The Dominion. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1919. SOLDIERS' GRATUITIES

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 305, 20 September 1919, Page 6

The Dominion. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1919. SOLDIERS' GRATUITIES

The proposals of the Government in regard to gratuities and retrospective payments are likely to command general approval, in spite of the attitude of. those returned men who attended last night's meeting at the Concert Chamber of. the Town Ball. As the details arc set out to-day it will be seen that the initial provision made is for a Hat rate of Ib. 'Bd. per day, or £27 6s: for each year of service, from cm-' barkatioirto the signing of peace. It is evident that public sentiment favours a flat.rate, under which.no distinction will'be made between officers and men, and anything that is to be urged against it is no doubt outweighed by the fact that very often the sacrifice made by New. Zcalanders in answering the call to arms was as far as possible _ from I'fcing measured by their rank.in the Expeditionary. Force. , The flat rate Pioposcd, without, being extravagant, is reasonably liberal, and ought to give satisfaction to those it'most immediately concerns. As .the'.proposals'in their total scone very■ clearly show, the fixing of the. flat'rate was' the easiest part of the problem which' during months past has imposed a great deal of thought and. work on the Minister .of Defence and his officials. The payment merely of a gratuity on a basis, of service would have' hcen utterly Unjust to soldiers' and .their depen'd.ants, including.-the, dependants, "of the fallen, and would have given rise to all sovta of '-anomalies: _ It would have been.particularly unjust in respect of soldiers'who were either killed or.suffercd disablement in the. early stages of the war. Since any just arrangement in regard h' gratuities was hound to give full heed to .the claims of dependants, gratuities and retrospective - allowances of necessity had to be considered side by side. As a whole- the Government, in dealing with this 'matter., was faced not by a single Problem, but rather by a scries of decidedly perplexing problems. The total neglect of questions regarding dependants and.men who were, incapacitated early in the war was a striking feature of the ill-considered demand to which--some. Wellington returned-soldiers recently gave a .certain amount Of support. The demand w-asthat x gratuity of £150 should be' paid to each soldier for two years'.' service out of. New Zealand, "such sum to he more or less, according as the length of service is more or jess than two years, : every soldier to be put on an equal footing.without distinction as to rank." On all grounds except its advocacy of a flat rate, this proposal was manifestly 'crude and ill-considered, but its-most glaring defect was the absence of any-attempt to meet, in the interests either of soldiers or their dependants, the case of,men who were killed or incapacitated early in the war. In the proposals framed by. the Government justice is done to these soldiers or their decendants, as the case may be, and it is evident, that at all points painstaking and well-considered efforts have'been made to as far as possible exclude anomalies and the likelihoo'd of injustice,' .' ' '" The provision that as a minimum a- gratuity for two years' service shall be paid in of soldiers who died on active service is particularly to be commended. As far as it goes the payment of a gratuity for not_ less than eighteen months' service in the case of men who were returned to New Zealand from awar theatre on account of sickness or wounds also merits approval, but there does not seem to he any valid reason why this payment should not be made, like.that in respect of men who died, on a basis of two years' service. While this detail will bear 'reconsideration, both proposals are to be, commended heartily as giving effect to a sound principle and averting a serious injustice. They ensure that soldiers who were incapacitated after brief service, and the/ dependants of soldiers who were killed soon a:!(er. they reached the will .beat no disadvantage where gratuities arc concerned. These arrangements particularly merit approval as they bear upon the case of men who died or suffered disablement very early in the war. It would have, been a poor scale of gratuities that made no provision, except on a basis of 'length of service, for the heroes of Gallinoli' and their wives and children. While successful efforts have been made to arrange gratuities on a just and couitable basis, retrospective allowances and other payments have also been jevicAved boldly and in.a just spirit. A conspicuous item in this category makes the fates of separation'allowance to wives, children, and the guardians of motherless children paid in th? later stages of .the war retrospective to the beginning of the war. •' Allowances to widowed mothers are increased, arid 'here also the principle of retrospection is applied, though not universally, as in the case of wives and children. Justice is clone to New Zealand soldiers, sailors and nurses who served in other than New Zealand units in the arrangement which will give them the'difference between such pay and allowances as they received and those paid by the Dominion. Not the least meritorious item in the list relates to life.insurance. Where a soldier insures his life, 'any loading of premiums occasioned by war service is to be paid by thc i Government, up to a maximum insur-aiK'e-nf-'£soo. Looking at the total scale of payments and concessions now contemplated, 1t will be seen that provision is made for a reasonably .substantial giant to all soldiers and one that is proportioned, at least broadly, to the sacrifice incurred. .Retrospective, separation and children's ' allowances on top of fhe gratuity will no doubt afford welcome aid to many married men. Although the gratuity h payable on a flat rate and on a uniform basis except in regard to. men who died or were incapacitated on service—an exception admirably justified—lb" tot.-'!- eff-ct of dealing with gratuities and H.rp-wcl.ive allowances conjointly is that lumpsum payments are . provided for which' general)': will Iv irrcatcsl v-here the need is trr'alcst. The conditions under which 'the srants are t.i be made, as well as those under ! .which their amount is de'crminahle, bear witness to careful forethought and good judeniunt. For instance, the provision' Mint pavni.-uits may h» made to, o'- in trust for, the dependant* of a s'ddier who has nctrlectcd to provide for them _ is eminently just. .The total sum involved in the Government's pro.nnsals. more than six.jnillions sterling, is a worthy offering to soldiers

and dependants of soldiers who deserve well of their country. The gift could hardly have been apportioned with better judgment or in a manner better calculated to convey deserved and lasting benefits than in the schedule to which Sin James Allen has devoted much thougliG and painstaking effort. '