War Graves

Hokitika Guardian, 31 May 1922, Page 4

War Graves

COMMISSION'S BIG TASK. WELLINGTON, May 25. 1 The Hon. Sir |{. ilea ten Rhodes, Minister of Internal Alfairs, slated Unit approximately 501,000 soldiers’ graves in France and Belgium have been located ami registeicd. Ti e Wni Graves. Commission has csablishcd its headquarters at ,St Omcr, and Ive branch offices have been established; The Commission’s personnel in Film '0 and Belgium numbers 1302, with an average of 75 at each camp. Nine hundred and forty-eight cemeteries have been treated boiticultiirally, and 155' j sown in grass. Thirteen hundred and seventy-five cemeteries were visited in 1021 by travelling gardening parties. Over fifteen miles of hedges were planted, and <5 miles <d flower borders made and planted, while 19 > acres wop' sown in giass. The total number ot cemeteries containing British graves is 3500. Of 1200 large cemeteries, constructural work lias been eomph ted in 132, while 285 are under const ruction. Headstones shipped to France and Belgium number 40,758. of which. L-.95J have been erCeted. In (be l nited Kingdom the war graves total 92,000, contained in 10,000 cemeteries. Difficulty lias been exp"; ieuced ill securing sufficient stone-cutters to engrave ■ particulars oil the heads!ones, .and men bad to be specially trained. 11l G illipuli there are about 38 cemeteries, containing some 19,000 known graves. So far atlm worn m t.ic commission is coiiccriicil, the Rcm.i- . sida is divided into three main areas. | nanielv. An/.ac, Suvla Ray. and lap - ' 1 Idles. In the Anzac area there will

tie 27 cemeteries, containingcpproximately 5500 identified and uindeidim*d graves. At Suvla there will be foni cemeteries, containing approximU'ly .',200 graves, and at Hellos seven cemeteries, containing some 0000 graves. The cemeteries Imvo all been designed, and are out to tender. There are seme 20,000 missing in Gallipoli areas, and the method of eeninieTmiraliiig them m under consideration. In the .Lgian • Islands there arc approximately 2501) graves scattered in Mudios and other islands of the .Egean. In order to carry out future maintenance satisfactorily, a great deal ol concentration will ho necessary, and arrangements me now in band. In Egypt there are nine war e outcries and approximately c>oo graves, and these cemeteries have, all been^ dosigned and are out to tender. The work of concentrating isolated graves I as Iron completed, with the exceptant of some lew scattered graves in the western desert and in the Sudan, u.iieo still remain to be brought in. In Palestine there will he eight nm l,l -cemeteries, containing rather mine than 0000 craves. Designs have been completed and tenders called for in eonnectiou with the four largest cemeteries. and it is anticipal i d that, '-he contracts for four more will he placed at an early date.