SOLDIERS' FINANCIAL AID

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 136, 4 March 1919, Page 8

SOLDIERS' FINANCIAL AID

-$ : ' PROGRESS REPORT A REDUCTION OF BUSINESS 'So far as new grants are concerned, the 'oldiers' Financial' A ssistance Board lins o deal with rapidly declining business, nly 92 new grants having been authorised during Janunry. The board verificaion section, however, had a rather busy nonth, with the result that grants in Uo /ewer than 972 cases wero completed and approved, representing an annual expenditure of .£19,694, lvhioh brings the gross annual liability in :espect of 10,409 cases to ,£313,525. , This large amount repreeents'money which the Statu has granted as afree gift; 1 without obligation to refund, to help the toldicr in'meeting obligations which he cannot cover unaided from, his military pay and allowances. . •' . A. summary of the r onthly grants illustrates the wide range of the assistance rendered to our soldiers and their dependants through this agency. There were 4237 .separate warrants, representing an actual expenditure of the items being as follow:— '"'.'' £ s. d. Bent 4,765 14 11 Interest 2,952 17 1 Instalments 134 12 2 Bates 394 11 2 Life Insurance' 3,232 5 5 Fire Insurance /V 2 5 0 Lodge Tees , 39 15 5 National Provident Fund 44' S 4 Confinement and Surgical Expenses 337 5 5 Miscellaneous 135 4 11 The board; in its monthly report, stater, that it has had good reason to challenge the origin of certain- charges published in a few newspapers, chiefly in resnect to non-payment of'grants, and it suggests that before charges based on the statements of soldiers or dependants are published care 6hould be taken to make inquiry from tho Soldiers' Financial Aa; sistance Department, as experience of some- of these criticisms which have been published.showed that tho charges were groundless. One applicant,' for instance, stated that lie had "stirred up tho matter considerably by writing to tho news, papers ,and nutting his case before sev-eral-political-associations." His grievance, which related to non-payment of a fire insurance premium of 10s. lOd. per annum, was gone into, and tho applicant then admitted that perhaps ho had been a.little hasty. As a''setoff against the criticism's, tho board lias in its possession hundreds of letters of thanks which are very gratifying. This ■ evidence' conies from soldiers' wives, who have beon very appreciative, and from the soldiers themselves. One, who had secured the help of the board in meeting his obligations, upon entering camp, wrote, in the course of a long letter of thanks:—.

"I can assure you that such treatment goes a long way towards giving one a stout heart to proceed to camp on time and also to'obey the lawful commands of his superior officer while serving his King and country." • ■ There have, been applications from returned soldiers for retrospective grants, the men stating that had they known of the,existence /of the board they would have made an application earlier. The board has had to advise them that the regulations make no provision for granting financial assistance after the discharge of the Boldier. In reply to one organisation whioh sent forward a request of this nature the board stated that it was to be regretted that an application' had not been lodged on behalf of the soldier, but it was safe to assume that many man were unmarried and without dependants, and that in such cases it was doubtful if the board would have authorised a grant in the first place, seeing that the regulations were designed to prevent undue hardship by reason of service with tho'Expeditionary Force, and for no-.other purpose. The association was informed, however, that it was still open to undischarged members to make application for grants, which would be made as retrospective as possible, viz., for a period of three months prior s to the date' of the application, provided; the applicant was serving;with the Expeditionary Force during the whole of the perioa.