League Secretary's Notes. THE YPRES TIMES 183 TO OUR NEW MEMBERS. I take this opportunity to welcome all Life and Subscribing Members who have joined the League's ranks since the issue of our last January Ypres Times. It is pleasing to notice that some of you are already showing your enthusiasm in applying to Headquarters for supplies of membership forms. This is most encouraging, and I wish you every success in your good endeavours to add to our numbers. The League has continually appealed through the columns of The Ypres Times, urging each member to recruit at least one member a year. It sounds a small duty, but, judging from results, it appears a very difficult one to perform so I want our new members to set a good example and respond to our appeal, and do all that is possible to acquaint your friends with the aims and objects of the League. As you already know, Life Membership is £2 10s., and Annual Subscribing Membership 5s. The beautiful Scroll Certificate is given to all members who have served in the Ypres Salient or to those whose relatives died in its defence. It is only natural for the war generation to remember the heroism of relatives and comrades who fought and died side by side in the Salient, and now the League's ambition is to keep such glorious memory fresh for generations to come, and it is for this reason that a Junior Division has been formed for children up to the age of 18, after which they can become ordinary sub scribing members of the League. I hope that you will come to our assistance, and that your recruiting efforts will enrol many more to help us in our work. TO BRANCH SECRETARIES AND CORRE SPONDING MEMBERS. I have pleasure to announce that Mr. W. Cloves has very kindly offered to act as our corresponding member in Adelaide. I thank him sincerely for his valuable support, and trust that he will be successful in recruiting quite a number of new members from Australia. Lieut.-Colonel H. Fulton has written us from Salisbury, Rhodesia, saying that he has favour ably discussed the question of forming a Branch among the officers and men of the district. A branch would be very welcome indeed in Southern Rhodesia, and I wish Colonel Fulton to accept our grateful thanks for his kind endeavours to make the League more widely known, and I look forward to hearing from him again in the near future. Recruiting during the past quarter has been fairly satisfactory, and for this work our chief thanks are due to Colonel G. J. Henderson (Kenya), Mr. W. H. Duncan Arthur (Congleton). Captain P. W. Burgess (Madrid), Mr. L. E. P. Foot (Hartford, Conn.), and to our London County Committee. Colonel Henderson writes to say that he is returning to England for a considerable period, and that during his absence Corporal C. H Slater has very kindly consented to act as our corresponding member in Kenya. We are very grateful to Corporal Slater, who has always been an exceedingly keen supporter of the League. We hope to have the pleasure to meet Colonel Henderson during his visit to the Old Country, and thank him personally for the very valuable service he has always so generously given for the welfare of the Ypres League. Captain J. A. C. Scott, M.C., owing to pressure of his own work, has had to relinquish the duties of Secretary of our Gateshead Branch, and we are glad to hear that Lieut.-Colonel E. G. Crouch has kindly consented to act as Secretary of this Branch. Our grateful thanks are due to Captain Scott and to Colonel Crouch for their valuable work. Our lantern slides are still being put to good use. Mr. W. Pritchard, our staunch supporter at Las Palmas, has recently given two lectures. The second lecture, at which Mr. W. Seddon (Director of Elder Dempster Co. and Grand Canary Coaling Co.) took the chair, was a great success, after which a collection was made, and the proceeds divided between the Sailors' Institute and the Ypres League. Very hearty thanks are due to Mr. W. Seddon, Mr. Pritchard and friends for their kind interest and help. Our travel bureau has been put into action earlier this year owing to the dedication of the British Church on Palm Sunday (see p. 170). Among our pilgrims we had pleasure to include twenty-four poor relatives whose expenses were defrayed by the League in order that they might see the names of their missing sons and husbands which are inscribed on the Menin Gate and Tyne Cot Memorials. Pilgrimages will take place at Easter to Ypres, two separate pilgrimages at Whitsuntide to Ypres and the Somme respectively, and the usual pilgrimage to Ypres at August Bank Holiday. A free pilgrimage is also being organized to the graves and memorials in the Salient from July 6th to 8th. This season we are organizing week-end trips to Ostend (see page 185,) taking in a motor charabanc itinerary to the Menin Gate and Ypres Salient battlefields. Week-ends at Ostend have become extremely popular among the general public, and I hope our members and friends will take advantage of this trip under the League's auspices. We are shortly publishing a Guide Book, entitled The Ypres Outpost to the Channel Ports," price 2s. 6d. per copy, postfree, 2s. iod.

HISTORISCHE KRANTEN

The Ypres Times (1921-1936) | 1929 | | pagina 27