34947 Private William Peter Taylor, 19/10/1895-14/4/1918.

William Taylor was a farm labourer at Totara, south of Oamaru when he joined up in August of 1916.  He left for the war at the end of December and was one of the Otago Infantry Regiment reinforcements marched into Sling Camp on the third of March, 1917.  He left for action in France at the end of May.  He served with the Otagos in the deadly days of Paesschendaele and was with them as they awaited the Germans in early 1918.

William was attached to the 2nd Entrenching Battalion at this time and he struggled with his unit against what the Official History describes as "the extraordinary traffic which the tide of a rear-guard battle promotes and swells — the hurried forward march of supporting troops, the columns of motor-lorries and ambulances, the passage of artillery and transport, and, unforgettable above all else, the stream of civilian refugees fleeing from the threatened destruction."  They had orders to dig in behind the village of Meteren but the situation worsened and before they could get much digging done they were ordered to become part of the defence.  The line was stretched and communication between units difficult.  So, when the Germans were reported as having taken the nearby village of Bailleul, British troops to the left were withdrawn.  But the Otago boys weren't told.

On the morning of the 16th word came to them that the Germans were expected to attack, in which case a fighting withdrawal was to be made.  The attack arrived at daybreak.  The Germans, finding no resistance on the Otagos' left, soon had them under fire from three sides.  With ammunition running out, surrender was the only option.  More than 200 New Zealand troops were taken prisoner.  It is most likely that Peter Taylor was one of them.

His war record available through Archives NZ states that he was killed on the 20th, newspaper reports and other records say the 14th.  However, newspaper reports themselves are dated from early May of 1918.

It was a confused period of war, in which the making and keeping of records was much less important than the holding back of the enemy.  So it is possible that William was one of the many New Zealanders taken prisoner near Meteren and kept in the place which became known as "The Black Hole of Lille."

The "Black Hole" was an old French fort, Fort MacDonald, which was used as a prison by the German army.  Prisoners were shoved in the underground area for a very good reason - it was the easiest place to guard with the limited resources at hand.  And food would have been a limited resource also.  It might have been a temporary measure only but the "fog of war" made it a five week ordeal which was seized on by the papers as yet another German atrocity to be added to the horrors of gas warfare, sinking of passenger ships by submarines, shooting of Belgian civilians, etc, etc.

Fort MacDonald was described at the time as a calculated attempt to break the will of their prisoners, a prelude to their being used as forced labour.  This could also be true - there is an account of another prisoner who was encouraged to write about his treatment because it was a reprisal for German prisoners being treated in a similar way - and being made to work within the range of German artillery in contravention of the Geneva Convention.  It has been reported as holding Australian prisoners in similar appalling conditions after their capture in the Battle of Bullecourt in April, 1917.

BLACK HOLE OF LILLE

APPALLNG DETAILS

Australian and N.Z. Cable Association (Received Dec. 10, l.30 p.m.) 

LONDON, Dec. 9. Some war prisoners give horrifying details of the Black Hole of Lille, a huge underground cavern. There were 270 confined for five weeks in an unspeakable state of neglect, famine, and disease. They had no clothing or covering except that in which they left the battlefield. They were only allowed in the upper air for ten minutes daily. Twenty were taken to the hospital suffering from dysentery. Vermin had to be scraped off their clothing with knives. The place was not cleaned during the five weeks. The food was so foul and uneatable that the men practically went mad.  They used to be on the ground killing vermin and singing hymns. The men used to fight to reach a 1atticed window ten feet above the floor to get air. They were compelled to bathe their wounds with coffee.  -Marlborough Express, 10/12/1918.

Oamaru Old Cemetery

IN MEMORIAM

 

TAYLOR. — In loving memory of Private William Peter Taylor, Kia Ora, 20th Reinforcements, killed in action "Somewhere in France." on 14th April, 1918. 

"Sleep on, dear Willie, in your foreign grave,

Your life for your country you nobly gave;

Gone and forgotten by some you may be.

But dear to our memory for ever you'll be."  -Oamaru Mail, 14/4/1919.

William Taylor is also commemorated by one of the many oak trees planted in the Oamaru area.

