First World War (Art, Posters, Dead Man's Pennies, Silver Crosses & Medals)
"The First World War of 1914–1918 was the bloodiest conflict in Canadian history, taking the lives of nearly 61,000 Canadians. It erased romantic notions of war, introducing slaughter on a massive scale, and instilled a fear of foreign military involvement that would last until the Second World War. The great achievements of Canadian soldiers on battlefields such as Ypres, Vimy and Passchendaele, however, ignited a sense of national pride and a confidence that Canada could stand on its own, apart from the British Empire, on the world stage. The war also deepened the divide between French and English Canada, and marked the beginning of widespread state intervention in society and the economy." (Canadian Encyc.)
88. ANON. Help Our District Win This Flag Honor Flag Victory Loan 1918 Awarded By His Excellency The Governor General Of Canada To Districts Exceeding Their Quota. W.P. 9. 36 ¼” x 24 ¼”. colour lithograph (several short tears to margins & stains to lower left six inches – backed on archival tissue). $800
COMMEMORATIVE BRONZE PLAQUE (‘DEAD MAN’S PENNY’)
89. BOUCHER, Charles [September 18, 1881-September 15, 1916]. Canadian Infantry (Eastern Ontario Regiment), 21st Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force. World War 1 commemorative bronze plaque (‘Dead Man’s Penny) designed by Edward Carter Preston (12 x 12cm). $450
Private Boucher died on September 15, 1916, the first day the Canadian Corps fought in the Battle of the Somme; he was reported missing after action on September 15th. “At last it was Canada’s turn in the charnel house, and the corps went into the line at Pozières Ridge, some thirty kilometres east of Amiens. Their attack was to go in on September 15…” (Granatstein, Hell’s Corner, p. 86) His sacrifice is commemorated at the Vimy Memorial.
90. CULLEN, Maurice Galbraith. RCA. CAC. P-AC. President Pen & Pencil Club, Montreal. Associate, Société National des Beaux-Arts, Paris. WWI Official War Artist. [1866-1934]. [Encampment, view from the Western Front, World War I]. 13 x 9 ¾ inches. charcoal & coloured pencil drawing on paper. signed & dated “21 Avril, [19] 18” on recto. $4,000
Cullen, who became the most successful proponent of impressionism in Canada, served with Canadian forces in the First World War beginning in January of 1918. It was Lord Beaverbrook, who arranged for him to be commissioned as an "official war artist" along with Frederick Varley, J.W.Beatty and C.W.Simpson.
91. LAVENGOOD, Gill W. [20th Century Canadian School]. Peace in Saskatchewan [Figures by a War Monument]. 25 x 16 inches. oil on canvas laid on board. signed, dated “8-27”, & inscribed “Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada” on recto. signed titled, & dated “Aug. 6-7-8-9, 1927” on recto. $3,000
Provenance: Private Collection Hamilton, Ontario.
COMMEMORATIVE BRONZE PLAQUE (‘DEAD MAN’S PENNY’)
92. McCREARY, Frederick William [September 10, 1888-April 19, 1916]. Canadian Infantry, 29th (Vancouver) Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force. World War 1 commemorative bronze plaque (‘Dead Man’s Penny) designed by Edward Carter Preston (12 x 12 cm). $300
Private McCreary died in the field on April 19, 1916. He is memorialized on the Menin Gate (Ypres) Memorial, Belgium. “It bears the names of 55,000 men who were lost without trace during the defence of the Ypres Salient in the First World War.” (Canadian Virtual War Memorial)
93. MACDONALD, James Edward Hervey RCA. OSA. The Group of Seven. [1873-1932]. Canada and the Call 1914. [Exhibition of Pictures Given by Canadian Artists in Aid of the Patriotic Fund. Under the Auspices of the Royal Canadian Academy]. 32 ¾ x 28 ¼ inches. colour lithograph on paper. framed. np: Royal Canadian Academy, [1914]. $3,000
A very early First World War poster depicting Canada as a woman adorned with patriotic symbols, carrying the Union Jack. She stands between marching soldiers and a farmer holding a plough, while in the background at the upper right ships carry troops and supplies to Britain's aid. As there was no centralized poster production at the beginning of the war, they were designed by military units and private organizations such as the Royal Canadian Academy. This particular one was designed by future Group of Seven artist, J.E.H. MacDonald, then a graphic designer with Grip Ltd. in Toronto.
