(T.F.), eldest _s._ of the late James Smith, of 4, Brunton
Place, Edinburgh, M.D., J.P. (died May, 1914), by his wife, Eliza
(15, Chalmers Street, Edinburgh), dau. of James Smith, of Edinburgh;
_b._ Edinburgh, 30 Aug. 1892; educ. George Watson’s College, and
Edinburgh University, and was in his final year of studying medicine,
when war was declared in Aug. 1914. He had received a commission as 2nd
Lieut. in the 5th Royal Scots (T.F.), 17 June, 1911, and was promoted
Lieut. 22 Dec. 1912; and volunteered for foreign service with his
Battn. He left for the Dardanelles, 10 March, 1915, as Machine Gun
Officer and Assistant Adjutant; took part in the landing on 25 April,
and was killed in action there, 2 May following; _unm._ Buried at
Twelve Tree Copse. Lieut.-Col. J. R. Wilson (himself wounded) wrote:
“The Adjutant was killed five days before, and your son was acting
Adjutant in his place. From the meagre details I have got so far, I
judge he joined with the line of our men who made a bayonet charge to
restore the broken British line which had given way before the enemy’s
attack. In the fighting resulting, he and two other officers were
killed. There is consolation in the knowledge that he died gallantly
doing his best for his country.” And Capt. D. L. McLagan: “As your
son’s temporary commanding officer it is my duty to write and tell you
how gallantly your son behaved on the night when he was killed. I was
within a few feet of him after a charge which we are told saved the
whole army from a break through by the Turks. Your son gave of his
best at all times for his Battn., and on this night he was not behind.
He led a section of the men for a very great distance to occupy a
vacant trench during the night, and when we arrived there we found the
Turks had got round behind. We all had the impression that the French
Senegalese were behind us, and while we hesitated, the blast which
killed so many of us, including your son, came upon us. By a great
chance and the goodness of God I was saved by a machine-gun protecting
me from the bullets intended for me, and thus I was the only officer
to return from that far-off trench when morning came. We drove off the
Turks and saved the situation but at what a cost? Montie was a fine
fellow who did his duty nobly and unselfishly and never spared himself.
His is another name to add to the roll of those who have fallen to
make the 5th Royal Scots what they are now.” Major James Scott of
the R.A.M.C. also wrote: “He was a most promising young man in every
respect, and I am sure had he been spared would have made his mark in
whatsoever path he chose to tread. He was most highly esteemed by every
one, from the Col., Adjutant and officers to the humblest man. Being
appointed Adjutant was the highest honour I ever knew conferred upon a
man so young, but yet he was equal to it, and threw his whole energy
into whatever task he undertook. It was practically impossible for such
a brave young soldier to escape being wounded because he ventured so
much and led his men so well.” He was Colour-Sergt. in the O.T.C. at
George Watson’s College, and joined the University O.T.C. in 1910.
[Illustration: =James Montague Smith.=]
=SMITH, JAMES WILLIAM=, Private, No. 10/1036, B Coy. (East Coast
Regt.), Wellington Battn., New Zealand Expeditionary Force, _s._
of William Smith, of Regent Street, Hawera, Taranaki, New Zealand,
formerly of Wakefield, co. York, by his wife, Margaret, dau. of J.
S. Meiklejohn, of Melbourne, Australia, and nephew of the late James
Sim Benyon, proprietor and Editor of the “Kumara Times”; _b._
Hokitika, West Coast, South Island, 4 Nov. 1879; educ. Kumara High
School, after which he served as an apprentice in a grocery business
in the same town. He then joined the Justice Department of the New
Zealand Government, and was appointed to H.M. Prisons, being ultimately
transferred to the Survey Department. On the outbreak of war he joined
the main body of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force, Aug. 1914, took
part in the defence of the Suez Canal, and was killed in action, 2 May,
1915, eight days after landing on the Gallipoli Peninsula; _unm._
[Illustration: =James William Smith.=]
=SMITH, JOHN=, Private, No. 2484, 5th Battn. The Royal Sussex
Regt. (T.F.), _s._ of the late James Smith, of Battenhurst Farm,
Stonegate, Farm Bailiff, by his wife, Eliza (Mabbs Hill, Stonegate,
Sussex); _b._ Stonegate, co. Sussex, 24 June, 1890; educ.
