RECREATIONAL HUT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 June 1941, Page 6

RECREATIONAL HUT

ERECTED BY CHURCH ARMY OPENED IN EGYPT. USEFUL FACILITIES PROVIDED. (N.Z.E.F. Official News Service.) CAIRO, May 26. Built by the Church Army, the official Church of England body, in conjunction with the N.Z. National Patriotic Fund Board, a new and attractive recreational hut was opened on Saturday in the New Zealand Base Camp. The hut, which is on similar lines to those in training camps in New Zealand, was to have been opened by the Prime Minister, the Right Hon. P. Fraser, but, owing to the extensive programme he has set himself during his visit to the Middle East, he was unable to be present. The ceremony was performed by Lieut.-Col. the Hon. F. Waite, Overseas Commissioner for the New Zealand National Patriotic Fund Board, while the chapel of Saint Michael and All Angels was dedicated by Bishop A. M. Gelsthorpe, D. 5.0., D.D. Visitors were welcomed by Bishop Gerard, Senior Chaplain of the N.Z.E.F., who spoke briefly of the work that was being done for the soldiers by the Church. He was very pleased with the hut itself, he said, and felt that it would prove adequate to the work the Church Army was attempting to do.

“I woul,d very much have liked to attend at (She opening of the hut,” said the Prime Minister in a message read by Col. Waite, “but I regret that my programme has prevented me from joining you. I should have welcomed the opportunity of paying a tribute to the work that is being done with Patriotic Funds to provide amenities for our boys in Egypt.” In giving an cutline of the way in which patriotic funds were used for the benefit of the troops, Col. Waite drew a contrast between the methods of the last war and the present one in the collection of money for the benefit of the fighting forces. Last time, he pointed out, there were some 600 bodies collecting money for soldiers, but there was too much overlapping. It had become obvious that it was necessary to make some regulations to ensure that there would be no such overlapping again. The National Patriotic Fund Board had been formed, and 11 Provincial Councils set up. All money collected by these Provincial Councils went into the national fund, and that was the only channel through which it came overseas. Exemptions had been made in respect of religious bodies which were allowed to collect amongst their own people, but the money still came through the national fund. In that way, he said, the money had been collected for the building of this hut. It had been paid into the Patriotic Fund, the only reservation being that the Church Army be allowed to build one hut in the base camp. "I have the greatest pleasure,” he concluded, “in declaring this hut open on behalf of the Prime Minister. I wish to express the hope that many happy and prosperous times will be spent in the hut.” All those present joined in the singing of the hymn “The Church's One Foundation.”

After the dedication of the chapel by Bishop Gelsthorpe, afternoon tea was served for the first time. Built of brick, with an eye to coolness. the building has an attractive exterior and inside is airy and roomy. It is tastefully furnished in plain style with wicker tables and chairs. There is a piano, a radio, a buffet where tea, cakes and soft drinks will be sold, and a library and writing room. Draped at one end of the main hall is the Union Jack, while recessed at the other end is the Chapel of St. Michael and All Angels.