WAR NOTES

Evening Star, Issue 15905, 10 September 1915, Page 10

WAR NOTES

[By Ex-leomah.] LONDON, July 29. . —As of Old.— A remarkable service was held on the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral last Sunday afternoon, which was something. akin to that held to give thanks for & victor? Vv w? S^ am S hj when Queen Elizabeth Sir Francis Drake, and othe? splendid Englishmen who saved the Emtmo m JkT days T 5 ? P r€sent - About 4,000 soldiers marched from Trafalgar square to St Paul's, wit!l £ London at the head, and that splendid pie and soldiers. The altar was of drams firrrushed by the Honorable ArtiUery Company, which is over 400 years old.' The Bishop knows what fighting means, and it was araußj to hgten to & vord > to put forth its best in thf effort to destroy the Germhuns and so re! move the great obstacle to peace The S ffff of.the soldiers must hive £™V I 5 ""P"*""* on the civilians, many of whom att ended out of idle curi S leSS ° n not away. Rather.a.curious thing happened in connection with one. of the C Special words had been written to the music of "Eternal Father, stroS n S hymii ToY "SSS" in pent on the sea. The new word* wT 1 '! evidently came home to the crowd that they owed their wfL^h 6ll^ 0 th V ilent so £ whilst the clergy and choir were singiJ the_ words of the new hymn the J^ n k the wefe a prayer lor those at sea. Our <rallant sailors are not heard enough of at this crisis and yet we owe our safety to them so that the incident referred to was pleasing. . " —Kindly Schoolgirls.— The writer hea T d of an incident which was seen at one of our seaside towns recently which shows how svmpathy is being awakened by the war. It appears that the girls in one of the leading schools gave up their annual outing and devoted the money to buyinz fruit, cigarettes, etc., for wounded soldiers Then instead of the outing, they marched to the hospital and left their offerings for the fighters lhe expression on the fac*s of the gu-ls showed that they understood, and it is safe to say that theiaction pave greater satisfaction than anv outmg would have done. Our women, tor the most part, are doing well, and shaming the. strikers of Scotland and Wales and those traitors in Ireland (with a few in England) who are constantly helping the enemy. Womin can help in many ways, as a famous soldier reminded a large gathering a few davs- ago. He urged them to bring pressure to bear onthose men of fighting age who had remained deaf to the call of Empire, and many are doing so most effectively. It is pleasing to note how much our soloiers appreciate the efforts of ladies on their behalf, even when the service rendered is small. ' A lady recently heard two soldiers grumblincr about the rations they received where thev were billeted She went to work quietlv to find out if the complaint was justified, calling on the soldiers at meal times and seeing for herself. . A few words to an officer of the i regmient soon led to a change, and the woman, of the house was given the tip I that she must not expect make too j big a profit out of the 17s 6d per head [aalowed. The result was soon apparent, i and the lady concerned was much impressed by the gratitude of the soldiers. They wore of the rough-and-ready sort from the Manchester district, but they were most respectful, and far too considerate for the woman of the house putting up with almost anything rather than lodge an ofuckd complaint. That is the way of our Soldiers, and yet there are still people who would not raise a finger to help one. and who will begrudge them a proper pension if wounded —A Brave Nurse.— A Dutch war correspondent relates an experience of hi# which shows the fine spirit of our nurses. He was not far from the. firing line when he met an English nurse of not more than 23 staggering along with a soldier on her shoulder. He had. heeh wounded in the shoulder and whilst walking to the nearest dressing statjicnv hiadi lost his way,, and finally fainted from loss of blood". The Dutchman assisted the young,nurse to get her patient to the dTessihg station, and he was greatly impressed by her coolness and decision and the" calm way she returned to the danger zone after getting the soldier to safety.

—Winged Allies.— ! _ Even the birds appear to fight on the side_ of the Allies, according to what soldiers returning from the firing line say. It is easy to see the German gas cloud rolling along in the day time, but not so at night. It is then that the birds come to our rescue, for a 6 scon as they notice the gas they set up a great clamoring, and come flying over our positions, so giving warning, and affording the soldiers time to adjust their masks. etc. , > —A Fine Offer.— Lord Miohelham, once Baron Stern, has made a splendid offer to British airmen. He will give £I,OOO for every Zeppelin destroyed in the aiT (up to 10 in number), the offer being open to both branches of the service. Should more than one airman be concerned, then the prize is to be shared. Our brave men do not require a money award to induce them to do their duty, nevertheless it will be no drawback that a few golden coins go with j other honors to be won in the air.' —Young Heroes.—. This war has led to the discovery of many young heroes. There is a record of a Devonshire boy—Christopher P. Clark—who enlisted at" the age of 15, and he is now a lance-corporal- doing duty with his regiment in India. Another youthful warrior is Lieutenant G. R. Dallas-Moor, V.C., who is only 18, and who had no previous military experience when he entered the Army last October. To obtain the rank of lieutenant, and win the V.C. before attaining one's nineteenth birthday is certainly a remarkable performance. —Useful Knowledge.— Anyone who has had any experience of soldiering knows that there is considerable waste of food, much of which is preventable. We shall no doubt see a big improvement in this matter shortly, owing to the excellent work the London Countv Council are doing. Schools of cookeTv have been opened, at which soldiers are given lessons in practical cookery by expert teachers, and the Tommies "are very quick to acquire a knowledge which will make them very popular among their! comrades. * . j