RETURNED SOLDIERS.

Taranaki Daily News, 31 December 1915, Page 5

RETURNED SOLDIERS.

ARE TrTKV BEING TREATED FAIRLY f INDICTMENT Of THE GOVERNMENT By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. "We feel strongly that the Government has not treated us fairly at all; in fact, that it has been playing fast and loose with us. The way in which promises made to us have been broken is enough to cause any man to think twice before enlisting." This statement was made to-day by a soldier who returned wounded from the front, at the end of October, and who said lie spoke on behalf of a number of others who are in the same position as himself. The main complaint on which he based his strictures was in regard to non-payment of messing allowance of 2s per day, which' was promised those wounded men who do not have to go into hospital, but are able to live in their own homes while recovering from injuries. He described his own case, saying it was typical of many others. After spending three months in Samoa with the advance party he obtained permission to return to New Zealand and enlisted with the Second Reinforcements. He fought on Gallipoli for a little over three months, was wounded, and came back in the Tofu.i rn October 20th. As he was not ill enough tr go into hospital lie has been living with his wife :>»" children, whom he lias been endeavoring to keep 011 Ins pay allowance of 5b per day, though he was definitely promised an additional 2s per day as ration money (the promise was repeated by an officer of the transport as it neared New Zealand), and though repeated applications had been made for it this allowance has never been paid. AH that they could hear of was an undertaking that payments would begV. on January let. "What good is that to us?" he demanded. "It may be all right for those wounded men who are returning to New Zealand now, but what about, us who have been here for months? Are we not entitled to the allowance just tlifi same as the. rest of them? I can tell you that ("is a day is littlo enough for a man to live on, especially when ho has a wife and children to keep, There isn't a penny to spare for luxuries, not even for a pipeful of tobacco. If we can't gel what we were definitely promised we will have to do something to enlist the aid of the public."