NO NOISY INTERVIEW.

Taihape Daily Times, 27 November 1918, Page 5

NO NOISY INTERVIEW.

DEFENCE MINISTER DENIES REPORT. SOLDIERS' LEAVE GRIEVANCES ADJUSTED The Minister for Defence denies the report that on the occasion of his visit to Featherston Camp last' week a sergeant, representing the men, had a somewhat noisy interview with him and the Chief of Staff (Colonel Gibbon) with regard to certain grievances. "There is not one particle of truth in the statement,'' said Sir James Allen on Saturday. "The sergeant did not interview me at all at Featherston. He took the proper course, through his commanding officer and the C.G.S. to the Adjutant-'Gencral to discuss certain legal questions and grievances, and all were settled by the Adjutant-General except one and the Adjutant-General authorised him to see me, and he came to see me. That was on tho question of sick leave for men who have been in hospital. "It had been decided that we would hold men in camp until they were well enough to resume their civil occupations. This was done in the interests of the men themselves, because we believed that if we kept them under conditions of camp life we could -ooner restore thorn to complete health agnitf than if they were allowed to wander off to their homes. The men represented that many of them were marrifld, and were anxious about their wives and families. I therefore agreed that they should be allowed ~o go on sick leave, on condition that tii.y had their eight days' con/ale-cetie-?, {.j.d that the P.M.O. or a pniUcil board decided that it was rife for them to go away, notwithstandi.ls that tr-.'y were not quite restored >o ho u<-h. Under these conditions they get fourt'jMi days' sick leave pay." "The representations bade," ad'led the Minister, "were "nttrsy'in crdcr. j and the sergeant, instead of le'ig noisy, was quite the 30a'.way."