What do you think?
Rate this book
We Will Not Cease
We Will Not Cease is the epoch record of New Zealander Archibald Baxter's brutal treatment as a conscientious objector. In 1915, when he was 33, Baxter was arrested, sent to prison, then shipped under guard to Europe, where he was forced to the front line against his will. Punished to the limits of his physical and mental endurance, Baxter was stripped of all dignity, beaten, starved, and left for dead. In a final attempt to discredit him, authorities consigned him to a mental institution, an experience that would haunt him for the rest of his life.Against the backdrop of troops being mindlessly slaughtered at the whim of upper-echelon officers, We Will Not Cease is a story of extreme bravery and ultimate resolve. Archibald Baxter's lonely fight against the war to end all wars is a nightmare that Kafka could have penned -- except that the story is true.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1939
2 people are currently reading
136 people want to read
About the author
Archibald Baxter
2 books2 followersArchibald McColl Learmond Baxter was a New Zealand socialist, pacifist and conscientious objector. He was the father of the famous New Zealand poet James K. Baxter.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
June 16, 2012
In We Will Not Cease, Archibald Baxter recounts his experiences as a conscientious objector during World War I. Baxter was a New Zealand farmer who had no “official standing” as a conscientious objector because he did not belong to any particular pacifist religious sect. Initially imprisoned by New Zealand authorities, Baxter and thirteen others were eventually sent to the front in France. Baxter steadfastly stuck to his belief that all war is wrong, refusing to follow military orders or to take any kind of non-combat role.
Bertrand Russell, probably Britain’s most famous pacifist of the day, got off easy with just imprisonment in comparison to Baxter’s experiences. While many of the enlisted soldiers were kind to Baxter, he faced treatment from New Zealand and British army officers that ranged from indifferent to barbaric. When he refused to wear an army uniform, his hands were cuffed behind his back for three weeks straight. He was denied treatment for a toothache unless he agreed to serve. At one point he was given nothing to eat for several days. He had no money to buy food, since he received no pay, and he had to depend on a kindly cook to keep from starving. He was deliberately placed in a location undergoing heavy shell fire from German artillery and ordered not to move. Throughout all of this he was repeatedly reminded that he could be executed at any time.
Baxter was also placed on the notorious Field Punishment No. 1, the “crucifixion” punishment used for recalcitrant soldiers during WWI. While guidelines indicate that this punishment was to be used for only two hours a day, Baxter spent upwards of three to five hours a day, every day, tied to a post for almost a month, even during a blizzard. He describes it:
"The ropes...cut into the flesh and completely stopped the circulation. When I was taken off my hands were always black with congested blood. My hands were taken round behind the pole, tied together and pulled well up it, straining and cramping the muscles and forcing them into an unnatural position...The slope of the post brought me into a hanging position, causing a large part of my weight to come on my arms, and I could get no proper grip with my feet on the ground, as it was worn away round the pole and my toes were consequently much lower than my heels. I was strained so tightly up against the post that I was unable to move body or limbs a fraction of an inch. Earlier in the war, men undergoing this form of punishment were tied with their arms outstretched. Hence the name of crucifixion. Later, they were more often tied to a single upright, probably to avoid the likeness to a cross. But the name stuck."
Field Punishment No. 1, a somewhat milder form than that used with Baxter (From Library and Archives Canada)
Baxter steadfastly maintained his beliefs under these conditions, patiently answering endless questions as to why he was holding out. Sometimes these questions were asked with genuine curiosity, sometimes they were accompanied by beatings, but he never wavered, stating:
"I object to Governments forcing the people of a country under conscription to murder the people of another country. I am making my protest against it in the best way I can. War is an evil thing, should be done away with, and I believe can be done away with. It seems right to me to stand out against it and I intend to stand out against it, no matter what I suffer, even if they kill me."
Whatever your feelings about Baxter’s political views, it’s hard not to be impressed with his unflinching commitment. Persecuting Baxter and his fellow conscientious objectors with such bizarre zeal served no useful purpose and only diminished those who mistreated them. It is ludicrous that so much effort would be expended over the beliefs of a few men in the midst of the global insanity that was World War I.
