El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1918-04-06
q HARRY LAUDER.

from tae state Of glorious. proud
i parenthood to the utter loneliness
Of one without a son, have 1 come in
the last two years. and the things 1
have seen. and the things have
heard and the things have person
ally had to bear during that period
have been almost too much for the
strength OF any one man, and I firmly
believe thatswers it not for the sim
pie fact that during my hours Of
greatest agony and trial have chung
to my God and TO my strong faith In
a future life. i should not have been
able to survive
Because 1 have been before the pub
lie for 30 years. I suppose that people
think / an an old man. But am
only A. At that age man should
feel as though he were coming into
the fullneEs Of his powers, as IT. Ior
the first time he was reaQg 70 use
his experience, his brains, and MS
ability TO push farther on, TO make
new conquests and to form new amDl-
tons.
But to accomplish anything Of
worth in this world, one must have
incentive OF some sort, and the rea-
son that the future seems dreary ana
desolate and filled with plackness
for me is because / have lost my
incentive When the Germans killed
nay only son, Capt. John Lauder, on
the 2sth OF December, 1913, they
killed every spark Of ambition every
hope for the future that was burning
within my breast Il was Tor my boy
my son John, that had worked, traV-
cling thousands and thousands OF
miles around the world. playing al
most continuously with very little rest
between seasons.
Ny son John was more to me than
anything else in the wide world From
the day he was born until the day
and my one JOY BE was always with
US on orr travels nc matter where We
went, and between the matinee and
evening performances would rush
back from the theater to the hotel
room to watch with my wife with
Jealous eve, tuck him into his bed,
and to get his good night kiss and
feel his warm arms around my neck
That nightly process Of putting John
to bed was almost a sacred event.
Where once my lie was filled and
crammed and made Joyous by the
thought and presence Of my boy, It Is
now empty and void. Where once I
could say 70 myself that ] was going
through the strain OF so many per-
formances a week, so many weeks IN
the year. because I wished to make
my boys future secure. 7 now can no
longer have that consolation Where
once my work was JOY and a pleas
ure, because there vas something TO
spur me on. it is now practically
tasteless and fiat And at times black
despair settles down upon me. and Z I
am unable 10 see what life holds FOR
me In the future. ] am unable to l
see any use in going on
It was on New Years day OF 1916 |
that the news came to US Of Johns /
death at the front I was lying IN /
bed at my home in London, resting
for my performance in the theater |
that afternoon. when 7 heard a ter
rible cry from the front Of the house. /
I was stunned for a moment. then my
head began to swim because Of the
awful fear that clutched al ny heart. I
mo. TO, non I cried 10 myself, I
propping myself I'D IN bed. God I
couldn't be so cruel he simply
couldn't take my boy"
But when i saw ny Wife's face, I
knew. She was standing 10 the
doorway, her agony reflected in her
eyes. holding out the telegram to
me somehow, she crossed TO my bed I
and s0bbing her heart out she gave
me the message.
For days I burned my brain with ]
Departing thoughts. and
asked Of what use indeed we're ell Z
my labors. all my toll during all these I