SCATHING CONDEMNATION.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 758, 5 March 1910, Page 6

SCATHING CONDEMNATION.

« EX-CIVIL SERVANT'S OUTSPOKEN LETTER. ME. GILRUTH DISCLOSES THE FACTS. CRITICS VIGOROUSLY HANDLED. LTo the Editor.] Sir,—l shall esteem it a favonr if yon will kindly permit me to make some remarks regarding the debate in the House of Parliament on December 21 last when the petition addressed by mo was discussed.. It is somewhat late in tho da}', but I have only now received a copy of Hansard containing tho report of the speeches.

First of all I wish to thank Messrs. Herdman and Massey for their able presentation of the case, and their vigorous denunciation of the treatment to which I was subjected by the Government of New Zealand in 1904. While also appreciating the flattering remarks on my professional ability made by the Minister for Agriculture and by the Prime Minister, I cannot say I admire the-special pleading adopted in defence of the Ministerial action, but before dealing with that phase a short summary of the exact facts of the position will serve to clear the atmosphere and. enable everyone to gauge the true position. THE FACTS. I was engaged by the Agent-General in 1893 as Government veterinarian, the agreement stipulating for three months' notice on either side. In 1898 I visited France on leave of absence with full pay with- the special object of studying at the Pasteur Institute the recent advances in bacteriology, etc.. AH expenses of this trip were paid by me, with the exception of those incurred in a ten-days' special journey examining the European abattoirs, made at the request of the Department. Before my departure from New Zealand I signed an agreement to remain in the the service.f'for four years. after. my re-, turn, or failing this, to refund the-whole of the salary drawn during my absence. .Needless to say, this agreement ; was kept. Naturally, I . expected, at the expiry of the four years, any obligation on my part had ceased to exist.

In 1901 I again visited Europe, but NOT i'or tho purpose of study and not at my request, or indeed, at my desire. The late Premier instructed me to visit Great Britain for the purpose of engaging veterinary surgeons to. administer the new Meat Inspection Act and to pur 7 chase a number, of horses and cattle. Although most inconvenient to ine I embarked within a fortnight, arriving in London -early in January. After four month's of 'strenuous work (during one fortnight I spent five nights travelling) I sailed for, the colony in May. Naturally I wasted not a day, for I had left my first-born—a. three-weeks' old baby—in Wellington. Verily a trip to England in mid-winter, under such circumstances is not one' that calls for congratulation— nor, may I add; for misrepresentation. Nevertheless, during that trip I succeeded in securipg, as a present , for the colony, two: valuable' stud ] horses, for which I was : offered, prior to shipment, .£1500! On the whole it requires a great stretch of imagination to infer, that I was under' any' obligation for that trip. . In September 1904 the Secretary of State for the Colonies cabled to his Excellency the Governor requesting the New Zealand Government to transmit to me an offer of the position of chief veterinarian. to . tho Transvaal at a salary of .£IOOO a year, rising to .£I2OO, with usual allowances-.,'!rhe-;.position. was,' and' is,-n ; very important .one ;in my' profession. The previous incumbent, Professor Stockman, had just been appointed to the head of the British Veterinary Department. The honour to me' was therefore very great, while the advance in emolument was tremendous, I then being only in receipt of J2GOO in New Zealand. The New Zealand Government, however, refused ,to transmit the offer to me, and objected to any attempt being made to secure high officials in their service. Consequently I not only lost the position, but what was of very great importance was deprived of the honour of receiving such a high compliment from the Imperial Government. , -

These facts are proved by: the official cables which T received from the Transvaal Department of Agriculture, signed "Transagric," its well-known, registered telegraphic address, Further, the- facts irere i admitted to me by the late Premier, and I knew them to bo correct from other sources. Again, in the speech made by the present Prime Minister, when the subject was first brought up by Mr. Wilford tho last night of the 1908 session, they were practically admitted.

DISTORTION AND INJUSTICE. Now for a few criticisms'.of the adverse speeches. That of Mr. T. E. Taylor, so.far as the "bot-fly" is concerned, is. absolutely contrary to fact from' beginning to md. It is libellous, but of course he is privileged! Th e Departmental papers will show the remarks to be absolutely contrary to fact in every particular. As for my "political astuteness,". I presume it was duo to that, and not to . any scientific ability I may possess that I- have received from three different countries (Britain, Africa, and Australia) offers of better positions and with much higher salaries during tho past few years, but I did not appreciate the fact that New Zealand politicians' influence was so far-reaching! Fortunately, Mr.' Taylor's words have no weight with those in New Zealand whose good opinion I' appreciate, though they may damage my reputation seriously elsewhere.

