"DIGGER BIRDWOOD"

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 214, 4 June 1920, Page 7

"DIGGER BIRDWOOD"

CORDIAL WELCOME TO WELLINGTON RETURNED SOLDIERS' GREETINGS ENTHUSIASTIC DEMONSTRATION. General Sir Willia'm Birdwood was fiven a.most cordial reception by citizens of Wellington and returned soldiers last night in the Town Hall. The big building was full to overflowing, and a great proportion of the audience was composed of returned soldiers, some of whom had served under tho beloved cspj tain, and all of whom liad at least hoard of him. The boys greeted him with cheers, and sang "For He's a .Tolly Good Foilow." Speaking for tho roturned soldiers of Wellington, Mr. W. Perry, chairman of the Wellington association, greeted him as "Digger Birdwood," and Dr. Boxer, president of tho New Zealand Returned Soldiers' Association, offered a handshake to G-oneral Birdwood "for a hundred thousand men," who had served in the Great War. Sir William Birdwood was generous in his praise of Now Zealand soldiers, and in his address always introduced his fresh subjects with tho phrase "Ladies and Gentlemen and Old Diggers." At tho end of tho reception he asked the returned men present to come and allow him to shako hands with them, and the boys came. It was a long-distance feat in hand-shak-ing for General Birdwood, for thero were many of them, and every one or them literally wrung tho hands of the visitor, while he in turn had a smile and- a word of greeting or inquiry for every man. In introducing General Birdwood and Ladv Birdwood, the Mayor said that thev were there because they were "of ourselves," and had been associated with New Zealand ou . tho other side of the globe. General Birdwood was one of t.ho most remarkable men in the British Army. He started to serve his country long ago and had carried on his-good work ever with.distinction. As military secretary to the late Lord Kitchener in Egypt.and South Africa he had established his reputation for all time.' He became first acquainted with the New in Egypt, but. his real association was when he' went to Gallipoli in chaTge of the Anzacs. (Appljuise.) Well had he been described as the "soul of Anzac.' The Mayor added that during the whole period cf strenuous flcrhting on Gallipoli their distinguished visitor enjoyed tho full confidence of all the New Zealand and Australian troops, and of all the people of Australasia. He was pleased, he

continued' to be alongside of the man who fought, with our soldier boys, who was wounded with them, and who _ was prepared to tako up his task again at any time should the call come. The Gallipot! Campaign.

The Prime Minister, who was 'received 1 with cheering, ehid that he was very glad to be. present to extend a weleomo on behalf of the citizens, of New Zealand to their distinguished visitor.General 'Birdwood was here at tho invitation of the New Zealand Government, speaking' for the whole people of New Zealand. He wished to express the hope, and he did it with confidence, that the people of' New Zealand would give to General Eirdwood a New Zealand welcome. General Birdwood had been a leader of armies right through the war from 191-1 until victory oame in 1918. and throughout all that time ho had possessed the. full confidence of the troops in his comanand, among them tho New Zealand Division. He had led the New Zealand force through tho strenuous fighting of tho Gallipoli campaign, a period of hardships such as British troops had never before experienced in any war, but in that campaign'the men from the Do--minions, especially the men » from Wio South Pacific, proved , that they were as good soldiers as tlie men from the United Kingdom. Ho would not. claim that they were better, because every man who had been at the 1 historic landing knew the record of the famous 29th Division. (Applause.] Ho had read—he. had never heard The words spoken—that there would come a time when the British Empire would disintegrate. He wished. to express tho opinion that tho memory of that campaign in Gallipoli would keep tho Bri- j tish Empire together for many centuries to come.

