THOSE FIVE MILLION FAMILIES

Evening Star, Issue 23693, 28 September 1940, Page 9

THOSE FIVE MILLION FAMILIES

PROPOSED EVACUATION SCHEME A 66S YEARS' JOB A city accountant has gone to some trouble in endeavouring to carry to a logical conclusion the suggestion which was conveyed to the Prime Minister hy the Dunedin branch of the British Immigration Club, and details of "'('’J’h appeared on Thursday evening. Ibs suggestion was that Parliament should bo called together in order to discuss the possibility of accepting 5,000,000 families from Homo, with the British Government’s evacuee grant. JJie accountant puts the result of his labour thus :

“ We will assume that the 5,000.000 families referred to average two persons apiece, giving'a total of 10.000.000. Leaving out of consideration the question of housing, employment, convoys, etc., we will assume again that 20 passenger ships were available (which, of course is not the case), andjthat they would carry on an average 250 persons (which they actually would not, as some have accommodation for 12 passengers only). Now, the fastest boots via Panama travel from England in 30 days, and. allowing for discharge and loading of cargo at both ends, it wopld not be possible to maintain an average of throe return trips per annum. But we will assume that thev-could do three return trips; this would give a total evacuated to the Dominion of 15,000 persons per annum ; though this would be quite an impossible feat oven in peace time, “ There is a good deal of assumption about these figures, but one thing is certain, and that is that Hitler, whether he dies with his hoots on or not. would be well under the sod before the last of the families were evacuated, for this process would take but 66(3 years. The British Government, after months of organisation, has succeeded so far in evacuating less than 3,000 children to Canada, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand.- „ “ Let us, even though the Empire is at war, retain our sense of proportion.”