Stonegate School; was employed as gardener at Afterglow, Wadhurst;
joined 5th Sussex Territorials Sept. 1914, and died of pulmonary
tuberculosis at his home, Mabbs Hill, Stonegate, 25 July, 1915;
_unm._
=SMITH, JOHN=, stoker, 2nd Class, S.S. 115515, H.M.S. Good Hope;
lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.
=SMITH, JOHN=, Stoker, 1st Class, K. 13677 (Ports.), H.M.S.
Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, JOHN ACKLAND=, Stoker, 2nd Class, K. 20594 (lev.), H.M.S.
Hogue; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, JOHN ALEXANDER HAY=, B.A., LL. B., Lieut., 11th (Service)
Battn. The Royal Scots, only _s._ of the late William Smith, of
Calcutta, Jute Merchant, by his wife, I. Seath (now wife of W. G.
Mair, of Clifton Bank, St. Andrews), dau. of Alexander Nicoll, of
Dundee, Merchant; _b._ Darjeeling, India, 17 Nov. 1890; educ.
Stanley House, Bridge of Allan, Clifton Bank, St. Andrews, and Pembroke
College, Cambridge graduated B.A. Hons. and LL.B. 1912), and was
continuing the study of law in London, when war broke out in Aug. 1914;
obtained a commission as 2nd Lieut. in the 11th Royal Scots on the
27th of that month, and was promoted Lieut. shortly before his death;
went to France in April, 1915, and was killed in action at La Touret,
near Festubert, 14 Aug. 1915; _unm._ Buried at Hinges. He was the
heir and one of the residuary legatees of the late Mr. John Smith, of
Adderley, Forfarshire, but by the terms of the bequest was only to have
a life interest up to the age of 25. As he was only 24 years of age
his share of the residue went to the Dundee Infirmary and the Dundee
Victoria Hospital for Incurables.
[Illustration: =John Alexander H. Smith.=]
=SMITH, JOHN ARTHUR=, Private, R.M.L.I., Ch. 16726, H.M.S. Cressy;
lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, JOHN CHARLES=, Private, No. 11098, 1st Battn. Coldstream
Guards, 3rd _s._ of Joseph Smith, Park Lane Corner, Berkswell,
Sawyer, by his wife, Ann, dau. of Thomas Gibbs; _b._ Temple
Balsall, near Knowle, co. Warwick, 12 April, 1893; educ. at Burton
Green, Kenilworth, and Temple Balsall, near Knowle; enlisted 18 Aug.
1914; went to France early in Dec. 1914, and was killed in action at
Givenchy, 22 Dec. following; _unm._
=SMITH, MALCOLM ST. AIDAN=, Private, No. 286, A Coy., 10th Battn.,
3rd Brigade, Australian Imperial Force, _s._ of Henry Teesdale
Smith, of Arthur’s Seat, Crafers, South Australia, Railway Contractor,
by his wife, Lydia Kate, dau. of Samuel Johnson, of Melbourne,
Victoria, and great grandson of Major Henry Teesdale, who was killed at
the Battle of Meeanee, and whose services are mentioned in Sir William
Napier’s “Conquest of Sind”; _b._ Torquay, Tasmania, 31 May, 1890;
educ. Cordwalles, Maidenhead, England, and Guildford Grammar School,
Western Australia; and was an assistant engineer in the construction
of the Minnipa Hill railway on Eyre’s Peninsula and on a section of
the East-West line. On the outbreak of the European War he immediately
volunteered and joined the Commonwealth Expeditionary force, went to
Egypt with them; took part in the landing at the Dardanelles on 25
April, 1915, and was killed in action there two days later. He was
wounded twice, but refused to go back. An officer in another Battn.
wrote to his father: “He was a member of the Battn. that deserved all
the praise for the initial landing, and the way they waded ashore and
cleared the first hill is simply incredible. On the Tuesday after our
big advance, I found my way to the beach late at night, and at once
enquired at the Dressing Station, but they could only say they thought
a Malcolm Smith had been killed. There is no sentiment (or time for it)
on the field, but his friends in the Company say he died as they hope
to die, right in the middle of it.”
