War Letters of a Public-School BoyJones, Henry Paul Mainwaring
History
War Letters of a Public-School Boy
Jones, Henry Paul Mainwaring
World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal narratives, British
The Reverend A. H. Gilkes, Vicar of St. Mary Magdalene, Oxford,
formerly Headmaster of Dulwich College, in a touching tribute to the
"noble character of your brave, dear and able son," said: "I
sympathise with you fully and deeply. It means little, I know, to you
in your trouble, but I trust it means something, that your son was so
much loved and admired, and is so sadly missed by so many. He was
fearless, strong and capable, and his heart was as soft and kind as a
heart can be. I thought that he would do great things; and indeed, sad
though it is, I do not know that he could have done a greater."
* * * * *
Mr. J. A. Joerg, principal of the Modern Side, Dulwich College, a
gentleman of German antecedents, for whom my son had a high and an
unalterable regard, wrote:
It was with the greatest horror that I read of the fall in action
of your hero-son Paul. I read his noble character during the many
years he was with me, and I recognised and admired the great
sense of justice and duty and loyalty that were such prominent
features with him. His deep gratitude for anything that was done
for him will always be remembered by me. He was a noble boy. I
shall always reverence his memory.
Mr. P. Hope, Classical master at Dulwich, to whom Paul owed much when
studying English literature, and whom he always recalled with
affection, sent me a pen-picture of my son limned with insight and
love:
_August 18th, 1917._
I have heard with deep sorrow and distress of the death of your
dear son, H. P. M. Jones, killed in action. Your son was never in
the Classical Sixth at Dulwich College, and so was not directly a
pupil of mine. But he often came to me for advice and help, and
we often talked together about many things. I always cherished a
real regard and admiration for him and his sterling qualities and
great ability. He was a most kind-hearted and generous-minded
boy, one who had the best interests of the school at heart, one
who never spared himself if he could in any way render a service
to his team or to the school as a whole; one who could be relied
on to act loyally, faithfully and conscientiously in all that he
did; one who would place duty before all other considerations. He
was an indefatigable worker, a boy of great power and promise,
and, so far as we could prophesy, was sure to achieve a high and
distinguished position for himself in the world later on. He was
greatly beloved by the boys, his own school-fellows, and honoured
and respected by all his masters.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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