He was glad to be ablo to testify that General Birdwood had been ono of the trusted leaders of the British, and tho people of this country owed him a deep 'debt of gratitude. His namo would always be i associated with the Gallipoli campaign, and afterwards with the Western front, and he had' borne his full share of the burden which had- made possible the victory which came in 1918. Gallipoli had been the one campaign on which tho-thoughts of New Zealand people had been concentrated more than on any other during the whole war. There was the landing at which deeds were done which would be great in history forever, and' then the evacuation. In connection with'the evacuation tho Prime Ministers of the various Governments were consulted before it was undertaken, and the people of this cduutry were thankful that it had been a bloodless evacuation. Our boys had taken care to remind the Turks then that the evacuation was only temporary, that they would come back. They had gone back after the armistice. The troops selected to take possession of the Turkish forts at' the Dardanelles were New Zealand troops, prominent among them being men of . tho Canterbury Mounted Infantry. This was only :! another instance of the way'of the British of winning the last battle. He was proud and pleased to think that the Dardaneljes and the Turkish forts would never again pass under the control of the unspeakable Turk. (Applause.)

He offered a welcome to General Birdwood, Jjiuly Birdwood, and Miss Birdwood to this country, and ho<)ed that they would cawy away pleasant recollections of' their visit. (Applause.! "A White Man." ', Mr. W. 'Perry, chairman of the Wellington Returned Soldiers' Association, offered a welcome on belialf of iteturned soldiers of Wellington to General Birdwood and Lady Birdwood. Tlio General was universally known, remarked Mr. Perry, among the "Diggers" as a "white man." He hud acquired a hold over the hearts of tile Australasian troops that had nevor been ofiuallcd, and could never bo excelled. When their dear old friends the "Aussies" "went mad" over the Gen. eralc—ns they did quite recently—there must be something remarkable about tho man. He expressed the hope that the General would receive throughout Now Zealand a welaamo second only to that recently accorded to "that Prince of Nature's gentlemen—His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales." (Applause.)

Dr. Boxer next welcomed the General on behalf of tlio New Zealand Returned Soldiers' Association. Tho soldiers had known him at various times, at various places, and in vnrious dresses. The welcome to tho General must ho regarded as a personal'wolcomo from tho whole of tho returned New Zealanders. The New 7rfaland Expeditionary Forco had been singularly fortunate in tlint thev had had a beloved General. It was quite possible for an officer to bo everything that his commission demanded, but It took somothing more than that—something greater—for an officer to bo far accommodate. himself in his men's affections as to be universally acclaimed as "0110 of them."

VISITOR IN REPLY MEMORY OF THE DIGGERS. General Birdwood was received with chcering when he roso io reply to tho speeches of welcome. He said that he felt inclined to say, "Where am I to begin?" for a man would have to bo 'more than mortal not to bo touched to thb ibottom of his soul by the warmth of tho welcome that .lie had hwl. Mere thanks would not express fully his feelings, but he wished to say that the wolcomo llad touched him very much indeed. These Islands hero had boon described as the Britain of the fjouth, and he thought tho description eminently fitting. He had always wished to como {o Now Zealand, and was glad now that the opportunity had been afforded him to <xtm. Seang co many of Ms W,

comradcs present ha was almost surprised not to hear someono asking him "TVhen i 9 the Aext spell?" or "When are wo going ovor tho top again?" Then ho had a joke with tho hoys about soldier French that they had picked up, and tlia thinks they learned to say: "Mademoiselle, voulez-vous promenade!! avec mol ?" never forgetting the "S'il vous plait"! Then ho told a few stories about soldiers ha had mot. Ho gavo tho pnlm for casualness to a soldier life had mot on Gallipoli—lie believed it was a man of tho Wellington Infantry. Ho was on his rounds ono day, and he asked this man how the bombs were behaving* Th« soldier replied that thoy were doing no good, and producing a match, ho lit the fuse of a bomb. General Birdwood said that he heard tho fnso fl ■/;/,, and ho turned his back just in caso of an accident. Tho bomb burst. A piece of it cut his gaiter and his leg, and another piece cut this face of the bomber. Tho soldier's only remark was. "That's tho first one- that has gono off properly toHo was very glad to see the boys again, not only as commander, .'but as their comrade and friend. Living with them as ho had in good weather and foul weather, in times of ,trouble as well as in times of success, lie believed that to the last day of his life ho would always have in his memory's eye an Anznc Disrger climbing the steep hills of Gallipoli, or' .when the Army hhd quitted Gallipot for Prance, a Digger wading through the mud of France or Flanders, but always' determined to stay through, reckless of the fate in store for him.

