A Sunday Times welcome letter to war brides coming to Western Australia
Item
Title
A Sunday Times welcome letter to war brides coming to Western Australia
datePublished
July 20, 1919
pageStart
8
identifier
58005611
Description
An article welcoming war brides to Western Australia and giving them advice.
content
A "SUNDAY TIMES" WELCOME
LETTER TO WAR BRIDES
COMING TO WESTERN
AUSTRALIA
Ladies,
As you touch the shores of this
land which henceforth is to be your
home, "The Sunday Times" extends to
you a cordial welcome, and offers you
sincere congratulations. It is our
hope that you may be happy and con-
tented with us, and that none of you
may have cause to regret having mar-
ried an Australian soldier.
In coming here you are still with
your own people. This is a British
community, the most British of all
the British dominions, and you will
soon feel at home with us. We cher-
ish. the same ideals, honor the same
institutions, are swayed by the same
sentiments, speak the same language
and sing the same songs, as are held
dear by Britishers, not only, in the
sea-girt isles, but also in every part
of the world wherever they are found.
You will be wise in not heeding any
idle rumors which may have reached
you concerning the attitude of the
public. The women of Australia, and
the public generally, have the kindliest
feelings towards you, not only on your
own account, but also for the sake of
their soldiers.
This is no mean country. Twice the
electors of West Australia voted by
an immense majority for conscrip-
tion. One-tenth of the population
went across to fight; two-fifths of our
males volunteered. Of 347 Victoria
Crosses issued to British soldiers dur-
ing the war, ten came to West Aus-
tralia. We are proud of this record,
and being war workers yourselves, you
will appreciate it too. We are proud
of our soldiers, and they deserve the
best of wives.
These boys with big hearts are the
material from which good husbands
are made, and with your sympathetic
help they will build your homes and
found your fortunes, and their sons
and grandsons will be worthy of the
men who stormed the heights of
Anzac, licked Hindenburg, won at
Bullecourt, and so gallantly captured
Villers-Bretonneux.
Possibly some things may appear
strange to you at first, and for a while
you will experience a home-sickness.
Many of us were like that for a time.
These things, however, soon passed
away, and we settled down to enjoy
the free life, the warm sunshine, and
the clear skies of this great land. At
first you will miss the cosy indoor
life of the Northern clime, but in
course of time you will appreciate the
healthy open-air life which is ours.
Some of the homes in the country
may lack the ornate finish and the
aesthetic appointments of older coun-
tries, but remember that these unpre-
tentious dwellings are but the begin-
ning; they stand in the midst of spa-
cious areas, and around them lie great
homesteads owned, in many cases, by
your husbands. To be the possessor
of such a domain is a great prize,
something worth a struggle and a
little waiting for. Have patience with
the man while he does the work - all
the other things you have dreamed
about will come in their turn. Given
health and God's blessing, you will
find a rich, full life in that "little
grey home in the West," and your
heart will be filled with the glad con-
tent making you thankful that you
ever came to Australia.
Every week "The Sunday Times" will
visit you, and whether it be on the
farm outside, or in the domestic
sphere inside, you will find the
"Times" full of interest and help. If
there is anything that you desire to
know, or if at any time you require
counsel, be sure and either call upon
or write to "The Sunday Times"; it
will give us pleasure to help you in
any way.
May you be the mothers of a virile
race which will ever stand for those
great principles which are the glory
of the British Empire, and which have
given it pre-eminence among the
nations ot the earth.
Here every wornan has the same
social and civic rights and responsi-
bilities as her husband. This you will
appreciate and use thoughtfully, not
being too easily led by faddists or
extremists of any kind or color, but
following the best, traditions of the
dear Old Land which we all still love.
We have every confidence that the
future will bring you rich blessing,
and that you will help in the great
work of nation building. It will de-
pend much upon you as to how the
soldier-boy will shape. He loves you,
and your influence over him is great:
you can do with him just what you
please: you have it in your power to
make or mar his future. Make the
home a cage, love-locked, and he will
bless the bonds that bind him to the
dear little wife he found across the
sea. With every good wish,
We are yours faithfully,
"THE SUNDAY TIMES."
