EXTRACTS FROM THE FLEMINGTON PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH NEWS
January 1917
To Our Boys at the Front
To Our Boys at the Front we send hearty greetings. In this and in future issues individual mention will be made of several of our boys at the front. We desire full military addresses of J Bale, E Woods, J Isles, A Nelson, M Adams, and S Williams.
February 1917
To Our Boys – “We are confidently looking forward through the smoke and welter of battle to the happy days of the golden future, when we hope to see you all gathered in the Young Men’s Hall. There we will tell you how much we think of your and thank you for what you have done for us. When you meet each other you will again go through the heroic days of Gallipoli, Egypt and the West front. We will speak softly when we mention the names of our heroic dead, who gave all for us, and now sleep peacefully in strange lands. Their bodies sleep but their souls live and point to the future. Their memory we will for ever cherish”.
June 1917
To our Men at the Front
“Your new minister does not feel so new now and would like to send a message to you; for he has heard a good deal about your from your home-folks. It’s a great business you are out on. Never forget it is God’s fight you are fighting. And God must win. All the nations of the earth, that count, are in this thing now. The dawn may break suddenly. God grant it. Commit yourself to Him. All our prayers and all our thoughts are with you every day and every hour. God bless you and keep you and bring you back safe and soon.”
August 1917
On Sunday, August 5th, Empire Services will be held. Let us all be there to pray for victory during the coming fourth year of war. At the morning service our Roll of Honour with its many new names will be read. The evening service will be an "In Memoriam" service to honour all our brave dead.
We hope to send a Xmas Box to each of our boys at the front, whose names are on our Roll of Honour, published in this issue; we need over 100 'boxes'. To each we want to send a pair of socks, khaki handkerchief, tin of boiled lollies, tin of cigarettes, pair of tan leather laces. All gifts should be left at the Manse or with members of the Endeavour before August 1st.
September 1917
To our Men at the Front
"Your Xmas parcels from the Church are now all packed and will soon be on their way to you. Look out for a little calico bag. If the Huns sink your Xmas parcels try and keep your temper (and language!) under control. Your minister would recommend to you the practice of letting your feelings find expression in a prolonged whistle. Your church friends here will join with you in a little whistling also! God bless you and keep you".
October 1917
To our Men at the Front
We have been hearing of great things being done by the Australians just now (the end of September). God grant that all you boys are safe and well. Don't you think it is true that no man falls tills his time comes and that God decides on the time? The opposite must be true also - that a man is spared only through God's kind wisdom. Do you always give thanks to God for keeping you safe? We do. "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble".
November 1917
Sessional Annual Report, Oct 1st 1916 to Sept 30th 1917
During the year many more of our young men enlisted. One hundred and fifty-four names are on our Honour Roll; twenty-five have paid the price of our liberty with their lives, two are missing, a number have been wounded and accidentally injured, and several have been invalided home. To all our Soldiers and Sailors still fighting for us we send our greetings. We thank them for all they are doing for us. Our prayers are ever around them. God help you, men, and God keep you safe.
Tulloch Yuille, Moderator
Alex Mathieson, Session Clerk
November 1917
An open-air Memorial Service (in which all denominations will take part), will be held on Sunday November 11th, 11. 30 pm in the Reserve, Racecourse-rd, to honour all the Flemington and Kensington district boys who have laid down their life for us in this war.
December 1917
A new additional Honour Roll will be unveiled at the morning service on December 9th. The preacher will be Chaplain-Capt Rev A H Tolhurst, who will conduct the evening service, when he will speak of his work among the troops in France.
On the afternoon of Monday Dec 10th, a little social gathering will be held of all the ladies very specially interested in the men of our Honour Roll. Will all the mothers, wives, sisters, sweethearts and guardians accept this as an invitation to afternoon tea and gossip about the boys at the front. Chaplain-Capt Tolhurst will be with us and will be glad to give all the news he can about the life of our boys over yonder.
A public Welcome and Social will be given to all our Returned Soldiers of the Honour Roll on the evening of Monday, December 10th at 7.30. Our Returned Soldiers will kindly accept this as an invitation to be present.
A splendid photograph of both our Honour Rolls has been taken. Every name comes out clear and distinct. These photos (mounted) will be sold for 1/6. After paying expenses, the profits will be used to send more convenient copies to all the boys of our Honour Roll - any surplus after that to be devoted to Church Funds.
