HOMAGE TO THE DEAD.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume XXIII, 10 July 1922, Page 1

HOMAGE TO THE DEAD.

KING’S VISIT TO BELGIAN BATTLEFIELDS. (Daily Telegraph Correspondent.) The King commenced his tour of homage t® the British dead in Belgium and France by visiting the scene where on St. George’s Day, Sir Roger Keyes’ famous ships gave the German dragon’s tail a “damned good twist.” Leaving Brussels 1 at nine, the Royal train reached Zeebrugge at eleven, and his Majesty at once motored to the red brick church, \vhosc torn roof and battered wfdls spoke of its suffering in the war, In the tiny cemetery adjoining the church were many graves, nearly all of German .sailors and artillerymen. They are arranged in rows, torpedo craft men in one place with concrete crosses, submarine sailors with slabs of stone bearing the names and rank in another, and gunners buried together. There were short of twenty graves of British heroes who fell in the raid which so worthily upheld the traditions of the King’s Navy. These gallant men rest together in a row close up to the wall on the sea side of the cemetery, stained wooden crosses marking each. The graves have flowers upon them, and are the best tended in this God’s acre. The King, conducted by Major-General Sir Fabian Ware, head of the Imperial War Graves Commission, stayed for a moment or two beside 1 each grave, and when he had inspected all of them he returned to his motor car, halting outside the cemetery, where- a group of school children carrying the Belgian colors sang the British National Anthem in Flemish. His Majesty next drove to the Mole, passing over the Grand Canal leading to the German submarine base Bruges, and getting a near view of e 2 l / rance to the lock which was the object of the raid. IValking along the Mole, the King saw the havoc made by the well-directed blow of an submarine nlled with explosives which blew up the massive iron piles and twisted the enormous girders to stop reinforcements reaching the Mole while the blocking ships were passing to their objective. Here was evidence of the_ s'kjll of the brave officene and men, f or the craft hit the exact spot, and the havoc created is still shown by the unrepaired work. The King was told that the craft which had had ..Such, a successful -mis>sion was to be seen on the bottom at low water, but, the tide being up at the time of his Majesty s visit, it was not observable Proceeding further up the Mole, the King went to the place where a number of large seaplane hangars stand on the breakwater. AVith his back to these his Majesty looked across the harbor straight up the Grand Canal, and saw how the three old warships had been manoeuvred for that brilha.nt_ midnight work. First in the line of vision was the Thetis, which sank just before the Southern light outside the entrance. Divers were placing explosives around her hull, the forepart of which is visible, and it was expected 1 that she would be blown up today to prepare the way for a clearance of the channel. About 100 yards beyond the Thetis the Iphigenia rests on the bottom within the fairway, and further in is the Intrepid, a name as worthy of her crew as of the ship Those tough old craft had passed over four barrages of mines to block the exit from the submarine’s lair. Time did not permit the King to go to the rx lc L the Mole to see where the Daffodil and Vindictive, of glorious re"°wn, and the Iris fought and won, but the places were pointed out, and also the spot where the Brussels, Captain Fryatt’s ship, was sunk at the end of the Mole’s long arm. On leaving Zeebrugge the tremendous nature of the Navy’s task was made obvious by the dismantled batteries close together for miles along the coast, all their guns within range to re-ist just such an attack as Admiral Keyes launched. The Royal tram proceeded to Zonnebeke, whence the King motored to Paeschendaele, where 12.000 British soldiers rest m the biggest cemetery on the Western Front. When homage had been paid to these heroes the journey was resumed to tile scene of the most tremendous battles m British military history. Ypres was reached at 3.30 p.m. On Menm bridge, at the entrance to the town, the King was met by Burgomaster f olart, General Delobbe, commanding the Fire Division of the Belgian army, and Mr Morreau, Royal High- Commissioner in charge of the rebuilding of Ypres, who was able to give the satisfactory report that 2000 houses had been built since the Armistice, and. recent progress had been very rapid. Work had been started on reconstructing the grand old Cloth Hall. Some of the interior columns are in process of being set up. As far as possible the original stones - there are sermons in them -are being used; again. After the Burgomaster was presented, the King handed to the officer in charge of the Belgian graves in this area, a beautiful wreath of red roses, laurels, and palms, with a card. “From King George V.. May 11, 1922,” to be placed on the Belgian soldiers' graves in the town cemetery. The Burgomaster then asked his Majesty to sign the Ypres visitors’ book, and Earl Haig also placed his- signature in the book. Then, standing facing the ramparts which were seared and scarred by thousands of shels during the four years’ bombardment, the King inspected the drawings' of the British memorial to be put -up on the ate of the Menan gate, which was blown to pieces by the German ordnance. The designs were shown by Sir Reginald' Blomfield, R.A., the architect, and the plans, which have been passed by the Ypres Municipality, were approved by the King. The memorial will be worthy of the enduring strength and courage of the mighty British force which Tost- a qunr-

ter of a million men in defending the Ypres salient. • Some details have still to be settled, but I am able to give a general outline of the' scheme of the monument which is to be erected by, the Imperial War Graves Commission. A fine causeway is to be put over the moat, and where the old gate stood a great archway, over a hundred feet wide, connected with ramparts on each side, will be erected, with a big vaulted space 115 feet long to another grand arch on the Ypres side. Three eyeletholes are arranged to throw light inside upon the many Portland stone panels, on which are the names, numbering many thousands. of men reported missing in the salient. The archways will be 45 feet high. On either ridl-mf them will be entrances to the javemi-nj and .above the arch on "the ilenin rand <jde will be a British lion. 7Ci t-tje roadway, looking out tp Pich the enemy failed to pierce. Before proceeding to Poperinghe the King passed the town cemetery, in which his cousin. Prince Maurice of Battenberg, is at rest. A simple wooden cross., put up by the troops who buried him, marks his grave, and on this to-day the Burgomaster laid a floral tribute with a red and white silk ribbon from the town of Ypres.