HLI Chronicle 1914 - The Royal Highland Fusiliers

!iHIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY CHRONICLE. 121\ Correspondence.I (To the Editor of the "H.L.I. Chronicle.")3rd June, 1914.DEAR Sn't,-Colonel Frank Lambton late8cots FuSilier Guards, has very kindly presentedthe Relic Fund of the 1st Batt. H.L.I.~th a most interesting object-an ebonycIgarette-box mounted in silver and containing(under glass on the lid) so;e bits of theold Regimental colours presented to the 7lstin 1853 and carried by them until 1912.The lid has" H.L.I." in silver and a plate with".1852-1912." Inside the lid is a silver plateWIth the following inscription:­"~ieces of the old colours accidentallyleft m Colonel F. W. Lambton's' hands whenhe left the Regiment."The late Colonel F. W. Lambton, whocommanded the 7lst for some vears wasColonel Frank Lambton's brother; and theyserved together in the Crimea.-Yours truly,ALFRED E. BALFOUR,Colonel.SERVICE INSTITUTE OPENED INEDINBURGH.'LIEUTENANT-GENERAL SIR J. SPENCER EWARTK.C.B., A.D.C., Officer Commanding-in-Chiefin Scotland, opened on June 26th the newNaval and ~filitary Institute in GuthrieStreet, Edinburgh. The Institute is for thebenefit of ex-Service men resident in Edinburgh.Lord Provost Inches presided overthe opening proceedings.Lord Provost Inches, in introducing Lieut.­General Sir J. Spencer Ewart, said that themovement which had resulted in the establishingof the Institute had been initiated a boutfive years ago at a meeting in Edinburgh ofrepresentatives of Regimental Societies. Inno city in the kingdom were those valuableAssociations better officered and better workedthan in Edinburgh. (Applause.) The subcommitteeappointed to look for premises hadprivately entered into arrangements with theUnited Free Church Presbytery of Edinburgh,and the building had been acquired at a sumconsiderably under its value in the openmarket, the Presbytery recognising the valueand great importance of the uses to which itwas to be put in the interest of the social andmoral welfare of \'lx-Service men. (Applause.)There was still wanted a sum of £1500 tostart the Institute without burden. Thebuilding had been recognised by the TerritorialForce Association as the National Reserveheadquarters, and was thus the first NationalReserve headquarters instituted in Scotland,and, it was believed, in the United Kingdom_It was fitting that in that matter Edinburghand .Scotland shoul~ lead the way. (Applause.,LIe~t.-General SIr J. Spencer Ewart, indeclarmg the Institute open, wished it allprosperity and success. He was satisfied!that it would supply a much-felt want. Inhis opinion there was ample scope for theene.rgies of such an institution, not only inEdmburgh, but for similar institutions and'headquarters of the National Reserve in otherparts of Sc?tland. (Applause.) With regard'to the N atlOnal Reserve, it was in its mainand principal conception a register of all thetrainedex-soldiers of the country. It had beenfelt, when the N ational R~serve was startedthat it would be quite impossible to under~take that registration after war had brokenout or after some international crisis had arisen.The registration had been commenced byCounty Associations, and very valuable workhad been done. At the present momentover 217,000 officers, non-commissioned'officers, and men had been registered in theUnited Kingdom, and of that number over29,000 were in Scotland. He expressed, asrepresenting the Army, the gratitude of thesoldiers to the Rev. Dr. Mackay, to theTrustees, and to the Board of Management,for. their work in establishing the Institute~whICh he had much pleasure in declaring open.The Rev. F. W. Stewart, Chaplain to theForces, introduced Mr. George P. Millar,Army Scripture reader, a veteran who,enlisting in the old 7lst over 56 years ago,had served through the Mutiny and in othercampaigns, and had been an Army Scripturereader for 43 years.Lieut.-Geneial ,Ewart, in handing over apurse of sovereigns to Mr. Millar on his retirement,said that he was one of Mr. Millar'soldest campaigning comrades. He had methim during the march of the Highland Brigadefrom Ismalia to Tel-el-Kebir. Mr. ~fillar wasone of the survivors of the splendid Armycontaining so many ~cotsmen, and so largelyled by Scotsmen, WhICh had saved the BritishEmpire in India at the time of the Mutiny.He hoped Mr. Minar would be long sparedto wear his well-earned honours. He hltd wonthe gratitude of all the Scottish regimentswith which he had been associated. (Applause.)l\:1:r. Millar acknowledged the token ofesteem.CoL James Clark, C.B., moved a vote ofthanks to Lieut.-General Ewart.-Scotsman, June 27, 1914.