MAHENO RETURNS

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2660, 4 January 1916, Page 8

MAHENO RETURNS

4 , SOLDIERS WELCOMED HOME j 1 MANY BATTLE-SCARRED : MEN THE ISOLATION CASES AT AUCKLAND , 1 1 POSITION EXPLAINED I 1 I ( Tlie hospital ship Maheno, which sot | out from Now Zealand on an errand of 1 mercy to rescue sick, and wounded men < from the shell-scourged hills of Galli- 1 poli, where there was not a foot of | land that could not be reached by the t Turkish or German gunners, reached ( tho port of Wellington shortly after 1 1 p.m. yesterday, and berthed at the [ Taranaki Street Wharf at 1.30 p.lll. 1 Tho ship had already touched at Auck- ] land, and the returned soldiers on ( board had been given a warm welcome 1 by the people of that city on Saturday. I The welcome at Auckland was marred, 'I however, by - the circumstance that 199 i enteric convalescents and "carriers" had < to be isolated there'. The same circum- < stance spoiled the welcome here in some i measure, for among the next-of-kin who i came to meet the ship wero many who < turned away disappointed on learning 1 that their men had gone into isolation c at Auckland. ■ ( I Welcome Home. c Long before the ship arrived the va- ' cant reclaimed land adjacent to the J wharf gates, as well as the approaches to the wharf, were thronged with peo- c pie. Admittance to the wharf was ? strictly reserved for next-of-kin of re- ! turning soldiers, and this obviated all { confusion at the ship's side. There.was '' a good deal of delay which was wholly ' unexplained, but neither soldiers nor ' crowd showed any impatience. Follow- ! ing a very good precedent, now well es- c tablislied, a few owners of motor-cars * had' brought their vehicles along to £ drive the men to tho Town Hall, and in * this wise tlie returned soldiers were taken through cheering crowds from tho I ship to the Town Hall, where a modest 1 feast and some speech-making had been c arranged against their return. As soon [ a.i_ the ship came in sight round tho point there was a flutter of excitement J amongst the next-of-kin. When she was still so far away that figures on her decks could scarcely be distinguished, J handkerchiefs and hats were waved. Presently, when the ship was barely j ivithin earshot tlie crowds cheered, and , cheered at frequent intervals there- J, after. Every car-load was cheered on 1 the way to the Town Hall, and inside the hall every fresh arrival was cheered. The medical staff were 1 cheered, arid a specially spontaneous and lusty cheer I was given to the nurses. The welcome s did not lack heartiness. " 0 The Wounded Men. , On the ship as.she lay berthed be side the wharf the soldiers on hoard seemed a happy, healthy, crowd of young men, brown of skin and lusty of voice. Here and there, however; could be seen a man on crutches, a man with art empty sleeve, or with an arm in a sling. However, the general appearance of tho men. was that of normal, , healthy young men, glad to be home again. As they began to move down c the gangway, it was/seen that there ' were few who appeared quite sound and f .well.'"Altogether the party which ar- ! rived by the Maheno, fortunately a j small party of some 110 in all, was the saddest party that has yet come back i to Wellington from the. front. It is \ stated, however, that the enteric stispects put ashore at Auckland were for the most part fairly sound and appar- j cntly hale and strong. . ' ■ The Ship. The ship which left New Zealand so I very clean and new six months ago re- 1 turns sadly weather-worn but otherwise I unscathed. The Maheno was not 1 firKl upon, and was never hit by a shell, I although shells not infrequently fell 1 near her while she was lying off the I Gallipoli beaches waiting for lier return cargoes of wounded men. In 110 . respect does tho Maheno bear any war scars, but the paint on hull and deck fittings is much the worse for wear, the result no doubt of blistering sun and violent storms in tho Mediterranean, Only in one respect is the c utside equipment of the Maheno altered. The dis- ] tinguishing marks of a hospital ship are | red crosses on the side, with a green . : stripe running from stem to stern. At , night a red cross is illuminated, and a green strip of light is shown for the wholo length of the vessel. Leaving here this green strip of light was produced by a row of white lights in front of a vivid green ground which reflected a ; pale green light; This has apparently been considered not a sufficient mark, for this row of lights-lias been removed, and in place of them has heen 6et up a row of very substantial green glass lanterns, in which are electric lights. Where the Men Come From. It was, reported here that the Mar h'eno having gone to England with a lot of wounded men, would pick up a considerable numberof : New Zealand wounded in England, who were not well enough or strong enough to return to tho front to fight again, : or even to come back to New Zealand as passengers. In actual fact, tho Maheno picked up only three men in England. The rest she took aboard! in tho Mediterranean, at Malta and Suez. The three from England were Sapper Beamish, of Auckland, who had been attached to tlie British Section, Private Thompson, of Dunedin, and Private Allen, of Eltham. Beamish and Thompson were tuberculosis cases, and Allen was hit at the famous "Daisy Patch" at Krithia on May 8. His leg is still in splint 6, powerless, but he gets along cheerfully on crutches, while a comrado holds his leg up by the frame'in, which it is wrapped up. Of the other men on board, some were wounded months ago, hut some went through tho August fighting, and were at the front as late as the middle of September. No definite figures or 1 other information were available yester- ■ day about the mon on the ship or the ■ men in isolation, tho papers having been 1 held in Auckland. The Maheno sailed' for the south at > 9 o'clock last night. | CITIZENS' WELCOME " SPEECHES BY MAYOR AND MINISTERS. There was fio restraint in the enthusiasm of the welcome which greeted the returned soldiers at the Town Hall. Wellington's citizens filled the spacious galleries, and waited patiently—some b from 11.30, the time hrst tentatively fixed for tho reception. Tho tedium of waiting was pleasantly relieved by se--1 lections on the organ by Mr. Bernard r Page, the City Organist. It was shortly after two o'clock when tho Mayor (Mr. J. P. Luke) and the Mayoress welcomed the first of the soldiers as they arrived in motor-cars at tho Town Hall. : As the men passed through tho vesti--1 bule to the hall they were soon to be in t varying stages of convalcscence. Some had not yet been able to discard crutt dies, others hobbled along with the aid of a walking-stick and the supporting arms of friends, but there were some who stepped out briskly, and appeared to give promise of a rapid recovery. They wore received with loud cheers from the occupants of the galleries as tboj entered the hall, and were piloted

