REPATRIATION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17687, 26 July 1919, Page 9

REPATRIATION.

THE CANADIAN SYSTEM \ COMPARISON WITH THAT OF NEW ZEALAND. (Pwt United Press Association.) WELLINGTON, July 25. ■ ITio development of the Canadian system Oi repatriation has many features of intercst to xsew Zeaiandera, especially as two countries in handling the problem Independently have both adopted practically th °, sam ? T Canada commenced Minister of Repatriation, as was at nrst proposed in New Zealand. Thero was a strong demand in this country for the abojtion of the Ministerial Repatriation Board m favour of one Minister of Repatriation, and it is interesting to see tliat Canada, after some experience of this system, remodelled its repatriation organisation on lines very similar to those in operation in New Zealand. Hero, we have a Repatriation Board, comprising four Ministers whose departments are concerned with .different aspects of the civil re-estab-lishment of tho soldier, while Canada now controls its repatriation activities through a Ministerial Board of six, comprising the ■Minister of Immigration and Colonisation (who is the chairman), the Minister of Soldiers Civil Re-establishment, the Minister of the Interior, the Minister of Labour, the President of tho Privy Council, and tho Minister of Agriculture. It is recognised in Canada, as in this country, that wrul© there must be one coordinating body, the Repatriation Board the machinery of repatriation can be worked by many other departments and organisations extending their responsibilities to specially provide for the returned soldier ■the Canadian Department of Labour conducts employment offices, while tho Department of the Interior deals with land settlemoat and advances of money for land purchase and improvement, in the same way as the Lands D&partment in New Zealand, '.The Canadian Department oi tho Interior has a holdi eis {settlement Board to deal with this phase of !ts work Tha permanent work of the Department of Agriculture is adapted at certain points to assist soldier settlers, as it assets farmers generally which is exactly how the New Zealand Department of Agriculture is aiding in the work of repatriation. The Canadian Department ot linimgratiou and Colonisation superintends the return of soldiers' wires and dependents a duty in New Zealand undertaken by the Department of lmin.fr ration, which renders assistance to the wives and dependents in the same way as if they wore nominated or assisted immigrants an olhcer meeting each returning transport to give advice and help in the way of occur ing travelling facilities and accommodation. bix Ministers of tho Canadian Goveri mont constitute a Repatriation Committee which aims at coordinating the work of ttie pubuc departments as indicated above and the activities of the Provincial Government Departments and such- pubio organisations as social and fraternal societies and retiu-ned soldiers' associations. This Ministerial oommittoe works through th« Department of Soldiers' Rc-establishment, tho l\ew Zealand counterpart of which is known aa the Repatriation Department Canada possesses a Department' of Public Information, and goes in for a great deal of publicity work m conncction with ... returned soldiers' re-estahlishment in civil life. New Zealand has no official department of the same typo, but the Repatriation Board have already secured the help of tho newspapers in publishing information? , a regular supply of articles on demobilisation and the facilities provided for returned soldiers have been distributed to the newspapers by a journalist engaged by the Defenoo Department, so tliat in this—although not on the same scale —Aew Zealand's system is parallel with that of its sister dominion. One of the most effective publicity efforts in Canada has •been the display of a fivereel film depicting military hospital life industrial re-training courses, and the fitting of artificial hmbs. Th* film k entitlS Canadas Work for Wounded Soldiers " faofe of slide lecture notes, accompanicd by lantern slides, are districted free of charge to those who are capable of ]<*toring on tho subject of repatriation, and advertismg posters are also supplied cra.tas to tho lecturers. All the Canadian wScers concerned m repatriation aro kept wrO! informed on tho euhjscfc by an officii magazine, attractively printed with i coloured cover, and entitled "Baok to Mufti—a magazine m the interests of Gmn, oiana who Lav© been <Oror