Part of the reality of writing “op-ed” as opposed to straight journalism is you can’t just take popular positions and write to the crowd. 

Why is that? Well, it won’t be any good for one thing. That’s the caution and opening paragraph of this piece for Canada Day/Beaumont Hamel. 

“The first casualty in war is the truth.” The quote is from ancient Greek senator Aeschylus. When I was a young man things like the First World War and battles like the Somme and Beaumont Hamel were taught to us in story and song and history in a form that had little to do with what really happened.

‘The Big Push’

At grandmother’s knee she talked to me of “The Big Push” which was the Allied offensive of July 1st, 1914. She referred to the Newfoundland Regiment as “The Boys” and she told a tale of gallantry and victory. There was no casualty list or any mention of the effect it had on us for generations.

Now there was lots of gallantry at Beaumont Hamel, but little victory. It was a slaughter.  I personally knew and had spoken with and interviewed two members of the Newfoundland Regiment. I had drinks with both of those brave men. 

They were Walter Tucker and Abe Mollett. They both knew July 1st, 1916 was a defeat and really a debacle. That didn’t keep it from becoming an important part of our history. It became a holy day marked on July 1st each year as Memorial Day. Even as the rest of the nation celebrated Canada Day, we in Newfoundland looked back to 1916 and a field in France for our focus on July 1st. That was so for many years and still is to a certain extent.  

That began to change gradually as our time within the Canadian Confederation grew longer.

Celebrating Canada Day!

Now July 1st is a time of great celebration. It’s Canada Day and it has actively moved into prominence in Newfoundland with a large helping hand from Ottawa. There’s nothing wrong with that. 

It took a long while, but now our houses sport Canadian flags and our cars mark the day with the Maple Leaf. In the background remains 1916 and the echoes of war that shaped us will never go away completely, but it’s fading. That was pushed along by our nation’s government. Celebration is an easier role than remembrance and it was promoted by Ottawa. Let me know the next time you hear the Ode to Newfoundland played at a Canadian government event at Beaumont Hamel.  

So here we are on this mid-summer day. Bands will play and flags will wave, but we in this province will still take a backward glance. Our focus has shifted, but we pre-Confederation people will celebrate but still mourn.

NTV’s Jim Furlong can be reached by emailing: jfurlong@ntv.ca

Because having a snowstorm in the spring is not all that strange on this wind-swept rock we all love so much and we’re honoured to have survived. That’s Newfoundland for ya, we shared almost proudly as we publicly shared our June snowfall pictures in what can only be described as a display of islander pride.

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AGAINST THE ODDS

No sir, we didn’t come by our hearty heritage lightly, earning every ounce of our rough and tumble reputation the hard way – by showcasing a great attitude while surviving against the odds tossed our way by the unforgiving Atlantic and many other forces. We’ve learned over the years to take Mother Nature’s sense of humour in stride and we wear a come-what-may attitude as a badge of honour while facing adversity.

But while the often unpredictable weather has certainly enhanced our reputation when it comes to facing hardship, what really set us apart was our Royal Newfoundland Regiment, an infantry regiment in the Canadian Army.

Many know the tale, though it always deserves repeating. 543 men, mostly unmarried volunteers, many of them fishermen from all around this province of ours, headed bravely into battle. On July 1st, 1916, only 68 answered roll-call in Beaumont-Hamel. 324 men were killed or missing and were presumed dead and many more were wounded.

While that one-day toll was great — and is what often stands out in the history books — travel around this province of ours and you will see tributes paid to the incredible sacrifice made by those who remained fighting even after such home-felt loss.

In a graveyard in Cape Broyle lies Private William Costello, service number 5753. Just 22, he was tragically killed in service on October 30, 1918 – the day the armistice treaty marking the end of the first World War was signed.

In Come By Chance, a monument stands in memory of Private Alexander Gilbert, a Regiment member who was killed in action in France on March 2, 1917. There are many more young men to be found lying in graveyards throughout this province, their ageing headstones marked with the telltale caribou.

While Tommy Ricketts might be the most famous of all the fighting Newfoundlanders, there are many a Newfoundland family who have a brave and hearty heritage to be proud of.

HONOURABLE DAY

This Memorial Day morning we may wake up to the sun streaming in through our windows. By noon, when it’s time to celebrate Canada Day, we may be slugging on our sou’wester to keep the rain off our noggins as we head outside to burn a few hotdogs for the youngsters, but you know what? Newfoundlanders and Labradorians won’t really care one little bit either way.

We’ve got it good here, and we know it, and if all we have to endure on such an honourable day is what Mother Nature throws our way, then that’s fine by us. While being able to take a joke is certainly one of our trademarks, being brave and hearty to the core is as well. That’s not a hard ol’ way to be known, and for that, we can thank the lads who were part of the first 500 and all the ones who bravely kept at it against the odds.

Thank you all for your service.