A VIVID PICTURE.

Taranaki Daily News, 10 January 1917, Page 8

A VIVID PICTURE.

j FROM THE FRONT. THE MAD DOG OF EUROPE. Xcwspapers recently received from Scotland tell of the honor conferred on the Rev. Father Gray. of Selkirk, who has been awarded the Military Cross for vaior in attending and rescuing tin wnineled under the fire of ihe enemy. The news will give pleasure but no sur-pv'j-o to ail who know the indomitable chaplain—and there must be some of tiuse in New Zealand—and an account of the scene near the fighting lines, written by Father Gray to Selkirk friends, should be interesting to everybuly interested in the war. '1 he authorsiiip, too', will give merit of unimpeachable, veracity to the narrative. 'THE RAZURE OF OTiUVION." Tnns Father Gray describee the wipii:g out by the tornado of artillery fir-: of the villages, woods, landscapes of France and Flanders:— "You will wonder why I have been so long in writing to you, but the fact is I have been very lnisy ever since I got your letter. We joined in the 'big push very shortly after it began, and have seen much fighting sineo then We have just come back for a bit of much-needed rest, but we come with the pleasant knowledge that the enemy are beaten on every point. Their terrible artillery bombardments are still terrible, but ours are fifty times more terrible. So awful art; the bombardments by our gunner.-, that 1 find myself pitying the poor, miserable Germans. We have driven them taelf from trench to trench, until now

IwViily dug, with here and there a dugout to hide in, but nothing could save their, from our awful artillery. The ground is just, honeycombed for miles willi great shell holes. For miles there is nothing but desolation. This part of Fiance has many villages and small tewr.s. There are practically no farmhouses scattered around, as we see at heme The French farmers congregate in villages, and wherever the fighting has been these places are razed to the Siound. As we move along we pass heaps of bricks and mortar, with not a bit of wall standing. There is usually a signboard to tell the name of each once-thriving town. There have 1.-;r. I. can ti fill woods, hut not a (;ce lias escapee; now, instead of beautifying the landscape, those woods intensify : (ierolation of the scene.

THE CROSS-AND CALVARY . ' would get depressed by the sadness of it all, were it not for other things which uplift the mind and cheer the heart, and even in days before victory was in sight, for exnmp'e. it ivas no v.r,common sight to see at some crossload, where all around had been laid in ruins, where every tree and house had been wrecked by shells, a crucifix stand ii.'g untouched. In a ruined tillage we passed through lately there was scarcely a v all left more than a foot or so high--everythiug was one sad mass of ruins. Fur the church, which he J been rather r.ice and of good size, was so smashed that you could not do much more thaiguess at its shape. Yet inside, standing serene and beautiful, still mi its pedestal, is a large statue of the Mother of Our Saviour. A little way oil' anions fiie shell-smashed trees is a forge crucifix still standing uninjured. The enemy were still shelling this ruii.ed place r.Y I rode through yesterday, and I must say that the sight of those things stand ing thus unharmed, the statue with the paint fresh and boautifiil—its face seemed to have an expression of pity, while the hands were held out as a mother might hold her hands to invite a clrid to come to her protect ion—with the crucifix, looking over tl.e scenes m ruin and desolation, recalled the wordl- - spoke on Calvary's mount: 'Father forgive them, for they know not what tiny do.' " HUNS AND HUNS.

There are Huns nnd Huns, 11ioiifrli tin whole race must bo held accountable for the infamies of this war which have damned the name of Germany to everlasting shame. Here is a lvief passage. Father Gray, from his own experience, illustrates the difference bet ween the U'.n of the human and the Him of the brute species. He writes: "We have got the Huns fairly fright;ned now; they say it was beyond human flesh and Wood to withstand our awful artillery. of the prisoners taken were fairiy rice fellows, but occasion-illy we got nasty ones. I bound up the wounds of sonio of the poor beggar*, and most were grateful, very grateful, and told in; that they had been misinformed about the British, and that tiny ihonglt wc would be cruel. One poor fellow insisted on presenting me -with his Iron Cross. Of course, I refused, but he was so grateful to me for making his wounds comfortabte that he absolutc-y refused to take it back again. I have, however, get his name, etc., and luvc arranged to have it returned to him when he is out of hospital and able to take eare of it. Another Hun officer whom I also dimed was very different. He tried to bile me. He was a low. mean, treacher-, our fellow, utterly selfish, and did not care how mpcli lie hurt our wounded who were near him, until 1 had to threaten to throw hint intr a shell hole and leave him there, and that frightened him." OPTIMISM AND MODESTY. The optimism of the t.roups and the modesty of this splendid young chaplain are clearly shown in the next passage:— "It is very cheerful now that we have the upper hand of the enemy. Every day we take a bit more ground and a lot more, prisoners, and our wounded men roil in so cheerful that to hear them you would think it was just the end of a football match.

' You will lie expecting some new.', of the battlefields, but Ibis I do r.ot feel inclined to write. It is terrible, and th.n.g-li T would gladly forget it all, I Mil at tlie same time glad I came. I have bad many a narrow shave, but I Know that 1 cannot be hit until God permits it. so do not worry. r lhey have awarded me the Military Cr<ss for doing tilings that are considered brave, but 1 really only did the wo'-k 1 came out for, and if I had not done it I should hive felt asliam«l of myself. The most p-eesant thing about it is that everyic dy seems so genuinely \ leased that such an honor lias been conferred upon 'I wish I could get hack to dear oi.l Fe'kirk for one week-end In-fore the li:a\ es are oil' the trees ami the rose", flushed in my old garden Well, peril ap.-; 1 may get oil' for a week very soon now, and have a rest from the constant [fund of guns, and forget this cruel, senseless waste of life and -property for I few days." / I The mad-clog type of bitiii" German

Jl.l- been heard of before, Inn'; sometimes, v. ith the writW, some doubt lias been . I: "as to his existence. It might,,one tls.rgiit occasionally, be one of the exp"i!':'able exaggerations of the war, but Father Grav's testimony places the matter beyond dispute or cavil, r.ml .■tftows eliiirly that the German has been very fitly and justly called the mad dog of Cl.ri-iendom.