THE CALL TO ARMS

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3043, 2 April 1917, Page 6

THE CALL TO ARMS

• ' .. ■■■ CONCERNING REINFORCEMENTS ........ ... FIGHTING STRENGTH MUST > BE MAINTAINED J' FINANCIAL AID TO SOLDIERS e - "• ' • d SIR JAMES ALLEN DISCUSSES ® THE POSITION. ll : ''V- ' ■ ~' - y By Telegraph—Prais Association. il , Dunodin, March 31. , . Interviewed ,by an "Otago Daily [.: Times" reporter., to-day, the Hon. Sir i- James Allen said:. a- "I intimated some time ago that v a brigade ,had been formed out of tho d' accumulated reinforcements in England, and it seems as though this fact has. s created misconception m the minds of iii some of the public which I want to 1 remove. These accumulations are due - to the fact that during the winter s months the casualties are light, • and . our practice has been to send a steady a How of reinforcements, with the object 7 of creating accumulations ready to - make up the'division to full strength - or as near full strength as possible dura ing the summer, campaign. Although y we had accumulated reinforcements be--1 fore the Somme push' began, the divii. sion was short at the end of,the sum- • mer, and it took some months to bring t it up to full strength again. It is • therefore necessary to have accumu-lations-to make up for heavy casualties, and peoplo must not think that because we have allowed these accumulations to r be put into a brigade a smaller num- (-. ber of reinforcements is required than we have been' sending! The brigade has been formed for some special purpose, and at the request of the War Office it will be attached to the' New Zealand Division, and will not. be used elsewhere.' • y "This attachment means that at some • particular time the division may go - into action over strength for the time " being, but judging from past experi--5 ence, when the summer campaign is' • over the division may be under " strength. If reinforcements are not • sent 1 Very montb in full numbers, this • depletion will be serious. " / "People must understand that we are 1 not sending more, reinforcements than 1 we have been accustomed to send, but ■ just the same number, and that the s number is based upon the percentage' ' of casualties .likely to occur in the ' division during the year. In other .words, people must not think that beJ cause we have accumulated reinforcef ments in the winter we have been send- ' ing too many. 1 l( I notice there is a feeling in the ? country that it_ would bo bottoi 1 to c cut; down the. Reinforcements because » some people say we cannot keep up our " production. I ■desire :to remove this 1 impression from the public inind, and ' .state most emphatically that it would ® be a disastrous policy to reduce re; ' infoxcements because that would mean : wastage of the division. •At all haz- *■ ardfi. we must Seep, up our reinforce- [ ments "bosauae that means the Divir sion retain.\fc its fighting strength. At 1 times its fighting strength may be somewhat below .fighting strength, but on the whole it-will maintain . its ! strength. This policy we are pledged ; to the Homeland and the'troops formj ing the New Zealand Expeditionary Force to maintain. , j To Keep the Country Going. As regards production, there can be iio doubt that the sending of 70^000 • or 80,000 men out of the country. makes ■ it more difficulty to -keep up our pro- , ducts, but this problem, I am perfect- ; lv certain, we can 'face if every ini dividual will set himself tho task to > help to do, it. I will give an instance. > As' ; I came down on Friday in the train' I saw a farmer driving a plough. In 'one hand^he-had the reins and in the- other he was nursing his. baby. This ,is typical of what I think every man ought to do qßcf eevry woman, at a time like this.; We should take on a little more work, and work longer hours. We have worked longer-hours 1 before and we can do it again without detriment to our health. In fact, my 1 experience is that if. Jou want to keep well you should work-hard. At a time • like this, then, we .want satisfactory ' organisation and thai is being , worked ; out'now by the ■ National '. Efficiency Board. "There are farmers who Eavo given up farming. We want them back for ; the time, being. There are civil servants who have given up work. We f want them'back, to work for the time 1 being. No man and no woman ought ' to be idle in this terrible time of strife. Lam "certain' that the people ; only require to be shown where they ' can get work nnd they i will do it. I ; know » tremendous lot is being done in this way, and I have never felt more proud of being a New Zealander than during the last few months, when I_ have realised how loyal and patrio- ; ifcic .our- people have been, how they '. have'faced such. m*a»»res as the Military Service Act with very little grumbling, and how they are setting themj selves to-work—men and women alike : —to do the best they can to keep the ( country going in the absence of our fighting soldiers." ' Financial Aid for Sir James Allen also touched on the new board established.to'deal with special financial help to soldiers, and said: : "A word may be added about the extra - .financial assistance to soldiers.' 'The • forms to be filled up in mailing appli- . cations for this assistance have been - in print for some time, and many haye been filled in and sent either to the Military Service Board or the Defence Department. I wish it to be clearly understood that any man called in theballot who appeals may at the time of the hearing of his appeal represent to the Military Service Board his financial difficulties with regard to rent, insurance, etc. The board may adjourn his j- appeal pending a decision as to how much will bo granted to assist to meet his financial difficulties. The amount may go up to £2 per week. ' If a balloted man does not wish to appeal he may fill in the form and send'it to the Defence Department, A.G. 2, Lambton Quay, Wellington. If a man volunteers and -yishes to'make a claim for extra financial assistance, he also should fill ! in the form and. send it to the sam'o ! address.- Soldiers who are at the front, may apply themselves or through their next-of-kin. Particulars will be found in the 'N.Z. Gazette' of January 10 last. In order to deal equitably with all these applications, a board has beon ■ set up in Wellington. A secretary, I hope, will be appointed to-day, and his business will bo to schedule all applications and go through them carefully 'for presentation to the board for consideration. The board will recommend either that the application bo granted or amended or refused. Those applications that have been received from the Military Service Boards will, after ' being dealt with by tho Central Board, bo returned to • the Military Service Board, which will decide whether the applications shall be granted or not. The Central Board will not travel, but wherever it sees fit so to do it will submit individual caßes to the local Milital'y Servico Board for inquiry, or will seek from any suitable a-venue evidence which will enable it to come to a proper, conclusion."