THAT WASTAGE OF MEN

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2812, 1 July 1916, Page 11

THAT WASTAGE OF MEN

Sir,—ln answer to your correspondent, who trades under the noni-de-pnune of "J.R.D." re "A. Wastage of Men," I would like to inform him that the men who .aro "enjoying tho. soft jobs" in caiiip iii the Medical Corps are unfit for active.service,.with, .the exception of a few who have been in' camp for periods ranging from four to seven months, and who cannot get away, as they cannot get men to. relievo tlicin. . As to tho "soft jobs," as your correspondent is pleased to.call thein, we must excuse his .ignorance as to what tho work really Is.' There aro men in the Medioal Corps wlio.work. their 12 hours, a day constantly, 011. their legs all. tho., time, without getting even a week-end leave, and in civilian life these same men liavo held tho. best..'of positions. "T.R.D.'s" .contention that if wo wero fit to go and beat Masterton at football, wo.were fit to go to tlio war, is all wrong, becauso it.. is .8 . well-known; fact that plenty of men who, have led an activo life, i.e., - bushwhackers, footballers, wharf-lumpers, etc.,' have offered themselves for service witli the forces, and havo been rejected by the medical authorities. I would .also like to state that tho team we played , against in Masterton was picked from men who aro unfit for activo service. Tour correspondent would lead the public to believe that wo would not go to the war, though wo liavo signified oiir willingness to go by signing on, but as ! wo 1 were not luoky' enough to pass the ■medical tests wo havo accepted home service so as to' allow men' who wero fit to go .arid fight, and 1' consider wo are doing our bit just as well as the men who have gono to the front, with.: the exception, of course,t. that we do not run quito the same risks. ■.-- ■ I will admit'it is the single' man's place.to go to the front, but why should liot "J.R.D.," who has a'wife and fain-, ily to fight for, sign on, and'take on ono' of theso "soft jobs" alongside the many other married men, and so reliove ono of us., who aro waiting for., tlio opportunity to get away. -Personally, ho is welcomo to'-my "soft .job."—l am, etc., ..' , ■ . FAIR PLAT. ~ \ ■' ■ Sir,—ln your issno of to-day I read a letter from "J.R.D." Although, oil somo points lie is correct, on othors he is entirely wrong. ' . While admitting there are somo occupying fat billets who aro eligible, all men who work in the positions mentioned do not come in.tie class ho mentions. For instance, a lot of these positions are filled by . men wlio have returned from tlio firing line. As regard hospital work, "J.R.D." should work in a Hospital ward in some of our military camps, then ho would find that a hospital orderly's-work is not light. For . instance,: I work anything from 12 to 15 hours a day, and if "J.R.D." was to follow roe about in an infectious ward .he would find that he never worked so hard in his life before, and at tho "same time would run as much risk as if exposed to Hun bullets. Trusts ing "J.R.D." will trv it,—l am, 'etc., .' "UNFIT-N.Z.11.C. ' .Featherston, Juno 27. ,