THE LATE CAPTAIN MICHAEL CHAPMAN. [To ma EDITOR OF THE
" SPECTATOR."] SIR,—Captain Michael Chapman's connexion with the Spectator emboldens me to write a few lines to you, from whom he received such kind and prompt encouragement in his recent development of A-literary gift.
To you, who counted among your friends the author of A Student in Arms, it may be of interest to know that the man who inspired in that book Donald Hankey's chapter called "The Beloved Cap- tain " was to Michael Chapman the closest and most intimate of- all his friends. They had much in common, and each repre-•
seated to the other his ideal of manhood. If but one such friend from. bey to man had but summed up for us the• charm of Michael's individuality! but, like " The Beloved Captain," all those earliest friends have earned the honour of the soldier's cross for headstone.
As the Times announced last week, Michael Chapman, Captain
in the:Grenadier Guards, fell in action in France on April 12th, his battalion having been ordered to fill a gap, and hold the line, which it slid "'at all costs." Of him his Colonel wrote: " He died- more than upholding the honour of our great regiment." To those who knew him best this was no surprise. Years before could be seen in his-character that quality which makes the good soldier of men who, by nature and inclination, seem more fitted for a life of leisurely enjoyment. From the playing-fields of Eton; and the pleasure of University life at Oxford, for the purpose he had before his eyes, he went cheerfully on a self-chosen way, through the practical. engineer's apprenticeship, and during those two or three years never failed to be in the shops, ready by six o'clock to begin the dayli work. I recall an evening when his zeal for work, which could not be called congenial, was well tested. Any arrangement of plans most attractive to him. was made, but it involved his arrival at the works some ten minutes late. He did not hesitate for a moment.
He went to Canada in 1905, as prospects seemed to open for him there, and a letter ettintroduction to the Governor-General quickly brought him an invitation to luncheon, and from that day forward• Lord Grey became his friend. He was made extra A.D.C. during Prince Arthur of• Connaught's visit to.Canada, and every oppor- tunity was given to him by Lord and Lady Grey to meet men who might be. of use in shaping his career. He married in 1906, and from an-oasis of home life for nine years he strenuously laboured to develop _his business.
Then came the declaration of war and the call of patriotism. When consulting a friend he wrote: "Selfishly I want to go." Not held bark by the principal sharer in the sacrifice, after some training in a Canadian O.T.C., he came•to England in 1915, and on June 25th was gazetted Second Lieutenant in the Grenadier Guards. He loved his men, and loved to earn- for his platoon a• special word of praise for efficiency. He said once " I think I would' be more proud to be a Captain in•the Guards than•anything else'
in the world." He had come to value the sharp discipline main- tained in the regiment, which at first had chiefly appealed to sense of humour.
On October 4th, 1915, he left for France, and before many day passed was in an attack made on German communication trenelte- by bombing parties, in which his battalion took part; a severe
experience. In June, 1916, he was severely wounded, and on hi - release from. hospital was at home under medical care for several months. During this leisure he began to make notes upon hi varied observations in France, and finally he wrote an occasional paper. Several of these were accepted by the Spectator and received praise from its editor. One article appeared in Black- wood. He returned to France in August, 1917, and was gazetted a, Captain, but his appointment was that of Intelligence Officer. Among his papers there lies a letter from an officer of another regiment thanking him for having guided him and his company into position one night in December, when, deserted by their " recalcitrant guide," they were wandering in the bewilderment of a wood. He was again wounded, though very slightly, near Cambrai, and received the Military Cross. He had leave at Christmas, when his little son was baptized and was given the name of "The Beloved Captain."
I do not attempt to describe the charm of Michael Chapman's personality, for the result would be but like the blossom pressed and dried compared with the perfumed living flower. There are, however, a few descriptive- lines from the letters of brother- officers I am allowed to quote. " A great favourite," one wrote, "owing to that stoutness of heart and that keen sense of humour that tinged all intercourse "; and another : "No matter how un- comfortable we were, we always found something to laugh at "; and from a third letter these words : "He was such a gallant chap, too, always cheerful, and keen, and so efficient and capable, and so lovable at all times." He was still in great part a boy, though thirty-five years old• when he fell.
If, as it has been said, " love and patriotism are terms which in condensed form express the capacity in men of passing out of the narrow limits of individual self," he had lived long enough to realize their meaning. To- the summons of his country-. lie answered with his whole being. He called it " doing something for nothing," and wrote that if he lived the experience would have .remade him; if he should not live, he added., " it will be like passing through a white-hot flame, which will purify."—I am.
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