Now we remember over here in Flanders
(It isn't strange to think of You in Flanders)
This hideous warfare seems to make things clear,
We never thought about You much in England
But now that we are far away from England
We have no doubts--we know that You are here.
You helped us pass the jest along the trenches
Where, in cold blood, we waited in the trenches,
You touched its ribaldry and made it fine.
You stood beside us in our pain and weakness.
We're glad to think You understand our weakness.
Somehow it seems to help us not to whine.
We think about You kneeling in the Garden
Ah! God, the agony of that dread Garden;
We know you prayed for us upon the Cross.
If anything could make us glad to bear it
'Twould be the knowledge, that You willed to bear it
Pain, death, the uttermost of human loss.
Tho' we forgot You, You will not forget us.
We feel so sure that You will not forget us.
But stay with us until this dream is past--
And so we ask for courage, strength, and pardon,
Especially I think, we ask for pardon,
And that You'll stand beside us to the last."
APPENDIX IV
LETTER FROM LORD KITCHENER TO HIS MEN
"You are ordered abroad as a soldier of the King to help our French comrades against the invasion of a common enemy. You have to perform a task which will need your courage, your energy, your patience. Remember that the honor of the British Army depends upon your individual conduct. It will be your duty not only to set an example of discipline and perfect steadiness under fire, but also to maintain the most friendly relations with those whom you are helping in this struggle. The operations in which you are engaged will, for the most part, take place in a friendly country, and you can do your own country no better service than in showing yourself, in France and Belgium, in the true character of a British soldier.
Be invariably courteous, considerate, and kind. Never do anything likely to injure or destroy property, and always look upon looting as a disgraceful act. You are sure to meet with a welcome and to be trusted; and your conduct must justify that welcome and that trust. Your duty cannot be done unless your health is sound. So keep constantly on your guard against any excesses. In this new experience you may find temptations both in wine and women. You must entirely resist both temptations, and while treating all women with perfect courtesy, you should avoid any intimacy.
Do your duty bravely.
Fear God.