BELFAST'S PART IN THE WAR

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2652, 24 December 1915, Page 12

BELFAST'S PART IN THE WAR

, REMARKABLE RECORD. LORD MAYOR REVIEWS THE CITY'S WORK. "T.P.'s Great Deeds of the Great War" contains a very interesting article by the Lord Mayor of Belfast (Sir Crawford. M'Cullagh) upon the subject of what Belfast has done to help the nation in the present struggle. ,He savs:— ' To the call of Empire in the present crisis Belfast lias made a characteristic response. _ Whether that response bo measured in terms of men, or money, or munitions, or ambulances and hospital equipment, etc., it has in all these taken a foremost place, and kept pace with, any corresponding city in tho kingdom. What is Belfast's record under the headings indicated? This— . Ovor 26,000 recruits to Kitchener's armies. Over £100,000 (including _ £50,000 to the Princo of Wales's National Relief Fund). 50,000 grenades per week, in addition to shells. A complete new hospital (266 hed6), with surgical and nursing staff. _ 24 motor ambulances, fully equipped. The 36th, or Ulster Division, consists of thirteen infantry battalions, three field ambulances, four companies of Army Service Corps, and Reserve. Park Army. Service Corps: Divisional Cavalry and Cyclists; three Field Companies and one Signal Company of Engineers. Sis reserve battalions and reserves for all details are now in course of completion. In addition to this completo division, Ulster has contributed _ five _ battalions cach to the two other Irish divisions. The census returns show that in Belfast there aro 74,252 male between tho ages of 18 and 40. It is a very safe estimate when I ea-y that 20,000 are engaged upon Government work at the shipyards and in munition works, and as such aro not available for recruiting purposes. In furnishing over 20,000 new recruits, as it has done, Belfast has thus given practically, ono out of every two persons who are available for recruiting purposes, .and rccruits aro . still coming forward. So much for recruiting. ' Immediately after the declaration ot ■war, and in response to requisition, l convened a public meeting of citizens at which a war fund was inaugurated. This was subsequently merged in the Prince of Wales' National Relief Fund. _ On behalf of this an appeal was issued jointly by myself as Lord Mayor and Lord Pirrio as His Majesty's Lieutenant of the City, with Councillor James Johnston, Councillors J. R. Stifling, and F. W. Moneypenny (M.V.0.) as hon. secretaries. To that appeal a response almost exactly £50,000 has been received. Other local funds aro the Ulster Volunteer Force Hospital Fund of- £14,417; tho Belgian Refugees' Fund of £520; the Motor Ambulance Fund ot £9360; the Soldiers' and Sailors' Help Society Fund, £5055, and a number ot other and . smaller funds aggregate £15,000. Chrysanthemum Day, held on the Ist inst., raised £4000 for tho Red Cross movement. In concluding this article, may I be permitted' to travel just a little further afield than Belfast in ordor to state a fact or two that may bo of interest't In tho course of the war there have been won by 1 men of Ulster birth and residence or pa-rentago tho following honours: — " 5 Victoria Crosses. 11 C.M.G.'e. , 4 C.B.'s. r 24 D.S.O.'s. 32 Military Crosses. ' 2 D.S.C.'s (Navy). 2 D.S.O.'s (Navy). - Besides these many Distinguished Conduct Medals have been won, and over ono hundred men have been raised from the rank and file to commissioned' rank. ' A considerable, number of officers and men have also received Belgian, French, and Russian decorations, in special recognition of bravery. The Jobs in officers and men killed from Belfast alorio ha® been vory severe. Tho all-absorbing concern of our people is to aid to the utmost of then power every effort of the Government for the early and complete overthrow of an enemy whose gross barbarism and fiendish brutality have for' ever sullied the pages of German history, and render her unfit to be longer considered part of tho comity of civilised nations.