https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/register/a-country-seat-for-prime-ministers-pgs75shkz
In a memorandum setting forth the object of the gift Sir Arthur Lee speaks of Chequers as an inspiring residence for its intended occupants “in their strenuous and responsible labours”. A sufficient endowment is provided to cover a permanent nucleus staff of servants, as well as a residential allowance for the official occupant. A board of ex officio trustees is constituted, consisting of the Prime Minister, the Speaker, the Foreign Secretary, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the President of the Board of Agriculture, the First Commissioner of Works, the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the National Trust, and the Director of the National Gallery. The idea of the donors is to make the estate in every way attractive as a country seat. A sufficient sum will be allotted from the trust fund to maintain the gardens and grounds, and provision is made for the maintenance of the farms as a model or experimental farm. The contents of the house go with it. They comprise a well-known collection of Cromwellian portraits and relics; a library of valuable books, chiefly of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and mostly in their original bindings; a collection of pictures by various masters, and papers and manuscripts of historical interest, British and foreign.
Chequers has a long and unbroken history and many Parliamentary associations. It derives its name from the title of the Keeper of the King’s Exchequer under Henry I and the mansion, which has been carefully restored by the donors, is partly of Tudor and partly of Elizabethan origin. It was for years the home of descendants in the female line of Oliver Cromwell. It lies high, its situation is salubrious, and it is less than 40 miles from Downing Street.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-10-04/register/the-scarcity-of-bacon-0mcnx8rnk
It is plain that the Passchendaele Ridge and the last portion of the Gheluvelt Ridge are going to be won only by very hard fighting. The public at home should never forget that upon the slopes of these ridges our troops are engaged in the longest and most desperate battle of the year. It is sometimes suggested that the enemy mean to yield their control of the Belgian coast, and are only trying to gain time for the completion of a new and shorter line farther back. No credence should be given to these pleasing suggestions. Eight powerful counter-attacks in two days, chiefly made with fresh troops, have a much bigger purpose than gaining time. To the Germans the retention of the right of their line on the Western front is a matter of life or death. On the day they quit it their line will have been turned. The Battle of Menin Road should be the prelude to greater events, and because so much depends upon the possession of the last ridges the Germans are battling in this corner of Belgium with a strength and obstinacy which have never yet been exceeded or more valiantly met.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-10-02/register/general-maudes-victory-ljwtck7p0
It has always been expected that this autumn the Turks would try to recover Baghdad, and some time ago it became known that no less a personage than Marshal von Falkenhayn had been placed in charge of the operations. Happily General Maude got his blow in first, and he should have no more anxiety about his left flank for same time to come. Several thousand prisoners were captured, among them being the commander, Ahmed Bey, and his staff. In the whole of the campaigns in the Middle East we have had no neater or more complete success, and General Maude’s stanch troops deserve the heartiest congratulations.
It is a great thing to have won the opening stroke and to have taken the enemy unawares, but the real lesson to be learned from the battle of Ramadie is that if our commanders in Mesopotamia and in Palestine are to make the most of their chances they must be well backed up. Fortunately General Maude is now in a far stronger position than ever before. He knows that in Palestine General Allenby has formidable forces which will prevent the Turks from concentrating their full strength in Mesopotamia. On the whole, the prospects of both General Maude and General Allenby may be regarded hopefully, if they are given the support they require.
We do not expect to see Marshal von Falkenheyn wipe out before Baghdad his failure to take Verdun. If all goes well, he should meet with the fate which overtook both Trajan and Julian in similar adventures in the same historic region. But we must expect a great deal of hard fighting. The defenceless condition of Persia since the Russian withdrawal gives them great opportunities of creating a diversion, and while the battle of Ramadie encourages us to look forward to the coming campaigns with reasonable confidence, we may still have anxious moments about the Middle East before the winter is over.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-09-30/register/why-german-towns-are-not-bombed-j00h9x2zh
While the great battle on the Ypres front continues, it is of the first importance that all available military resources should be concentrated for its prosecution. Every aeroplane is needed in Flanders, where we have to face a very large concentration of enemy aircraft, owing to the fact that the Germans have been able to withdraw large numbers from the Russian front. Only by keeping Sir Douglas Haig supplied with aeroplanes, and particularly with machines capable of bombing the enemy’s aerodromes and air depots, are we able to maintain our hard-won superiority in the air. To divert aeroplanes from the battle in order to carry out retaliatory raids on German towns would be to prejudice the success of our main offensive effort for an object of comparatively secondary importance.
