SOLDIERS’ GRAVES.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3337, 15 November 1919, Page 5

SOLDIERS’ GRAVES.

TRACING THEIR. LO CATION.

WELLINGTON, This Day.

A particularly gratifying response has been made to a recent official appeal to soldiers and others to forward to Base Records, Wellington, part?cu—lars of the location of soldiers,-’ graves on Gallipoli. Many photographs and plans have been sent, giving information which has enabled the exact l«.ca« tion of graves to be marl-zed on the official plans with adcni-ac3;, although the wooden marks placed in positien at the ..tilne,of burial have diSa'ppeal'ed. Many relatives of deceased soldiers rceived photographs of graves from friends of the fallen, and these new constitute valuable evidence of location, especially, if the surrounding natural features are shown, enabling the position to he picked up on the plan. Base Records oilicials are sparing no troulble to follow up clues which‘ will enable graves to be properly marked. As an example, one friend of a dead soldier wrote that his old pal was buried at the rear of a particular trench, which he roughly sketched. As c-or~ robative detail,-he mentioned that the grave was just at the spot at-which the battalion messenger on a particular date entered the french about the hour of darkness. This niessenger was traced by the Defence authorities, he was shown a “pin-point” plan of the areas,» and -the relatives ‘of"the dead soldier will now have the satisfaction of knowingrthat the grave of their kinsman can be definitely located. ‘The Rev. Chas. J. Bush-King has r,en'derc'd good service by -submitting a scl;ai.dnle of 51‘gravesV of men buried by him on the Peninsula, with careful references to the location. on the official plan.-" ‘All the.infornlla‘_tion is lbeing cornn~.=.-‘nip.-._ cated to the oflicials responsible for‘ locating, marking and recording the graves, so that memorials of a .per—manent nature may be provided.