The poster is usually found with the full text noted above at the bottom. In this example the text has either been cropped or this is some kind of printer’s trial proof. When the work was originally acquired the print was in an old period oak frame.
Choko, Canadian War Posters, p. 81, illus. XXIV.
MEMORIAL SILVER CROSS
94. ,McPHAIL, John [September 22, 1882 – August 29, 1918]. Canadian Infantry, 116th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force. World War 1 Memorial Silver Cross (3.2 cm x 3.2 cm). $450
Private McPhail died on August 29, 1918. He joined the 208th Battalion (Irish Battalion) on April 24th, 1916. A death notice on October 24, 1918 stated: “Pte. J. McPhail…who was reported wounded in September [1917?], has succumbed to his injuries. He went overseas with the Irish Battalion, and had been in France nine months…” He was buried at Aubigny Communal Cemetery Extension, Pas de Calais, France.
Silver crosses were awarded to the widows or mothers of soldiers who died on active duty. The cross has the soldier’s name, ‘’Pte. J. McPhail’ and regimental number (249452) on the verso.
95. [NICOLET, Frank Lucien] [b. 1887]. Doing My Bit Four Years Do Yours Buy Victory Bonds. W.P. 4. (lower right margin). 36” x 24” (92 x 61 cm) colour offset lithograph (creasing & few tears to margins, several stains to image & lower margin, few small nicks to lower portion). [Ottawa: 1919]. $800
War bonds, called 'Victory Bonds' after 1917, were issued by the government to finance the war. Tens of thousands of posters in English and French were issued through extensive publicity campaigns, encouraging Canadian citizens to buy bonds in order to support our troops overseas. Total domestic bond purchases during the First World War at long-term interest rates of up to 5.5 percent for terms of up to 20 years exceeded expectations and raised two billion, ten times the amount of money raised abroad. The government awarded communities who bought large amounts of bonds Victory Loan Honour Flags, and War Savings Certificates were issued for those who could not afford to buy Victory Bonds. The success of the “victory bond” campaign would be repeated during the Second World War.
Choko, Canadian War Posters, illus. III. Doll, The Poster War: Allied Propaganda Art Of The First World War, p. 63 (illus. 24)
"A Canadian Soldier's Life At The Front"
96. RUTTER, Guy Warwick [1893-1952]. Hun Hunting [Cover Title]. folio. 32 drawings on 10” x 12” cards. ‘Hun Hunting’ brochure (chipped & tattered), 4 pages on one 10” x 15 ¾” leaf loosely inserted, with a biography and portrait of Rutter, pricing information for newspapers & three samples of Rutter’s cartoons. contemporary bds. front cover with title in ink & original ink caricature of a soldier (covers detached, very worn & chipped, front cover in two pieces with remnants of cellotape repairs, some soiling, wear & staining to margins, slanted crease to one drawing, one with pinholes, one with insect damage & another with tear to lower margin).
[With]: Signed copy of a rare pamphlet written, illustrated and privately published by Lieutenant Rutter in 1919 is included. Frightfulness includes cartoons and humorous sketches on his wartime experiences. “…We used to think we were Cavalry once (They call us the C.M.R.’s)… We used to strut around with Whips and Spurs And Pistols and Stetson Hats, But now we’re holding the Front Line Trench The C.M.R.’s – and the Rats.! Capt. Tweedie…(Apologies to Rudyard Kipling).”
