THIRD DIV. VEHICLES

Chronicle (Levin), 20 September 1946, Page 7

THIRD DIV. VEHICLES

-Press Association j ,

Personal Vendetta Alleged 1 ARMY OFFICER'S EVIDENCE !, ,c ■ t

3 y Telegraph-

WELLINGTON, Sept. 19., !; Before Mr. Laing made his charges} Lo ihe l'rinie Mimster on 1/4/13, he | ivas in possession of the full facts and knew why the 48(5 allegedly * new vehieles could not be supplied to the Third Division, deelared the former t^uartermaster General, Brigadier H. E. A verv, resumiug his evidenee today before the Defeuce Committee of the House of Kepresentatives wliich is heuring Mr. Laing's petition. Brigadier Avery said tho Ford eompany entiroly refuteil Mr. Laing's allegation " tliat their representative, early in 1943, was booking orders for oivilian saies based 011 knowledge derivod from the Army tliat the 48(5 vehieles would be released for eivilian sale. The disposal of those vehiele-s was in any case not in the Army's hands but was ihe responsibil ity of the Vehieles Disposal Board. Brigadier Avery said that on 19/1/43 he wrote to the Minister of Defence suggesting that the whole matter appeared to be a mare's nest slurnbled upon bv Mr. Laing. Dealing with the charge that eondemned and unservicable vehieles wero sent to the Paeilie, etidungering the lives of the Third Division, Brigadier Avery said 110 eondemned or unservieeable vehieles were sent. The • worst tliat eould be said was that soine vehieles of a commereiul type sent for leniporary use had done a eonsiderable mileage but mileage alone did not mahe them unservieeuble. In a report he nuule to ihe Prime Minister 011 1/2/-13, he showed that of 25113 vehieles then on the Third Division 's establishment, ssl new ones had gone forward and 783 neu ones were awaitiug shipment, while ti 15 used ones had gone forward and 21 1 used ones awaiied sliipnient. Of ihe used vehieles senl all had bewn inspeeted and passed bv Third Division otbeers exeept 80 vehieles of two batt'alions whieh were attaehed to Ihe division. Those vehieles had heen passed bv other Army ollieers but were to !«ave been replaeed bv new vehieles. This jiroved impraetieable before embarkation but . was done. in New Caledonia. 1 11 a letter dated G/2 Major- ( omerei Pa rrowelough wrote to P.rigadier Avery sayiug that any STiggestion tliat unsafe vehieles had been forwarded was totallv irresponsible. P.rigadier Avery read t'urther eorrespondenee beMveen himself and Ma.jor-Genpral Ma rrowelough in whieh Ihe latter said junior ollieers who had complained

ubout the vehieles acted sineerely but Uid uot know the full picture and were unaware that the Dix ision had all the j x 4 trucks it needed. Brigadier Avery said that MajorGeneral Barrowelough, in his correspondonce, deelared the junior ollieera' eritival view of the transport supplieti was not justilied by the facts. MajorGeneral Barrowelough 's own coneern vvus only that used vehieles inight have been supplied when, aceording to reports, uew army transports Were being issued to home defeuce unils but AlajorUeneral Barrowelough was satislied, on in vestigation, that the Third Division had absolute preferenee over home defeuce unils. The four oflicera who had made complaints were eonseiontious soldiers and although the result of their unl'ounded stateiuents was mischievous, their intent was not. AfajorGeneral Barrowelough had never doubted his ( Avery \s) peisonal desire lo do his utmost foT the Third Division but had questioned, until fully aequainteil of the . posilion, whether subordinates taiglit be failing to implement his (Avery 's') poliey. Brigadier Avery said other than the 4SG vehieles referreil to there were no Surjdus vehieles in New Zeaiand in early 1943. The Army, at the, outbreak of war, had 02 vehieles at its disposal, a ligure whielt rose by impressment, purehase and other means to 3'),298 by the eml of 19-13. ' ' I reeognised probably far better than Mr. Laing, the desirability of 1:o;i«*-whce] drive vehieles for the Army," said Brigadier Avery. "In Doeember 1941, long before the despateh of the Third Division was eonteniplated, the Army ordored rnore than 5t)(JU vehieles in Cauada and ITiited iStates, but at the end of 1942, before they began to arrive for assembly, .1 was satislied it would be possible to oquip the Division fully witli Army type vehieles before it moved to the buttle area, and that proved to be the ease. ' ' AVhen used vehieles were sxipplied to the Divisioi: for temporary use he knew tliat the Division would not he in ae.tion for soind' monlhs but that was uot know 11 to Alr. I^iing or to those offieers who eom]>lainei ubout the vehieles. Oue of the utncers who complained had subsequently admitted that on arrival at New Caledonia his unit was iinmediately snppbed with new vehieles and did not see the old ones again. When the Division fmallv moved forward it left behind in New Oule donia a considerable/ surplus of Army t\*pe vehieles. Brigadier Avery said the charges made against him and the extruvagant ianguage used were based on ignoraute of the true facts and tlie supply 10 Mr. Laing of fauHy and incorreet information. The charges wero also iu(lueneed by Mr. Laing's personal animositv to himself against whom Mr. Laing had carried on a personal vendetta s i n c e S anu ary 1941. After Brigadier Avery had been cfoss exaniined bv Mr. Laing, the hearing was adjourned until 9.30 nextb Wednesday. •