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GRAVE CHARGES

TREATMENT OF'A RETURNED WOUNDED SOLDIER OPEN LETTER TO MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT [On November 3 last, Privato Roy Clemens, a returned wounded soldier, died at Hanmer. Tho circumstances surrounding his treatment from tho time of his arrival in New Zealand bv the Hospital Ship Maheno on June 12 last till tho date of his death ' are the subject of an open letter whioh tho deceased soldier's father, ■ Mr. C. H. Clemens, has addressed ■to members' of Parliament, and which we publish in part below.] Mr. Clemens says:— After tho declaration of war in 1914 my son, Private Roy Clemens served : with tho Now Zealand Garrison Artillery, and in 1915 left this Dominion as a ' membor of tho New Zealand Medical Corps. On October i, 1917, for gallantry . on the field of action he was awarded the 1 Military Medal. On October 12, 1917, ho was seriously gassed, and, in order to allow another" wounded man to bo carried , to the dressing station he refused the uso of a stretcher. Colonel Berueau, of Hanmer,'informed me-that when taking this action the boy knew ho was laying up , for himself intense suffering, and that • he was evidently prepared to sacrifice , himself for others. The lad was removed '. to England, and becamo an inmate at ' Walton-on-Thames Hospital. Nothing but praise can be said of his treatment there, and I have been assured, .jy ono 'who frequently visited that institution, that New Zealand parents can rest as- ' sured that soldier patients receive every -care and attention at Walton. On a later date the lad was placed on the hospital ship Maheno, and lauded in ' New Zealand on June 12, WIS. Ho wns .placed in the annexe attached to the - Auckland Hospital. There his treatment was such that the attention of General 1 Henderson had to be drawn to it. Before he (General Henderson) could do ' anything, mv wife, fighting for her boy s life approached tho superintendent of the' Auckland Hospital, and the result was his immediate removal from the - annexe to a privato room in tho main building. 1 Please note: Thi3 boy and other boys, being privates, wero placed in on open 'ward at the annexe. Officers less seriously ill were placed in private rooms. I am informed this is in accordance with "regulations." If this be correct, regulations should be nllered.-Can you tell me what would have happened if the ' boy's mother had not fought for his life? 'Can you tell mo what has. happened to boys who had not any one at all to fight for them? The Journey South. While in the Auckland Hospital no person could have been . treated with ■ more kindness and consideration than was my boy. Dr. Maguire and his staff apparently, did everything that could bo done. On Friday, October 25, Dr. Maguire stated that in order.to complete my son's cure he was to be transferred to Hanmer. On tho 6ame date I received a telegram stating the boy was to' leave Auckland on Sunday, October 27. I sent a special messenger to the Director-General of Medical Services, and made tho request that I might be allowed to travel from Palmerston to Wellington ' in the same railway carriage as my son. The request was refused, and I was advised to apply to tho Assistant Director of Medical Services, Auckland. Instead of doing this I approached Colonel Valintine, and permission was at once granted. Please note: Permission was refused : from the office of tho general, but .was granted from the office of the colonel. On Monday, November 28, I met my boy at Palmerston -North, and was astounded to find he had been sent ns an ordinary passenger, in an ordinary railway carriage, instead of .in a hospital car or sleeping car, and that no provision had been made' for him. to sleep .or .to lis down. For several months this boy . had been in a room which had been kept heated and his,,..bed ■ had ■.., never...been without hot-water bottles. Sunday, October 27, was a cold, rainy rough, bleak day. At 6.15 p.m. he was in his bed; at 6.50 p.m. he was in a. draughty railway carriage. So little control have parents over their invalid sons that my wife and daughter wero only allowed on the Auckland platform as a result of one of the railway officials contravening his instructions, and then they oniy got to the carriage after my son had been placed therein. Subsequent to October 12, 1917, the boy had walked, comparatively speaking, only' a few feet at a time, yet he wns taken froin his iwarm bed and obliged to walk from the 'motor ambulance at Auckland railway station along a cold, bleak, draughty platform. I find that when he had- . walked part of the way he was unable to i proceed further, and was placed on an ord'nary luggage platform truck and so wheeled to the carriage. When I saw • him at Palmerston North I was surprised 'to find, in view of the circumstances, how well he had stood the trip. He was cheerful, determined to make the best of everything, but deadly tired, although so small a part of his journey had been completed. • Arriving in Wellington it was found that no arrangements had been made to transfer him from the train .to the • steamer. In Auckland he had been moved in the ambulance, but in Wellington ' neither ambulance nor motor-car was 'available, and the orderly in whose I charge he was had to engage ono of the old lamshackle cabs to take the boy to ' Percival Street, where, for 1\ hours, he , rested on a bed. Because it was evident he ought not to continue the trip, I endeavoured to get into communication , with tho medical officers connected with 1 the Defence Department, but was not successful. I found the orderly had been ' instructed to leave. Hanmer on Wednos--1 day, October 30, and thus without some ! superior authority he was obliged to con- ; tinue tho trip. No arrangements had ; been mado for sleeping accommodation .on the steamer, and it was stated the , berthago list was full, I got into com--1 munication "with Mr. Kennedy, manager ! of the Union Steam Ship Company, and lowing to his kindly directions, used his 1 name when visiting the Maori, and. a good cabin was given to my boy and the orderly. I desire to make it quite clear that it is not inferred the Union Company officials would not have made the 1 necessary arrangements oven without my . using Mr. Kennedy's' name. On board ' the 'Maori I saw Colonel Magill and spoke to him regarding my-son. Ho visited •' the boy in his cabin, spoke a few words • to him, and promised lie would see him , safe to Hanmer. Christchurch to Hanmer.