Good Citizens. Now that the men were back he knew how proud the people of New Zealand must be of them, for tliev knew what the men had done for tUam. They ought) to bo proud also for the other reason—that on April 25, 1915, New Zealand obtained her nationhood, obtained it by the bravery of her soldiers, stepped surely into her place among tho nations of the world. That place she was "oing to retain partly by the returned soldier. Knowing him as he had as a brave soldier and a good comrade, he was sure that the returned soldier would be a good, citizen in peace, would placo himself at tho disposal of the Govern, ment elected by the free mil of _ the pcoplo to uphold the State. He ' believed that the boys realised in this country what the Hepatriation Department liad done for them. He had had an opportunity that afternoon of attending a meeting of the Returned Soldiers Association, and he had been very much struck by the way in which the men 4 representatives showed that they were battling for them, trying to do the best possible for them. His advice to the returned soldierß was to keep the association going as it was, to keep it nonpolitical, to "keep it non-sectarian. (Applause.) So ho thought tho great tra.. ditions of the Now Zealand soldiers in Gallipoli and ii\ France might be preserved. ■ Those traditions were bound to be a very great asset to New Zealand in years to come. One suggestion ho -would Tutfco to the returned men — it had to do with the badge they wore, and it was that not one of them should ever pass another wearing the badge without passing tho time* of day. It might be a ridiculously small tlimg to talk about, but he thought there was much in it. For his. own Dart lie could not beaT to pass >. man. wearing the badge without taking notice of him. As for tho men who had returned, at leastthose among them who had returned whole, they must be < better men. for their travels abroad, for their contact with soldiers from other paTts of the Empire, and for their closer contact with the men of- their own country. , Among the Australian and New Zealand troops he had always noticed that the men possessed one characteristic in ono marked degree—initiative. "'Ho had thought much about the •reason for this, and had come to tho conclusion that it was because they were descendants of the pioneer colonists who had come out to these far-off lands.

"Above All Things—Work." The, advice he had given to tho Australian "Diggers" had been something like this: "Now that you are back here, try to live up to something like tho following: Try to talfe an. interest in public affairs, do what you can to encourage education; think, don't lot your minds lio fallow all the time, and above all things, work—short hours _if you like—but during those hours think what ' you ■ owe to yourselves and tho State, and put in a burst of tho hardest work you Can do." He knew there were boys wlfo said: "We have been working for the past five years; let the Test do tho work now." Certainly those who had been away had been working, but. thoso who hail remained behind had worked also. Among these 'ho faas thinking most of tho women who had helped so much with such things.as tho Y.M.C.A., the Red Cross, and the Salvation Army. Thoso who had been in the war knew that the war had not been won by the soldiers' in the field, or by tho sailors on the sea, but by the high morale of tho British nation. (Applause.) Ho had often been asked: "Who won the war?' l Voices: Bill Massoy. (Laughter.) General Birdwood (putting his hand on Mr. Masscy-'s shoulder): "I am sure that he took his Ml share." He went on to say that in reply to this question he always replied: '"I didn't win the war," but he might say that they had all won the war together. The war had been won By the bravery of our soldiers, the might of the British Navy, and the liitrh moralo of our people. (Applause.) When ho said this he did ( not wish to forgot—for he believed with his whole iiejiii— that Almighty Providence had assisted and guided the British to safety. While he did not wish to belittle 'the sacrifices of tho women of Britain' and New Zealand, he could not forget the sad plight of tlio women of Belgium and France;in tho. war-stricken areas. He could only pray God that such an unhappy fate should never befall tho people of these lands. (Applause.) Now that the war was over they could look back and think what would have been _ the result had they not been victorious. During the war they would not tlunk of it, would not, could not contemplate defeat. But there could be no doubt that defeat would have meant loss of nationality, loss of freedom, loss of self-respect, loss of everything. \ He knew that tho memory of fallen comrades would never be forgotten. They had shown that New Zealand was worth dying for; let those who remained show that it was worth living for. Ho knew that no words of his could comfort those who had lost men, but ho wished to say something about a Teport that tho graves of our men on Gallipoli had been desecrated bv • tho Turks. On further inquiry it had been, learned that this wns not correct, but that some graven, had been dug up by the Turks in tho work of making new entrenchments; u thing which had often been done by British troops in Franco. Not In Vain.

