GIG UNDERTAKING

Evening Star, Issue 24328, 17 October 1942, Page 4

GIG UNDERTAKING

AREA RECORDS INSPECTED

QUARTER MILLION PffZN BALLOTED

Tiie inspection of Army records now being carried out in the local military area’by officials of the adjutant-gene-ral’s office is a much bigger undertaking than might be thought on first consideration. The purpose of the audit is to see that no man called in a ballot is in any way evading ids responsibilities to serve, and this entails a complete checking of all the many files which cover a man’s military history, which begins from the’ moment his name appears in a ‘ Gazette.’ Major C. T. Andrew, deputy assistant adjutant-general, who is supervising the local inspection, explained that the cheeking up does not confine itself only to men passed at a medical board as fit for service, cither within or beyond New Zealand. The records of Grade 111. men are as closely examined, while men who have applied for service with the Navy or the Air Force are also never lost sight of. Where men are given a deferred medical report the records are inspected to sec that further examination is not unduly deferred, The histories of men appealed for and whose applications are adjourned sine die; of those who are granted certain periods of exemption from service ; and of those who are released from camp for specified periods are also observed to see that no irregularities creep in. In fact, the only records which are of no account are those pertaining to men definitely placed in the Grade IV. category, for whom the Army has no use.

Apart from determining the correctness of the way in which the records are maintained, the inspection has another purpose, which is to ensure that the fairness of the ballot system is observed so far as possible where the .posting of men are concerned. It is only natural that men with three children called in a recent ballot should resent being posted to camp while single men called in much earlier ballots are, for no apparent reason, still unposted, and tlio inspectors are continually on the watch for anything that would suggest the fairness of the ballot system was being disturbed. In view of the rigidity of the inspection it should bo obvious that no man can expect to evade his responsibilities once bis name has been included in a 1 Gazette.’ Moreover, any man employed in any Army office would! ibe foolish to abuse ids trust by deliberately mislaying files, withholding postings, or otherwise interfering with the rightful procedure. Since the inspections have been started a fairly high standard of clerical work has been revealed, which has been most satisfactory, for the work is intricate, and in most cases the staffs have to be trained before being given their particular tasks. There have been irregulai’ities discovered, but these have been of an accidental nature, occasioned through the inexperience of the staffs engaged. - Frequent changes in staffs up till now, brought about through transfers of men to other than clerical duties, have not hedged to bring about an even standard in the office routine, but this position should improve from now on with the appointment of so many women for the duration. Although the work of inspection is confined only to the balloted men, this is a tremendous undertaking. It will probably come as a great surprise to most people to know that in the 1/ ballots so far gazetted 263,842 men have been called up, of whicli total Dunedin has contributed 19,086. To follow the careers of so many men through the many and diversified forms which help to compromise their history files is a long yet, so the inspectors say, not a tedious job for the staff of 13 men employed in the Dominion. In Base Records in Wellington there are hundreds of thousands of files, 'A copy of every file is kept whether the man concerned is in the Jiattle zones overseas or in a camp in Now Zealand. A copy of bis history follows him overseas, but .wherever be is Base Records does not lose sight of him until lie may be finally discharged and reabsorbed into civilian life.