PATRIOTIC APPEAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 16 February 1943, Page 2

PATRIOTIC APPEAL

1943 WAIRARAPA CAMPAIGN COMBINED EFFORT. QUOTA SYSTEM ABANDONED ' EXCEPT IN NORTH. “If the people of this district think that our men overseas are not good enough to support then I say God help us,” observed the chairman, Mr T. Jordan, at a meeting of the Wairarapa district patriotic committee representatives held in Masterton last night. The district quota was stated to be £26,703. South of Mauriceville and Castlepoint counties, to Palliser Bay, the appeal will be a combined effort. Pahiatua and Eketahuna boroughs and counties and Akitio County will adhere to the quota system. The zone secretary, Mr G. T. O’Hara Smith, reported that collections held over from the 1941-42 appeal and made subsequently were as follow: Masterton £5BB, Eketahuna £290, Carterton £l7B, Greytown £lB, Featherston £202, Martinborough £348; allocation from St. John and Red Cross collection, £110; total, £1,734.

Under the quota system, on the basis of 50 per cent population and 50 per cent capital value the following are the figures for the Wairarapa district: Pahiatua Borough and County, £3,311; Eketahuna Borough and County, £2,003; Akitio County, £1,268; Masterton Borough and County, Mauriceville and Castlepoint counties, £10,374; Wairarapa South County and Carterton Borough, £3,886; Grey town Borough and one-third Featherston County, £2,003; Martinborough Borough and one-third Featherston County, £1,936; Featherston Borough and one-third Featherston County, £ 1,922. These figures are only slightly less than last year’s quota. It was decided to make the campaign 1 as short as possible. The appeal will be held from March 6 to March 31, and it was decided that a direct appeal be made. A letter was received from the Carterton and District Patriotic Committee suggesting, in association with Greytown and Featherston that the 1943 Patriotic Fund Appeal be a combined Wairarapa district effort. OVERLAPPING LAST YEAR. Speaking in support of the proposal, Mr D. L. Taverner, Mayor of Carterton, said that it was decided last year to hold a combined appeal but when the campaign was started that was overlooked. Centres were left to run their own campaigns and as a result there was a considerable amount- of overlapping. Residents in the Wairarapa South County area who did their business in Masterton gave their contributions to Masterton. Particularly was that so’ in the case of wealthy land owners. When residents in the Wairarapa South County area were called on to contribute a second time to get the quota filled they enquired as to what contributions the wealthy farmers had made. They could not be told what amounts had been given because they had been given to Masterton. Although the quota was based on a fifty I per cent population and fifty per cent! capital basis some of the largest landj owners in the Wairarapa South County/ lived in Masterton. Mr Taverner cited the donations given to Masterton by Mr P. J. Borthwick as an example. Also, the Waingawa Freezing Works employees had given their donations to Masterton although the works were in the Wairarapa South County Council’s area.

“Overlapping cannot be avoided un- [_ less the appeal is a combined district effort,” said Mr Taverner. He added > s that a combined appeal would shorten e considerably the campaign for funds. Messrs A. P? Bennett and J. A. Betts spoke in support of the quota system. They contended that a combined appeal would do away with the competit tive spirit. if The Pahiatua, Eketahuna and Akitio if representatives stated that they pret, ferred to “paddle their own canoe.” e Mr Bennett said that the Carterton - district did not lose anything by the t quota system. In fact if anything they 3 gained. He said that if all the money raised was paid into a common pool the appeal would become “nobody’s baby.” PAST EFFORTS. Mr Jordan said he was in favour of 1 a combined appeal. In the last war j the district had worked as one and had . raised £227,000 for patriotic funds. He j said he would be very disappointed if ; the district could not get its quota this . year. Mr Bennett said he had been asked . by several people how it came about > that practically the same quota was • being raised in the district this year al- . though the Government had given a . subsidy of £340,000 towards expenses ; incurred in sending parcels to prisoners of war. Mr Jordan: “Have you any idea how ’ much they gave in the last appeal?” ’ Mr Bennett: “Yes; they were good patriotic workers.” r. Mr Jordan: “I thought that perhaps < they were looking for an excuse for not giving.” j Mi’ Jordan said that patriotic repre- c

sentatives throughout New Zealand had spent a day and a half on the patriotic fund budget. All the figures presented had been agreed upon. The community could rest assured that their interests were well safeguarded. Mr Taverner said that the public should appreciate that the 1941-42 quota was fixed prior to September 30, 1941. There was a comparatively small number of men in the armed forces then. General mobilisation did not take place until February, 1942. This year’s quota had to cover a deficit in last year’s budget and the cost in providing amenities and comforts for the

enormously expanded armed forces. SPIRIT OF COMMUNITY. “I am perturbed at the spirit in the community,” said Mr J. Hutton, County Clerk, Pahiatua. He said that in England the people had raised an amount equal to £25 per head of the population in War Weapons Week, yet in New Zealand the total patriotic appeal was for approximately £1,000,000 or under £1 per head of population. “Do the people of the* Wairarapa want all the cherries?” asked Ml* Hutton. “Taxation is heavy but it is about time that people realised that there is a war on. Do they want to make a sacrifice?” he asked. Mr Jordan: “Most of us can write a book about our experiences in raising money for the patriotic funds.” “Unless a Japanese bomb falls in the centre of the district the public’s attitude cannot be altered,” said Mr Taverner. After further discussion it was decided that the district patriotic com-

mittees raise all the money possible rather than work on a fixed quota. The chairman of each patriotic committee in the district.was appointed an executive committee to control the combined appeal.