SOLDIERS' RIGHTS

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 62, 7 December 1918, Page 3

SOLDIERS' RIGHTS

RETROSPECTIVE ALLOWANCES REPRESENTATIONS TO MINISTERS. Representatives of the Returned Soldiers' Association met members of Parliament in the Parliamentary Building yesterday morning to discuss the question of retrospective .allowances. There was a good attendance of mein--bers.

_ Sir. J. D. Harper, president of the Wellington Returned Soldiers' .Association, stated the case of the retrospective payment of separation allowances at the prosent rates. He said that the association had waived some of its claims, but it felt that, it could not drop the claim made on behalf of the dependants of tho married men jyho had gone to the front as volunteers in tho early stages of the war. Those men hud responded to the call made for volunteers during times when every willing man,was-need-ed to maintain the strength of tho Army. They had been -assured that these dependants would be adequately provided for. Tho allowances paid in those days admittedly had not been adequate, and the dependants in many cases bad suffered real hardship while the men were away. Homes had.been broken '.;p, savings had been dissipated, and many of the men had returned in a very" . much woi-je innanckil position than when they went away. Others had) not returned at all, and their dependants hid Lover got the benefit of the increased rntes of allowances introduced at a later sfope of (lie war, 'after the conscription law had been put into operation. The returned men felt that it was not fair that the soldiers irho went forward at tho beginning nnd took part in the fighting during tho first years of the war should be placed in a worse position financially than the men who took up arms, either eompiilsorily or -voluntarily, much later. Tho association estimated that the money required to pay th«; allowances at the present rates retrospectively would be between iMOCOOO and .£500,000. The Minister of Defence had Estimated that the cost would be ,£600,000, If this estimate was correct, the amount involved was equal only to the cost of two week's additional war for New Zealand. Mr. Harper emphasijfed that the prompt response or the volunteers had been vitally important to the Dominion in Wli and 1915. Tho men had been asked to como forward, and they had responded without counting the cost or stopping to bargain about the rates of pay and allowances. Tho Government and Parliament'had decided, to give, lame war bonuses to the members of the Public Service- and to -pay some millions of money to. the liquor trade in the event ot Prohibition being carried. In view of the generous treatment of persons for whom the soldiers liiid fought, tho representatives of the returned men were emphatically of" opinion that justice ought to be done to the married volunteers. ■

Mr. A. Curtayno said the association simply asked Parliament to'put tlie'mair--necl volunteers financially on the same footing as tho soldiers who came later. It was simply a matter of rectifying an injustice. The scale of allowances had improved gradually as the war advanced and as recraitiiur passed from voluntaryism to- conscription. Tho present scale was very much more liberal than the scalo that had been operating during 1915 and 1918, and the men who had fought in those years felt that they were justified in asking that their dependants should bo placed on tho same footing as the dependants of the. men who had gone forward during the last twelve months or so.

The Minister of Defence (Sir- James Allen), said that nobody valued more highly than he did the services'of the volunteers who had joined tho Army in tho early stages of the war. But he was bound to point out that the men had onlisted under definite conditions. The Government had decided that it could not grant retrospective separation allowances. The scale of allowances had 'been raised in the later stages of the .war because the Government was then compelling men to go to the front, and so wns forcing into.the Army men who had heavy- domestic responsibilities. It had been eeeii during 1917 that married men probably would have to l>o sent compulsorily, and the scale had been raised to meot such cases. The Minister mentioned that under the scheme of gratuities provided in the Expeditionary Forces Bill now before the House tho married men would get more proportionately than the eingle men. The difference in favour of tho married men, however, would not bo as great as it would be under the proposal "'put forward by the association. He could say frankly that if he had known in-the early days of the war that married volunteers would eventually claim extra allowances, ho would not have accepted their services. Ho regretted that the question had now been raised. He would have been prouder of the men if (hoy had not pressed this point.

Mr. J. P. Luke said ho felf; bound to stato that justice should 'bo done as between the State tvud the men. Mr. L. M. Isitt said it was an intolerable thought that the volunteers of the early years of the war should bo left in a 'worse financial position than the men of the la.t«r drafts, Mr. H, M'Callum: We all say that. Mr. J. I. Fox, speaking for the returned soldiers, said that they had kept their faith with the Government, and they wanted a square dei\l. The-return-ed soldiers had ■ kept out of politics, though splendid baits had been offered them. They had done nothing of a political nature to embarrass t.lio Government during the war. But the war was over now a.nd they were-pressing for the recognition of a. juet demand. A refusal on the part of the Government to recogniee their rights would compel the soldiers to bring the issues before the electors when the opportunity < ffered. The House shonild have a.n opportunity to decido the question that was being raised by the deputation, and the .association would know then who wetre Hie friends of the returned soldiers and who were not. Mr. G. W. Clinkard suggested that jus. tice -should be done to the early volunteers before benefits were given to those men who had had the advantage of the improved scales of allowances. A portion of the gratuity money should be used to pay the retrospective allowances.The Minister of Defence said that he would place the matter before Cabinet with a view to having such an arrangement made. This statement was applauded by the representatives of the returned soldiers. ' •