MR. REDMOND AT THE FRONT

New Zealand Tablet, 20 January 1916, Page 15

MR. REDMOND AT THE FRONT

| A MEMORABLE VISIT DESCRIBED. | I have , been asked to. publish in some detail a narrative of my experience and my first impressions during my recent visit to the front (writes Mr. John Redmond, M.P.). This is an extremely difficult thing to do with 1 any completeness, and especially in view of the fact that I must be careful not to say anything which the Censor might consider it injurious to publish. i: I spent a week in the British, French, and Belgian lines. I inspected, in considerable detail, one of the British great .military bases, and saw the elaborate arrangements for transport of troops, munitions, and provisions. I marvelled at the enormous hangars which had been built, and at the stupendous supply of all sorts of munitions which they contained, and at the arrangements made for their daily arrival at the port and their daily convoy to the various railheads, whence they are taken on by motor lorry to the troops. iv- I visited the great base hospitals, with accommodation for thousands of wounded soldiers, and with the beautiful and almost luxurious convalescent hospitals attached. When I proceeded from the base to Headquarters, 1 had unique opportunities of investigating the extraordinary work of .the : Administrative Staff. I met the heads of all the various departments, including the Protestant and the Catholic DirectorGenerals of Chaplains with the troops, Rev. MajorGeneral Simms and Monsignor Keating. I saw one of the flying stations with its hundreds of hangars and aircraft of all descriptions. I visited every Irish regiment at the Front. I saw John Ward ? s Navvy Battalions doing the most magnificent work in making and repairing of roads. I saw the Indian troops and the Canadian -troops. To describe all these things with anything like detail would be quite impossible in the space at my disposal. My best course, I think, will be to give something in the nature of a diary. One of my most interesting experiences was a visit to St. Patrick’s Club for Soldiers, which has been conducted by the Hon. Miss Florence Colburn, assisted by Miss Grace O’Malley, of London.

Irishmen Everywhere.

From the time I arrived until I left the shores of France again I met Irishmen, everywhere and in every capacity, not merely in the Irish regiments, but in every regiment and high up in every single branch of the service—lrishmen from north and south and east and west. In fact, it is true to say that from the Irish Comraander-in-Chief himself right down through the Army one meets Irishmen everywhere one goes. On arrival at the Headquarters of the First Army, we met General Sir Douglas Haig, the Commanding Officer, and had an opportunity, of .examining the extraordinary methods of the Intelligence Department of the General Staff of the First Army, under the control of Lieut.-Colonel Charteris. By the aid of aeroplane photography, our Army is in possession from day to day of elaborate photographs of German trenches, and I was shown the daily map which is issued op which is plainly marked every portion of the whole intricate system of German trenches, and on which is also marked the position of every German' battery behind their lines. With the Muusters. . , £ In company with General Crampton, we J proceeded to -’ where we met Lieut.-General Sir Henry Rawliuson, Bart., commanding the 4th Army Corps, and Major-General Holland, commanding the Ist Division. Here the Munster Fusiliers were paraded and drawn up in a hollow square, and Major-General Rawlinson introduced-me to .the- troops, and asked -me to address them. They had marched on to the ground playing the * Wearing of the green ’ on their band of Irish warpipes and carrying a green Irish flag. There was a battery of British anti-aircraft guns on my left, about forty yards away, and a ; battery Of 75 -mm. French gijns about forty, yards „QDL.my„ rights. ..After I . had

spoken a i few sentences, the battery on my left rang out with startling suddenness; and we then became aware that there was a hostile German Taube aeroplane right over our heads. From that on until the end of my speech the British guns on the one side and the French guns on the other fired shrapnel shells at the Taube at regular intervals. It was a strange experience for me to. have my speech punctuated, not by applause; but by the roar of guns situated only a few yards from where I was standing. It was a marvellous exhibition of the discipline and steadiness of the men that, while this firing was taking place, not one of them even" lifted his > head to look in the sky at the aeroplane, but remained absolutely passive -at attention. When I. finished my speech, the men cheered lustily- and marched away playing ' O'Donnell Aboo.' At the commencement of the war, the men had five green, flags, now they have only one ; and I promised to supply the deficiency.

Aircraft and Guns.

