Men’s ward in the Lounge of the “Aquitania”
When on November 11th, 1918, hostilities ceased, upon the acceptance by the enemy of the Armistice terms, work on shell production was stopped. The factory being closed down on Saturday, November 16th, each operator was presented on leaving with a 4·5 in. shell as a souvenir, together with a letter of appreciation signed by the Chairman and General Manager of the Company. A total of 410,302 shells of various calibres was turned out during the months through which the factory worked. Out of every 500 shells made, one was selected by the Government to be fired as a test, and of the shells manufactured at the Cunard Factory not a single one failed to pass.
Lastly should be mentioned one of the most beneficent minor activities initiated by the Cunard Staff in the provision of entertainments for wounded soldiers. It was in 1916, after the Company moved into their great new building, that the staff first approached the Management with a view to obtaining permission to hold a concert for wounded soldiers in one of the new and spacious rooms. The suggestion was readily agreed to, and the Company undertook to bear the cost, the staff doing the work. So successful was this concert that a second entertainment was given, this being followed by a third, until these concerts became a regular institution through the winters of 1916–1917, 1917–1918, and 1918–1919. In all about 20 concerts were given, at which more than 7,000 wounded soldiers were entertained and provided with refreshment. A first-class orchestra of 20 performers was created, as well as a chorus that would have done credit to any London stage; and it is safe to say that these Cunard concerts were eagerly looked forward to by every Military Hospital in the district.
During the summer months also the Company lent their tender, the Skirmisher, for river cruises; and more than 6,400 wounded men were thus provided with yet another means of recreation. A similar trip was organised in 1918 by the Cunard Company’s Bristol Staff, while the Liverpool Office Concert Party was indefatigable in attending at various hospitals, munition works, and camps in order to provide additional entertainment to their wounded brothers. The Britannia Rooms were also used for dances and receptions for American Officers and American Red Cross Units, and when on Independence Day, July 4th, 1918, the Lord Mayor of Liverpool entertained 4,000 American Troops, the whole of the catering arrangements were carried out by the Cunard line.
Now to have initiated, organised, and won success in departments of service so various and vital would not, of course, have been possible without the unanimous and unremitting personal devotion of every Director and member of this great Company; and it cannot be denied that the Government paid them the compliment of using their activities to the very highest degree. The Chairman, Sir Alfred Booth, in addition to the enormous responsibilities resting upon him in virtue of his executive position, acted also as Chairman of the North Atlantic Committee, appointed under the Liner Requisitioning Scheme, while he also served on several Royal Commissions dealing with questions of urgent national importance in relation to reconstruction and other post-war problems; and, at the same time, he had many calls upon him owing to his connexion with the Employers’ Federation, the War Risks, and Liverpool Steam Ship Owners’ Associations.
The Deputy Chairman, Sir Thomas Royden, acted as Deputy Shipping Controller, where his wide experience of shipping affairs was invaluable, Sir Thomas being frequently entrusted with foreign missions requiring the greatest tact and ability. Early in the war he went to Mudros in order to organise the transport arrangements in connexion with the Gallipoli campaign, and at a later date he was in Washington discussing the international shipping problems that arose when the United States cast her lot with the Allies. He organised the shipment of American and Colonial troops to the various theatres of war, and was selected to represent the Shipping Controller on the Peace Conference.
Sir Percy Bates, Sir Aubrey Brocklebank, and Mr. Walter Tyser all occupied administrative positions at the Ministry of Shipping, and Mr. A. C. F. Henderson was selected to represent the Ministry at one of the chief Mediterranean ports. Sir Ashley Sparks, one of the Company’s Directors, and its New York Agent, was appointed direct representative of the Ministry of Shipping at Washington, soon after the United States came into the war, and was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in January, 1919, in recognition of his great services. No less responsible and intricate were the duties devolving upon the General Manager, Mr. A. D. Mearns, and the other managers, Mr. S. J. Lister and Mr. F. Litchfield—Mr. Mearns being elected to a seat on the Board of Directors in 1918.
The “Franconia” sinking, watched by survivors from the boats
Many of the Company’s officials and technical experts were frequently called upon to render assistance to various Government Departments, and it is deeply to be regretted that the Cunard Company’s loved and respected Marine Superintendent, Captain G. H. Dodd, lost his life at sea through a torpedo attack whilst on an important Government mission.