The Dominion. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 1919. A RECORD OF GOOD WORK

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 303, 18 September 1919, Page 4

The Dominion. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 1919. A RECORD OF GOOD WORK

The story of a very fine achievement is told in the report on repatriation which was submitted' to the House of Representatives on Tuesday. The nature and magnitude of the achievement are best realised by recalling for a moment the general uneasiness and doubt which obtained last year when the Repatriation Department was constituted in its present form. At that time the Government was blamed, not, without justification, for having delayed l unduly in rounding off its repatriation proposals, and many people questioned whether the machinery then set up would serve its intended purpose. It is to be admitted to-day that these doubts and fears have been ■tery pleasantly falsified. The report just presented to Parliament deals with repatriation operations up to August 20 last. At that date 66,000 soldiers—considerably more than three-quarters of the total .number to be repatriated—had been returned to the Dominion, and the total number of men in all parts of the country drawing unemployment sustenance was only sevenken. Taking account of all that it implies in the way of helpful effort and smooth-working organisation this is a record to be proud of, and one that'reflects a great deal of credit on the Repatriation bepartitiftit and organisations, and on the Ministers who have exercised irmernl supervision. Of ihemem- 5 lipi's of the Ministerial Repatriation Board, as it was constituted last vf'ar, Messrs. Mao Donald -and Hanan resigned with Stu Joseph Wakd. Mr. Hermes, , its chairman, and Mr. Guthiue remain in With excusable pride the Director of Repatriation (Mr. Samson) seta in conlrnst to the .New Zealand record of 17 men. on~ unemployment sustenance out of more than 66,000 returned the experience of Australia and that of Great Britain. The Commonwealth Repatriation Minister is quoted as stating that up to the "end of February last, out of 114.000 soldiers returned' to Australia, 5000 were receiving sustenance while awaiting cmuloymcntA Britain, it is noted, paid £14,300,000 in unemployment sustenance during the five months following the armistice. Tho incomparably better, record established in New. Zealand affords, of course, no excuse for slackened effort or for neglecting • anything that will assist the soldier to resume Hie place to 'which he is entitled in civil life, but it demonstrates that the enterprise of repatriation is being well and efficiently conducted in this country, and justifies a belief that it will be so conducted until the last demand has been met.

The fact is fairly emphasised'in the report on repatriation that the task of organising assistance has been much lightened by the admirable spirit of self-reliance generally shown bv the soldiers of the Dominion. Of those who had returned up to last month, 75 per cent, did not ask for assistance, which • is taken to'.mean that they returned to their pre-war billets, or found no difficulty in obtaining such work as they desired. As the renorfc points out, this state of affairs implies not only that soldiers are showing a self-reliant spirit, but that "the employers of the Dominion have risen to the occasion, are taking back tbeir old employees (many of whom have been drawing half-pay while on active service}, and in addition to this are in mnny cases making room for others." While its lahours have been I'ghtened to- this extent, the Department and its subsidiary organisations have done an immense amount of useful work in rendering assistance in one form or anothor to some 25 per cent, of the soldiers who have been returning in recent times at the rate of 6000 a month. As regards a large proportion of these.men assistance is required chiefly in finding suitable employment, but the provision made for those who need' more extended heln is comprehensive and varied, ji-nri is still being amplified in some directions, Particularly good work is being done in connection with the training schemes under which the Repatriation Department supports or contributes to the support of soldiers ancl the widows of soldiers while they are .■■ undergoing vocational training. In this way the Government is adequately meeting the case of partially disabled men, of thce who had not acquired a trade or calling when they enlisted, of apprentices whose indentures were interrupted by war service, and of others who have special cjaims to consideration and special needs to be met. It is satisfactory to note that the scheme of training in factories and workshops which has developed on a considerable scale has been greatly-facilitated by the co-operation of trade unions. In all training has been arranged to date under the various schemes for 1027 men, of whom 1615 are still in training. More than a thousand of those in the latter' category aro established in factories and workshops, their earnings being made up by the State to ;GS per week. Free use is being made also of the technical schools, and a fair number of men have been and are being trained on State farms and at special farms of instruction. There ought be room still for n considerable extension uf this branch of repatriation. As regards the total scope of the enterprise, it is to be noted that while nearly 2COO men have received rir are receiving vocational training. 1178 have received loans not exceeding _£UOO as an aid towards establishing or purchasing businesses, and 2400 have been granted smaller loans for the purchase of furniture,.tools of trade, etc. The latter loan? arc free of interest. When it is remembered that under the administration of the Lands Department more than 2000 soldiers

'had, at theend of July, been established on farms, and many others had been given financial assistance as settlers, while over 1-500 had been granted loans to purchase houses, substantial support is given to a contention that ' New Zealand is dealing with its fighting men in no niggardly spirit. The excellent record of the Repatriation Department is the more heartily to be coSimended since there is every indication that it is working on sound lines which ensure that the results accomplished will be oE permanent value to the soldiers they immediately benefit and to the country. For the painstaking thoroughness and attention to detail with which varied and well-considered measures of assistance haw been developed p.nd applied it is evident; that a, great deal of credit belongs to the district boards and to the committees which are working actively in numerous towns and centres all over the Dominion. As Mr. Herries observed in -Parliament on Tuesday, the, success of the repatriation scheme—and on the facts it is conspicuously successful—i:s to be attributed largely to the policy of decentralisation,'