The Kaitangata mine explosion of 1879

                                     

The "Evening Post,  February 22nd, 1879:

At Kaitangata, at about 9 o'clock, a dull, long report was heard by those working at the place where the coal is loaded outside. The first thing they saw was a cloud of dust which came out of the mines at the mouth of the bay. Edward Dunn, who is supposed to have been outside the entrance of the mine, was blown a distance of about 150 ft. He lived for about five minutes, but was never sensible. The horse was blown nearly the same distance, and though still alive, is, of course, seriously injured. Mr. William Barn was the first to run to the township for hands, but the people, having heard the report, met him on the road. Nearly everyone in the township was at the mine's mouth in a few minutes. Men, women, and children were all gathered at the mine's mouth, and the scene was something awful. The air was filled with lamentations of women. 

Rescue attempts were immediately made.  Men from nearby mines gathered to try and rescue their fellows but found their way hampered by falls of rock and the need to restore ventilation.  "After damp" - the gasses produced by the blast - and fire damp made the mine more dangerous than before the explosion.

By noon the first body had been found - fourteen year old Charles MacDonald, who was so badly burned that identification was made by his clothing.  By that evening 24 bodies had been recovered and 24 Green Island miners arrived by special train to help the tiring Kaitangata men.  Thirty bodies had been recovered by the end of the day and four men were still missing.

Thirty four men were killed by the explosion of the Kaitangata Railway and Coal Company's mine.  The 34 miners left behind them twenty widows and one hundred orphans.  One of the widows was the wife of James Molloy.  As well as her husband, she lost her  sons, John and Edward, who were eighteen and sixteen years old.  She had no one and nothing left.  The Beardsmore family lost five men - between them they left behind four wives and sixteen children.  In all, the grand total of the dependents left by the disaster was 17 wives, 82 children and one elderly man.  A round figure of one hundred bereft people.

Kaitangata Old Cemetery

From a commemorative poster.   Hocken Library photo.                                   

Kaitangata Old Cemetery.  The Cemetery was very run down by 1963 and all legible gravestones were collected and mounted on concrete in one corner.  The rest of the Cemetery is now grass.

With no witnesses to the actual event, the inquest into the disaster had to rely on the evidence of the explosion's effects and the positions and condition of the victims' bodies.  It was concluded that most had survived the explosion but succumbed to what was called the "after damp" - the carbon monoxide and dioxide produced by the blast.  

As to the cause of the explosion, it was found that it began in an abandoned area of the mine and that the body of the mine manager's brother and deputy manager was found in that area carrying a naked flame for light.

As the Bruce Herald put it: "Two hypotheses have been started to account for the act by which poor Archibald Hodge brought death upon himself and others. One is that there were a number of disused rails lying in the old workings, and that, needing them for use elsewhere, he went to see how best they could be removed. Another describes him as an eccentric man, not altogether in his right mind, and tells how he looked upon the old workings as concealing some mystery which he was determined to unravel."

The jury for the inquest into the disaster returned the following verdict: "First, that Archibald Hodge, by entering the old workings with a naked light, caused the explosion and the death of 34 men and boys. Second, that William Hodge did not take the necessary precautions in the management of the mine." 

They added a rider to the effect "that, seeing there is no law for inspection and supervision in the conduct of mining, we express the necessity of measures being adopted whereby mining accidents in future may be averted."

The lessons of Kaitangata were learned hard but slowly.  Mine managers required certification in 1886.  The miners' unions were a main driver of state inspection regimes and safety precautions.  Sadly, as New Zealanders well know, the lessons had to be learned all over again.

Hocken Library photos, from the Kaitangata Borough Council Jubilee publication of 1927. 
The date seems to be a misprint.

From a commemorative poster.   Hocken Library photo.

Mrs Spiers.  Hocken Library photo.

47716 Rifleman Alfred Hugh Dungey, 28/12/1895-12/4/1918.

Alfred Dungey grew up in Dunedin the son of a coach driver and was enrolled in the Otago Infantry Regiment on enlistment.  He was transferred to the 3rd Battalion of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade in February, 1918.  Unfortunately, the Official History of the Brigade has nothing to say about the events of April 12, the day of Alfred's death.  

