WET CANTEENS.

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2741, 8 April 1916, Page 3

WET CANTEENS.

Sit,—l yaa pleased to read the letter ° n the subject of Wot, Canteens and Closing- Hotel Bars," signed One of the .Committee" of the War necessities Committee. Though a total abstainer,. I- trust that I am broadminded enough-to see that the establishment of a wet canteen in military camps will be a help- in keeping down, the amount of d.tuukehnc'ss which one sees m town. From my, observations of the result of the wet canteens in Egypt 1 can only say let them. be established m the various camps in New Zealand. As tar as my memory ' serves me, the nours_ for procuring refreshments were rroni 1w.30 p.m. "until 2 -p.m., and then again; from 7 p.m. until 9 p.m., and. I can safely say that I never saw a single instance of insobriety. 'The . charge made was (equal in value to °', sllr English money) per pint, and eacii soldier was'allowed two or three pints in an evening, though this rule was not strictly adhered to as long as man behaved himsslf. The canteen was run under military control, ■ a party of two or three men under a non-commissioned officer being "told off"; to see that tbero was no unseemly behaviour, and the "officer of the , day" 'was responsible for the supervision of the party so told off for duty. I should. be very sorry to see! any, man deprived of his "glass." It -is not the use, but the abuse, of the liquor privileges which causes the mischief, and I feel sure- that a. wet canteen (if con-1 ducted on the principles of the canteens at the Baso Camp at Egypt) will be a success in overy way. And it is to be hoped' that tlie profits accruing therefrom will be used for the benefit of the men. I may mention that tables and forms were placed in the marquee, and as the. men received-their pint of beer they passed on- to these, whero they were able to sit down and: have a quiet chat. : No loitering about the counter was allowed, and no beer was allowed to be consumed off the premises. The commanding officer and the officer of the day paid-a visit'of inspection every time the canteen was opened, and tested the quality of the beer,..6o that there was no. fear of an inferior, quality being ."palmed off" on to the authorities. ! ij- Tho establishment of a canteen would •> do away with the desire of'men to come : into town so often. This might affect the shopkeepers to a certain extent, but I do'not think that they would grumble at that, -under tho circumstances. ,In many instances the men would wake up fresher in the morning, and without a. "sore head." In fact, feeling-fit for work.. ' ■ I have written at some length'on thiß subject, but I feel, somehow, that thero are a number of people who are under the impression that a canteen is nothirigj more or less than a drinking, saloon. I want to disabuse their minds on t&is. point. Properly fcondnolad, the canteen is a boon, and it will help to rid the town of an undesirable known as "the lighthouse."—l am, etc., A RETURNED SOLDIER. April 6, 1916.