League
Reunion
THE YPRES TIMES
85
STILL another episode in the ever-increasing activities of the Ypres League
was the inauguration of a new series of Informal Gatherings to be held
on anniversary dates of famous battles of the Great War, which took place
on June 7th at the Westminster City School. This particular occasion was the
Anniversary of the Battle of Messines, as the date will undoubtedly remind you,
and a most interesting evening was enjoyed by a very large company. A spirit
of conviviality was very early attained by the rendering of popular orchestral
items followed by community singing, which is now so indispensable to gatherings
of this description.
It was indeed a pleasure to the company to find that it was honoured by the
presence, as Chairman, of one who has the interests of the Ypres League so
much at heart, Lieut.-General Sir William P. Pulteney, and there were many
expressions of regret at his enforced early departure. Major E. B. Waggett,
however, promptly took over the reins, and in addition to conducting the remainder
of the proceedings, made a very stirring appeal to all to support the League on
every possible occasion, and this appeal was followed by another, for new members,
by Major E. Montague Jones in his inimitably forceful manner.
It had been arranged, originally, for Lieut.-Colonel Graham Seton Hutchison,
D.S.O., M.C., to give a talk on The Ypres Salient," and everyone was dis
appointed that he was unable to be present after all, owing to his absence abroad
on business. There is, however, always someone willing to help the League
when in predicaments of this nature, and the Chairman introduced the audience
to Brig.-General W. F. Swiny, C.M.G., D.S.O., who had most kindly consented,
at the sacrifice of previous engagements and the necessity of a special journey
to London, to fill the breach and to speak on the same subject. When it was
announced that General Swiny had commanded many famous Battalions and
Brigades during a long period in the Salient, anticipations of a very interesting
talk were only natural, but as the General gradually unrolled a retrospective
panorama from every aspect of the events of that particular Sector during those
memorable years, there was never any doubt. General Swiny's recollections,
after all these years, of so many facts and such a mass of information appertaining
to the events of those days, was truly remarkable. No matter in whaj: capacity
or for how long anyone served at Ypres, or how menial and unimportant he may
have thought many of the tasks he was called upon to perform, there was the
reference by the General to those particular activities and the explanation of their
connection with other duties, leading ultimately to the vanquishing of the Invader
from the precincts of that City of Death. We lived again those days from the first
shots in 1914 to that day in November, 1918, whenyes, we did many strange
things that day but did none of us feel a lump in the throat, and was there not
one man who shed tears, if not of joy or sorrow, then at wonderment at the
meaning of it all? We heard again those distinguished names of Sir John French
who, with his Contemptible Little Army," stemmed the first flow of the invading
tide of Teutonic Militarism; of Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien who held the proud
position of the Chief Defender of Ypres, and was so loved and trusted by all
those who served under himand of our respected President, Field-Marshal The
Viscount Plumer of Messines who, at this very moment is paying the price of
his terrible responsibilities at that time, by his unfortunately protracted illness.
Once again we were at the Rest Camps, now we were trying to keep our place
on the duck-boards with the ration party, only to be thrown the next moment
