H.—l9b

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Newspapers. Those for the front, suffer no delay whatever. Unlike the letters, newspapers are sent forward to units without those for the sick, and the wounded being first extracted, consequently those for men in hospitals, &c, are delayed until they are received back from the regiments. As a set-off to this, almost the, whole of the gift newspapers are distributed among the hospitals through the Chaplains. Parcels. Very little delay occurs with regard to parcels since the inauguration of the Suez route. Previously they took from two and a half to three months to arrive here, and then had to be distributed. They are treated in the same manner as letters, &c. —viz., are checked with the address cards before going forward. Those for men who have been wounded between the date of the despatch of the mail and its receipt at the front are returned to the Base A.P.0., together with those to men who are away from their unit and have failed to advise this offioe of their address. Many are readdressed to hospitals, the addresses having been received in the meantime The loss of parcels is due to the bad packing, and I have made a recommendation to the G.P.0., Wellington, to advise senders of parcels to wrap them in canvas or calico and sew them up. Another reason is that many parcels have only a tie-on label, or are only addressed in one place. As mail-matter for Gallipoli is transhipped several times, and has to be packed on the backs of men and mules to the trenches, the addresses are often worn off or become detached. Many parcels arc packed only in brown paper. Cakes packed thus usually arrive back from the front in crumbs. Other articles are found loose in the bags. Some hundreds of parcels are re-wrapped in this office weekly, and it, is quite possible that articles belonging to one parcel are often wrapped up in another, as there is no way of identifying the contents where more than one broken parcel is found in a bag. A. British Post Office Official Circular of the, 26th ultimo gives regulations which have been adopted in Egypt for parcels for Gallipoli. If similar instructions were issued in New Zealand the complaints with regard to parcels would be reduced. I). McCurdy, Lieutenant, Assistant Director, N.Z.A.P.S. Field Service Regulations, Part 11. Section 102, paragraph 2. " Officers and men who are detached from their unit will send a card to the Officer in Charge, Base Post-office, notifying the unit or place to which their correspondence is to be sent. In doing so they should write their names in block letters. Such cards may be sent free of charge." Section 102, paragraph 4. " Commanders of base depots and the officer in charge of the A.G.s office at: tho base will do all in their power to enable the military post to deliver correspondence direct to addressees, by furnishing the base post-office with lists of men detached from their unit or service, in hospital, non-effective, or sent home." Note.—The extract from the British Post Office Circular referred to in the foregoing memorandum was embodied in the New Zealand G.P.O. Poster No. 47, dated the 22nd December, 1915.

HEALTH OF THE NEW ZEALAND EXPEDITIONARY FORCE. Observations nY the Advisory Committee for the Prevention of Epidemic Diseases in the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, together with Correspondence thereon; also Correspondence relative to Vaccines. Dear Sir, — New Zealand Base Depot, Alexandria, Bth December, 1915. I am enclosing a report from a committee sent out to advise General Babtie, V.C., on sanitary and other matters. The Commissioners have visited Helles, Anzac, and Suvla, and Salonika, and have gone out of their way to write a, special report at my request. I was not quite sure how to frame my questions, so 1 made them somewhat general, as I thought it was well that Dr. Valintine and other HeaUh Officers should know what: they have to say with regard to sanitary measures and methods. Yesterday Colonel Dudgeon accompanied me on a visit to Major Ferguson, who is in charge of the laboratory at No. 21 General Hospital, I went there at, the suggestion of Colonel Beach, A.D.M.S., to discuss the question of vaccines for our troops. I am informed that ten thousand doses have already been forwarded to New Zealand, and that: Mi. Hurley, Government Bacteriologist, naturally wishes to have the cultures in New Zealand, so that he can prepare vaccines himself. As Colonel Dudgeon is leaving for England shortly, and has offered to do anything he can for us there, I have asked him to confer with our High Commissioner and the authorities at Millbank, where the vaccines are prepared. A copy of my letter to the High Commissioner, which I enclose, will explain the matter fully. Speaking to thos<. members of the Committee who visited our trenches at the Apex, they expressed themselves as well satisfied with the sanitary arrangements, and personally I can vouch for their comparing more than favourably with some of those I saw at Helles. In Major Carbery, Sanitary Officer to the division, we have a very capable and energetic officer. Yours faithfully, R. Heaton Rhodes, Colonel the Hon, J. Allen, Minister of Defence, Wellington, New Zealand,