It seems the Brigade were preparing to meet the German onslaught in this period as part of the policy of "active defence," - holding off the Germans and waiting for the expected reinforcements which would allow them to take advantage of the then exhausted state of their enemy.  Alfred was "killed in action" during this period and a paragraph in the Otago Witness of June 19, 1918 refers to this - it gets his middle initial wrong but his father's name fits: "Mr J. Dungey has received word from Chaplain Harvey, France, that his late son, Private A. D. Dungey, was returning from a working party, and had almost reached camp, when a shell burst, killing him on the spot. He was buried the same afternoon by the chaplain, one of his officers, and a firing party."

Alfred was 22 years old.

Private A. H. Dungey, who was killed in action on April 12, was the fourth son of Mr Dungey, 20 Anderson Bay road. He was educated at the Lawrence District High School, and on coming to Dunedin he worked for some time with Mr J. Hancock, grocer, South Dunedin. At the age of 18 he was sent to the Otago Heads to do garrison duty. On coming of age he enlisted, but was not allowed to leave. He was later called in the ballot, and left with the 25th Reinforcements. Of his other brothers, Jack left with the 10th Reinforcements, and was wounded at Armentieres, and returned some time ago. The other two — Gordon and Bert — enlisted, but were both rejected. The deceased had been about eight months in the trenches when he was killed.  - Otago Witness, 8/5/1918.

THE CALL OF EMPIRE. 

Before proceeding with the business the Mayor moved that the Council place on record its sympathy with Mr and' Mrs James Dungey and family in connection with the death of their son and brother Private Alfred Dungey. The motion was carried in silence.   - Borough Council Report, Tuapeka Times, 15/5/1918.

Andersons Bay Cemetery, Dunedin.  DCC photo.

45195 Rifleman Peter Drummond, 19/2/1895-9/4/1918.

Rifleman Peter Drummond who died on April 9 from wounds received while in action in France.  He was the fifth son of Mrs Elizabeth Drummond of No. 3 France street, Dunedin. He was born at Glasgow, and came out to New Zealand with his mother and the other members of the family about 12 years ago. The deceased soldier was a stone mason by trade, and for several years was in the employ of Messrs J. and W Faulkner. He then went to Sydney, and after working at his trade there for about two years returned to Dunedin, and entered the employ of Messrs Browns. Ltd., as storeman.  He enlisted in January, 1917, with the 24th Reinforcements, and on reaching France was transferred to the New Zealand Rifle Brigade. Cable advice received by his mother stated that he was admitted to the Third Canadian General Hospital at Boulogne on April 8 suffering from severe gunshot wounds in the head, arms, and legs, and the sad news was received last night of his death on the date stated. The deceased was about 30 years of age. and at one time played soccer for the Maori Hill Club.  -Evening Star, 15/4/1918.

There are a couple of inaccuracies in the above report.  The home address of France St seems to be a misprint of mistake on the part of the official source of the news of Peter's demise - I'm sure it was Frame St in North East Valley.

Also, the date of his admission to hospital as recorded on his army record is April 6th.  This would put him with his Brigade near Colincamps when the German Army attacked and were stopped by the Rifles on April 5 - see the previous story "A hot day."

Andersons Bay Cemetery, Dunedin.  Allan Steel photo.

27498 Private David Albert Grant, 9/3/1888-7/4/1918.

David Grant grew up on Cray Farm near Outram and volunteered for the army at the end of 1916.  He was detached in France to the NZ Light Railways Operating Section for a time then returned to the Otago Infantry Regiment. He died near Colincamps, after surviving the Battle of St Quentin which marked the end of German hopes for success in their great spring offensive.

From the Official History: "The 2nd Battalion of the Regiment took over its former front line sector, from "Y" Ravine to Hamel, on the night of the 7th. Enemy activity on the 8th was confined to trench mortar fire, but on the following day, between 10 a.m. and 12 noon, the front and support lines were heavily bombarded with high explosive and 77 mm. shells, and during the afternoon low-flying aeroplanes patrolled the system apparently with the object of determining the damage done."

From Archives NZ

As you can see from the above image, he died of multiple injuries caused by gunshot wounds: Fracture of the left leg, the right thigh, and the right arm.

GRANT. — On April 7. 1918, died from wounds "Somewhere in France" David Albert Grant (volunteered 17th Reinforcements), third dearly beloved son of David E. and Margaret Grant, of Cray Farm, West Taieri; in his 30th year. 

He was quiet and unassuming, 

His life was straight and clean; 

In duty to his parents 

No better could have been. 

