Saturday 3 April 2021

2/2321 Sergeant Leo Cyril Fox, 8/7/1894-6/7/1923.

Leo Fox volunteered for the army in August, 1915 and returbned to New Zealand in 1919.  My opinion agrees with those near him who believed that his premature death at the age of 38 was due to his experiences overseas.


The death occurred yesterday of a very popular young man in Gisborne, Mr. Leo Cyril Fox, fourth son of Mr. William Fox, of Lyttelton. The deceased had been a gunner in the second Mobile Brigade of Artillery, and had served right through the campaign in France. During the war he had the misfortune to be gassed and wounded. The body is to be sent to Lyttelton, where his parents reside, and Colonel Potter is arranging for a military funeral. The late Mr. Fox was a member of the staff of Hallenstein Bros' Gisborne branch. The Citizens' Defence Committee has sent a wreath, which is to be forwarded to Lyttelton, in addition to messages of sympathy.   -Poverty Bay Herald, 7/7/1923.


Leo Fox died, according to his military records, of "delerium tremens" (or "the drink") and heart failure, "death not due to war service."  His entry in the "Online Cenotaph" contains the note that his family believe he "never recovered from the trauma of the war" - which is slightly incongruous, given that his war service was mostly taken up by his duties as a cook.  It would be easy for me at this point to be facetious or critical but it is, of course, not for us to judge on this scant information - we have not seen what Leo Fox saw.


Lyttelton New cemetery.




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