The authorities fully realize the value of undertaking raids on places of importance in Germany, and as soon as our operations in France are ended as many aeroplanes as we can spare will be devoted to these objects. Meanwhile, every effort will be made to continue the improvement of our protection of London. It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of the bombing work which is being done by our airmen on the Western front, and it is well to remember that the casualties incurred in London are very small in comparison with the heavy losses, as well as the material damage, which the continuous raiding by our airmen by day and by night is inflicting on the German Army. Germany’s present immunity from such experiences as London and South-Eastern England are undergoing may be regrettable, but it is due not to any reluctance to raid the enemy’s towns but to the military exigencies of the time.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-09-29/register/shell-shock-hospitals-2bxr76j8q
Sir, Nothing that I could write can add materially to what everyone knows of the work of the Red Cross and St John organization. But I would like, all the same, to give an example of their fearless adoption of responsibility for work, once it is proved to be necessary.
I am responsible, originally for one, now for five hospitals for officers suffering from shell-shock, men who have done their best, and are for a time laid aside by one of the most distressing of disasters to which the human organization is liable. We required £950 a month in addition to what the War Office paid. I had made two appeals to the public, and we had come to the end of our funds. I went to the Red Cross, and put the position before them. After careful investigations as to our management and expenditure, they at once took upon themselves the whole cost of these hospitals.
There are no words which can adequately express what the Red Cross and St John have done to lessen the sufferings of our soldiers, and to show them that we old stay-at-homes do not forget them.
Yours faithfully,
Knutsford,
Shell-Shock Hospitals, Palace Green
INSANITY AND THE WAR
Sir, The new regulations dealing with men who have lost their sanity through the war are on the whole very satisfactory, but I would protest strongly against one — viz, that dealing with cases of men who had previously been confined in asylums, and have again become insane as a result of war service. It appears that the new regulations do not apply in these cases. This seems outrageous, at any rate, in cases where men were conscripted. The War Office forced men to serve, knowing full well they had been in asylums. I made a vigorous protest against this at the time, pointing out that the worry, excitement, and hardship of military service were certain to bring on a recurrence of lunacy. I followed up the cases of two men against whose enlistment I had protested, and they were both back in the asylum within a few weeks of joining their regiments. The Government forced them to join against their will, and the Government must be responsible for the consequences.
Very truly yours,
Frederick Milner
october 5, 1917
A country seat for prime ministers
A highly interesting and important gift to the nation is announced today by which the estate of Chequers, situated in one of the choicest parts of the Chilterns, will become the official country residence of the future Prime Ministers of England. It has been decided by the present owners of Chequers, Sir Arthur and Lady Lee, to transfer the estate forthwith in trust to the nation to be used and maintained, after their deaths, in perpetuity for the Prime Minister in his official capacity. Mr Lloyd George has accepted the gift in the name of his successors.In a memorandum setting forth the object of the gift Sir Arthur Lee speaks of Chequers as an inspiring residence for its intended occupants “in their strenuous and responsible labours”. A sufficient endowment is provided to cover a permanent nucleus staff of servants, as well as a residential allowance for the official occupant. A board of ex officio trustees is constituted, consisting of the Prime Minister, the Speaker, the Foreign Secretary, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the President of the Board of Agriculture, the First Commissioner of Works, the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the National Trust, and the Director of the National Gallery. The idea of the donors is to make the estate in every way attractive as a country seat. A sufficient sum will be allotted from the trust fund to maintain the gardens and grounds, and provision is made for the maintenance of the farms as a model or experimental farm. The contents of the house go with it. They comprise a well-known collection of Cromwellian portraits and relics; a library of valuable books, chiefly of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and mostly in their original bindings; a collection of pictures by various masters, and papers and manuscripts of historical interest, British and foreign.