[Illustration: =Malcolm St. Aidan Smith.=]
=SMITH, PERCY LOWE=, Ordinary Seaman, S.S. 4670, H.M.S Pathfinder;
lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off the East
Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, ROBERT=, Stoker, 1st Class (R.F.R., B. 7495), S.S. 102811,
H.M.S. Hawke, _s._ of William Smith, of Eastward, Carnwyllie,
Arbroath; lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct.
1914.
=SMITH, ROBERT=, Stoker, R.N.R., T. 2922, H.M.S. Hawke; lost when
that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914.
=SMITH, ROBERT ERNEST=, Private, No. 5761, 4th Battn.
Worcestershire Regt., _s._ of Alfred Smith; _b._ Cookley, co.
Worcester, Jan. 1880; educ. Wolverly Parish Schools there; enlisted
in March, 1900; served in the South African War, 1901–2 (Queen’s and
King’s medals), and with the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force at the
Dardanelles, and was killed in action there, 15 May, 1915; _unm._
=SMITH, ROBERT JOSHUA=, Stoker, 1st Class, K. 17440, H.M.S.
Pathfinder; lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off
the East Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, SIDNEY=, Officer’s Steward, 3rd Class, L. 4434, H.M.S.
Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, SIDNEY CHARLES=, Blacksmith, 343371, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost
in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, SIDNEY JOSEPH=, Private, No. 12331, No. 3 Coy., 2nd
Battn. Grenadier Guards, yr. _s._ of Francis Louis Smith, of 35,
Alfred Street, Neath, Gardener, by his wife, Margaret, dau. of Julia
O’Leary, of Caerleon, Monmouth; _b._ Newport, co. Monmouth, 6
Feb. 1888; educ. Brynock National Schools; enlisted 1 Sept. 1905; went
to France with the Expeditionary Force about 12 Aug. 1914; took part
in the retreat from Mons, the Battle of the Marne and the advance to
the Aisne, and was killed in action at Zillebeke, 7 Nov. 1914. Buried
1½ miles east of Zillebeke, near Ypres. His company officer the late
Capt. Alwyn Gosselin, D.S.O., wrote expressing regret at his loss, and
added: “Your son was always cheerful under the very trying conditions
of the campaign, and he is a great loss to his comrades.” He was at one
time considered the Army champion in bayonet exercises. He _m._
at St. Joseph R.C. Church, Neath, South Wales, 16 Nov. 1913, Mary Anne
(Crythan Road, Neath), dau. of John (and Eliza) Singleton.
[Illustration: =Sidney Joseph Smith.=]
=SMITH, STANLEY IVAN=, A.B., J. 3081, H.M.S. Aboukir; lost in
action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, SYDNEY=, A.B. (R.F.R., Ch. B. 2564), 186020, H.M.S.
Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914
=SMITH, SYDNEY HENRY=, Stoker, 1st Class (R.F.R., Ch. B. 9317),
S.S. 106555, H.M.S. Cressy; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept.
1914.
=SMITH, THOMAS=, Private, No. 10229, 4th Reserve, attd. 3rd.
Battn. Coldstream Guards, eldest _s._ of the late Thomas Smith,
of Hull, by his wife, Minnie; _b._ Hull, 14 March, 1894; enlisted
July, 1913; went to France, 13 Aug. 1914; was wounded in March and
invalided home, and died in King George’s Hospital, Stamford Street,
S.E., 16 Sept. 1915, of wounds and appendicitis; to an inquiry as to
whether he would wish to go to the Front again he wrote: “I am willing
if I am needed, as duty to my King comes before pleasure. I am proud
I have been able to do a little.” He _m._ at St. Peter’s Church,
Drypool, Hull, Daisy Mary (149, Seaford Road, West Ealing), eldest dau.
of John Henry White, of Wandsworth, now Private, No. 074568, A.S.C.M.T;
_s.p._
=SMITH, THOMAS GRIFFIN=, Gunner, R.M.A., 4798, B. 100, H.M.S.
Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, THOMAS SYDNEY=, 2nd Lieut., 1st Battn. Dorsetshire
Regt., elder _s._ of the Rev. Sydney Edward Smith, Rector of
Sprotborough, Doncaster, by his wife, Lucy, dau. of Major-Gen. Augustus
Arthur Currie, C.B.; _b._ Womersley Vicarage, co. York, 31 March,
1895; educ. Hill House, St. Leonards-on-Sea; Radley, and the Royal
Military College, Sandhurst; gazetted 2nd Lieut. to the 1st Battn.
Dorsetshire Regt., 19 Aug. 1914; went to France, 7 Sept. 1914, and was
killed in action at La Bassée, 11 Oct. 1914.
=SMITH, TOM=, Private, No. 337, T. Coy., 7th Battn. Australian
Imperial Force, _s._ of the late Eli Smith, by his wife, Hannah
(now wife of William Ward, of Ginfield Ully, near Dursley; _b._ 18
Aug. 1886; educ. Dursley, co. Gloucester; served some time in the Navy;
went to Australia; on the outbreak of war in Aug. 1914, volunteered
for Imperial service; served in Egypt and at the Dardanelles, and was
killed in action there, 9 May, 1915. His brother was one of the Dursley
Volunteers who volunteered for foreign service during the Boer War, and
was killed in that campaign.
=SMITH, WALTER PALMER=, Stoker, R.N.R., T. 2168., H.M.S. Hawke;
lost when that ship was torpedoed in the North Sea, 15 Oct. 1914;
_m._
=SMITH, WALTER SIDNEY=, Private, Ports./14879, H.M.S. Good Hope;
lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.
=SMITH, WALTER WYVILLE=, 2nd Lieut., 9th (Service) Battn. Royal
Fusiliers, 2nd _s._ of Robert Harris Smith, late of the Old Manor,
Feltham, by his wife, Rosa Louisa, dau. of John Bashford, of Byfleet;
_b._ Feltham, co. Middlesex; educ. with the Rev. F. Cavalier at
Wramplingham Rectory, and at King’s College School, Wimbledon, where
he entered the Training Corps, being later Capt. of the Feltham Rifle
Club; after the outbreak of war enlisted in the Royal Fusiliers in
Sept. 1914, was promoted 2nd Lieut. 30 Dec. 1914, and killed in action
at Loos, 18 Oct. 1915; buried Vermelles Cemetery; _unm._ His
Commanding Officer, Major S. Gubbins, sent the following account to his
parents: “Your son was killed last night about half-past six, while
leading a bombing section in an attack which fully gained its objects,
and the result of which you will have seen reported in the papers
before this reaches you. So well was his work done, and so excellent
his plans, that although 200 yards of trench of vital importance to
us was gained, hardly any of his men were killed, although nearly all
were wounded. Your son’s loss is a very heavy blow to the regt., and
also to the Division. The qualities he showed were rare, and were far
more than mere courage. A bombing officer of the very first class is
almost impossible to replace under months of training. Your son was
killed instantaneously by a bullet through the heart just as the men
had succeeded in capturing the trenches they were attacking. His body
is now with his company, and will be taken to-night for burial in ...
Cemetery. I hope it may be some consolation to reflect that he died a
fine death, the finest death of any in the battn. yet, and that when
many before had failed, he was successful. The whole regt. shares your
loss.” His company officer, Capt. N. B. Ellis Cooper, added: “Your son
first of all commanded the company bombers. Our bombers co-operated
with those of the Essex regt. in an attack on a German trench. Soon
after the attack the officer in charge was wounded, and your son was in
command. He displayed the utmost resource and gallantry, and the attack
was completely successful before he was finally killed. The attack was
a very fine affair, and has brought the utmost credit to our battn.,
and I think that we owe this credit to your son’s skill in training the
bomb-throwers previous to the attack, and his gallantry in leading them
during the action.”
[Illustration: =Walter Wyville Smith.=]
=SMITH, WILLIAM=, Chief Petty Officer, No. 148381, Royal Navy,
eldest _s._ of Alfred William Smith, by his wife, Louisa;
_b._ Bridport, co. Dorset, 22 Dec. 1873; educ. at Northallington
School, Bridport; joined the Navy, 22 Dec. 1891; served in the Witu
Expedition, Aug. 1893 (Ashanti medal with Witu clasp), and in the
European War; was lost on H.M.S. Goliath, 13 May, 1915, when that
ship was torpedoed at the Dardanelles. He _m._ at Devonport, 27
Dec. 1897, Alice Maud (27, Alexandra Road, Ford), eldest dau. of John
Stribley, R.N., and had four children: Alfred William, _b._ 28
Sept. 1899; George Reginald, _b._ 25 Oct. 1906; Ernest Leslie,
_b._ 5 July, 1909, and Phylis Dorrien, _b._ 5 Jan. 1915.
