264 



REV. W. H. FRAZER^ D.D._, ON 



not forget you." " You are a good doctor," said the man. " Is 

 there anything else I can do for you ? " said the doctor. " Well, 

 if you would come in and talk with me like this two or three 

 times a day, and sit where you are now, I should be glad, because 

 your breath is so nice and comforting." There is an implication 

 here. 



A little incident occurred to me when I was going my rounds 

 once. A stafi oflicer at Orange Eiver said, " Can you baptize a 

 Boer baby ? There is a loyal Boer and his wife who want to 

 have their baby baptized." I replied, " Certainly ; you keep the 

 train here and I will do it." " Oh ! your train will be all right," 

 said he, "they don't care a button about stopping a train here 

 for half an hour or an hour." It did not perturb them. They 

 travel at a pace of 12 or 13 miles an hour. I baptized the baby ; 

 but what surprised me was that when I asked for the name, the 

 Boer father said, " Victoria." The Queen had been dead about 

 a fortnight, and so I baptized the child with that name. I after- 

 wards thought it a great pity that I did not suggest that the 

 name should have been made to apply to both King and Queen, 

 and that it should have been given the name of Victoria 

 Edwardina. 



Looking at the experience I had of the war, and remembering 

 the heroic acts and splendid behaviour of our men, it is a 

 terrible thing to think that any men who, for the love of 

 country, for love of their flag and their King, endured so much, 

 should be allowed bo want, to hunger, or to beg ; but it is so, not 

 that our Government wishes it, but the Government cannot be 

 everywliere. There are other men — very different altogether — 

 men in petty positions that turn that position to make grand 

 fellows of themselves. They do a deal of harm, and I have 

 seen much of it. I have seen the very best type of men of the 

 line and our militiamen, but there is a great difference between 

 the volunteer oflicer and the militia officer and linesmen — a 

 wonderful difference. It takes more than a monthly training 

 each year to make good officers. There are also, it struck me, 

 great failings and wrong doing in various ways in the Army. I 

 know of men, for instance, at the present time, who tell me 

 that they have not received their pay, and cannot get it. I 

 know of many cases of that kind. I know a clergyman who 

 cannot get his pay and claims. They tell him he has received 

 all his claims in South Africa ; yet he has necessarily and 

 largely spent his own money in performing his duties at the 

 front, and these fellows obstinately refuse to pay him, or to 

 produce the documents pertaining to his claims. I know of a 



