FOR CONVALESCENT SOLDIERS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2572, 21 September 1915, Page 6

FOR CONVALESCENT SOLDIERS

. Appeal fob funds. An appeal for financial assistance for the equipment ; of convalescent camps for wounded soldiers was made in tlio House ■of Representatives laso night' by the Minister'for Public Health (ths Hon. G. W. Russell). He said that the establishment of-- these camps was a fairly'costly undertaking, and a'heavy expense would be entailed in increasing the' plant at the sanatoria at Rotorua and Hanmer. For the moneys required he did not propose to appeal to the Treasurer,; for a share of the loan, but lie appealed \ witll confidence to the committees of the patriotic funds for assistance. An appeal had been made that day .to the public sei-vahts of New Zealand, who had been contributing for some time to a fund to be used 1 for patriotic or. relief purposes, which fund was in the hands of tho Under Secretary for internal Affairs. At. .ft meeting of heads of Departments held that afternoon a resolution had been passed authorising the Under Secretary for Internal Affairs to hand over for expenditure by tho Attorney-General a sum of £500 for. the benefit of soldiers. • He wished to recognise at the earliest possible opportunity the generosity of the public servants. There! were those who said that the.work of caring for wounded soldiers was the Government's duty. It was : the Government's work, and tho Government would see that,' sick or wounded, no man suffered for lack of proper care and treatment, but he maintained that the Government had a right to ask that patriotic committees should give for this purpose some of the moneys the public llad'subscribed for the benefit of . siclc' and wounded men., •