He died for his country. -Otago Daily Times, 27/4/1918.

GRANT. — In loving memory of Private David Albert Grant (17th Reinforcements), who died from wounds received in action, April 7, 1918, "Somewhere in France"; aged 29 years and 4 weeks. 

Silence is no certain token 

That no hidden grief is there, 

Sorrow that is never spoken 

Is the hardest grief to bear. 

— Inserted by his loving parents, sisters, and brothers.   -Otago Daily Times,7/4/1919.

West Taieri Cemetery. Allan Steel Photo.

27096 L/corporal William Andrew McNoe, 2/10/1893-6/4/1918.

William McNoe was a labourer living in Milton when he joined the army in June, 1916.  He left with the 8th Reinforcements in November and was drafted to the New Zealand Rifle Brigade.

He was wounded almost a year to the day after he joined, on June 21 1917 during the Battle of Messines.  He was promoted to Lance-corporal in November.

William was killed during the hectic period of the German Spring Offensive when New Zealand troops were pushed into the breach torn in British lines by the advancing Germans.    He was 24 years old.

Balclutha Old Cemetery.

April 5, 1918. A hot day for the NZ Rifles

Late March, 1918 saw the New Zealand Rifle Brigade in positions near Colincamps, in the Somme area of France.  The Brigade had been deployed

 The "Kaiserschlacht" was in full force and action was more or less constant.  Night reconnaissance by both sides was frequent.

On the evening of April 4 the Brigade held a 3000 yard front with three Battalions; 3rd, 4th and 1st from left to right.  The night was relatively quiet, the only incident being the discovery of a German patrol in front of the wire of a 1st Battalion machine gun post.  The Lance-corporal in charge did his best to take the German officer prisoner but, encountering resistance, used his pistol.  The rest of the patrol were seen off with the machine gun.

At 5am German artillery opened up.  Heavy shelling continued for three hours, reaching back to support areas.  There was no doubt that something big was developing.  All signal wires were cut by the barrage.  

At 8.30am the barrage lifted from the front line and moved back to the rear lines.  Advancing German soldiers were soon seen coming through the smoke and haze.  The Germans were using new tactics in their advance, not pressing the attack where the resistance was strong and moving in where it was weak.  They lost many men to the NZ Rifles while advancing over open ground before groups managed to reach trenches where the fighting was close, with grenade and machine gun.  By noon the commander of the centre company of the 1st Battalion was able to report: “We have beaten off two attacks by the Hun and are wanting him to put in a third.”  He was not, states the Official History, to have his wish gratified.

The First Battalion of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade reported two officers and 26 men killed on that day, the Fourth reported one officer and 25 men killed.  The Third Battalion's casualties were reported as "Slight."

From my list, the 1st Battalion's losses included Rifleman John Findlay McArthur from Gore, Southland;  Corporal Thomas Milne from Raes Junction, Otago; Rifleman George Francis Burnett, from Peebles, Otago.

The 4th Battalion's losses included Rifleman Benjamin Fox from Fortrose and Lieutenant Thomas John Hirst Drysdale from Port Chalmers who died of wounds on April the sixth.

Although described as "slight," the 3rd Battalion's losses included Rifleman Harry Gill, from Hastings, whose parents lived in Oamaru.

47028 Rifleman John Findlay McArthur, 14/10/1892-5/4/1918.
was born and raised in Dunedin.  Before enlisting he was a painter and tinsmith, working for Farra Bros. and played for the Zingari-Richmond rugby club.  He died at 25.

from Archives NZ

53393 Corporal Thomas Andrew Milne  20/12/1896-5/4/1918
Thomas came from Rae's Junction, Otago.  His records show that he was promoted before joining a front line unit, reverted to Rifleman, then was promoted while in the line.  His death was announced in the "Tuapeka Times" on April 27: "reported killed-in-action in France on 5th April, was the fourth son of Mr and Mrs John Milne, very old and highly respected residents of Raes Junction. The deceased, who was born and educated in that district, was 21 years of age, and volunteered for service immediately he reached his 20th year, leaving New Zealand with the 27th Reinforcements. On arrival in England he was almost immediately transferred to France. All his life prior to going on active service was spent in the Raes Junction district, where his genial and manly disposition made him a great favourite with everyone in the district, and in their sorrow Mr and Mrs Mine and family have the sincere sympathy of a very wide circle of friends throughout Tuapeka."

