DEFENCE EXPENDITURS

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 16156, 9 March 1918, Page 7

DEFENCE EXPENDITURS

SITTINGS OF COMMISSION j : DUNEDIN. . | (rRESS association telegram.) &£ j s DUNEDIN, March g o The Defence Expenditure CommifiaoW g o sat here to-day. r -fM o Colonel J. G. Nicholls, Officer manding the District since |' that, as far as he could see, | \ 0 discretion to do anything in the | expenditure to .keep things 1 . Everything hlul to ho referred to H* g quarters m Wellington, which I j s delav. Ho cited a ease in which Jamm , | were applied for. A requisition wag |, sent to Wellington in October and ; 3 replied to tall February. The lamps InfiM | 5 not been supplied yet. If the OfficaHH 9 Commanding had powor to spend up «jM| £100 for incidentals, it would save afff . 3 lot of correspondence and worry, flOj® j 3 mako for efficiency. Ho knew there w&W » a conflict of authority between ( D partments. He thought there should b« . 3 one big camp for the South Islands t(m| •} Territorial training. __ .{ll < Major Cooper, General Staff ; 3 and an Imperial soldier of 17 yeaJ® standing, said his two years' experiences lj .here made him think that Headquarters I i 5 did not give District Headquarters® ] enough latitude. Everything was C®® 1 # ' tralised, and instructions, often vagu6,| ■ come from various officials. ___i$ Major Hickoy gave evidence J ing delays in obtaining stores. Ho 1 ho favoured tho old system of callings i for contract prices, beginning each year,j| 1 ■ and obtaining authority from Welling-*J| 1 ton to procure what was required. ' ■ thought that money could he saved iff']® * connexion with the Territorial system, 'fw 1 Loss was incurred in regard to rifles r equipment. Since 1914- 22 rifles had,j| ■ been lost out of 222. Witness mentioned a case where two sets of orders hadg|| 1 been received in connexion with a gram for detention purposes. Monerap i might be saved if useless ordnancoJjß stores brought back by the transports® ! were thrown overboard, or burned innS! [ mediately on their arrival, instead <1® t being carted about and handled sever a®' 5 times before being destroyed. ■*" 'fffll [ (SPECIAL TO "THE PRESS.") DUNEDIN, March 8/,|J * The chairman, in examining ColoneJ® Nicholls, said: We have never had it® , quite clear from the witnesses at any ofs|j ' our sittings' when a soldier ceases to be® i a soldier lor defence purposes. 'iff Witness, in reply, said the day that nS® soldier ceased to be effective, he passe®® ' out of the control of the Defence Speaking generally, lie felt tied dowiwß by not knowing the policy of the De-IB p'artmont, and having simply to obeyM , instructions. He thought there shouLdl! be one big camp in the South Island for j® Territorials' training, and should have tho whole period?! of training for the year at-3| the same time, when the country men -- 4 would not be harassed. There were ij ' about- 4000 men in the Otago district, xij ' To Get up a camp in a central place,say Canterbury, would cost money for . | ' travel, but this would have to be con- ; sidered alter working out the details in',| * relation to alternative echemes. |jj i HOME AND FOREIGN, j i POLITICAL CRISIS IN SPAIN, fj \ (By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright.)''"j (Renter's Telegrams.) ' LONDON, March 7. '/$ * Another crisis lias occurred in ' : Spain. ' Telegrams, wljich- have been censor- ( ® "ed, indicate a "conflict between the mili- " ' tary and civil authorities, apparenfly due to the insistence of the army in i * support of the War Minister's adoption, without Parliamentary . authority, of v | ' the army reform demanded, by tho $ | Military Committees .which overthrew ( tho Government in-June. ; (Received March Blh, 7.40 p.m.) , 1 MADRID, March 7." | The crisis was averted by" Cabinet.'; unanimously approving of tho proposed military reforms. ' , ". r STEFANSSON'S INTENTIONS. | (Australian and N.Z. Cable Association;) ';f OTTAWA, March 7. Villijalmur Stefansson, Commander 4 of tho Canadian Arctic expedition, has - sont a message that he intends .to ; ; spend another year in the Arctic.