=SMITH, WILLIAM EDMUND=, Officer’s Cook, 1st Class, 1874, H.M.S.
Aboukir; lost in action in the North Sea, 22 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, WILLIAM GERALD FURNESS=, Lieut., 3rd, attd. 1st, Battn.
North Staffordshire Regt., 2nd _s._ of the Rev. George Furness
Smith, M.A. (Oxon.), of 14, Riverdale Road, East Twickenham, Chaplain
of Royal Naval School, East Twickenham, and Editorial Secretary of
Church Missionary Society (1893–1915), by his wife, Elizabeth, dau. of
William Armstrong Hayes, of Edmondstown Park, Rathfarnham, co. Dublin;
_b._ Surbiton, co. Surrey, 7 July, 1888; educ. Birkenhead School,
Clare College, and Ridley Hall, Cambridge. He took his B.A. (2nd Class
Classical Tripos) in 1910, with a second Class in the Theological
Tripos in the next year; in Dec. 1911 he went to India to serve on the
staff of St. John’s College, Agra, where Bishop Durrant subsequently
testified to the value of his influence and his teaching ability;
on returning to England in 1913 he became a tutor at St. Aidan’s
Theological College, Birkenhead, and was to have been ordained Deacon
in Sept. 1914, but having been a member of the O.T.C., he volunteered,
and enlisted in the Public Schools’ Battn. After a few weeks’ training
at Epsom, he was gazetted 2nd Lieut., North Staffordshire Regt., 6 Oct.
1914, left for France 16 March, 1915, and was promoted Lieut. 24 June
the same year. He died of wounds received in action close to Ypres,
after recovering a trench when in charge of a party of bomb-throwers,
5 July, 1915. The following passage in F.M. Sir John French’s Report,
dated 6 July, appears to refer to this: “On the morning of the 5th a
party of Germans rushed a barricade on the Ypres-Roulers railway after
a two hours’ artillery bombardment, but a prompt attack by our troops
immediately recaptured the positions.” Lieut. Smith was buried in the
military cemetery, close to Poljitze, about one mile north-east of
Ypres; _unm._ Gen. Allenby wrote to Gen. Sir John Keir: “Will
you please convey to the officers commanding the North Staffordshire
Regt. our appreciation of, and gratitude for, the gallant behaviour of
Lieut. Smith of that regt., with his grenadier party who came to the
support of the 41st Brigade yesterday morning, and in a counter attack
on the Germans who had demolished a barricade and rushed a trench in
the left of our line. I would also express our deep sorrow on hearing
that this brave officer has died of his wounds, and would offer our
sympathy to his regt.” In forwarding this to Gen. Harper, Sir John Keir
wrote: “Will you please communicate this to the officer commanding
North Staffordshire Regt., and say how well deserved I know this
appreciation to be. I hope to see Col. de Falbe personally to express
to him my feeling with regard to the good work done by this fine battn.
I sympathise in the sad loss they have sustained.”
[Illustration: =William G. F. Smith.=]
=SMITH, WILLIAM HENRY=, Mechanician, 292066, H.M.S. Pathfinder;
lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off the East
Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, WILLIAM OLIVER=, Stoker, 1st Class, 307471, H.M.S.
Pathfinder; lost when that ship was sunk by a mine, about 20 miles off
the East Coast, 5 Sept. 1914.
=SMITH, WILLIAM WILTON=, A.B., 235327, H.M.S. Good Hope; lost in
action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.
=SMITH, WILLIAM JOSEPH=, Mechanician, 283349, H.M.S. Good Hope;
lost in action off Coronel, on the coast of Chili, 1 Nov. 1914.
=BRICE-SMITH, JOHN KENNETH=, 2nd Lieut., 7th (Service) Battn.