January 1918
At our meetings on Dec. 10th we had in the afternoon a good gathering of the ladies who proudly claim some relationship with our men at the front. At the roll call of our men each lady connected with each name held up her hand and we found we had a representative present of almost all our soldiers. The ladies declared it a complete success and would like to meet again to have another "yarn" about "our boys." At our evening meeting we welcomed buck into our midst those men of ours, who, having done their bit, are settling down again into civilian life, viz.-
W. Bentley, Macaulay Road
A. Logie, Railway Place
J. Downie, 99 Vine Street
T. Nelson, 9 McConnell St.
J. Easson, 27 Waltham Street
J. Sinclair, "Maisie," Gower St.
J. Lindsay, 72 Collett Street
A. Stevenson, 5 McConnell St,
S. C. Wilson, 48 Bellair Street
N.B.— A photo of the Honour Roll is being sent to all of you along with this Church News.
February 1918
Letters of thanks acknowledging the Congregation's Xmas parcel have been received from A. Hamilton, A. Thaw, F. Barton, C. McFadzean (sic), Reg. McLean, J. McTear* and H. G. Picken.
* Probably J McTier of Yarraville.
March 1918
Christmas Parcels — Acknowledgements with thanks have been received from the following men at the Front :- K. M. Battersby, Reg. Symes, J Downie, A. E. Morey, H. S. Morey.
April 1918
Acknowledgements of our Xmas Parcels have been received from A. Johnston, J Polwarth, J Peoples, R. Staley, J. Bale.
May 1918
We regret to hear that W. A. P. Hunter has been severely gassed and Ralph Hazell wounded. Let us ask God that our next news of them may bring gladness to their homes. We welcome back home Gnr. C. H. McCandlish and Bombdr. T. Oakes. They bear on their bodies the marks of their fight. May God give them both a larger measure of health! Acknowledgements of Xmas Parcels have been received from L Stewart, W. R. Kerr, J. Dewar, C. Williams, R. Urie, N. Wallder, E. Oliver, A Wallace, G. McElhinney, W. Corrigan, W. Jones, R, Hazell, G. Whitecross, F. Foster, G. Kimpton.
July 1918
Acknowledgments of Xmas Parcels have been received from A. Downie, W. Barnet and M. Danaher.
August 1918
Xmas parcels have been received by W L Macaulay and P M Crooke.
October 1918
7325 - Pte. Les. Stewart, 5th Batt. has returned after his big adventure-. We offer him best wishes and hopes of speedy recovery.
3531 - Pte. J. G. Wilson has been severely wounded.
9611 - Pte. J. C. Telford has been gassed.
5092 - Pte. O. B. Preston has been wounded.
November 1918
The War still makes its huge demands on our young manhood. Our Honour Roll numbers 180. Death has claimed 36 of them. One is a prisoner of war. Many have been wounded or gassed, and some have been invalided home. To all of them alike we offer our thanks for what they have done. May God watch over those, who still in distant lands are serving our King and us! We give our deep sympathy to all who have lost their dearest. May Christ be very near and give His sweet consolation to them all. We also extend our sympathy to all who (outside the war) have suffered bereavement. May God with His tender touch heal them all.
December 1918
To the Men at the Front—
“ What a time we have had with rejoicings! We have been ‘fair daft' with joy. The great news of Germany’s surrender came through to us on Monday, Nov. 11th, between 7 and 8 o'clock at night. You should have heard the girls ring the old Church-bell; you might have heard it in France! But, men, one of the happiest things in our joy has been the evident desire of the crowds to thank God. Halls and Churches have been packed everywhere. And we have not forgotten to thank God for you and all you have done for us. We will show you when you get home. What a day it will be. God bless you all."
January 1919
Anzacs -1914 - On Furlough
Sergt. Rolland Ransom 7th Batt. has returned. Lieut. Clarence P. Clowe, 7th Batt., and Wt. O. Arnee Thaw, 58th Batt., may be expected shortly. All of us are glad to hear of "Jim" Grieves Military Medal, and of "Charlie“ McFadzean's Captaincy. Congratulations to both.
February 1919
We welcome back Sergt. Geo. McElhinney, (invalided, and now at Mont Park) and Privates Oscar Preston and J. Peoples (invalided) and Gunner Allan Cairns. We hope to see them and all the rest on Saturday, March lst, at dinner. We would be glad to hear of all who have returned.
March 1919
Our boys are returning from the War so quickly that it is difficult to keep tally of them all — L. Macaulay, R. Barnes, F. Glyde, F. Billinge, A Downie, J. McDonald, R. Eddie, these and many others whom we did not know before were Presbyterians have come back. We welcome them all and would like to meet them all on Saturday, March 22nd at the dinner and social. Please come, boys - every one of you.
May 1919
We welcome home the following who have either arrived or are about to arrive - A. E. Hamilton, J. G. Wilson, Walter Dallimore, W. F. Jones, J. Grieves (Military Medallist).
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