Ho wished to say that the mon who had died on Gallipoli had not died; in vain. Those who 'had seen mon die thoro would tell that the men died willingly, facing death with squared should* era,' walking cheerfully erect, looking death straiuht in tho face, smiling i thev knew that they were fighting for freedom, fighting for the women and children of their own land. The Galli, poli expedition was not a failure. U was finite true that they did not reach their objective, but it wns also truo that thev destroyed tho flower of tlio Turkish Army. The Turks had to 6end the best of their troops there, and tho Turks themselves civllcd it tho slaughterhouse This destruction of tho flower of tho Turkish Amy laM '1 10 foundation for Lord Allenby's victories later in Palestine. One other point he wished to mention in connection with Gallipoli. Ho un-' dwstood that Now Zealand lmd boon presented by the British Govornmcnt with the cruiser Chatham. It had been mentioned that ho had carried out tlio evacuation of Gallipoli, and this unenviable task ho had carried out on tho oruisor Chatham. On this ship ho hnd spent the three most anxious nights of his life. When at last Capo Helles came to bo evacuated ho had reported that given fine weather and enough small boats, he could tniarnnteo to carry out tho evacuation without loss. Again tho hand of providence intervoned; tlio weather hold fine, and. the cvaouatton was successful. Ho made a reference also to tho visit of tho Prince of Wales, declaring his belief that the Prinoo of Wales truly i lived up to lit* !W» sa&tto, 21 eecto,?

as did all the other members of tlio Royal House of Britain. "Ladies and Gentlemen and Old Diggers," • General Birdwood concluded, ' I don't know whether; I shall ever meet you again, but in case I should not meet you, and especially the boy 9 among you, I do wish you this from 'ho bottom of my heart—happiness and prosperity all your lives, and— the best thing that can come to any man or woman—the lx»t of good health for many years, bo come." General Birdwood sat down amid continued cheering. ( WELCOMED' BY MINED SOLDIERS AN ENTHUSIASTIC GATHERING. General Sir William Birdwood was a visitor to the conference of tlio New Zealaud Returned Soldiers' Association yesterday afternoon and received an enthusiastic welcome from the delegates. The distinguished visitor remained to hear some of the discussion on matters dealing with repatriation. As General Birdwood entered the conference hall ho was received with rousing cheers,, and the delegates sang "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow.". Cheers were also given for Lady Birdwood. In welcoming General Birdwood, Dr. Boxer (tho president) stated that they had a beloved general amongst them. To say that General Birdwood was • the "soul of Anzac" was a commonplace, but he had been the soul of that magnificent fighting force known as the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. (Applause.) Hp wished to say how pleased they were that General Birdwood was present, in New Zealand. (Applause.) They were exceedingly glad that Lady Birdwood and daughter were accompanying General Birdwood, tnd they hoped that the three visitors would havo an exceedingly hnppy time in the Dominion. (Applauso.) Oh rising to return thanks, General Birdwood was lustily cheered. He was tfelighted to come amongst them, ho said, and he knew that the warmth of the people's hearts would go out to liini in whatever part of the country he visited. (Apphuise.) Before leaving he intimated that he was glad to notice that they wore all working in the interests of the returned soldiers. Further olieers were given for General Birdwcod as ho left the hall. VISITING GENFRAL'S ITINERARY. General Birdwood will leave for Christchurch on Monday night, and will spend a fortnight in Canterbury and Otflgo, visiting Dunedin; InvercaTgill, and Qneenstown. Ho will then return to Christchurch, and will proceed overland to the West Coast, visiting the principal towns there. He will next visit Nelson and Blenheim, and returning to Wellington will go up by the Wairarapa to Napior. From Napier he will motor to Taupo and 'Rotonia, and will then proceed to Auckland. After a few days there, ho will so to New Plymouth, and'from there will return to Wellington. visiting the various towns on. Touto. Ho will leavo Wellington for England by the Aiwa, which is.oxpected to sail I about July 20.