Lincolnshire Regt., yst. _s._ of the Rev. Brice Brice-Smith,
Rector of Hameringham, with Winceby, Horncastle, by his wife,
Kate Emily, 3rd dau. of the late John Middleton, of Benton House,
Newcastle-On-Tyne; _b._ Hameringham, co. Lincoln, 2 Nov. 1894;
educ. Quy Vicarage, Cambridge; Cranleigh School, Surrey, and entered at
St. John’s College, Cambridge; after the outbreak of war he was given
a commission in the 7th Lincolnshires, 27 Nov. 1914; went to France in
July, 1915, and died 11 Sept. following, from wounds received in action
the previous day, S.W. of Ypres; _unm._ Buried at Poperinghe.
While at Cranleigh he was senior prefect, Colour-Sergt. in the O.T.C.,
a member of the School Shooting Eight, and captain of both cricket and
football teams.
[Illustration: =John Kenneth Brice-Smith.=]
=BROADLEY-SMITH, ALAN FRANCIS=, Major, 5th Battn. Border Regt.
(T.F.), only _s._ of William Herbert Broadley-Smith, of Ambleside,
by his wife, Mary Matilda, dau. of Capt. Arthur Trollope, 36th Foot;
_b._ Derby, 24 March, 1876; educ. Repton and Bruges; joined the
5th Border Regt. (T.F.) as a 2nd Lieut., 28 Jan. 1909, and was promoted
Lieut. 24 Dec. following; Capt. 8 Aug. 1910, and Major 18 April, 1915;
acted as Instructor of Musketry from 1910 to 1915; and was Intelligence
Officer and Provost Marshal for the Barrow District; volunteered for
Imperial Service on the outbreak of war, and was appointed a General
Staff Officer of the 3rd Grade, on the 5 Aug. 1914; went to France, 25
Oct. 1914, and was killed in action near Hooge, 16 June, 1915, while
making a reconnaissance; _unm._ Buried on the outskirts of Zouave
Wood, near the Chateau there. Lieut.-Col. J. A. Milburn, Commanding 5th
Border Regt. wrote: “Not only was he a great personal friend of mine,
but also he was my best officer, and his death has come as a very great
shock to me. His company would have followed him to the ends of the
earth, and he was loved by both officers and men of the Battn. alike.”
He was a fine all-round sportsman, and held the position of amateur
huntsman to Mr. Curwen’s (Workington Hall) Foxhounds.
=COMPTON-SMITH, ROGER NOEL=, 2nd Lieut., 6th Battn. Manchester
Regt. (T.F.), 2nd _s._ of William Compton-Smith, of Tudor Place,
Richmond Green, co. Surrey, LL.B., Barrister-at-Law of the inner
Temple; _b._ Hampton Court, 16 July, 1894; educ. Horton School,
co. Bedford, and Heidelberg College; entered the Manchester House
of Tootal Broadhurst Lee Company, Ltd., on leaving school, and in
July, 1914, had arranged a tour with the representative of the firm
throughout America and Canada, but, war breaking out in the following
Aug. he volunteered and was given a commission in the 6th Manchesters,
5 Sept. 1914; left for Egypt a few days later; went to the Dardanelles,
2 May, 1915, and was killed in action there on the 27th. He was at the
time warning his men to evacuate the trench they were in, as it had
been condemned as dangerous, being enfiladed by the enemy; _unm._
Brig.-Gen. Noel Lee, who was himself shot on 4 June, and died in Malta,
wrote on the 25 May: “In his duties since he joined the regt., there
are none who have done better and very few as well. His whole heart
was in what he undertook and as an officer he was one of the most
useful and dependable in a regt. which is noted for efficiency. With
the mess he was always popular and more than respected on account of
his character. His men of No. 15 Platoon literally worshipped him,
as he was not only their officer but their leader, who never spared
himself, and their friend upon whom they could always rely for help and
assistance in their work. His loss is great indeed.” While spending his
school holidays at Brixham, he became a bold and skilful small boat
sailor and a strong swimmer, and at Alexandria saved the life of one of
his men who, while bathing, had ventured beyond the reef. He was a good
all-round athlete, and a keen fisherman.
[Illustration: =Roger N. Compton-Smith.=]