RETURN OF THE MAHENO

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2744, 12 April 1916, Page 6

RETURN OF THE MAHENO

INVALIDED SOLDIERS AN UNEVENTFUL VOYAGE By Telegraph—Press Association. Auckland, April 11. The hospital ship Maheno arrived at daybreak and anchored in the stream. She brings 32G returned invalids, mostly from Egypt, and some from England and Jlnlta. There are oight officers and four nurses. All are under tie charge of Lieut.-Colonel Elliott, of the New Zealand Medical Corps. There are 26 cot cases. One man lias lost both legs, and two one 'eg each. Others have lost an arm or an eye. One returned soldier is a remarkable example of surgical skill. He is a. young engineer, who had the buck of" his skull blown away. The wound was so skilfully patohed up that he is able to B'alk about.

The Auckland soldiers number 88, and for other centres the ship's contingent will be landed as follows:—Wellington, 99; Lyttelton, 63; and Dunedin, 66. The voyage passed very nleasantly and beneficially. The number of cot cases has been considerably reduced as the result of the voyage, and the less seriously wounded men—an overwhelming majority—are able to walk about without tho aid of a stick or crutch, and are looking fit and well.

Excent for one incident on the voyage, when a distress wireless message was received from a transport which had lost her propeller, the voyage has been uneventful. The crippled vessel was taken in t tow until the hawsers snapped,' when she had to be consigned to other care. When 'the ship nut into Albany the" men were allowed shore leave and were warmly received by the townsfolk.

The steamer which brought sick and wounded . soldiers to Auckland to-day was seen off by a largo crowd when she sailed for South shortly before 9 o'clock. She was delayed for threequarters of an hour owing to tho nonappearaiico of several firemen; they.returned later, however, and the ship left amid cheers. The speakers at the reception on the wharf were Sir Joseph Ward, the Hon. A. M. Myers, and tho Mayor.