We remained upon the field for some twenty minutes after, watching, the battle between the guns and the Taube. Four British aircraft were sent up to aid in the attack. Shrapnel shells were bursting all round the Taube in such a way that it seemed-abso-lutely impossible for it to escape being hit, and I am quite certain that it was hit, but not vitally ; and after wheeling over our heads more than once, as if in defiance, the Taube slowly disappeared towards the German lines. During lunch at Divisional Headquarters, the band played Irish national airs, and. at intervals the house was shaken by guns from a battery quite close, and a large French window in the room where we were lunching was blown in by the concussion.

The following day—that is, the 19th November—making an early start, and under the guidance of Major wood, we went to the Headquarters of -the Second Army, where we were received by General Plummer, the Army Commander, and where again were exhibited the war maps, aeroplane photographs, etc. • - -

The Leinsters.

We proceeded then to the Headquarters of the 24th Division (General Capper). Here the 2nd Battalion of the Leinster Regiment, with General Jelf commanding the 73rd Infantry Brigade, were paraded to meet us.

They first gave us a display of bombing, and fired volleys of various kinds of bombs and explained to us this mode of trench warfare. The bombs are of all shapes and sizes, some of them resembling cricket balls in appearance, some of them the shape of a hairbrush with a handle, and some of them in the nature of slings with canvas ribbons attached to them. After this display I was given the privilege of addressing the Leinsters, and received from them a most enthusiastic reception. Their band of Irish war pipes played the * Wearin’ o’ the green ’ and ‘ Garryowen.’ I had the pleasure here of meeting the two Catholic chaplains— Higgins, a Sligo man, and Father Brown, a Cork man. Like all the other chaplains whom I met at the, front, they spoke in the highest praise of the extraordinary spirit of the men, their good behaviour, and their devotion to their religious duties. All the time we were in this camp shelling and big gun firing from both the British and German lines was continuous. We proceeded then through Armentieres, which had been heavily shelled the day before, to the 25th Divisional Headquarters. Here we were met by General Doran, an Irishman and, a Wexford man, from whom we received a hearty welcome. ■ '• We -jwalked. for about a mile and a-half through the three lines of defence until we arrived at the firing line, along which we walked, and saw the soldiers in their huts and dugouts and walking about in the trenches. Most of the . trenches were supplied with periscopes, and we were within about 80 yards of the firing line of the Germans, which we saw distinctly 'rv f .'i>■' - i»i .sO*-* •- •-■•V VC'-V. • ' 5-;

Enormous improvements have been made in the trenches since last winter. ‘ Most, of them have boarded ftoots, -; others of . them have ' brick floors, ' and although in really wetweather J . it •:r is impossible to - prevent : them turning , into .a ; morass of mud and water, at the same time it is comparatively easy in fairly fin© weather to clear them. They have got a system of trench pumps which are used to get rid of the water, and I was greatly impressed by the pipes which I saw running a mile and a-half back from the front of the trench, supplying drinking water to, the men. The dugouts which I saw were comparatively comfortable. The men had rough -beds to lie on, many containing tables. One dugout I ' saw had four panes of glass in it, making a little window.* Many of them also had small braziers with fires. Question of ‘Clothing. This, year the men have been served out with long indiarubber boots, which go right up over their thighs like fishing waders. The organisation in connection with these boots is perfect. When a battalion of men is .coming to. the trenches it finds in the supporting lines, that is to say in the second line of. trench, these boots waiting for them. They remove their own boots, get an extra pair -of thick stockings, and put on the rubber boots. When they are coming away after their four days in the trenches they leave these boots at the same station, and receive their own boots and socks, which have been dried for them in the meantime. And to see the extraordinary care that is taken of the men ! When they get back to their camp the men are taken to an enormous wash-house, where they strip naked, and their mud-coated uniforms and their underclothes are taken from them into another department, where -they are washed, brushed, and thoroughly disinfected. The men go through a door into an enormous wash-house, where there are great circular vats of warm water waiting for them, and, twelve at a time, each with a piece of soap, jump in. When they have had their . bath they go into another room, where they find a complete fresh suit of underclothes, and also find clean and dry tunics, pants, and puttees, socks, and boots. The Prince of Wales bathes in one of these wash-houses with the men, th§ only distinction being, that he has a separate bath to himself. They also a barber’s shop. They are supplied with leather waistcoats and with sheepskin or goatskin coats, and with the best of gloves and mufflers; and it would be impossible.for me to convey an adequate idea of the care that is taken of these brave fellows in every possible respect. Royal Irish Rifles. Just outside we visited the , camp of the 2nd Battalion Royal Irish Rifles. The men, who were paraded, were just about to start for the trenches; they had all their equipment on, and, indeed, seemed heavily laden. I bad a warm welcome from them, and when I reminded them that their regiment was composed of men from the North of Ireland and from the South combined, they heartily cheered, and I was told that the Belfast men, and the Southern and . Western men in the regiment were the best of comrades and of friends. •- " Three Great Regiments. The following day Saturday, the 20th November —-we left Headquarters again at a very early hour, again under the guidance of Major Elies, in order to visit the old 87th. Royal Irish Fusiliers (the Faugh - a-ballaghs) and, the Dublin Fusiliers. BrigadierGeneral Hull met us here, and I was invited to address the combined battalions of the Royal Irish Fusiliers and the Dublin Fusiliers, and received from them a thoroughly hearty greeting;: ! After- my speech, the battalions left the ground playing ‘ O’Donnell Aboo,’ followed by ‘ God save Ireland,’ their cheers echoing through the \froods. From, this we went on to meet the old ,18th Royal - Irish Regiment, the senior of . all ! the Irish regiments. -Though they had only just come from the trenches; they had cleaned and: smartened ■ themselves up, and ■ presented : a magnificent spectacle of trained men. \