to the tables, at which light refreshments awaited them. Colonel Collins and the New Zealand Medical Corps, the officers commanding M.M. hospital ship Maheno, and tho medical stalf of the vessel accompanied the Mayor to the platform. Also seated 011 the platform were the. Mayoress, Mrs. Massey, Lady Ward, the Chief Justico (Sir Robert Stout), the Hon. W. Eraser, Minister of Public Works, Sir Francis Bell, and the nurses from the M'aheno. "Our Soldier Guests." The Mayor said they had met to do honour to "our boys," who had fought for us, and had returned. . At the samo time, they held sacred the memory of those who had met their death on the battlefield. Their heartfelt sympathy went out to the relatives of thoso who bad been thus bereaved of their loved ones, who, fighting not for themselves, had sacrificed their lives for the conntry and the Empire. That gathering saw a re-union, but what broken boys some of them were now. But these hoys had felt when they joined with otiiers to render aid to tie Mother Country that they were only doing what was their duty. And 110 braver soldiers had over fought for the Empire than the soldier' boys of New Zealand. (Loud cheers.) They had the eulogium of commanding officers that no braver men ever went into battle than the boys of New Zealand and Australia. (Loud oheers.) They were not tboro to praise our men as against the other soldiers of the Empire, but they did say, as they bad a right to say of their own ltith and ltin, that they had come back to loving friends who-hon-

