WAR GRATUITIES

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 277, 19 August 1919, Page 4

WAR GRATUITIES

VIEWS OF RETURNED SOLDIERS. Some discussion on the question of war gratuities took placo at last night's meeting of the Wellington Returned Soldiers' Association. Captain A. B. Sievwright said that the soldier should demand justice in. connection with gratuities and allow-' ances. If the war had gone on for another year it would have entailed a further cost of ,£20,000,000 to Now Zealand' for gratuities and allowances. The Dominion Executive of the association should draw up a scale and let the members know what the association was demanding. Each eandidato for Parliament should bo asked whether lie was in favour of expending at least in gratuities. If he replied in tho negative, then he should be told that tho returned soldiers would vote against him. . The association's organiser, LieutenantColonel G. Mitchell, said that tho matter of gratuities was considered by a number of officers in France, and tho opinion was expressed that tho amount proposed by the New Zealand authorities for war gratuities was very small. He bnd since heard that the South African Government had decided to pay tho amount of the British war gratuity, plus .100 per cent. The scale which had been proposed in New Zealand only amounted to about .£5 ss. for one year o£ service. It was an insult to offer such an nuiount to the soldiers. As a result of tho protest that had been made Ilia original proposals had been withdrawn. The authorities were now considering a new scale. Captain Sievwright strongly urged that tho association should announce its views us to what it considered was a fair scale of gratuities, and after further discussion it was decided that the executive of tho New Zealand Association should be asked lo prepare a scale, forthwith, the proposals to be considered at a meeting of the Wellington Association in .a. week's time.