TALES FROM THE FRONT

Auckland Star, Volume XLVI, Issue 223, 18 September 1915, Page 13

TALES FROM THE FRONT

VISIT OF MR. WILL CROOKS. Fi_H of confidence, and .babbling over with _n_h__ia_ra for the British soldier, Mt. Will Crooks. M.P., is back from the fighting line. looking bronzed afurr his f-rtnigM on the Continent, the popular member for Woolwich could not speak too highly of the men fee has been living with. " And what aTe your 'general iropressions, Mr. Crooks;" asked, the. "Sunday Times" representative, who saw him at ihis 'home in Poplar. " Good'! ."cry good I The men are simply splendid." All they want is 'the ■good-.' " " Still." *"Oh, yes. though to a lesser degree." Mr. Crooks spoke at __ meetings, aud " never," to use his own word-, "was a man. better received or better treated-in the ivorld" ""Did you go up into the trenches?" '" Bj.il " smiled and shook his head. *'I went wherever 1 was allowed. More than, that I can't tell you." At several of t.he camps the great question wars- the Welsh coal strike, and the genial M.P. gives his version of what took place. " 1 sand' 'The strike will be over by Tuesday next.' and on Wednesday .tiie pood new- came through. so I was able to 'brag and boast oi being a bit of a prophet- When a. ToTntnry shouted out, ' How did you know. -1111 I replied. "It's the same little bird that w-h_sper- all the world over.' AXD THE HOUSE CHEERED. "One great event." Mr. Crooks "*e_t on to say, " was a concert given by Miss I-ena Ashwelil. which, was crowded by Tommies and officers. I lrad finished addressing two ca.raps that night, and reached the theatre at a quar-er to ten. As soon as I made my apnearanee in the balcony you w.xild have'thoughi it was The arrival of Lord Kitchener, fa-: the whole house -got _p and cheer-a, and. even the 'perfotrmers came forward to help to .-lap. '" The lads were simply magnificent everywhere, and the slightest l_,_!d_e__ or little attention or message from home made them as happy __ children. " I visited some of the hc-spiitai-camps, and one pathetic sight at one place was the e_ni_,l_seent soldiers who came to hear _w. and cairned in brother-soldiers who had been bad-ly wounded. The poor fejjlows would not allow the others to •take 'therm away till I had a personal! chat with them. How the men talked and laughed 1 They were real g_ms! " The great story was my visit ±o a physically defi-ien. school centre to give away the prizes. I said to the kiddies: ' Now. I'm going to France to__orrow to see your daddies, your uncles, and your brothers. Wbat shall T tell them?' One little piping voice .re-plied. ' Tell them. Mr Crooks, we can sing "God .Save the King" as well as they can." That little story seemed to totioh them deeply. ALMOST EMBRACED. " ' What are the boys at home doing. Bin.' was a frequent question. ' Don't forget, my lads,' I replied. ' that the shirkers have no sympathy from the home-folks, whose hearts and souls are with you.' I had a little Union Jack with mc, and after speaking at a Y-VLC.A. hut—the V.M.C.A. people, by ' the way. are doing magnafi-.rerat, work for » the comfort and entertainment of the . men—l opened it out. There was mo i need to cry for three cheeks! At one gathering a French officer was so pleased , that T thought he was actually going to I embrace mc. i "' The bop themselves are full of quips " and good humour. One chap shouted, ! ' How about the market. Bill?' referring to Poplar. The whole crowd went into , fits, when I retorted in coster style, : 'Big 'u«s are large: they're all fine today." Then I bummed off tne old melody , beginning, ' Bed cabbages to pickle I do cry,' and vvindinig uip. 'Fine apples a penny a pound.' The applause that followed would ihavie -ati-fled Meaba." ; HIS XEW JOB. '•' Are you likely to 'pay th_m-a Tefcurt- , visit." ae-ked ithe interviewer. '■ Well, if inv_ta_ions count for" amy* thing. I would be ofT again to-tnorrow. t In fact. I would never have come home, f But I've got a new job; they've switched . mc on to an _nitro__ here at horn.. t "What am I going to do: No, T must not tell you. But I'll telll you this, ___ men out there are worth __. -we cam do for them here—and a joly snghk-.__or_' Good nisbt!" 0

A SOLDIER'S TRIBCTE. The following tribute to Mr. Crooi. is paid hy Corporal George T_o__p_o_r"Wifroever had the brainy motioni of sending out Mr. "Will Crooks to act as general cheerer-vrp to the imen __ __c fighting line deserves credit for it. There is no- doubt that it's great medicine, when you're feeling fed op with the h__d life in the fighting line, to so down to the base and hear a racy speech from-a man __*.■ Crooks. The boys all enjoy it. "Oue chap went to hear him everytime. a_d on the day when he got his orders to xejcir. his _n.it he went up to Mr. Crooks aid said: *God bless you, sir-; itdone ime a power of good only to li_t*_n to you. I came down from the "line" a wreck. I'm going 'back a man -again.' Something like that is whait we alLieel about it. RELIGIOUS CONSOIATKIiS'. " There are Jots of people who -try-_o cireer us uip; but -hey are not all _o s_ceessf_l as Crooks. They mean well, only iheir efforts are not always as-good as their intention. Somebody sent) our .battalion a gross of ' Holy living and Dying.' We sent them over to .the. Germans. They seemed more suited for that quarter than for «_•. " Every time a soldier's name and regiment appear in the papers he is s_re to get endless packets of cheerful literature with headings such as ' Eternity! Where?' 'Prepare to Meet Thy God!' One brigiht American effort is headed in large black leMere. 'Soldier, if You Were Shot Dead this Moment. Where Would You Co To? Heaven or Heil'l:' if people at borne cannot do l>ete.tr than that they had better not send us anything.''