[With]: Letters Guy W. Rutter June 10th 1915 to Dec. 31st 1915 [Cover Title]. (Letters from Valcartier (Quebec), Shorncliffe (England), Flanders, Front Line Trenches in Belgium).8vo. [ff. 175; versos blank). contemporary roan (covers worn & tear to lower spine).
[With]: Letters Guy W. Rutter Jan. 4th 1916 to May 14th 1916 [Cover Title]. (Letters from Belgium). 8vo. [ff. 118; versos blank. five leaves loosely inserted). contemporary roan (covers worn).
[With]: sixteen printed reunion invitations illustrated (and possibly captioned) by Rutter from 1938 to 1951. Most include cartoons and humorous text relating to the First World War. “It’s Just Twenty Years Since The War To End War Assured All And Sundry Of Peace Evermore. Now, From Rumours We Hear, It Is Only Too Plain That Before Very Long We’ll Be At It Again! The Good Old Days, Lousy And Mud-Soaked Are Gone…Two Machine Guns Per Company, Unsteady And Slow – Six Planes In The Heavens Were Really A Show!”. (Fourteenth Annual Reunion Nov. 12th, 1938)
[With:] Several miscellaneous drawings (one of Hitler), initials and J.D. Woods & Gordon Limited advertising material are also included. $15,000
Guy Warwick Rutter, son of Arthur F. Rutter of Warwick Brothers & Rutter, enlisted in 1915. A Lieutenant in the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles, he served at Neuve Eglise, Ploegsteert, Wulverghem, Poperinghe, Ypres Salient and Mount Sorrel from November 1915 to June 1916. He was wounded in the right arm and leg at the Battle of Mount Sorrel (Sanctuary Wood) on June 2nd, 1916. After hospitalization and thirteen months of treatment, Lieutenant Rutter regained partial use of his right arm.
Lieutenant Rutter is mentioned in Bennett's regimental history of the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles: "On December 3rd, a patrol discovered a German working party on the Wulverghem-Messines Road beyond the low ground on the rather wide No-Man's Land on this sector. Lieutenant G.W. Rutter, a Sergeant, a Corporal and ten men of "C" Squadron volunteered. The raid was to take place behind the screen of an artillery bombardment but unfortunately this drew the enemy's fire in a counter-bombardment and put the opposing troops on the alert. Lieutenant Rutter scattered his party, took one man and crossed the marshy ground to the barrier, making a complete reconnaissance, although entirely exposed to the enemy by flares and rockets which lighted the whole ground." (Bennett, The 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles 1916-1919, pp. 11-12)
Rutter’s Hun Hunting cartoons were offered for publication in Canadian newspapers. Most of the cartoons are dated either 1917 or 1918 and, presumably, the undated ones were also prepared in the same years; he was convalescing for the last half of 1915 and much of 1916. The promotional insert from the British & Colonial Press, Ltd. (Toronto) states: "Every cartoon depicts some event which actually occurred, dealt with in a more or less serious vein. Two cartoons a week for an indefinite period. Price $3.00 per week, and sold to only one paper in any town or city."
The cartoons capture the irony and humour of the life of a front-line soldier and officer in World War I. His soldiers, including the recurring Lieutenant Binks and Private Jones, are filling sandbags, wading in water, caught in trees and shelled buildings, abandoning billets, encountering the enemy, trying to sleep through shell and mortar fire and living with mud, water, lice and rats.