As to Mr. T. Mackenzie: He laboured tho fact that I admitted I could not add more than tho cables ■ said, and that I did not choose to visit New Zealand to give evidence before the Stock Committee. The cables as read by Mr. Herdman proved my contention. Further, it had already been admitted by the Premier. Why, therefore, should I waste a month and the necessary travelling expenses to give further evidence before a committee which at best could only "favourably: recommend" my petition to a Government which had already twice denied a favourable answer-when directly approached? But in any case it was impossible for me, as I had explained at that time, to visit Wellington. But, "speaking as a. Minister he might say they had no evidence on the file that such a communication ever was received as alleged," ouoth the honourable Minister. Of course there isn't. Imperial dispatches to the Governor are not usually found there. This one never saw the Department. Had it done so the offer would havo reached me; that'is obvious enough even for Mr. Mackenzie. But it sufficed to throw dust into others' eyes for the moment. The point is: The Government cannot deny having received the messago, nor can it deny the action. - Then Mr. Mackenzie seems to think because I am now in receipt of .£IOOO I have, no further reason to grumble. But I have. Pour years elapsed before I attained that salary, ana, so far as his Government is concerned, it might have been forty. Appointments carrying that salary aro not common in my profession, though curiously enough I received tho offer of the next vacant one at that figure in the Empire. In addition he overlooked the fact'that in the Transvaal I should now be drawing .£I2OO. So the damage has not ceased monetarily, though otherwise it fortunately has, no thanks to tho Government Again, he parades the cost , of my trips. I have already dealt with them, and it can readily be seen how far' he misled tho House. Tho first tap cost me all tho money I had, and I returned in debt. Tho second was none of my seeking, and did not advance my scientific knowledge. The third was a holiday at my own expense, taten in 1907 (three years after tnc Government's action), and which I thoroughly deserved. When I was engaged in London, I was informed a month's vacation per annum was allowed. While in Now Zealand I never had a day . off, rarely oven a Sunday. For that leave I again feel no obligation. Not only that, all the information I received on theso journeys at my own expense 1 ungrudgingly handed on

to tho members of my staff, as they will be the first to admit. Mr. Mackenzie says finally that "a great deal of money was spent on improving his scicntific knowledge." Outside of my salary I challenge him to prove that a single penny was so spent. Therefore his general remarks on this head are valueless and grossly misleading. That tho Government of the day had no absoluto aversion to losing good men is proved by the fact that through one of its Ministers only three years previously it had warmly recommended a valuable colleague in the same Department to a very high position, and in South Africa!

Finally, Mr. Mackenzie says: "If the offer were ever made at all it would have been a communication to the late Prime Minister." He must know how incorrect this is. At anyrate, his present chief said the previous year he remembered the offer being -discussed in Cabinet. "They had no copy or document to establish it —tho fact that the offer had been made. Is it my fault that such documents should bo mislaid, and am I to be blamed? Verily, Mr. Mackenzie is a tyro at special pleading. No, Mr. Mackenzie would not lose good officers, by hook or by crook, but he would keep them by any means possible, at the same time not paying them what others are willing to give. His remarks about business men and tho employees, they train are all twaddle, as he knows. A youth enters a business to be trained, but if business men were to block the possibility, of their employees improving themselves by going elsewhere there would 900n be chaos.

Mr. Witty made some remarks which are, however, unimportant. ! As to Sir Joseph Ward, the Civil Servants will note that the Government has refused its consent to Civil Servants getting better offers or positions elsewhere ."on more occasions than one." I suspected that, but was not sure. At the same time I am certain he did not mean that full implication of his somewhat involved remarks. I would only point out to him that the New Zealand Government was, as a matter of usual courtesy, asked to TRANSMIT an offer, and not whether it would agree or object to 6nch an offer being- sent. In his business I know ho would never havo dealt with one of his own employees in the same manner that the Government of which he was a member dealt with me. Knowing that, and knowing he knows it, no more need be said. ' . THE POSITION SUMMARISED. The position in a nutshell is this:— 1. I was liable to be dismissed without any reason being assigned, and without redress, on three months'notice. 2. I had the right to resign on three months' notice. 3. The Government was asked as a matter of courtesy alone to transmit an offer of a position with a salary of v£loo, increasing ■ to .£6OO, a year, ,in. excess of what • it. was paying me. • ' 4. It- flatly refused to transmit the- offer. 5. The direct consequence was I ■was denied the opportunity , of advancement in life, and was debarred of tho honour the publication of the offer would have given mo. . . 6. Four years elapsed before a . position of similar monetary standard was vacant, and this I secured. 7. Meanwhile, the New Zealand Government were not paying me anything like -what another Government had been anxious to pay me. . 8.. Consequently I was being defrauded of the-differerice.-All other issues are only chaff. The above are the short .'facts, and New Zealand, for its reputation, should see that it does not, rest under the stigma of deliberate sweating. , If John Burns considers he would have been a blackleg had he taken his Ministerial position at less than the customary salary, then surely New Zealand is a sweater when. she pays a man less than his market wage, anu at the same time; deliberately prevents him earning it. - Final]}', recent. . ..developments in Now Zealand have surely demonstrated to the Civil Servants that they. have absolutely no security of tenure of their. positions even during good bohaviour, anu, in addition, they have now the assurance that fhe Government considers' itself justified in taking any steps within its power to block their chances of securing a better position in the only employ that the vast ,majority are fitted for' by training, viz., that of another Government. Verily such feelings are conducive to contentment and happiness. I : Apologising for thus trespassing bo much upon your space and good nature, while thanking you in anticipation.—l am, etc., J. A. GIIiRUTIi. Melbourne, February 23, 1910.