WAR BURSARIES

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 201, 20 May 1919, Page 5

WAR BURSARIES

A USE FOR WAR FUNDS

PROGRESS OF GOVERNMENT * SCHEME

STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER

The Minister of Internal Affairs and the National War- 'Funds .Council, oi which he is chairman, recently adopted a scheme for the granting of a number of bursaries to returned soldiers. Tho following statement on the working of the schema to (Into was issued.yesterday ivith the authority of the. Hon. G. W. Russell i In March last the National War Funds Council decided to grant bursaries to those members of the Forces who, having matriculated, had by reason« of their overseas war servicc been compelled to relinquish .thdir studies.

I The allotment of these bursaries was governed by the financial position of th& applicants, and as the number of bursaries to be granted was limited by the funds at the disposal of tho council, ths greatest care has been necessary in selecting the most necessitous cases. Up to tlie present 193 applications have been received, nnd of these 51 have been granted bursaries, amounting to JJ2200 per annum. Tho maximum amount granted in any case is <£50 per annum, but in many cases where applicants were living at liome or were earning an average income smaller amounts' were allotted, the average amount working out at per head. Many of the applicants were in receipt of war pensions, but in no case had such pension been taken into consideration in arriving at the financial position. , . In regard to the 193 applications received to May 15, the position is as follows;:— ■ ■ Bursaries allotted 51 s , Applications declined 515 ' Applications' deferred ■ 23 Applications withdrawn 6 - Applications under action 57 Total 193 The 56 applications which have been declined consist of: (a) Those from persons in employment and receiving a fair income ; (b) those whoso families' are in a ■position to give them 'assistance without .difficulty;, (c) in a few cases where profeasional typortsas to suitability were adverse. The 23; cases deferred comprise (a) application?. made by friends or relations on behalf of soldiers not yet returned; (b) where sufficient particulars havo not been supplied. Some of these cases will no*- doubt be granted bursaries. 'A. considerable .number of applications have been made by students under the impression that the bursaries were granted by the Government out of the Consolidated Fund, and that a statutory .right for such existed; and in this connection it should be clearly understood thnt; monej-3 at the disposal of the National AVar Funds Council are in no.sense Government funds, but are administered by the council ,in the same manner as any other patriotic fund raised by public subscription and will ;be applied solely, to help returned soldiers in need of other assistance than that already available. This fact has been acknowledged, and some of tho applications were voluntarily withdrawn' when tho applicants realised that the granting of a bursary to them would perhap; mean the refusal of a grant, to some applicant whose finances would'not otherwise enable him to continue hi.= studies.

The 57 cases under action comprise later applications, and theso will be dealt with as speedily as circumstances permit. Most of them are in the hands of the special committees nt the educational centres, to whom all-applications arc referred before they are finally dealt with by the. Selection C'ommitteo of the council. '••*••

As above pointed out, the amount .nt the disposal of this oiwieil is. limited. •At present .about .£'2o,ooo.is available'for ""general'•-.purjKSMs;''' inohidifl? bursaries, and'-as some thirty"thousand soldiers are now returning and have yet to be,given an opportunity of 'availing themselves of this benefit, t'ho greatest eare has to lie exercised in selecting those cases most in need of assistance.

Very ereat assistance in dealing with 'the matter lias 'been given by* the Returned Soldiers' Associations, the Patriotic Committees, am! the College Prairds.

• The present ,scheme applies to Jiintriculated students only.