-They- gave mean enthusiastic ( reception. The night before, the Commander-in-Chief, Sir John French, had asked me to convey a - message of congratulation to i this regiment for their gallantry in the field, and to assure them how ; proud -he was to be their -, Colonel. ;.. Many of the ! men were from Wexford, and T need not say I was glad to meet my fellow Wexford men, and also many of my own constituents from Waterford. •; While we were at lunch subsequently at Headquarters, two batteries of British guns in our immediate vicinity ? commenced a "hot 'fire 011 the German lines, so much so that the little house in which we were sitting was shaking the whole time, the panes of glass were rattling, and the noise was so great that it was practically impossible to converse.

On Dangerous Ground.

, After lunch, General Hull conducted us to what I regard as the most dangerous part of the firing line that I have visited. The day was foggy, and General Hull considered that it would be safe for us to proceed in a motor a portion ,of the way. He would, however, allow only one motor and a limited number of people to go. Leaving the motor by the side of .a road, we entered a long communication trench, and passed on through the supporting trenches for a couple of, miles. The whole time guns were booming without cessation, and the ground on each side showed great craters which had v been made by shells. When we reached the actual firing trench, we were within a very short distance of the German trenches, which we saw with the utmost distinctness. Here I met the Dublin Fusiliers and the men of a battalion of the Ulster Division (the Royal Irish Rifles) • side by side in the trenches. The next day, Sunday, 21st November, we paid a visit to the newly-formed Guards Division, commanded by Lord Cavan. Lord Cavan is one of the heroes of this,war, and I heard everywhere I went enthusiastic praise of his qualities as a soldier and a man, and from my own observation I am certain that his men would follow him anywhere to the death. At the Headquarters we met Lord Claud Hamilton and the Prince of Wales. The latter seemed in first-rate health and spirits, and he leads exactly the same life as any other young subaltern in the Army. I could not help thinking what a magnificent training it is for him. He seems perfectly happy.

The Irish ' Guards.

The first and second battalions of the Irish Guards were paraded and inspected by us, in company with Lord Cavan. I met many men in the regiment, both amongst the officers and the rank and file, whom I knew. One, a Sergeant Murphy, from Enniscorthy, and another, Private McVeagh, from County Antrim, had just obtained the D.S.O. for gallantry at Loos. The Ist Battalion' is commanded by Colonel McCalmont, M.P., who was . exceedingly cordial in his welcome, and the 2nd Battalion by Colonel Butler. The men are all giants, and what struck me was. the uniformity of the height of the men. It is not to be found in any other regiment which I saw. They were all in the best of spirits, and seemed * delighted by my visit. I was told by the Catholic chaplain that all' of the men had been at Communion on the Friday before. The deepest grief is felt by them all at the tragic death of their chaplain, Father Gwynn. Lord Cavan and the officers described, him to me as a splendid fellow, who had been a tower of strength and a continual tonic to the regiment. . After the parade we proceeded to some i batteries of 4.5 howitzers, 18-pounders, and 9.2 howitzers, which were about to open fire upon certain houses behind the German lines, which had been suspected of harboring enemy guns. _As soon as we arrived the bombardment commenced, arid was exceedingly exciting work. After each shot a telephone message,; instantly came back as to the r result. ■:'• The first few shots were misses, and the .correction in the range was 'made in accordance with the' telephonic message. . . Finally, the word came of a? hit. , Then they knew the range: to absolute accuracy }J and all the guns were turned on, and in a

