AUSTRALIA'S TOMMY BROWNS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 253, 5 April 1915, Page 6

AUSTRALIA'S TOMMY BROWNS.

HONORING A TOAST

NEW NAME FOR SOLDIERS.

Melbourne, March 15.

"Here's to Tommy Brown, grandson of John Bull, cousin of Tommy Atkins, and a distant relative—very distant, some think—of Uncle Sam." This v.vs the substance of an impromptu toast delivered at a convivial gathering of soldiers recently. There w y as an air of enthusiasm while the toast was being honored which indicated a full measure of pleasure over the creation of the new name. It had evidently dawned on the congregation of soldiers that in keeping with the custom of other nations, a distinctive personal name, which might attain military and domestic recognition, should be bestowed on Australian soldiers as a body. The soldiers had picked their speaker for the occasion, a Now South Welshman, bronzed, stalwart, and keen witted. He addressed the company with the command and with the spirit of a battalion officer giving orden-. "Gentlemen, fighting Australians," he remarked, "you have selected Tommy Brown as your name. A good name, a splendid name. (Cheers.) We are brown from head to foot. Brown-skinned, clothed in brown and harnessed in brown. (Hear, hear.)- We have sho.vn, originality and initiative by adopting our own name. Shakespeare says that Tie that filches from me my good name robs me of that which not enriches him, and makes me poor inetceo:.' Why should we, kith and kin of our beloved 'Tommy Atkins,' filch from him his good name?'' The sentiment was greeted with tn>. roarious applause. "We have built np'a nation, and a nation of fighters. Let us build up our own name, keep it and honor it. Dr Johnson said:— He left the name at which the world grew pale, To point a moral or adorn a tale. "The Australiam Tommy—we are not satisfied with that. 'Tommy Brown'— that's it, and we like it. (Applaud l. The Tommy Browns of the present and the future, I can assure you, will point a moral and adorn a tale. The Tommy Browns will help to slice the fattened • Turkey and kill the voracious Ea;'!<!. (Great applause.) While drinking "to the toast we should not forget tl.o 'Mary Browns,' the Florence Nightingales of Australia. God bless them, our nurses. Without them the horrors of war would increase a hundred foM drink to the health of the Brownstwin brothers a:. a sisters!"

Tommy Brown, '.Tommy Erown, strong and true as steel, Fighting for liis country, for the commonweal. Britain's might and Britain's right worthily he'll maintain, With flag unfurled he'll show the world he's a link in the fighting chain (Cheers.) The toast was enthusiastically honored, and the verse, set to improvised music, was sung lustily. It is understood that all of the soldiers present will do their utmost to see that the name of ''Tommy Brown" lives.