World War, 1914-1918 -- Canada; World War, 1914-1918 -- Nova Scotia
On the evening of the last day of 1915, when Dalhousie Unit entrained at
North Street Depot, a large concourse of people were assembled, not only
of Halifax but from many other parts of the Province. The bands of the
1st Canadian Artillery and 63rd Rifles, as well as the pipers, joined
the citizens of Nova Scotia in a fitting farewell. Their train pulled
out amidst music and cheers.
The Unit arrived at St. John at 6 a.m., New Year’s Day, and went aboard
His Majesty’s Troopship _Metagama_. At noon the officers were
entertained at luncheon by the medical profession of St. John at the
Royal Hotel. The Unit sailed at 9 o’clock on the evening of January 1,
1916, with several other Units, with Col. H. C. Bickford as Officer
Commanding troops.
Sea voyages are pretty much alike. There are those who like their beer
and poker, or bridge, and those who like to laze and read and sleep and
sleep and read and laze, or sit and think, or simply sit, while others
wish they had taken the advice of the poet—“Praise the sea but keep on
land.” A convoy of torpedo boat destroyers was met at noon on the eighth
day out, and at 3 a.m. on January 10th the Unit landed at Plymouth and
disembarked at 9 a.m.
The personnel on arriving in England was as follows: O.C., Lieut.-Col.
John Stewart; Majors E. V. Hogan and L. M. Murray; Captains M. A.
MacAulay, V. N. MacKay, K. A. MacKenzie, E. K. Maclellan, S. J.
MacLennan, D. A. MacLeod, J. A. Murray, John Rankine, Frank V. Woodbury,
Karl F. Woodbury (Dental Officer), Lieut. S. R. Balcom, Dispenser;
Lieut. Walter Taylor, Quartermaster; Miss L. M. Hubley, Matron, and
twenty-six Nursing Sisters; one hundred and twenty-three N.C.O.’s and
men.
The officers, non-commissioned officers and men entrained at once for
Shorncliffe, where they arrived in the evening, while the matron and
nursing sisters proceeded to London and were temporarily quartered at
Bonnington Hotel. They were afterwards distributed for duty between the
hospitals at Westcliffe, Moore Barracks and Ramsgate.
On the 11th the Unit was inspected by Lieut.-Col. F. W. E. Wilson, of
Niagara, Ontario, A.D.M.S. Shorncliffe area.
Billets were secured and the medical officers were employed on medical
boards or as medical officers to various Units in the training camps,
while the non-commissioned officers and men were assigned to various
duties.
On January 17th Capt. F. V. Woodbury was stricken with that dread
disease among troops, cerebro-spinal meningitis. For some days there was
great anxiety on his account, but he made a rapid and complete recovery.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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