£10 BOUNTY

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 181, 20 April 1918, Page 8

£10 BOUNTY

A SUGGESTION. Sir,—ln view of the call from tLe Homo authorities for rnoro men-for the Army at the front, may I suggest to the wealthy men of this Dominion who cannot for various reasons go themselves that they should, say iitty of them, subscribe ilOl) each to a fund, making together ioliau (.were need bo no limit to their number), 'i'liis would, I think, very likely, ottering each man a bounty of .£lO, bring forward 500 men (again no limit necessary), stragglers and shirkers some of thcni maybe, but fighters, surely. This. 1 take ic, might assist the military ballot authorities. There must surely be lii'ty and more wealthy people in New Zealand willing to immediately come forward for such a noble and nece.-,-sary purine. I cannot see that the above suggestion, if undertaken, can in any way interfere with or inconvenience the Defence authorities proper. Many wealthy gentlemen in England in the good old times recruited companies to assist their country in her struggles, bearing the whole of the expenses out of their own estates—then why not now? Further to the above, 1 would very much desire that a proposal of. the above nature could be brought before the wealthy class of Australia. A .£lO bounty is some consideration, and would, J suggest, without doubt bring forward hundreds of good fighting men so necessary at the moment, none the worse fighting men for being "bounty men, for do not let ns forget that in the daj'9 of Nelson and others the men gathered in by the notable press-gangs of those nays liiade some of the finest bulldog fighting men. of the British Navy. Moreover, it is advisable, to use no stronger term, for Australia to do something big m the way of recruiting, and sending men of her own to assist her gallant sons already there-gallant men of whom every Britisher is proud; also lot Australia think how it will be with her when the war is over and we have ivon, which most assuredly we shall, when her men come over here as shearers and for other employment, to find facing them on the doors of the -hearing sheds and other works the fatal words, "No Australians need apply." I.ct them think of this, and their wealthy men do something at once in way of the above suggestion to wipe out the emudgc that is fast gathering on lier escutcheon. Thanking you m anticipation for publishing tins, and apologies for its length, but trusting it way be some goad.—l am, etc.. &