The Red Watch

D MARSHAL

d equipment, and in the meantime a meeting of the officer

meeting was that they were shortly installed by contractors for the war office, and gave us a great deal

ell. Fully eighty per cent. of them were total abstainers. About ten per cent., chiefly the older men, took an occasi

e water, which is very bad in the low country, and only fit for cooking, also a light native wine with about the strength of ginger-ale, and the taste of vinegar. We found that light beers, wines and fermented liquors are licensed separately in France from spirits. This method has given good satisfaction. Strong liquors or spirits are given to the soldiers only on a doctor's order. There is no regular issue of rum, and the stories circulated by Jane Adams, a Chicago Pacifist, and others

p in Winte

as coming to review us, as was also His Majesty the King and Lord Kitchener. We worked very hard to get into shape for these important events. In the meantime the M

l battalions, and they were not of the thick water-proof cotton canvas variety that we had in Canada. They were the linen kind such as we

s to carry off the rain, or even holes in the ground in which to build our cooking fires, as the land

ral Mercer were at Bustard Camp. The Second under General Currie and the Third under General Turner, V.C., were at West Down South. The artille

day he marched past the King, resplendant in the scarlet and gold of a Field-Marshal on the Plains of Abraham, at Q

p. Battalion after battalion, battery after battery, squadron after squadron for nearly two miles the line stretched. It was a mag

horses behaved badly as the big grey car came up to them and some seats were lost that day, but my big charger behaved splendidly. She looked into the big car and wanted to poke her nose into it to see if the driver had any candy or apples. General Hughes, the Minister of Militia, sat in the seat beside Earl Roberts. Age had dealt v

his kind have you with you? They are indeed a splendid lot, and the Empire owes

even hundred an

ully trained should give a good

him, and h

isagreeable weather which clung to us until we left the Plains. Many a time afterw

y Plain is b

ve heard many

fess that I've

t a bush nor tr

ditches, no ga

ouse or a cot

thing to be cau

oming on, on S

heard a sermon from Bishop Taylor Smith, who

Division. The illustrated papers had photographs of the variou

of the Day, in which he pra

I consider a marvellously short period of time, under the excellent organization and driving power of your Minister of Militia, my old frien

e Duke of Connaught in Canada, had been badly wounded. Also that Major Rivers-Bulkley of the Scots Guards, who had also been on His Royal Highness' staff, had bee

taken place near Metz. The Crown Prince's Army had been shattered and General Von Kluck's march on Paris had been stayed at the Marne. Then the Allies had assumed the offensive, and driven the Germans back to the Aisne. Ypres, Hazebrouck, Estair

vited to be present, and the dinner was one of the most notable I have ever attended. Not so much on account of the number of prominent men who attended, but because it was the last occasion in which Lord Roberts spoke in public. Among others present were Lord Islington, Lord Iverclyde, Sir

en he rose to propose this toast, and was visibly affected by the splendid demonstration. He spoke with great earnestness for over half an hour. He first paid a glowing tribute to the Canadian troops that had served under him in South Africa. When he took command there the first telegram he sent was to Canada. He then referred to the tro

predicted that through their preparedness they would give us enormous trouble and he warned us that in his estimation the war would require every man that could be

eatness of the struggle and more patriotic than those at home. He attributed this to education in the schools and regretted that patrioti

attention and punctured his rema

irm, and so far there was no mud or sand. We took up the new drill of 1914. The battal

drive up from Salisbury in motor cars, and we were formed up on the east side of the main road from Salisbury to receive him. The mounted troops were to form up on the west side. We made a brave show but some of the battalions were not fully equipped as they had not yet received their bayonets. The practise was a great success. Major Beatty, brother of Admiral Beatty, who was officer on General Alderson's staff, took us all in. A general officer from the War Office was to have l

The Royal party was then on foot, and His Majesty greeted each officer, and then passed through the ranks in and out, speaking a word here and there to the men. After he had gone over the mounted troops he crossed the road and started down the line of infantry. The battalions were in order from right to left. Her Majesty the Queen and her Ladies-in-Waiting with Sir George Perley followed the King and Lord Kitchener. In a few minutes they were at the right flank of our battalion.

onto in 1902. She had not changed at all and there is no woman in the world who looks the part of a Queen better than Her Majesty Queen Mary. She looked the front line of our

ment as she passed along the line. "And they

ing Plantation Camp to review more soldiers. Our Brigade had advanced to the side of the road, and as they passed on they received cheers that could be heard three miles away. We waited for the return of the Royal Party and lined both sides of the road and gave more cheers. That was our last look at Lord Roberts. A few days later he went

Demosthenes, the Greek patriot, whose constant cry was, "Yet O Athenians, yet there is time. And there is one manner in which you can recover your greatness, or dying fall worthy of your Marathon and Salamis. Yet O Athenians you have it in your p

of Imperial troops, that is to say British Regulars. This made all the officers, non-coms. and men sen