At Christcliurch, before the Culver-! den train left, thoro was u wait of about an hour, and during that time my boh : had to remain--on the station premises. ' On arrival at Culverden, after a 69-mile i railway journey (and those who have ' travelled on this lino know what that i means) he was transferred to a niotor- > car and taken 21 miles to Hanmer It' was a bitterly told day, and I am assured that on that day the'drive, oven for a man in perfect health, was a trying one. By the kindness of Colonel Magill tho boy was transferred from Culverden to Hanmer in a motor-car instead of the motor om- ' nibus, as intended and arranged for by the authorities. On arrival at Hanmer he was in such a condition that, even before his uniform was removed, he was packed in hot water bottles, but was so ill that Colonel Berneau formed the opinion his life could not bo saved. On Sunday, November 3, my boy died, having suffered excruciating agony. In the papers of November 6, it is stated my boy died from gas-poisoning. At Hanmer I was informed he died from influenza and pneumonia. Why the discrepancy? Serious Charge. The above facts are 6tatcd as clearly as is possiblo for mo to do. On Thursday, October 31, I received a telegram from the Commandant, Hanmer, informing me of the serious illness of my son. I immediately telephoned to the DirectorGeneral of Medical Services, and told him that, speaking calmly and collectedly, I wished to' say that, if my son died, I would bo of the dohberate opin. ion that his death would bo due to tho way in which the authorities had ar- . rangod for him to bo transferred from

Auckland to Hanmer. I went to Hanmer hoping to be able to retract that statement, whon I returned to Wellington, but on November 5 telegraphed the Defence Ministor informing him that everything that I had learnt had only strengthened mo in my belief. The orderly placed in charge of my boy was one of those who nursed some of the Niagara influenza pationts, and I have l.een informed, and although I absolutely believe it, I cunno& vouch tor the statement— that ou October 27 he was nursing influenza patients till about i p.m., and at (i p.m. he took chargo of my boy. This Ido know to bo true: On arrival at Hanmer the orderly was immediately isolated, and on November i about nineteen of the staff were suffering with influenza. This day I received information that Corporal Littlo had died, This soldier was a fiue typo of man. He was one of those who nursed my son. Ho, Ifear, contracted his illness owing to having nursed my son. lam also informed that six deaths have occurred at Hanmer subsequent to the arrival there of my son and the orderly mentioned nbovc. The Expeditionary Force ifl a civilian one, and no man, be he officer or bugler, should rcceivo special favours. If, owing to the fortunes of war, my boy had died in France, England or New Zealand, I, and mine, would have grit our teeth and suffered in silence. There would have been no-cause for complaint. It was a risk which had to be run for the soko of Empire. . . . N On Saturday, November", 2, while in agouy, my son asked this question: "Dad, hare they made mo suffer like this becauso they thought I had not suffered enough alreadv?" Similar questions may have been asked by other soldiers, and for their sakes, I pass this on to -you: Surely the time has arrived wheu tho treatment meted out to returned soldiers should be governed by their necessities and not by who they arc or to whom they belong. The time has arrived when it should not matter whether a returned soldier is the son of a Cabinet Minister or of the most menial man in New Zealand; each should bo given of the best. It would- be idle and foolish to say that this has been done during the past four years. It is beyond question that invalided officers have received different, and better, treatment than invalided privates. Facts are solid things, and my statement can be proved to the hilt. In the name of my son I ask you: Is it right that a wellpaid, healthy officer should travel, at the public expense, in a sleeping car, while an invalid soldier is taken from his sick bed and sent by tho same train «s an ordinary railway passenger r 1 I ask: Is it right that a motor-car should be specially sent from Hanmer to Culverden to meet an officer while an invalid soldier travels from Culverden to Hanmer in the motor omnibus? I am informed that the motor-car at Hanmer was a present from a Ckristchurch citizen, and was given for the use of the soldiers. I cannot vouch for this, but if it be a fact why are invalided, soldiers compelled to travel by motor o'mnibus while 'healthy officers have the use of the car? 1 I desire to place on record that Dr. Maguire, so far as I know, did everything ho possibly could for my boy, and this statement also applies to the orderly sent from Auckland. I desire to place on record that at Hanmer nothing was left undone which could be done, and that my son, my wife, daughter, and myself received every consideration from the Camp Commandant. On November 6 I was informed by one of the officials that: "Since Thursday we have done all we can to redeem the mischief which has been done." Note the awful significance of theso words. Nothing can now alter the position. Tho question as to who is at fault does not concern me. I should like, to think that no similar case has occurred in New Zealand, but evidence points strongly in the other direction. . . . Letter to the Minister, In the course of a letter to Sir James Allen, Mr. Clemens says: "Naturally you feel it necessary to discover if blame is ito bo attached'in this particular case to any person, hut, personally, that is a matter in which I have but little interest. . '. . For four and a half years you have had a heavy burden to carry, and in my opinion have carried it well. I feel, however, the time has arrived when every member of • the House of Parliament should share with you the responsibility of ensuring that returned soldiers are treated in a proper manner."

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19181206.2.27

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 61, 6 December 1918, Page 5

Word count
Tapeke kupu
2,226

GRAVE CHARGES Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 61, 6 December 1918, Page 5

GRAVE CHARGES Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 61, 6 December 1918, Page 5

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