(A free online copy of this book can be found at the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre)
Bertrand Russell, probably Britain’s most famous pacifist of the day, got off easy with just imprisonment in comparison to Baxter’s experiences. While many of the enlisted soldiers were kind to Baxter, he faced treatment from New Zealand and British army officers that ranged from indifferent to barbaric. When he refused to wear an army uniform, his hands were cuffed behind his back for three weeks straight. He was denied treatment for a toothache unless he agreed to serve. At one point he was given nothing to eat for several days. He had no money to buy food, since he received no pay, and he had to depend on a kindly cook to keep from starving. He was deliberately placed in a location undergoing heavy shell fire from German artillery and ordered not to move. Throughout all of this he was repeatedly reminded that he could be executed at any time.
Baxter was also placed on the notorious Field Punishment No. 1, the “crucifixion” punishment used for recalcitrant soldiers during WWI. While guidelines indicate that this punishment was to be used for only two hours a day, Baxter spent upwards of three to five hours a day, every day, tied to a post for almost a month, even during a blizzard. He describes it:
"The ropes...cut into the flesh and completely stopped the circulation. When I was taken off my hands were always black with congested blood. My hands were taken round behind the pole, tied together and pulled well up it, straining and cramping the muscles and forcing them into an unnatural position...The slope of the post brought me into a hanging position, causing a large part of my weight to come on my arms, and I could get no proper grip with my feet on the ground, as it was worn away round the pole and my toes were consequently much lower than my heels. I was strained so tightly up against the post that I was unable to move body or limbs a fraction of an inch. Earlier in the war, men undergoing this form of punishment were tied with their arms outstretched. Hence the name of crucifixion. Later, they were more often tied to a single upright, probably to avoid the likeness to a cross. But the name stuck."
Field Punishment No. 1, a somewhat milder form than that used with Baxter (From Library and Archives Canada)
Baxter steadfastly maintained his beliefs under these conditions, patiently answering endless questions as to why he was holding out. Sometimes these questions were asked with genuine curiosity, sometimes they were accompanied by beatings, but he never wavered, stating:
"I object to Governments forcing the people of a country under conscription to murder the people of another country. I am making my protest against it in the best way I can. War is an evil thing, should be done away with, and I believe can be done away with. It seems right to me to stand out against it and I intend to stand out against it, no matter what I suffer, even if they kill me."
Whatever your feelings about Baxter’s political views, it’s hard not to be impressed with his unflinching commitment. Persecuting Baxter and his fellow conscientious objectors with such bizarre zeal served no useful purpose and only diminished those who mistreated them. It is ludicrous that so much effort would be expended over the beliefs of a few men in the midst of the global insanity that was World War I.
(A free online copy of this book can be found at the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre)
June 23, 2009
This is the sombre and disturbing memoir of Archibald Baxter, a conscientious objector from New Zealand during the first World War. It tells of his forced conscription into the New Zealand army and the barbaric and inhumane way he was treated when he stood steadfastly by his belief that killing was wrong and refused to carry out any military duties.
While people belonging to religious organisations whose beliefs forbade the bearing of arms were exempted from conscription, people who objected on purely moral and ethical grounds were not. Baxter and thirteen other conscientious objectors were subjected to barbaric treatments in an effort to break their will and force them to submit to serving in the armed forces. Of those fourteen, only two, Baxter and Mark Briggs, managed to hold out until the end, but they both did so at great personal cost.
Initial imprisonment in New Zealand was followed by their forced dispatchment to the other side of the world, where they were sent initially to England and then to the trenches in the front lines in France. As Baxter persisted in his resistance, refusing to wear a uniform, obey any orders or carry a weapon he was abused, starved, tortured and sadistically mistreated. The physical and mental abuses he endured almost killed him and left him a such a fragile mental state that he ended up in a mental hospital in England.
