Call

READY WHEN CALLED

PRIVATE ARCHIBALD RICHMOND MIDDLETON

Private Middleton enlisted in October 1915; he answered the 'call to arms'. But I don't think that this is the 'call' his father was referring to when he chose his son's inscription. The call Archibald Middleton answered was God's. Christians are constantly warned that they should be prepared to meet their God, in other words that they should always live godly lives because they never know when they will be called to meet their maker - "ye know neither the day nor the hour". Middleton, a Presbyterian, was, according to his father, ready when God called him.
Middleton served with the 31st Battalion Australian Infantry. He had embarked from Australia in March 1916 and was killed six weeks before the war ended. According to a witness:

"He was of 31st Battalion, A.2. 5ft 4, medium and 30. Came from New South Wales. Beyond Bellecourt near the railway line on September 29th 1918 at 10. a.m. we were resting in shelters during the attack when Middleton was wounded by a shell. He was carried out by two prisoners of war. He was conscious when I last saw him."

Another witness reported, "He died at a field D/S about two miles back from Bellicourt". The Officer Commanding 20th Casualty Clearing Station confirmed, "Admitted 20th Casualty Clearing Station 30.9.18. Died 1.10.18. Wounds: - shell wounds chest and left leg".

ENGLAND CALLED - HE ANSWERED

PRIVATE WALTER MAURICE LAKE

In 1911 Walter Maurice Lake was a laundry vanman working at a steam laundry in Barrow-in-Furness, married with one daughter. From his headstone inscription I would suggest that he was a volunteer who responded to the recruiting posters' call to arms.
He was killed in the Battle of Bellewaarde Ridge. There is no individual account of his death but at 2.45am on 24 May 1915, the Germans launched a massive artillery bombardment and chlorine gas attack on the British lines, which broke to the north and south of Bellewaarde Lake. The British launched a counter-attack at 11 o'clock that night but it was a disaster and resulted in very heavy casualties.

HE NOBLY ANSWERED THE CALL

PRIVATE ERNEST FREDERICK JORDON

By saying that Private Jordan had "answered the call" his parents are telling us that their son was a volunteer, that he had answered the recruiting posters' call to arms. The use of the word 'nobly' is an echo of the words King George V used in his message to the expeditionary force - "I have implicit confidence in you my soldiers. Duty is your watchword, and I know your duty will be nobly done".