few moments the buildings on which they were firing were completely demolished.'* / ] /-;■■"■{'■.■ \■.-•-. }

'Arrested ' in Belgium.

; On Monday, 22nd November, we. went to Belgium, driving along by the Belgian; canals, and were, deeply impressed with the spectacle of women pulling enormous canal barges twice the size of those we are accustomed to in this country. .Everywhere the women were doing agricultural works in the fields. No men were to be seen at all except the troops who crowded the roads. On reaching the Belgian frontier I had a Estrange ■ experience. I had left the British Headquarters without the necessary permit to cross the Belgian lines, and we were held up by the Belgian sentries. 'We showed our papers, we explained we were going as guests to visit King Albert, we said we came from Sir John French. All in vain, we could not proceed; -At last a Belgian officer arrived, and we . suggested to him to send an armed guard with us to the Belgian Headquarters, and to this he agreed, and a soldier, with rifle and fixed bayonet, was put next our chauffeur; and thus., drove to Le Panne, where the King resides. On our arrival we found the British Minister at King Albert’s Court and two Belgian aides-de-camp waiting for us and our guard was relieved of his duty. Scenes of Desolation, We passed through villages and towns lying in absolute ruins, some of the most beautiful buildings in Europe, going back for many hundreds of years, and which were regarded as models of architecture, were riddled or completely demolished. In these towns the churches in every case suffered most. In many towns we passed through there was not a living human being except a few Belgian guards who were living in cellars. In Pervyse, in a half-ruined two-storey house, in the middle of universal ruin, we found two English ladies were living. One of them is. a Miss Chisholme, and they have remained there all through the war, tending the wounded”, and succouring the starving children of the remnant population by the same kind : of extraordinary coincidence as that whereby, the crucifixes and statues have escaped destruction in Belgium, so the portion of the little house which these ladies have inhabited to this time has remained untouched. The King of the Belgians. I had been informed before leaving the British Headquarters that King Albert had graciously expressed a desire to see me, and I therefore-proceeded to his residence. . A small, unpretending detached seaside villa, without garden ,or grounds of any sort or kind, standing literally on a sand hill, looking out to the sea, and only about 30 or 40 feet from the edge of the water, is the Royal Palace— shall never forget my visit to the King* bis kindness, his courtesy, and his sympathy, and how . warmly and generously he spoke of the little that Ireland had been able to do to help him. I confess that my emotions were stirred, by this interview more perhaps than ever before. After the interview we started to pay a visit to Ypres, but were overtaken by a dense fog, and were unable, to our great regret, to get to the most shelled town in Belgium ; indeed, it took us five hours crawling slowly and cautiously along the road, in and out between marching troops and transport waggons which loomed up out of the mist constantly all round us, wherever we went, to reach at last General Headquarters, late at night. 1 , ' Throughout my visit I received the greatest courtesy 'and 1 - kindness from everyone, and I am r especially indebted to Sir John French and those officers who so kindly escorted me on my tour. I had the pleasure of meeting at General Headquarters Major Winston Churchill, who has been attacked to the- Guards Division, and who had gone jto the trenches for the first j time on the day I visited .the Irish Guards. v . ; > I found,. as ;I : have already stated in * public, universa! confidence in the' power of the Allies to smash the,-; Germans .on the estern, line ; universal indignation at the slanders which have been current in Lon-

don with reference to the Headquarters of the:;Administrative Staff and I would like to say universal confidence, in the Commander-in-Chief, "Sir John French. "" ' - "• "■'/:.->;-- ; "''.- v "' '