An Anomaly Ended,

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 16157, 11 March 1918, Page 6

An Anomaly Ended,

It will be very generally agreed, wo think, that the Cabinet has done tho right thing in terminating tho anomalous and inefficient arrangement by which invalided and wounded soldiers on their return to the Dominion were placcd under tho charge of tho Minister for Hospitals and Public Health. lii future they will remain lindor tho care and control of the Defonce Minister until they arc discharged. This is obviously the only common-sense course to pursue, and it should have boon adopted from the first. The mon, when in hospital in Franco or England, are, of course, under tho care of the Defence Department. So they are on tho voyago out in the hospital ship. Even when they arrive in the Dominion, and aro sent to one of the institutions undor the Minister for Public Health, it is necessary to place a military officor in charge for' disciplinary purposes. Tho Defence Department has all tho records relating to each man, and must continue to doal with him for evory purpose except his treatment in hospital, until he is discharged. Such dual control musrt tend to waste, inefficiency, and confusion, and it is not at all surprising that tho overlapping of authority has brought about friction betwoon the two Ministers concerned. As an example of the incongruities produced by such a system, it is only necessary to take tho caso of Rotorua, where the medical officor in charge of tho military hospital is working under tho Tourist Department, the Health Department, and tho Dofonco Department all at tho same time, and presumably would have to apply to the heads of all threo Departments if, for example, he wanted a short leavo of absence from his post. Tho change means additional responsibility for tho Minister of Defonco, who already has his hands full, but we feel suro that oven for him it will be much bettor than the worry and vexation of a bad system, which could only havo been made to work at all by means of tho most perfect sympathy and cooperation between the two Ministers concorned.