DIVINE SERVICE IN THE FIELD

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3191, 15 September 1917, Page 2

DIVINE SERVICE IN THE FIELD

A SUNDAY MORNING SCENE IN FRANCE

CHAPLAIN'S HOMELY

ADDRESS

By HAROLD A. LITTLBJULE,

Fm s!s «J j ne *>»* 'Evening loat &taft, now Corporal, 21st Co Jungs Liverpool Begiraent, British Jixpeditionary Porce.

Ho will begin by singing Hymn 2S/ : liie chaplain paused and looked up from his book. "Hymn 28," he repeated. "Hymn 28."

There was a hurried thumbing of books, a clearing-, of throats by a battalion, a shuffling of heavy shod feet, then ouiet. In that moment tho white-robed iiffure of the ai-my chaplain stood out clearly against a tank, painted, for everpresent necessity, with futuristic fancy. Now church parade this day aid not begin with the singing-' of Hymn 28. It began nearly two hours before that with a. general cleaning up of clothing and equipment. Bufton-slicks, long in dis- !! s , 0, wer , e dr «8B«l forth from kit bags. "Soldier's Friend" was rubbed on tarnished buttons until the lion and the unicorn embossed thereon were resplendent. Also boot-blackinpr was passed around, those who had sharing with those who had not, and as a result boots emerged from a casing of mud, first by being scraped away with a knife, later by being polished. After that, n general assembly, a Talling-in of ail manner of troops, young and old, veterans and those who had seen little of war. Followed a general calling- out of names, and then a command to tho Roman Catholics in om , ranks. "R.C.'s fall out on left flanlc." The section leaders passed on biie command and ft hundred men fell out, under a corporal, who marched them off elsewhere to church. The ranks of those who remained closed up. The lines stretched out straight from end to end, so many files, so many sections, so many n.c.o.'s. J long them passed the officers, eyes keen for "an unfnstened button or a. neelected polish. At last all were ready. For a moment the officer commanding surveyed them so. Then he shouted: "By the left in column of route, No. i leading, form fours." Thore was a hurried movement, tlia straight ranks dividing. Then '.he command "Left" and the battalion turned as one- man. With measured stride they marched off to the hanger that had been chosen for the service. There they formed up iu tows, standing, for there were no seats of course. After that prayer booke wore passed round and caps came off. The chaplain took his place. "TTyinn 28," he announced. The men turned to the pnge. The chaiplain stood watchinj. his hymn bonk held so looseiy that one why it did not fall out of hi 3 hands. Then he -Darted his lips. "Fight tho Good Fight"-he sang. Tho words came t.u;fc clear and distinct. They ran? through the .hangar. They moved a, Cockney sergeant to join in with tho next few bars. Then the battalion roused itself to the hymn. Fight the pood fight with all thy might, Christ ie thy strength, and Christ thf right; Lay Hold of life, and it shall bo Thy joy and crown eternally. At tho end of the verse, thorn wa,« a paueo and again (he chaplain !ed the singing— "Eun, the stt'-iiglit race," Tho words wore pregnant with meaning this Sunday to theso nion who stood with bared heads in a canvas hanjjrar that liko the tank was streaked with green and yellow and brown. And they sang with earnest intensity. "Faint not nor fear, His arms are near."

Everyone was singing noiv and the hymn was brought to a closo with tho moil standing with their i'cet a, littJo apart, their shoulders thrown rack and their voices drowning , out completely the sullen anger of the guns. With tho "Amen" thero foil owed Psalm 321. the chaplain and tho won alternately intoning tho yorees, and after that another hymn.

"Through tho night of doubt and sorrow Onward goes tho pilgrim band."

&oniowhp.re in tho distanco a mine exploded. It ißas several miles away, but the roport was easily distinguishable from gunfire. It caused Sergeant Strongheart to start and to think of a day in. dallipoli. He had been gassed by an asphyxiating shell ajid hnd crawled into its crater for safety wlen he heard a second shell coming and was buried for thirty-seven hours, waking up to find hinisolf in a bod on Mudros Island, with a tilrango helplessness in his strong limbs and an overpoworing congestion in his lungs. Now ho shook himself porcoptibly and look up tho siDging:

Clear before us through the darfcnoss Gloame and burns tho guiding light, Brother clasps tho hand of brother, Stepping fearless through tho night."

In a senfio all tho days of this war are nights and tho chaplain probably had that in mind in selecting this hymn. The men were well into the singing now and needed no leadership. Tho chaplain stepped aside to the tank. Ho reached up to an open gun sponson and selected a gilt-edged book that lie had put down thoro nnh ceding powder, petrol, and mud. Tho hymn was onded with a half-hearted "Amen."

"We will not say the apostles' creed together." The chaplain knelt on tho gTound; the men bowed their heads. Ha spoke in a clea7', lond voice; from their ranks enme a growl of words half-remem-bered.. There followed the second collect for pence, and etrango it ecemed to havo these words spoken in this place. For war was on every hand—the tank that served as altar, tho guns nearby, tho troops marching past, the drono of vagrant aeroplanes overhead, and, in the far distance, tho dull thump-thump-thump of drum firo where preparations were boing made for an advance.

After tho collect Che chaplain arwso from tlie ground. Hβ faced tbe men. "Pleaso sit clown," lie said, and, after ho had spoken, tho men eat on the cool earth in the perfect disarray soldiers fall into when resting. There followed a few announcements—that evensong would be hold for any who cared to attend; that the chaplain would censor any li-tters the troops might prefer not to pass through tho hands of (heir officers and Chat confirmation would be possible for any desiring- confirmation. While he spoko it was noticeable that ho pronounced Ills r's 09 if they were en's.

"I will lake for my text," he said, "thai verse of St. Paul. 'Be ye faithful milo Death and I will giro you a Crown of Gold."

Ho spoke not altogether, in the simplest words, but in. words and phrases best -understood by tlieso men. He dwelt a great <teal on -tlio necessity for perseverance, on never Riving up, no matter what the difficulties. •

"I romember when I was at school," he said, "wunning in a, wather long wiice. It was a ten-mile wace, and when "we were about half-way done we came to a ploughed field. The course was over that field, and I wemember as T wan how tho mud stuck to my boots. Kvwy timo I lifted my feet I folt like dironping. Then. I looked up and saw nnofher boy in fwont of me, and I said to myself, 'If he can do it. T can do mid k> I wan on. And that's what we must all do. Wo must wnn wight on. Only by going wight on to the vowy end can tho wace bo won."

Then he epoko of the games of the "0-weoks and Womans" and how a crown of laurel was given (o tho winner, pointing out that tho iutrinsie value of the prize was of no moment, and that it was tile honour of winning that was tho suprcino thing. Aften ten minutes tho sermon was ended, and he announced Hymn 193.

"Jesus, lover of my soul," ho sang. The cockney ecrgeant carried on with /flia second line, aad <tho men besaji .to

jfein in, ano by one, until when the second verse was. begun, nil woro singing: Other refuge have I nono; Hangs my helpless soul on (boo; Leave, oh! leavo mo not alone. Still support and comfort me. Thure followed another prnyer, alter which tho sorvico was brought to an find with Hymn 160, followed by tho benediction. Tho cockney sergeant seemed particularly to like tlio hymn, for he sang abovo all othors: " 'Oly, 'oly 'oly," and he concluded with a stentorian. "Har-mon."