(This poem was written before 1914, but it so well portrays the conditions which prevailed in the last year of the Great War that it is here reproduced.) We brought great ships to birth, We builded towns and towers-- Lords of the sea and earth, Soon shall the sky be ours. Soon shall our navies drift Like swallows down the wind, Shall wheel and swoop and lift, Leaving the clouds behind. The stars our keels shall know. The eagle, as it flies, Shall scream to see us go Swift moving through the skies. High o'er the mountain-steep Our wingèd fleets shall sail. The serried squadrons sweep, White-pinioned down the gale. We are the lords of the land, We built us towns and towers. The sea has felt our hand-- Soon shall the sky be ours. NORAH HOLLAND _From "Spun-yarn and Spindrift"--By permission of the Author and of J. M. Dent & Sons, Ltd., Toronto_ EXTRACTS FROM SPEECH (_September, 1918_) Canada's war record is made, though not completed. Nothing she can do in the future will detract from her great past in this world struggle. She has shown herself a true daughter of Great Britain. She has spared neither sons nor treasure to help her Alma Mater to save the world. . . . . . . . . . . Well done, Canadians, you are a great people, and you may proudly stand among the nations who are saving the world. WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT KING GEORGE'S MESSAGE TO THE NAVY (_November 11, 1918_) THE NAVY To the Right Hon. Sir Eric Geddes, G.B.E., K.C.B., M.P., First Lord of the Admiralty Now that the last and most formidable of our enemies has acknowledged the triumph of the Allied arms on behalf of right and justice, I wish to express my praise and thankfulness to the officers, men, and women of the Royal Navy and Marines, with their comrades of the Fleet auxiliaries and mercantile marine, who for more than four years have kept open the sea, protected our shores, and given us safety. Ever since that fateful Fourth of August, 1914, I have remained steadfast in my confidence that, whether fortune frowned or smiled, the Royal Navy would once more prove the sure shield of the British Empire in the hour of trial. Never in its history has the Royal Navy, with God's help, done greater things for us, nor better sustained its old glories and the chivalry of the seas. With full and grateful hearts the peoples of the British Empire salute the White, the Red, and the Blue Ensigns, and those who have given their lives for the Flag. I am proud to have served in the Navy. I am prouder still to be its head on this memorable day. GEORGE R.I. SKY SIGNS