"'AIG'S A 'OLY TERROR."

Taranaki Daily News, 24 March 1916, Page 5

"'AIG'S A 'OLY TERROR."

ENTERTAINING STORIES OP GENV ERAL SIR DOUGLAS HAIG, "Lucky Haig" thev call the new Com"' inander-in-Chief of the Army in France and Flanderß—the largest ever led by a. British general. t Still, it is not by luck alone that Gen' eral Sir Douglas Haig has "won through," but by sheer merit and hard "slogging." "The energy and vigor with which Sir Douglas Haig handled his command show him to be a leader of great ability and power"—thus wrote tho former Commander-in-Chief .in one of his despatches. Since the beginning of hostilities Sir Douglas has proved himself the strong man of the war, as witness his stern. fights at the Aisne, his defensive in the huge struggle for Ypres, his important victory at Neuve Cliapelle. In war, as in lpve, lie has proved himself a man of prompt action. IB> had wedded the beautiful daughter of the third Lord Vivian a fortnight after first setting eyes upon her, and had the almost unique distinction of being married from Buckingham Palace, ho rose from captain to major-general, in the astonishingly short space of eight years; he has now risen from general of an army corps to supreme command of the British Forces in the field—in al period of about eighteen months!

Sir Douglas is a Scotsman—a great leader from a race that breeds strong leaders. Born in June, 1861, Sir Douglas entered the 7th Hussars at the age of twenty-four. If the medical examiners of that day bad had their way Haig would not be leading Britain's soldier* to-day, for he was "turned down" for color-blindness!

"HAIG'S WAY." Refusing to submit to rejection, young Haig consulted many oculists, urged fnd argued with the military authorities, and at last appealed personally to the Duke of Cambridge, who gave a special order for his admittance to the Staff College. "Haig's way," it would seem, won through even "then. Soon the young officer, by his outstanding merit, became one of that choaen band known as "Kitchener's men," and served with "K. of It." at Atbara, Khartoum, and in South Africa. "Haig never misses a chance, does lie f a Staff-officer said one day to Lord Kit" chener. "No,", was the dry response, "not half a chance." High praise from "K. of I£." Always having a great personal interest in his men, often in South Africa Sir Douglas would walk round tha s camps, talk with lug soldiers, .ar.d carefully examine their food and accommodation. During one of these unofficial inspections he heard a non-com.'s voice, raised in anger, issue from a tent. "Look you 'ere, my lad I" shouted tho irate non-com. "It's lucky for you that I ain't sure 'ow to spell 'insubordination,' or I'd report you to Colonel 'Alg! And 'Aig's a 'oly terror when 'e likes, 'Aig is!" WHY THEY ADMIRE IHM. But "'oly terror" or not, scarce a man in the British Army but would willingly lay down hig life for Sir Douglas if need be. Tlicy revere him M « / leader, they admire iiim as a man, for they know his pluck. They know how he rode alone into the desert to within a few hundred paces of about 3000 maniac Dervishes in order to reconnoitre; they know how he enters the firing-lines in France and chats with them, careless of his own danger; they remember those moments of horror one day, a few months back, when two German shells fell, ono after the other, plump on top of a haystack from which Sir Douglas was making observations, and they will not blttah—those who were there—to tell you how they thanked God that neither shell exploded. , "It was a fearful moment. Had either shell burst, the general taußb have been blown to pieces," said atl eye-witness.