RETURNED SOLDIERS.

Taranaki Daily News, 1 June 1920, Page 2

RETURNED SOLDIERS.

THE DOMINION ASSOCIATION.

LARGE INCREASE OF MEMBERS,

By Telegraph —Press Association. rpi , ~ Wellington, May' 31. N» 7 i , Hnual conference of the «t;I and , Ketun Soldiers' Associat on opened on Saturday night and continued throughout the present , A i ar S" number of delegates Af +i ese ' an< l ,Dr. Boxer, president w tne association, occupied the chair. t J - F - L » k *' The annual report stated that during miJS -?? nr the follow »'g distinrnlioi V,6,tors and soldiers have enrolled as members: H.R.H. the Prince of Wales (life patron), Lord Jellicoe rll We members, MajorSir A. Russell, General Chavtor, Brigadier-Generals Hart and Stewart. i VZf 3 ' l '' l ™ en from 25,000 •o ~7,000. During the year there sprang wto existence the British section of tne association, composed of genuine exNew Zealand Expeditionary Force men, and hew Zealand members of other orces. There had been 'several anoma«es in respect to gratuities, and a committee had now been set up tp deal with these matters. The jpast year had been one of unrest as regards' internal organisation, and a satisfactory arrangement had not yet been come to. At present headquarters was more or less the scapegoat of all the associations.

REPATRIATION SETTLED.

White moving the adoption of the andent rr£ aTld ha,atwe - shcct the presiso much , ' S ? that th ®y llad 80 much concerned m their interna! afmlZ.l tl 'F had ' t0 a «""* extsnt > miaaed opportunities for doing good for tW V t)° , rpturned - H e wished to lank the heads of Government departments for their assistance. ]f the nsS't"t] liad p beeil to some extpnt »P mnr ' Government it had been nore or less m a friendly way, for the thZTt ent WM q " ite willin S to take em into any concern or movement for tin. -ood of their comrades, and the with' M Way t l > °- countr y ljad grappled with therepatriation movement had TW " Warm il PP«ciation. eerfntn mCn yet wl, ° wanted certain things, but as far as repatriation wa4 concerned the problem had been virtually settled. One of the most important things to come before the conference was reconstruction. Other speakers referred to the opportunities for good work on the part of the association, TUBERCULOUS MEN.

The question of tubercular patients was discussed at length. Dr. Boxer said JLnd ?" ( i Übem ' lol,s to undertana that the association had their nro J n tw S !. S a ', heart ' and ho strongly urged that a chest sweep-up" be made. Ihe conference decided to urge that ■l3. men, on being discharged from the sanatorium, should be provided by the Defence Department with permanently , , s ' ie il ers . Properly furnished with bed, beuuing, etc., and that where ;lrnl n n7 nS a r! 10 " Se llaving a veran(lali 1 lie Defence Department should defray the expenses of having the vcran- ,. i « las sed m and furnished with bedding, etc. It also urged that the personnel of all sanatoria should, wherever possible, be ex-T.B. men, and that a compulsory examination be made evensix months of T.B. men, out-patients, and dischargees (not for pensions) bv a specialist or by the specialist who treated the man's case, and that the Detence department be responsible for the transportation of the patients to the specialist. That it be recommended to the DG.M.S. to send a chest expert through New Zealand to examine all chest cases from the New Zealand Force. HELPING PATIENTS.

Dr. Boxer stated in approaching the J..8. question that the point of makiii"' each man his own employer should not be overlooked. A man might have the greatest willingness in the world, but sometimes on account of his disability he may not always be able to work as hard for an employer as he would like to do.

It was resolved that a special medical comnnttee of five be set up by the to act in an advisory capacoL*? t i ,e .. head( l uw- ters personnel, to consist of three returned chest experts and two T.B. patients. The conference also resolved that where medical superintendents of sanatoria recommend that_ treatment in Australia or efeewheie woulu be beneficial to T.B. patients the cost of their treatment and transportation abroad should be borne by the Government.

vA deputation wUI wait on the Prime Minister to-day to place the remits of the conference and T.B. before him, and it wa a recommended that-stress be made ot the point mentioned by Dr. Boxer. Mr. Andrews (Auckland) suggested Tnw,, :l p P n ?,^, Cetill '" be hcld > n the Town Hall, Wellington, at tho conclusion of the conference to make known tne association's desires and demands.