This is a very powerful book that tells a very shameful chapter in New Zealand's history. It also gives us an insight into the dreadful effects the war had on so many of the men who served in the trenches. Baxter was treated with virtually nothing but kindness from the men in the ranks suggesting that many soldiers shared his views but did not have his courage to stand up to the government and the army. Baxter's courage almost killed him and he suffered for his stand for many years after the war ended.
We should be very grateful to Archibald's wife Millicent who persuaded him to dictate these recollections to her. This is a very important slice of history from a voice that the authorities tried to silence.
While people belonging to religious organisations whose beliefs forbade the bearing of arms were exempted from conscription, people who objected on purely moral and ethical grounds were not. Baxter and thirteen other conscientious objectors were subjected to barbaric treatments in an effort to break their will and force them to submit to serving in the armed forces. Of those fourteen, only two, Baxter and Mark Briggs, managed to hold out until the end, but they both did so at great personal cost.
Initial imprisonment in New Zealand was followed by their forced dispatchment to the other side of the world, where they were sent initially to England and then to the trenches in the front lines in France. As Baxter persisted in his resistance, refusing to wear a uniform, obey any orders or carry a weapon he was abused, starved, tortured and sadistically mistreated. The physical and mental abuses he endured almost killed him and left him a such a fragile mental state that he ended up in a mental hospital in England.
This is a very powerful book that tells a very shameful chapter in New Zealand's history. It also gives us an insight into the dreadful effects the war had on so many of the men who served in the trenches. Baxter was treated with virtually nothing but kindness from the men in the ranks suggesting that many soldiers shared his views but did not have his courage to stand up to the government and the army. Baxter's courage almost killed him and he suffered for his stand for many years after the war ended.
We should be very grateful to Archibald's wife Millicent who persuaded him to dictate these recollections to her. This is a very important slice of history from a voice that the authorities tried to silence.
April 3, 2020
Archibald Baxter was a Christian Socialist who passionately opposed all wars. Along with thirteen other men he was arrested and deported to France from his home in New Zealand. Baxter refused to obey any military order and only reluctantly wore a uniform. He would not bear arms or do anything to contribute to the war effort. Baxter was beaten, starved, tortured, and threatened with execution but he did not yield. He was subject to the horrific Field Punishment No.1, forced into the frontline, and on one occasion was made to stand by an ammo dump the enemy were shelling. Weak and emaciated Baxter was eventually placed in a number of mental hospital's but was never classified as such. Baxter experienced the humanity of many serving soldiers and officers, expressed in small acts of kindness, and words of support. He bore no ill will towards those who beat and tortured him. Some of whom later apologised. On one occasion his soldiers jailers stood to a man and applauded Baxter when he was moved elsewhere. Thirty three thousand New Zealanders refused to enlist and fight in WWI. No others were forcibly sent to War.
August 31, 2010
Coming to this book from Pat Barker's 'Regeneration' series (which takes conscientious objectors in the First World War as one of its key themes) I was expecting horror stories.
And there certainly were. Archie Baxter was one of 14 New Zealand conscientious objectors during WWI who were first imprisoned in Wellington, then shipped to South Africa aboard a troop ship. After time in two military prisons there, Baxter and a small number of other objectors were sent to France and placed at the the Front with New Zealand troops. They were denied food, beaten, and subjected to Number One Field Punishment - tied to a forward-leaning pole by their hands, knees and elbows. On one occasion Baxter was sent out into the field in the midst of a shelling barrage; on another his fellow objector Mark Briggs was dragged naked over the ducking boards in the trenches - planks of wood with chicken wire nailed over them.
Baxter narrated his story to his wife Millicent in 1937. The story is plainly told, but with that kind of formality and careful word choice that people of that generation, even when not highly educated, possessed.
At times you lose the thread a little - some signposting of dates and locations would have been a useful editorial addition. But over all, it's the calmness and lack of bitterness that Baxter reveals - his mindful recounting of each act of kindness or word of solidarity alongside the abuse.
