-v other sisters (Nurses E. Kelly and Howell were New- Zealand nurses;— I The lettejr was referred to,.the executive, with “ a view toTm ring the 'application for- an; s.istauce brought under the notice of they Patriotic Copz pi i trees’ Conferences shortly; to be held in Wellington. ,' ASSLSTANCB,—The,action of the secre tary in granting temporary, assistance t< . a- returned Wounded trooper from the Dar danelles (Private. F. Semraiss) to enabh him to re-establish himself in business a;; a saddler, was confirmed.

secretary rear a letter the executive had forwarded lx the Minister of Munitions, urging tha' the idea of . manufacturing, machine-gun:; itt our own workshops should not bo'abandoned until every possible avenue Of in-' cjiiiry had been thoroughly explored. H was mentioned 1 that capable arid ex peri enced engineers had examined a machine gnu-in the Drill Halt and bad expressed the opinion that, providing certain requi' site machines and tools were procurablethere was no reason why macliine-gunr should •- not bo made • cither in the State Workshops or in private Workshops. Giver & milling machine (costing abdut and the necessary tools for .rifling tht barrel, one engineer considered that the guns could bo turned out at a roiisonabh price; He further-suggested that tlicmaehinery required could be , procured! from America or Canada. The commit-; tee ■ considered it roasquabio to assuihc that the guns could be made in the rail way workshops/ And urged that no .time should be lost in providing the requisite special equipment and that ordinary wort shordd be’suspended or ,curtailed-in order to facilitate-'the'manufacture of arinf and munitions. The Minister was urged to cause, further ’inquiry to be made as to the feasibility -or ’ otherwise of ‘mannfacturing machinorgups ip the Dominion, and ascertaliii {rrmi the. Imperial authorities what tools an^l-macbiucry were necessary.—The Minister had replied staling that a conference of engineers was to be held ..in Wellington on Friday to consider the question of making munitions in Wellington. and suggesting that Wanganui should send a representative.—lt was resolved to ask Mr E, Crow’, head of the engineering school of the .Technical College, to represent the Committee at the Conference. DONATIONS.— Messrs Sym.es . and Thorpe waited on the Committee and handed in a. cheque for TUB Is fid. proceeds of the concert recently given by the Wanganui Orphans’ Club, Which they asked should Vie applied on behalf of the Wanganui District, Wounded. Fnizd. A cheque for 'Mi. 5s was filso r received from Mr Talboys. subscribed by the tra m wayemployees, bringing their total contributions since the rvar began to £193, Bs Bd. .The 1 Committee expressed hearty appteeb ation-rdf the donations. - . ‘ ,