oured them because of the deeds they had done. (Loud cheers.) And what about the nurses of New Zealand. . (Cheers.) These girls left New Zea- ■ hind with the prospect in front of them of trying and dangerous service. They had had that demonstrated in the case of the ill-fated Marquette. Our.girls , had met their death bravely in the disaster. These girls set out to sue- j cour and support the boys in the fighting line. Indeed, 110 words could do justice to tho generosity or to the liighsouled desire of .tho womenfolk of Now ' Zealand to do their share in this great war. (Cheers.) On behalf of tho citizens of Wellington, and, lie might say, of the citizens of New Zealand, they extended a warm weleomo to their sol- 1 dier guests, and they thanked them for what they had done. They also thanked the Maori soldiers, who had proved during this campaign that there 1 was no distinction between' the pakelia and the Maori. The Native race had proved their worth; they had been 1 tried, and had come through the test covered with glory. (Loud cheers.) They heartily thanked all the soldier lads present for what they had done, and hoped that they would be spared for many years of life. Tho Mayor 1 then apologised for the absence of His Excellency the Governor, the Prime Minister, Sir Joseph Ward, and other Ministers of the Crown. The Government's V/elcomo. The Hon. W. Fraser said the Prime 1 Minister had met them in Auckland, and welcomed them back to Auckland . and New Zealand. Ho now, on behalf of his colleagues, welcomed them back to Wellington. They were all proud of -j what Now Zealand's soldiers had done. As long as.New Zealanders could pronounce the word "Anzac" the memory of these glorious deeds would live. He sincerely hoped that' all would soon be restored to health and vigour—the rigour they had enjoyed whon they left these shores. , (Cheers.) Sir Francis Bell said that while they ■ had met _to welcome the returned soldiers, this was the first occasion l on which a properly equipped hospital ship sent on its errand of mercy had return- 1 cd to our shores. Ho thought New Zealand was the first country to offer a hospital ship, supplied with every necessary, not merely for the service of New Zealand, but for the service of tho other soldiers of the Empire as well. (Cheers.) Besides extending a hearty weleomo to the wounded soldiers who had returned hy the Maheno, 'they should not forgot the arduous labours of Colonel Collins and the medical corps of the Maheno. on behalf of New Zealand and the Empire. . (Cheers.) Neither were the services, of the nurses— bearing in mind the suffering they had had to alleviate and the trials they had had to endure—forsotten by:the great gathering of Wellington : citizens. (Cheers.) An Inspiration of Hops and Courage. _ The Chief Justice said ho joined as a citizen of Wellington in welcoming tho wounded soldiers back to tlieir horiies. Ho hoped they Would realise what these men had done for New Zealand and the Empire, and'would treat them as heroes should be treated. The soldiers had come back —many of them wounded —and one he had known he did not even recognise. They had come back to he received not only 110 hoped with kindness and thanks, but he believed they would create hope in our breasts for the future of the. race and the Empire. (Cheers.) There could be 110 courage in our race without hope. When we saw so many of our young men ready, to go to the front, indeed, anxious to serve, it gave hope , for tho Empire and racc, and with hope wo would all have courage. We were not only not at tho end of the war, but wore perhaps not half-way through. We would havo to make great sacrifices yot if our race was even to exist in liberty and freedom, and the soldiers had set an example of what might bo done even by a small people. Some of the soldiers who had returned wounded he had been pained to see. and he hoped the country would show by their kindness that they had not forgoten the services of these men, and would not he niggardly in tlie way it treated them. (Cheers.) The Commanding Officer. Colonel Collins said that, on hohalf of the soldiers whom tho Maheno had had the honour of bringing home, and of the medical staff and assistants of tho Maheno, lie thanked the citizens for the magnificent • reception they had given them. They all know the Tiigh opinions which the Now Zealand soldiers had gained on service. They liad heen given the highest praise. The services of the New Zealand Nursing Sisters were always sought after in the various hospitals. Thev had done wonderfully good work. (Cheers.) The proceedings concluded with the singing of the National Anthem. THE ENTERIC CASES MANY MAY SOON BE RELEASED. Some information about the typhoid isolation cases at Auckland was given to a Dominion reporter by the Hon G. W. Russell last night. . Mr. Russell said that until the men had been handed over to tho Public Health Department all tho facts regarding them had not been ascertained. It was afterwards learned that a largo majority of the men had liad enterio during tlie months of June, July, August, and September. Only an examination should be necessary to justify tho release of these men almost im'mediately, and he hoped that a number of | them would be discharged at a very early date. To assist in the bactcriolo- ' gical work, Dr. Patterson, of Christchurch, was to go to Auckland, and also 1 Mr. G." A. Hurley, Government Bacteri- ' ologist, of Wellington. It was hoped 1 that tlie examination of tho men would ! bo rapid, and that very- few of them : would be detained for any length of ' time. The men who had liad enterio 5 sinco September would have to be dealt | with much more carefully, bub they ' would not bo detained after a bactcriolo- • gical test showed that they were free 3 from infection. The Dcfence Depart- ! ment would bo notified that no weii who 1 a,™ su&naots. « u&n Me heJieyed, to he

"carriers," should under any circum- 1 stances be taken into training cun.ps. In the case of "carriers" the question of whether men live in towns whero there is efficient drainage and sanitation would bo taken into account when their release was being considared. "Carriers" who were nob a menace in well-drained cities might be a grave danger in tho backblocks. A short treatise was being prepared by Dr. Valintino on tho precautions that should bo taken to prevent tho spread cf the disease, and copies of this treatise would bo given to every man on leaving tlie camp. "It was with the very greatest re- ; gret," said Mr. Russell, "that I felt it was my duty ns Minister of Public ] Health to take tho precautions wo have i taken. These precautions were deter- ! mined upon only after a careful coi;eul- 1 tion with Colonel Collins, P.M.Q. of the Maheno. Early on the morning 1 that the ship arrived Dr. Valintino and 1 myself went off to the vessel and there held a long consultation with Colonel Collins, as tlie result of which it was realised that in the cireuriistances no other course than that finally taken was open to us.". Mr. Russell paid a high compliment to tho Auckland Hospital authorities for their readiness and I promptitude in making emergency pro- 1 vison for 200 men." 1