It's a very odd tale. The reasoning behind the New Zealand authorities decision to send the 14 men overseas rather than leaving them imprisoned in Wellington - a more obvious warning, and cheaper, one would think - is unclear. Baxter seems to have been treated with belligerence by most officers he cam in contact with, and sympathy by many of the soldiers. As he writes:
'I lived a strange life at that time. I would not serve in the army and yet I was at the front. In one way I was isolated and alone, and yet I lived the life the soldiers did. I lay in holes and trenches with them around Hellfire Corner, hour after hour until the shelling slackened or drove us out. I was only seeing a glimpse of the war, but it was enough to bring home to me its terrible reality. I remember before I reached the front meeting men who had been there and thinking they looked hard and strange. Their faces had a drawn look and they seemed to have eyes like eagles. Now that I was amongst them I did not notice this. They seemed ordinary, but new arrivals looked as gentle as sheep.'
That 'sheep' kills me. Another writer would have gone for the more obvious 'lamb', or skipped the cliche altogether, but Baxter the farmer reaches for 'sheep'.
So - huge knowledge gap admittance. I'd never heard of Baxter. I had no idea he was James K's father, or the socialist pacifist background he came from. So, while the book didn't explain to me why our conscientious objectors were treated in this way, it did give me an insight in to one man's rather twisted, yet remarkable story.
And there certainly were. Archie Baxter was one of 14 New Zealand conscientious objectors during WWI who were first imprisoned in Wellington, then shipped to South Africa aboard a troop ship. After time in two military prisons there, Baxter and a small number of other objectors were sent to France and placed at the the Front with New Zealand troops. They were denied food, beaten, and subjected to Number One Field Punishment - tied to a forward-leaning pole by their hands, knees and elbows. On one occasion Baxter was sent out into the field in the midst of a shelling barrage; on another his fellow objector Mark Briggs was dragged naked over the ducking boards in the trenches - planks of wood with chicken wire nailed over them.
Baxter narrated his story to his wife Millicent in 1937. The story is plainly told, but with that kind of formality and careful word choice that people of that generation, even when not highly educated, possessed.
At times you lose the thread a little - some signposting of dates and locations would have been a useful editorial addition. But over all, it's the calmness and lack of bitterness that Baxter reveals - his mindful recounting of each act of kindness or word of solidarity alongside the abuse.
It's a very odd tale. The reasoning behind the New Zealand authorities decision to send the 14 men overseas rather than leaving them imprisoned in Wellington - a more obvious warning, and cheaper, one would think - is unclear. Baxter seems to have been treated with belligerence by most officers he cam in contact with, and sympathy by many of the soldiers. As he writes:
'I lived a strange life at that time. I would not serve in the army and yet I was at the front. In one way I was isolated and alone, and yet I lived the life the soldiers did. I lay in holes and trenches with them around Hellfire Corner, hour after hour until the shelling slackened or drove us out. I was only seeing a glimpse of the war, but it was enough to bring home to me its terrible reality. I remember before I reached the front meeting men who had been there and thinking they looked hard and strange. Their faces had a drawn look and they seemed to have eyes like eagles. Now that I was amongst them I did not notice this. They seemed ordinary, but new arrivals looked as gentle as sheep.'
That 'sheep' kills me. Another writer would have gone for the more obvious 'lamb', or skipped the cliche altogether, but Baxter the farmer reaches for 'sheep'.
So - huge knowledge gap admittance. I'd never heard of Baxter. I had no idea he was James K's father, or the socialist pacifist background he came from. So, while the book didn't explain to me why our conscientious objectors were treated in this way, it did give me an insight in to one man's rather twisted, yet remarkable story.
March 30, 2008
Interesting read of a New Zealand man who was a conscientious objector during WW1
May 22, 2011
I stumbled on this book while looking for background material for a project I'm working on. It was a title I wasn't familiar with and, when I looked at a synopsis, the content didn't seem to be releveant to what I was working on at the time. Nevertheless, the subtitle on the image of the front cover "The New Zealand Classic" ignited my curiosity enough to buy it when I saw a copy in Borders this week.
The pulished form of the book came about through Baxter's dictation to his wife, of his experiences as a conscientious objector to military service in World War One, twenty years or so after the actual events took place. On one level you can read this book as a horror story, and on another level you can read it as an anti-war book. On an altogether different level, I read the book quite quickly and what was clear to me was that it would be appropriately classified as a self-help book as well.