Chequers has a long and unbroken history and many Parliamentary associations. It derives its name from the title of the Keeper of the King’s Exchequer under Henry I and the mansion, which has been carefully restored by the donors, is partly of Tudor and partly of Elizabethan origin. It was for years the home of descendants in the female line of Oliver Cromwell. It lies high, its situation is salubrious, and it is less than 40 miles from Downing Street.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-10-04/register/the-scarcity-of-bacon-0mcnx8rnk
The scarcity of bacon
The breakfast rasher seems to be doomed, for a while. Yesterday at a number of shops in South-West and Central London no bacon was to be had. In Farringdon Road it was offered at prices ranging from 1s 2d a lb upward. In the suburbs, if it could be bought at all, anything from 1s 10d to 2s 6d was charged for medium cuts. The restriction of the supply, which was announced to be inevitable by the Ministry of Food two days ago, is reflected also in the Smithfield Market report, which shows that the supplies of pork and bacon available yesterday were 12 tons, as compared with 23 tons last Wednesday and 76 tons on the corresponding day of last year. It has been explained by the Food Department that the depletion of stocks, which is normal at this time of the year, has been aggravated by the decline in imports. It may be added that thousands of cottage pig styes in the villages of this country are and have been for a long time untenanted, the present cost of keeping a pig being too high for most cottagers, and as a result many country households which have hitherto bred and cured their own bacon are swelling the ranks of the buyers. Though the steps which have been taken by the Ministry of Food to secure the largest possible supplies from the United States may in time somewhat relieve the situation, the immediate prospect is that bacon will become scarcer and dearer, in spite of the maximum prices fixed for the wholesale trade. economy of tea trade The Tea Brokers’ Association of London state in their monthly report that: “Broadly speaking, it is hoped that before the close of the year, tea may again become plentiful, and it is satisfactory to know that every effort is being made to ensure an adequate supply. In the meantime, however, it is necessary for the consumer to realise the necessity of increased economy. Irresponsible statements to the effect that shopkeepers are holding up supplies, we do not believe to be founded on fact; tea is for the time being somewhat scarce in the London bonded warehouses, and the quantity available for the retailer is consequently smaller.” The Association say that the rules and regulations have been carefully framed to meet the exigencies of a situation which was gradually becoming worse.
october 3, 1917
Great deeds in Flanders
Ever since the British battle-line was advanced last Wednesday beyond Ypres the enemy have been counter-attacking with a violence which shows that they know the magnitude of the issues at stake. Their record of seven counter attacks on the very afternoon and evening of our renewal of the offensive has probably never been excelled in any of the conflicts on the Western front. On Thursday they advanced against Zonnebeke, which is now held by our troops, but could not get to close quarters. Friday and Saturday were artillery days, but on Sunday they attacked along the Menin road, covered by smoke and flame-jets. There were three counter-attacks during Sunday, but they brought no profit to the enemy. Undeterred, they renewed the onslaught early on Monday, on a front of over a mile between Polygon Wood and the Menin road. Sir Douglas Haig says that their infantry advanced in three waves, all of which were driven back. The first was stopped by rifle fire. Our gunners found the second wave and broke it up, while the third was shattered by gun and rifle fire in combination. Although the big counter-attack had failed, they came on again four times and, it is said, “with fresh troops”.It is plain that the Passchendaele Ridge and the last portion of the Gheluvelt Ridge are going to be won only by very hard fighting. The public at home should never forget that upon the slopes of these ridges our troops are engaged in the longest and most desperate battle of the year. It is sometimes suggested that the enemy mean to yield their control of the Belgian coast, and are only trying to gain time for the completion of a new and shorter line farther back. No credence should be given to these pleasing suggestions. Eight powerful counter-attacks in two days, chiefly made with fresh troops, have a much bigger purpose than gaining time. To the Germans the retention of the right of their line on the Western front is a matter of life or death. On the day they quit it their line will have been turned. The Battle of Menin Road should be the prelude to greater events, and because so much depends upon the possession of the last ridges the Germans are battling in this corner of Belgium with a strength and obstinacy which have never yet been exceeded or more valiantly met.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-10-02/register/general-maudes-victory-ljwtck7p0
October 2, 1917
General Maude’s victory
The campaigning season in the Middle East has opened with a most gratifying victory on the River Euphrates, where Sir Stanley Maude has beaten and surrounded the advanced Turkish Army. He attacked unexpectedly, and dealt the Turks a blow which should greatly disarrange Marshal von Falkenhayn’s plans for the recapture of Baghdad.It has always been expected that this autumn the Turks would try to recover Baghdad, and some time ago it became known that no less a personage than Marshal von Falkenhayn had been placed in charge of the operations. Happily General Maude got his blow in first, and he should have no more anxiety about his left flank for same time to come. Several thousand prisoners were captured, among them being the commander, Ahmed Bey, and his staff. In the whole of the campaigns in the Middle East we have had no neater or more complete success, and General Maude’s stanch troops deserve the heartiest congratulations.
