Saturday 24th May 1919

Pte. Edward Henry Chant (see 31^st January), serving with 3DWR at North Shields, was attached to 169^th Company, Royal Defence Corps.

An event, including a musical concert and a celebration tea, was hosted in the United Methodist Schoolroom in Cowling for returned soldiers from the village. During the interval there was a ceremony for the presentation of the Military Medal to Pte. Smith Stephenson Whitaker MM (see 2^nd February), “The Chairman said it was a great privilege to make the presentation, and it was with a sense of satisfaction and pride that one of their number had so distinguished himself in the field as to merit this award. Many more might have done similar deeds, but if such had not been under observation – and it was no part of heroism that they should be – such deeds passed unrewarded. The official account is as follows, ‘during the raid showed great ingenuity in handling his Lewis gun. Acting on his own initiative when the final objective was reached he rushed forward a considerable distance to his left flank and successfully brought fire to bear on enemy reinforcements coming up, inflicting heavy losses on them. In addition, he captured one prisoner’. This occurred on 26^th August last year, and it is a coincidence that this date is the anniversary of Private Whitaker’s Battalion of 23^rd Division going out to France three years earlier”. The Chairman also referred to Pte. Albert Christopher Benson (see 15^th January), who had been killed in action on 11^th September 1918, mentioning that Pte. Benson, “had written home shortly before he was called upon to make the supreme sacrifice that he had been awarded the Military Medal. Evidence from his comrades shows that he wore the ribbon but nothing has been heard from the military authorities since as to the handing over of the medal”.

Pte. Albert Christopher Benson