In The Trenches 1914-1918. Glenn Ph.D. Iriam

      Frank S. Iriam, 1906

      Prologue

      Frank Stanley Iriam (Iram) was born October 30, 1886 in Brazil Lake, Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia. He was one of eight children born to Marion Axele Iram (nee Cann) and Henry Rivers Iram.

      He left school in the fifth book to go to work at a sawmill where he lost a part of a finger on his left hand.

      He served for three years at the British Military Fort known as the Citadel with the 78th Highland Regiment. The British Garrison was ultimately withdrawn in 1906 in response to growing tensions in Europe.

      Frank left Nova Scotia in 1905 spending some time in Montreal where the picture was taken of him in his kilts on May 26th, 1906. He later moved on to Kenora where he obtained employment with the Canadian Pacific Railway as a wiper on September 05, 1906. He was promoted to fireman on June 4th, 1907 and then to engineer August 18th, 1911.

      Rumours of war started and then on August 4th, 1914 Frank joined the Army along with about 50 others on the role of the old 98th at Kenora. Frank had developed an angry streak with the German Empire’s actions in Europe. The night of August 14th saw them entraining for Valcartier, Quebec where they continued their training.

      There was talk of forming a scout section of eight men in the early days at Valcartier, and he jumped at the chance to get in the scouts. These were the Special Forces of that time period. In September they were blended into the Canadian Overseas Expeditionary Service. The unit sailed from Quebec on the S.S. Franconia on October the 3rd, 1914.

      On their arrival in England their training continued. On February 10th, 1915 they sailed from the Port of Bristol to St. Nazaire, a port in France where they were integrated and familiarized by April 15th, 1915 with their duties as they headed into battle.

      Frank served as a sniper, scout, and observer in most of the major battles during the Great War. The accommodations were rough on the front lines. Their plush room consisted of a fairly large whole in the side of a trench with what ever they could gather to put under them to keep themselves out of the wet. Curled up here in their great coats they were put to sleep by the melody of artillery shells and machine gun bullets roaring overhead. They slept like this with the hopes a large shell would not land close enough to collapse the roof on them burying them alive. The snipers had their own cook on the front that set up his kitchen wherever this small band of men were working.

      There was a bad time in Dad’s service where the terrible conditions really dragged him down into a state of depression. I hope the readers of this story sort of get the idea of how rough the living conditions really were over there for these soldiers. He finally decided he went there to do a job and should get on with it. “So He Pulled Up His Boat Straps” as he often told me to do when I found some tough going and got on with it.

      On August 1st, 1918 his Battalion was used in the battle of Ameins where they changed to open warfare rather than trench warfare. The need for snipers was no longer there. The allied forces brought up enough men and equipment to push the Germans out of their trenches and keep them on the run to their homeland and the end of the war. On the second day of the battle Frank was shot in the left arm by enemy machine gun fire while running forward to the enemy trenches.

      The wounded were transferred to the basement of a village church. Surgery was preformed on his left arm there. Then the wounded were taken to a Hospital on the French coast for further treatment. After a period of time they were moved to Folkstone England for another short stay. Once again they were moved to another Hospital called Collition House in Dorchester, Dorsett. After further medical treatment there they shipped off to Canada on the ship Essequibo about May 1st, 1919. While in Halifax he managed to visit his family in Brazil Lake shortly before being discharged.

      On September 16th, 1919 he received his discharge from the Army and returned to Kenora as well as his employment with the Canadian Pacific Railway Co.

      Frank married Laura S. Reid on January 4th, 1927 and had a home built that year. They had two children Grace Millicent and Glenn Roy.

      During his employment years in Kenora Frank enjoyed exploring the many lakes and rivers in the district and also did a little prospecting. He would head out in his inboard boat with the canvas covered canoe trailing behind. Consequently he had an island named after him on the Lake of the Woods, a lake in the Red Lake district and a road in the Red Lake district were also named after him.

      Frank passed on in Deer Lodge Hospital, Winnipeg, Manitoba on August the 9th 1957. Both Frank and his wife Laura are buried in a plot in the Lake Of The Woods Cemetery, Kenora, Ontario.

      Introduction

      Why did I do this book at this time in life? When I was a young lad in the late 30’s and 40’s I used to sit and listen to my father’s stories of The Great War in the kitchen just dad and I with no one else in the house.

      I clung to every word, and often wondered how this loving, tender giant of a man had ever been such a violent man dealing out death on a daily basis to any enemy soldier bearing arms and still looked kindly on any enemy soldier who had laid down his arms becoming a non-combatant.

      One evening dad said “ I would like my story to be told but not until a long time after I am gone”. Then he went on to say that some of the things he wrote about some of the people could put him in a libel position. Well from what I have heard on the media dad was very mildly spoken.

      Well here I am 74 years old and publishing my Father’s Memoirs in order to fulfill his wishes.

      Many of our family and some unexpected help from others have made this venture possible. Without those folks this may never have gotten to the publishing point.

      The first to dig in was my sister Grace who diligently went through my first production checking out my manuscript for

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