FAMOUS PADRE’S DEATH

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIX, Issue 20132, 12 June 1935, Page 2

FAMOUS PADRE’S DEATH

HERO OF UNOFFICIAL ARMISTICE One of the most remarkable incidents of the war—the unofficial “Armistice of 1914”—is recalled by the death in Aberdeen, at the age of nearly 70, of Dr. J. Esslemont Adams, D. 5.0., M.C., Presbyterian Minister in Aberdeen for 34 years. At Christmas, 1914, Dr Adams, as chaplain, was visiting the Gordon Highlanders and Scots Guards in the front line. He crossed No Man’s Land and arranged a truce with the German commander so that the dead might be buried. Here is his daughter’s story of the incident:—“There were many dead, both British and German, between the lines. My father longed to give them decent burial. He stood up above the parapet of the trench, holding up his hands, and then began to walk towards the German lines. A German soldier came out to meet him, and together they went to the German commander, who agreed to a truce. “The dead were buried, and my father conducted a short religious service in which both German and British troops joined. He always said that this was the most moving experience of his life.” After the service the German commanding officer offered Dr. Adams a cigar, and in return Dr. Adams gave him a copy of “The Soldier’s Prayer” from the lining of his Service cap. “You will get either a court-martial or a decoration,” was the comment of officers. The problem was solved when Dr. Adams was awarded the M.C. Later he won the D.S.O.