His 1919 "In Memoriam":
MILNE. — In loving memory of Corporal Thomas Andrew Milne, killed in action in France on 5th April, 1918, in his 21st year. 

As long as life and memory last 

We will remember thee. 

— Inserted by his loving Parents, Brothers and Sisters.

23/86 Rifleman George Francis Burnett, 19/11/1892/5/4/1918.

George Burnett grew up at Peebles, in the Waitaki Valley, his occupation on enlistment was Shepherd.  He enlisted in 1915 and saw action in Egypt and France.  He was slightly wounded by a bullet in the neck in June of 1917.

Papakaio Cemetery, Waitaki Valley

Papakaio Cemetery

53171 Rifleman Benjamin Fox,  10/5/1892-5/4/1918.
Benjamin Fox was born and raised at Fortrose on the south coast of the South Island of NZ.  He was 25 when he was killed.

Fortrose Cemetery

4/95A Second Lieutenant Thomas John Hirst Drysdale, ?/2/1882-5/4/1918.

Originally from Port Chalmers, Otago, and the son of a Glaswegian doctor, Drysdale lived in Port Chalmers and was a distiller's clerk.  He enlisted in the NZ Army in September 1914 while in the UK at the age of 31.  He was wounded in the left foot in 1915 as a Sapper in the NZ Field Engineers.  In August of 1917 he went on an Officer Training Course and was assigned to the NZ Rifle Brigade.

Port Chalmers Cemetery

38153 Rifleman Harry Gill,  16/12/1883-5/4/1918.
Harry Gill was born in Oamaru and was a consistent Dux in each of his school years.  His friends and family believed him destined for a literary career but he became an auctioneer in Oamaru.  He was a keen sportsman.  Harry's literary promise can be judged by this passage, published two weeks after his death in the Hastings Standard - his brother lived in Hastings and is the probable source of it:

Oamaru Cemetery

"ON TREK."

(By the "Late HARRY GILL") 

And the night shall be filled with music
And the cares that infest the day
Shall fold their tents like Arabs,
And as silently steal away

-Longfellow

To the strains of music from the band, the clatter of hammers, and the singing o£ men, we began to shift camp as darkness approached. Tents, packs, equipment were loaded on the waggons. The camp was cleared up. Then with Mother Earth for our couch, and the sky for counterpane we slept. At midnight the rain came — heavier and still heavier. The whole aspect of the camp changed. Stillness gave place to much talk, and some profanity. Forms were flitting about in the darkness, looking for shelter. We breakfasted in the darkness and the rain. Then came the order "Fall in!" At 2 a.m. we swung out on the march that was to take us to our new home. From village to town, from farmhouse to shop, we went —singing! On we trekked, one hour marching between an avenue of tall trees, the next past fields of ripened corn. One wondered why the nations in such a beautiful world should fight. Thus from place to place we trekked — birds singing, church bells ringing, peasants — mostly old men and women and children — wending their ways to Mass. The sun came out, and all the world was bright and joyous. At the end of another day we were in billets. A wash, a meal, and then sleep again — the sleep that only those who have toiled in the fresh air can sleep. Then off again in the morning sunlight, through the smiling French landscape. Our band plays, the men whistle or sing in chorus. The villagers come to their doors and windows to see us pass, and there is much "Bon jour, madame!" as well as greeting for monsieur, and many a smile from mademoiselle. The cheery children follow at the Column's side. And so to our new home. It will not be our home for long. The soldier of to-day stays not long in one place. He is in and out of the line. Here to-day, gone to-morrow. Grumble! Of course we did; but taking it all in all, we were cheery and happy. The soldier can never forget that he has come to this land for a purpose — to win the war. And so the cares of the day fold their tents like the Arabs, and as silently steal away. Later will come the thunder of the guns, the dull explosions of bombs, the cackle of the machineguns ; and perhaps death, or wound, or sickness. And. at intervals, through it all, like sparkling glimpses of sunshine on running stream, thoughts of the dear Homeland in far away New Zealand. You. too. in the Land of the Long White Cloud, will have a thought for us, hoping to see us back some day. But many of us will have folded our tents for the Last Trek.