Baxter's strength of conviction in the face of the pressures heaped upon him by those opposed to his views, his views of both the individuals and system that tried literally to batter him into submission, and his lack of rancour both then and after are strong messages that I take from this book. The language Baxter used to recount his experiences to his wife is relatively straightforward, meaning that not only is the book itself easy to read, it makes the strength of his conviction stand out clearly. This has been relevant to me as I struggle with a dilemma around changing my lifestyle before I read the book, and this is why I would put it on my "self-help" bookshelf, if I had such a thing.
Apart from the above, I would recommend this book for anyone to read because it provides an insight into attitudes and some aspects of new Zealand society at the start of the 20th Century.
The pulished form of the book came about through Baxter's dictation to his wife, of his experiences as a conscientious objector to military service in World War One, twenty years or so after the actual events took place. On one level you can read this book as a horror story, and on another level you can read it as an anti-war book. On an altogether different level, I read the book quite quickly and what was clear to me was that it would be appropriately classified as a self-help book as well.
Baxter's strength of conviction in the face of the pressures heaped upon him by those opposed to his views, his views of both the individuals and system that tried literally to batter him into submission, and his lack of rancour both then and after are strong messages that I take from this book. The language Baxter used to recount his experiences to his wife is relatively straightforward, meaning that not only is the book itself easy to read, it makes the strength of his conviction stand out clearly. This has been relevant to me as I struggle with a dilemma around changing my lifestyle before I read the book, and this is why I would put it on my "self-help" bookshelf, if I had such a thing.
Apart from the above, I would recommend this book for anyone to read because it provides an insight into attitudes and some aspects of new Zealand society at the start of the 20th Century.
May 16, 2021
Shocking firsthand account of the way New Zealand's conscientious objectors were treated during the First World War. The Baxter brothers, and all the other conscientious objectors, were extremely brave men who had to put up with an awful lot of abuse by officers. The ordinary rank and file treated them kindly, for the most part, which was heart-warming to read.
The New Zealand poet James K Baxter was Archibald's son. When I was in the third form at high school James K Baxter visited the school on numerous occasions. On one of these he personally invited me to Jerusalem (his commune of the Whanganui River) and gave me copy of his Jerusalem Daybook which he personally signed for me. At home later that day I proudly showed my father the book. He looked at the cover, screwed his face up (which wasn't all that great to look at anyway), said, "That conchie bastard!", and promptly threw the book on the fire.
Anyone interested in New Zealand war history should definitely read this book.
The New Zealand poet James K Baxter was Archibald's son. When I was in the third form at high school James K Baxter visited the school on numerous occasions. On one of these he personally invited me to Jerusalem (his commune of the Whanganui River) and gave me copy of his Jerusalem Daybook which he personally signed for me. At home later that day I proudly showed my father the book. He looked at the cover, screwed his face up (which wasn't all that great to look at anyway), said, "That conchie bastard!", and promptly threw the book on the fire.
Anyone interested in New Zealand war history should definitely read this book.
January 14, 2023
An amazing book about a truely remarkable man - perhaps made all the more poignant by the erecting of a art piece in recognition of Baxter in my town of Dunedin.
Written in a first person account, this book was eye opening, especially in gaining a deeper appreciation of someone who is a sort of half-known folk hero in the annals of New Zealand’s history
While the concept of contentious objectors is one I understood going into this book, the directness and the simpleness (not a criticism) of Baxter’s writing really hits home both his convictions and his treatment. This book does a fantastic job in outlining Baxter’s journey during the First World War and the consequences of his refusal to fight. It is a story still pertinent today - and it’s one that should be more well understood and known than just a shorthand for pacifism.
4/5
Written in a first person account, this book was eye opening, especially in gaining a deeper appreciation of someone who is a sort of half-known folk hero in the annals of New Zealand’s history
While the concept of contentious objectors is one I understood going into this book, the directness and the simpleness (not a criticism) of Baxter’s writing really hits home both his convictions and his treatment. This book does a fantastic job in outlining Baxter’s journey during the First World War and the consequences of his refusal to fight. It is a story still pertinent today - and it’s one that should be more well understood and known than just a shorthand for pacifism.
