by PAUL RAYNER

As the First World War fades from personal memory due to the advancing years, it is important to have other ways to remember what was known as the “war to end all wars”, the conflict from where Remembrance Day was born.

Perry and Phyllis Hallett have a link to that past. Packed away for years with little attention given to them, the Halletts kept numerous copies of The War Illustrated, a British publication begun during the 1914-18 war, and continued afterward as the New Illustrated. According to Perry Hallett, these magazines were collected by his father, Edwin “Ted” Hallett, who at the time, was a recent immigrant to the Boissevain area.

“Dad came over in 1910,” Hallett stated, “and he brought a gramophone. Somehow or other, he acquired these war magazines, and they ended up being stored in the gramophone box. That’s why they were saved, because they were in this wooden box.”

The magazines found a place there for decades, until Hallett took out the gramophone to give to cousins about 20 years ago. The historical periodicals ended up on the landing on the family farm north of town, and Phyllis said they took the odd one out to look at, but for the most part, there was little attention paid to them until they moved into town this fall.

The origins of the First World War are numerous and stretch back as far as the peace treaty from the Napoleonic Wars. What evolved was a system of alliances in Europe, which with some shifting, ended up locking the continent into a deadly situation. An attack on one country would end up involving all of the powers of Europe and their empires in a lock-step motion. Although the countries had been able to keep themselves out of major conflicts for decades, when the Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated by a Serbian nationalist in June 1914, the deadly game became a serious proposition. Austria-Hungary threatened Serbia, Russia backed Serbia, Germany threatened Russia, and France was drawn in through their alliance with Russia. As the summer passed, countries marched to war.

The German plan of attack called for a quick blow against France through Belgium. Britain, not formally tied to alliances, entered the war on August 4 ostensibly to protect Belgian neutrality, although more likely to protect French ports from German occupation thereby threatening the island’s security. When Britain went in, so did the empire, including Canada. The deadliest war then known had begun.

The War Illustrated began publication on the week ending August 22. Sold at the price of two pence, later increasing to three, its first issue had a cover reflecting the feeling of the times, with a British soldier linking hands with his French and Belgian counterparts. Inside the “plan and purpose” of the periodical is laid out, to “provide during the continuance of the Great War a weekly record of the momentous events which are to change the whole complexion of Europe and profoundly to affect all modern civilization”. It also points to the fact that although it is a weekly review; it may also be of historical importance.

This it is. Each issue features stories of battles, from all corners. The Western Front, Eastern Front, the disastrous Dardanelles expedition etc. are all represented. There are photo features of life in the trenches – such as the April 10, 1915 issue, with “Sons of the republic keep watch along the Aisne”, where French dugouts are featured. There is a weekly roll of dead British officers, and each week features a picture of an Allied leader, such as French General Foch or British General Allenby.

Views toward the conflict abound as well, particularly from famous writers of the period such as H.G. Wells and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

One of the great benefits of the periodical is the photographs or artistic depictions of uniforms and equipment. Long forgotten Italian, Rumanian and Serbian uniforms are included. As well, there are surprising photographs of enemy troops in action and behind the lines, making one wonder how the magazine was able to get German troops in battle and at leisure.

Canadians figure prominently from time to time, such as training on Salisbury Plain prior to entering the line in 1915, or the issue in November 1916, where an article is titled “Canadians Answer the Signal at the Somme”.

When the war ended, the magazine changed its name to the New Illustrated, eventually moving towards the civilian feature-type article that had a smaller place in its predecessor. However, early on, there was speculation as to whether the war would accomplish its stated purpose of ending all wars, with an eye to the Paris Peace conference. One cartoon showed a British and French soldier outside of the conference room hoping the diplomats would not lose in the treaty what they won on the field of battle.

An interesting question is how Ted Hallett received these publications. Originally from Barnes, England, he did go back to the Old Country at a few points prior to marriage, but not until the 1920’s. They might have been saved for him and he brought them back, or they could have been sent during the war.

“His mother used to send him a lot of magazines,” Perry Hallett stated. “His brother used to roll them up and send them. He used to get the Daily Mirror, and that got passed around.”

As well as these First World War magazines, the Halletts also possess others from a later period. All 11 editions of the Story of the British Empire, starting in May 1939 are there, with the final volume, from September of that year, carrying a war notice saying due to conditions, there would be no more.

Also, Perry Hallett has several comic books from the Second World War period from when he was young. Of great interest are the Canadian comics, featuring titles like Wow Comics and Triumph Comics, with historical heroes Johnny Canuck and the Penguin doing battles with Nazi spies and saboteurs. Artists like Leo Bachle and Adrian Dingle became famous historically within the genre.

The War Illustrated issues are of particular value. The couple’s son Gordon has shown an interest, and they are wondering exactly what they will do with them in the end. They will not be destroyed for sure, and Perry Hallett said it is interesting to see how the interest flares up suddenly for the old collection.

“They have been around my full lifetime,” he said, “and we really didn’t bother with them much. Nobody was really interested until now.”