Beginning with his enlistment and ending at the Ypres Salient, Lieutenant Rutter's witty and erudite letters to his family provide important information on the First World War and a Canadian Soldier’s life at the front. The two bound volumes contain typed transcripts of his correspondence from June 10th, 1915 to May 14th 1916; Lieutenant Rutter's mother reportedly hired a stenographer to preserve his letters in typewritten form. His letters are very interesting and entertaining, and at the same time, informative. He provides observations and commentary on a variety of subjects: England in wartime, London blackouts, 'white feathers', censorship, 'trench cough', battles, trench warfare, reconnaissance &c. In a letter dated November 5th, 1915, Lieutenant Rutter writes: "We were in easy speaking distance of Fritz last night. In some places the lines were only 35 yds. apart. Fritz said he was in mud up to his neck and intimated he was pretty well fed up. You know this is a darn foul war. We "hated" them for a bit this afternoon with artillery, and they "hated" us back, and then both sides quit and went to dinner." On November 16, 1915 he describes the daily dispensation of rum: ""Stand to" happens some time before day-break. Just before we go out to make our inspections of the trench, we (the officers) have our "Set-up" consisting of Tea and Rum. After we make the rounds, we come back and have another shot of "set-up", Rum and Tea this time. Then we issue the men with Rum, which seems to pep them up a bit."
A signed copy of a rare pamphlet written, illustrated and privately published by Lieutenant Rutter in 1919 is included. Frightfulness includes cartoons and humorous sketches on his wartime experiences. “…We used to think we were Cavalry once (They call us the C.M.R.’s)… We used to strut around with Whips and Spurs And Pistols and Stetson Hats, But now we’re holding the Front Line Trench The C.M.R.’s – and the Rats.! Capt. Tweedie…(Apologies to Rudyard Kipling).”
This collection also includes sixteen printed reunion invitations illustrated (and possibly captioned) by Rutter from 1938 to 1951. Most include cartoons and humorous text relating to the First World War. “It’s Just Twenty Years Since The War To End War Assured All And Sundry Of Peace Evermore. Now, From Rumours We Hear, It Is Only Too Plain That Before Very Long We’ll Be At It Again! The Good Old Days, Lousy And Mud-Soaked Are Gone…Two Machine Guns Per Company, Unsteady And Slow – Six Planes In The Heavens Were Really A Show!…”. (Fourteenth Annual Reunion Nov. 12th, 1938)
Several miscellaneous drawings (one of Hitler), initials and J.D. Woods & Gordon Limited advertising material are also included. After the war Rutter illustrated several Wilson MacDonald books (Caw-caw ballads, Paul Marchand and Quintrains of “Callender”) and his cartoons appeared in Toronto newspapers and magazines. He also worked in business at York Knitting Mills Limited in Toronto and as a director of Continental Life.
Further details upon request.
Collection of Medals
97. WILLIAMS, Walter Edward [September 27, 1892-October 23, 1918]. Canadian Infantry (Quebec Regiment, Royal Highlanders of Canada – Black Watch), 42nd Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force. Including:
(1) World War 1 Memorial Silver Cross (3.2 cm x 3.2 cm), “Pte W. E. Williams” and regimental number (127112) on the verso.
(2) World War 1 Silver British War Medal (3.5 cm x 3.5 cm), name, regimental number and battalion incised on the rim.
(3) World War 1 Bronze Inter-Allied Victory Medal (3.5 x 3.5 cm), name, regimental number and battalion incised on the rim, with ribbon, newspaper clipping & original box with typed label.
(4) Associated Kin of C.E.F. The People of Canada. Walter E. Williams. International Order of Mother’s in Sacrifice, 8 x 3.8 cm. bronze pendant medal with cross and maple leaf wreath decorations. Purple ribbon, attached bar and pin-back. Verso: “In recognition of Margaret Williams as a Mother in Sacrifice”. Marked “Wellings Mfg. Co. Toronto”.
(5) Minister of Militia and Defence British War Medal printed letter.
(6) Manuscript will, dated Toronto, March 19, 1917, of his father.
Price for the collection: $1,000
“Walter E. Williams, 191 Gilmour Avenue, was wounded in the left hip and was admitted to the hospital September 19th… He enlisted with the 71st Battalion, but was later transferred to a bomb throwing squad and then to a trench mortar battery. Finally he was drafted into a Montreal battalion…Walter had been in the trenches about four months.” (Newspaper Clipping) Private Williams died on October 23, 1918. He is buried at Valenciennes (St. Roch) Communal Cemetery, France.
