DEFENCE AND EXPENSE

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3158, 9 August 1917, Page 6

DEFENCE AND EXPENSE

Sir,—The people of New Zealand are to bo taxed very heavily to hold their end up in this dreadful war. That they will shoulder the responsibility manfully aid cheerfully—and womanfully aud cheerfully—goes without saying. But there is one thing that must bo ingisted upon by responsible members of the community, and that is that side by side with the national expenditure there must go efficiency—efficiency not only as it relates to the training and equipping of our fighting men, but in every other department of administration. Not unnaturally, in facing the problems xrising out of an entirely new set of circumstances, errors of omission and commission havo been made, but ,wo have now had ampio time to look over the whole ground, and plan out the future on definite and systematic lines. There is grave doubt as to whether we are really doing ".his. In regard to our Defence rdministration, for instance, I have a few suggestions to offer, not in any partisan or hypercritical spirit, but because I feel that arising out of the "comments I feel called upon to make good may arise. There are accumulating evidences that the Defence Department requires overhauling, not because those controlling it are not very fceea, intelligent, hardworking men, but because , ' they are the victims of a ready-made system in which expediency plays a greater part than efficiency. The Government owes it to thetaxpayers to havo this matter rectified. I know of a number of cases in mj own observation in which the Miost wasteful expenditure is going on without giving adequate results. One small ;nd typical instance occurred in Palmerston North only this morning. There is a Medical Service Board sitting here. It took ten men—two doctors, one doctors' orderly, one captain (attesting ohicer), two orderly-sergeants, one captain (dentist) one quartermaster, and two military police—a .whole morning to nut through six recruits. I don't know the explanation, but there ia the fact. These successful recruits will, if they appeal, go before a military service board comprising at least eight Stipendiaries—three on the Bench, one clerk, one 'Eomelinies two) Territorial offices, one nilitary lawyer, one sergeant clerk, and x he policeman (to swear witnesses and Keep.'order). Then there are the motor-car expenses (I heard of a case the other day in which two doctors travelled seventy miles up mountainous roads to see an unfortunate consumptive, and satisfy themselves that he was not a shirker!) Tho 'cod waste in the military camps, is, of course, notorious.

But I am assured that these things are only pin-pricks compared with the cumulative, heaped-up expenditures higher up. lam told of a department in Wellington—ill connection with the recruiting organisation, I believe—which employs an enormous number of i(irl clerks compiling huge quantities of statistics of extremely doubtful utility. And there aro matters which, having received confidentially, I cannot disclose, all going to indicate a state of affairs calculated in these times of uncertainty to make a New Zealander anxious. I repeat again: It is not the men, but the system which is at fault. There is only one remedy for this state of uncertainty. AVe don't want political indictments and flaunting Royal Commissions with unlimited publicity. What we do require is a confidential inquiry by competent men to adviso the Government as to how efficiency may be increased and expenditure minimised, in view of the fact that the war may last a very long time, and that we shall always require a large measure of military organisation. There is a tendency on the part of Ministers to resent criticism of the military departments, and to regard helpful critics of these departments as* mala iide; but this fact must not be overlooked: rii inquiry such as I indicate would open a numbc-r of doors of investigation, and, if handled, not as a fault-finding expedition, but as a helpful agency towards future betterment, produce very excellent results. Officers of standing in all grades of the service should, I suggest, he asked to ndvise— confidentially nnd quite feaness-ly-ns to where efficiency could be increased, wnsto eliminated, and expenditure curtailed. I know no better body nf men than the National Efficiency Board for this task, could they spare time from their already onerous selfimposed tasks for this further public seivice.— am, c ■ FRBBT ir, Palmerston North, August 7.