| The Spirit of the Forty-Second |
Preface |
| This preface was written in 1938 by Vivian Brahms, the author/compiler of the original book and a member of the Battalion. It was not written by the webmaster. |
THE story of the 42nd Battalion, which I have compiled, is the result of labours spread over a series of many years.
There has ever been a demand for a "History" of Our Battalion, but beyond getting a copy of its records, which I extracted from the records of the 11th Infantry Brigade, the loan of which was obtained in 1925 from the Defence Authorities, through the kind services of Colonel E. J. Dibdin, no progress could be reported from year to year.
Some considerable time ago a "History Committee" was formed, which after going carefully into ways and means decided that no funds being available for the purpose, the compilation of a comprehensive printed history was an impossibility. Rather than allow the years to pass without making at least an effort to preserve the traditions and deeds of the Battalion, it was recommended that steps be taken to obtain a typewritten copy of its achievements to hand down to posterity along with the Memorial Board containing the names of our Illustrious Dead. It was proposed that this history should be as concise as the relation of so vast a number of important exploits would render possible.
The first attempt to get something of a concrete nature was to allot to certain members of the Battalion a particular portion of the writing dealing with the period in which they were intimately acquainted with the Battalion and its work. The response was unfortunately disappointing, and it appeared that the matter of a 42nd Battalion history would again fall through. At length, rather than allow more years to accumulate, and having failed to unearth a writer of greater experience, I stepped into the breach and volunteered to carry out the compilation to the best of my ability. Extracts from the 11th Brigade records have been my main source of information, and 1 have since discovered that many of those records are the work of Lieut. Jules Tardent, Captain R. F. O'Bryen and others. As it is now impossible to obtain details of every individual performance, many might be inadvertently omitted were I to attempt to give the names of those responsible for the carrying out of various movements and meritorious work. Therefore, instead of endeavouring to do so, I have refrained from mentioning any names beyond those of our Battalion Commander and the first man killed in the War Zone.
During the early stages of writing I was greatly indebted to Sergt-Major W. J. Judd for the loan of his diary, which gave me an idea of the manner in which the work might be approached.
Starting so far back as 1925, 1 made fair progress until 1931, when 1 felt the task, after all, was beyond me, and 1 relinquished the writing. Six years elapsed, when in response to requests, encouragement, and a sense of duty, 1 felt the urge to complete my unfinished work. 1 made another attempt, and now at last, after thirteen years, the book is ready for publication.
I desire to acknowledge the wonderful assistance rendered by Colonel E. J. Dibdin, without whose aid this publication would have been an impossibility. Besides furnishing details of the early days of the Battalion, his help has been invaluable.
Information regarding the various attempts to extinguish the Battalion have been supplied me by Mr. George Brigham, whilst Lt. R. D. Fisher and Mr. Verdi Schwinghammer have imparted some valuable hints.
1 desire to stress the sympathetic encouragement accorded me by Captain A. C. Dibdin, and last, but by no means least, the greatest encouragement of all, at the hands of the Battalion Commander, Colonel A. R. Woolcock, who states he wholeheartedly approves of the manner in which our story has been told, namely, from the point of view of the man in the ranks, without attempting to discuss matters of tactics or strategy.
My thanks and appreciation are due to all members of the present "History Committee," namely, Captain A. C. Dibdin, Messrs. George Brigham, Andy Burnett, Charles H. Green, Arthur Gallagher, Frank Marrian, George Angell, and Sergt.-Major W. J. Judd, and to all members of the 42nd Battalion A.I.F., who have helped to make this publication a possibility.
VIVIAN BRAHMS. Brisbane June 6th, 1938.
