The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE TUESDAY, JUNE 11, 1918. LETTERS FROM SOLDIERS.

Taihape Daily Times, 11 June 1918, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times. AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

TUESDAY, JUNE 11, 1918. LETTERS FROM SOLDIERS.

(With which is Incorporated The faihape Post and WatnmrJ'JO News).

Irrespective of the publication of any official history of this great world war, which wouid necessarily describe and portray so much of incidents and happenings having particular refer-, enco to politico —military events, he New Zealand Government has decided to publish what may be termed a popular history of the war; a history that will keep in memory those thousands of thrilling situations the only record of which are in the letters that soldiers have sent home to their relatives and friends from the burning sands of Egypt and Asia, the sterile hills of the Galiipoli Peninsula, and the trenches and dugouts in France, Belgium and Italy. We have read of many thrilling hair-breadth escapes in letters from our soldiers; of almost unbelievable acts of bravery; of the most daring adventures being planned in an atmosphere of mirth and humour as though it were merely a practical joke on some friend that was being organised rather than a death-dealing surprise raid on Fritz, as they familiarly term the Germans. We know, from having read them, that there are soldiers' letters containing records of the war that should not be allowed to be excluded from any history of the war, but which assuredly will be irretrievably lost if some such popular history as that proposed by the Minister of Defence ,'s not compiled white the letters are available. From them very much of vital interest may be gathered, not only on the battlefield, but also behind the lines, in hospital, also on transport and furlough. To constitute these records a popular history there must be no modification or discarding r.hat can only reduce the work to a mediocre level and render it a failure and a waste of money. To be a success it must have no political leaning or significance, either nationally or internationally. If it is to betbe outcome of the soldiers' native wit and of Ins keen powers of observation and judgment of human nature, it will give New Zcalanders an insight into the character and bearing of all those peoples assisting in the war who profess to be Britain's allies, as well as of much about "Fritz" that a formal history will not touch upon. To enable the compilation of a popular history the Minister must have the assistance of relatives and friends of soldiers who have been at the front, are at present there, or are going there. The letters they now have, as well as those they receive in the future must be placed at the Minister's disposal, or such a history as is proposed becomes an impossiblity . We not only want a history of the doings of men in high positions, but also of the men in the trenches, who do the actual fighting/and who meet with experiences that those in other positions have little or no knowledge of. The Minister of Defence has, by advertisement and through a letter in our correspondence columns, asked those who have letters to lend them to him; he wants them all so that no gallant deed or brave exploit by any soldier may go unrecorded or fail to be handed down for future generations to think upon. We hope that feelings of modesty, doubt about the historical value of letters or fear that they may contain something the Censor might have objected to, will not prevent the request of the Minister for a loan of such letters being readily acceded to. What may seem of little importance to one may be the clinching factor in settling some great doubt on controversy. Therefore, it is earnestly hoped that all letters from soldiers will be sent in to provide the material for a history that will be cherished in the homes and by the friends of every man who has risked the supreme sacrifice in this most appalling of all wars. If it is any convenience to owners of letters we wil undertake to receive them on beh'df of the Minister, give an acknowledgment, and forward them to Wellington. The Minister gives his assurance that letters will be carefully preserved and, when finished with, return them to their rightful owners. The history now proposed is one that every soldier will have an opportunity of writing something for, of supplying & photograph or sketch drawing for. It is not to be an academic compilation, but rather a series of narratives that will endear it to the hearts of our people and render it indispensable in most New Zealand homes.