LETTER TO WAR BRIDES
COMING TO WESTERN
AUSTRALIA
Ladies,
As you touch the shores of this
land which henceforth is to be your
home, "The Sunday Times" extends to
you a cordial welcome, and offers you
sincere congratulations. It is our
hope that you may be happy and con-
tented with us, and that none of you
may have cause to regret having mar-
ried an Australian soldier.
In coming here you are still with
your own people. This is a British
community, the most British of all
the British dominions, and you will
soon feel at home with us. We cher-
ish. the same ideals, honor the same
institutions, are swayed by the same
sentiments, speak the same language
and sing the same songs, as are held
dear by Britishers, not only, in the
sea-girt isles, but also in every part
of the world wherever they are found.
You will be wise in not heeding any
idle rumors which may have reached
you concerning the attitude of the
public. The women of Australia, and
the public generally, have the kindliest
feelings towards you, not only on your
own account, but also for the sake of
their soldiers.
This is no mean country. Twice the
electors of West Australia voted by
an immense majority for conscrip-
tion. One-tenth of the population
went across to fight; two-fifths of our
males volunteered. Of 347 Victoria
Crosses issued to British soldiers dur-
ing the war, ten came to West Aus-
tralia. We are proud of this record,
and being war workers yourselves, you
will appreciate it too. We are proud
of our soldiers, and they deserve the
best of wives.
These boys with big hearts are the
material from which good husbands
are made, and with your sympathetic
help they will build your homes and
found your fortunes, and their sons
and grandsons will be worthy of the
men who stormed the heights of
Anzac, licked Hindenburg, won at
Bullecourt, and so gallantly captured
Villers-Bretonneux.
Possibly some things may appear
strange to you at first, and for a while
you will experience a home-sickness.
Many of us were like that for a time.
These things, however, soon passed
away, and we settled down to enjoy
the free life, the warm sunshine, and
the clear skies of this great land. At
first you will miss the cosy indoor
life of the Northern clime, but in
course of time you will appreciate the
healthy open-air life which is ours.
Some of the homes in the country
may lack the ornate finish and the
aesthetic appointments of older coun-
tries, but remember that these unpre-
tentious dwellings are but the begin-
ning; they stand in the midst of spa-
cious areas, and around them lie great
homesteads owned, in many cases, by
your husbands. To be the possessor
of such a domain is a great prize,
something worth a struggle and a
little waiting for. Have patience with
the man while he does the work - all
the other things you have dreamed
about will come in their turn. Given
health and God's blessing, you will
find a rich, full life in that "little
grey home in the West," and your
heart will be filled with the glad con-
tent making you thankful that you
ever came to Australia.
Every week "The Sunday Times" will
visit you, and whether it be on the
farm outside, or in the domestic
sphere inside, you will find the
"Times" full of interest and help. If
there is anything that you desire to
know, or if at any time you require
counsel, be sure and either call upon
or write to "The Sunday Times"; it
will give us pleasure to help you in
any way.
May you be the mothers of a virile
race which will ever stand for those
great principles which are the glory
of the British Empire, and which have
given it pre-eminence among the
nations ot the earth.
Here every wornan has the same
social and civic rights and responsi-
bilities as her husband. This you will
appreciate and use thoughtfully, not
being too easily led by faddists or
extremists of any kind or color, but
following the best, traditions of the
dear Old Land which we all still love.
We have every confidence that the
future will bring you rich blessing,
and that you will help in the great
work of nation building. It will de-
pend much upon you as to how the
soldier-boy will shape. He loves you,
and your influence over him is great:
you can do with him just what you
please: you have it in your power to
make or mar his future. Make the
home a cage, love-locked, and he will
bless the bonds that bind him to the
dear little wife he found across the
sea. With every good wish,
We are yours faithfully,
"THE SUNDAY TIMES."
Type
Newspaper article