"Soldiers! In fifteen days you have won six victories, captured twenty-one flags, fifty-five guns, several fortresses, conquered the richest part of Piedmont: you have made 15,000 prisoners: you have killed or wounded nearly 10,000 men.
"Until now you have fought for barren rocks. Lacking everything, you have accomplished everything. You have won battles without cannon, crossed rivers without bridges, made forced marches without boots, bivouacked without brandy, and often without bread. Only the phalanx of the Republic, only the soldiers of Liberty, could endure the things that you have suffered.
"There are more battles before you, more cities to capture, more rivers to cross. You all burn to carry forward the glory of the French people; to dictate a glorious peace; and to be able when you return to your villages to exclaim with pride, 'I belonged to the conquering army of Italy.'"
[[2]] It was on August 1st that the enemy carried out a severe bombardment of a location known as "Ration Farm," opposite Messines, which drove the men of Major Hesketh's squadron of Strathcona's Horse, who were in reserve, into their dug-outs. The farm was hit repeatedly, and suddenly sounds as of heavy machine-gun fire were heard coming from the midst of the shattered buildings. Major Hesketh left his dug-out and entered the farm to investigate. He saw that the magazine, containing 100,000 rounds of ammunition with the reserve supply of bombs and grenades, had been pierced and set on fire by a high explosive shell. In spite of the fact that the position was still under persistent shell fire, that the small-arms ammunition was exploding rapidly under the influence of the heat, and that the entire contents of the magazine was likely to explode at any moment, Major Hesketh fought the fire with sacks and extinguished it.
[[3]] Prior to its departure for France the 2nd Division was commanded by General Sam Steele, C.B., M.V.O., a distinguished Canadian soldier and a distinguished Canadian citizen. General Steele's military experience dates from the days of the Red River Expedition, and his appointment was much appreciated by the officers and troops of the 2nd Division during their period of training. He has since joined the Imperial Service, and is now the General Officer Commanding at Shorncliffe.
APPENDIX I
THE KING'S MESSAGE TO THE CANADIANS.
To the First Division.
On February 4th, 1915, His Majesty the King inspected the 1st Canadian Division on Salisbury Plain, and afterwards wrote a message to the troops, which was read to all units on board ship after their embarkation for France. The full text of the message is as follows:—