It is a great thing to have won the opening stroke and to have taken the enemy unawares, but the real lesson to be learned from the battle of Ramadie is that if our commanders in Mesopotamia and in Palestine are to make the most of their chances they must be well backed up. Fortunately General Maude is now in a far stronger position than ever before. He knows that in Palestine General Allenby has formidable forces which will prevent the Turks from concentrating their full strength in Mesopotamia. On the whole, the prospects of both General Maude and General Allenby may be regarded hopefully, if they are given the support they require.
We do not expect to see Marshal von Falkenheyn wipe out before Baghdad his failure to take Verdun. If all goes well, he should meet with the fate which overtook both Trajan and Julian in similar adventures in the same historic region. But we must expect a great deal of hard fighting. The defenceless condition of Persia since the Russian withdrawal gives them great opportunities of creating a diversion, and while the battle of Ramadie encourages us to look forward to the coming campaigns with reasonable confidence, we may still have anxious moments about the Middle East before the winter is over.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-09-30/register/why-german-towns-are-not-bombed-j00h9x2zh
september 30, 1917
Why German towns are not bombed
The demand for the bombing of German towns by British airmen as a counter-measure to the enemy’s raids has naturally enough found increased expression during the last week, and has produced an informal statement of the view taken in official circles. The question is one for decision on military grounds, and all the various demands on our available aeroplanes have to be borne in mind. The answer to the proposal that a number of machines should be used at once for attacks on German towns is that we have not at present sufficient aeroplanes.While the great battle on the Ypres front continues, it is of the first importance that all available military resources should be concentrated for its prosecution. Every aeroplane is needed in Flanders, where we have to face a very large concentration of enemy aircraft, owing to the fact that the Germans have been able to withdraw large numbers from the Russian front. Only by keeping Sir Douglas Haig supplied with aeroplanes, and particularly with machines capable of bombing the enemy’s aerodromes and air depots, are we able to maintain our hard-won superiority in the air. To divert aeroplanes from the battle in order to carry out retaliatory raids on German towns would be to prejudice the success of our main offensive effort for an object of comparatively secondary importance.
The authorities fully realize the value of undertaking raids on places of importance in Germany, and as soon as our operations in France are ended as many aeroplanes as we can spare will be devoted to these objects. Meanwhile, every effort will be made to continue the improvement of our protection of London. It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of the bombing work which is being done by our airmen on the Western front, and it is well to remember that the casualties incurred in London are very small in comparison with the heavy losses, as well as the material damage, which the continuous raiding by our airmen by day and by night is inflicting on the German Army. Germany’s present immunity from such experiences as London and South-Eastern England are undergoing may be regrettable, but it is due not to any reluctance to raid the enemy’s towns but to the military exigencies of the time.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/past-six-days/2017-09-29/register/shell-shock-hospitals-2bxr76j8q
Shell-shock hospitals
To the Editor of The TimesSir, Nothing that I could write can add materially to what everyone knows of the work of the Red Cross and St John organization. But I would like, all the same, to give an example of their fearless adoption of responsibility for work, once it is proved to be necessary.
I am responsible, originally for one, now for five hospitals for officers suffering from shell-shock, men who have done their best, and are for a time laid aside by one of the most distressing of disasters to which the human organization is liable. We required £950 a month in addition to what the War Office paid. I had made two appeals to the public, and we had come to the end of our funds. I went to the Red Cross, and put the position before them. After careful investigations as to our management and expenditure, they at once took upon themselves the whole cost of these hospitals.
There are no words which can adequately express what the Red Cross and St John have done to lessen the sufferings of our soldiers, and to show them that we old stay-at-homes do not forget them.
Yours faithfully,
Knutsford,
Shell-Shock Hospitals, Palace Green
INSANITY AND THE WAR
Sir, The new regulations dealing with men who have lost their sanity through the war are on the whole very satisfactory, but I would protest strongly against one — viz, that dealing with cases of men who had previously been confined in asylums, and have again become insane as a result of war service. It appears that the new regulations do not apply in these cases. This seems outrageous, at any rate, in cases where men were conscripted. The War Office forced men to serve, knowing full well they had been in asylums. I made a vigorous protest against this at the time, pointing out that the worry, excitement, and hardship of military service were certain to bring on a recurrence of lunacy. I followed up the cases of two men against whose enlistment I had protested, and they were both back in the asylum within a few weeks of joining their regiments. The Government forced them to join against their will, and the Government must be responsible for the consequences.
Very truly yours,
Frederick Milner
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