4/5
Read
August 2, 2021Baxter was treated extremely badly for his anti war beliefs, especially since he refused to acknowledge any religious grounds for being a conscientious objector. He was eventually sent overseas to the front lines of the war but always maintained his stance which greatly impressed some military but annoyed others to the extent he was severely maltreated. On return to NZ he was eventually released and went on to marry. One of his sons was a famous NZ poet, James K Baxter. Our views on war have changed so much it is hard to comprehend the hate there was for COs at that time.
December 8, 2024
A reminder of the moral clarity and determination that was needed to be a conscientious objector in the first world war. And a reminder of the horrific conduct of the New Zealand government to use physical and mental torture over extended periods with the explicit intention of "breaking" the man.
It reminded me of the trauma of transition experience by the 12 million human beings from West Africa who were shipped to the West Indies as slaves. Not quite as brutal, but what is it in the human make up that allows such barbarous behaviour by elties.
It reminded me of the trauma of transition experience by the 12 million human beings from West Africa who were shipped to the West Indies as slaves. Not quite as brutal, but what is it in the human make up that allows such barbarous behaviour by elties.
August 18, 2007
Pacifism ain't just for hippies. Sort-of an All Quiet on the Western Front except by a Kiwi. Archibald was an uneducated farmer who treated war like Bartleby treated work and paid for it dearly--- was beaten, pissed-on, starved, tied to a tree on the front lines as bombs exploded around him, then his story was buried by the Kiwi government for fear of retribution, etc... it's also told in a selfless and humble tone. it's a crime this book hasn't reached a major US publisher.
December 11, 2007
Amazing autobiography of a conscientious objector to World War I in New Zealand. His courage and his horrendous treatment at the hands of the New Zealand/British Army is astounding. They took him and other c.o.'s to the front lines, tied them up on crosses and left them there all day. At night they'd be taken down, imprisoned and the next day subjected to the same treatment. This went on for months!!! Written in a very descriptive way, without any self-aggrandizing.
Read
July 18, 2017An interesting book about Archibald Baxter one of the original 14 conscientious objectors in WW1 New Zealand forcibly sent overseas to serve on the Western Front. Baxter wrote about the treatment of Briggs and about Field punishment no. 1. The book was as close to a diary as you could get and good to have another view of New Zealand at war through the eyes of an Objector who didnt want to be in France.
January 5, 2022
The brutal parts where Baxter is tortured in France seem to be less onerous on the reader than his stints in prison earlier. He never comes across as afraid during it, except, I felt, at the end when he is back in NZ and recounts his regular recall by the military. “Seeing no way out I agreed to do what they required.” The realisation that the state might repeat the experience again and again feels really terrifying.
April 28, 2013
I can't believe I'd never heard of this story before (or that most of my friends haven't either). It's an incredible and moving account of a courageous man with enormous resolve who inspired countless people through his compassionate actions (and continues to inspire today).
February 11, 2019
I would like to think that the NZ Govt and NZ Defence force have learnt from this. Sad to think that there were and still are thousands of men who went to war or go to war all over the world and they are clearly not of the fighting nature. A very interesting read.
Want to read
August 20, 2007rec: michael. a kiwi "all quiet on the western front"? i'm so there.
January 19, 2012
Brutal story of a conscientious objector
March 24, 2016
A real life Catch 22, all NZers should read.
August 2, 2018
A disturbing read! Conscientious objectors from NZ in WW1 and their appalling treatment
April 29, 2019
Utterly gripping, eye opening.
July 21, 2020
An interesting first-hand account by a conscientious objector in WWI.
October 2, 2020
A must-read for Kiwis. The account of James K Baxter’s father, Archibald Baxter‘s, experiences as a conscientious objector during World War I. A brief but compelling book.
September 28, 2021
Very powerful book. Must read. Powerful in the simplicity of the telling.
January 5, 2022
Amazing strength of human endurance and conviction as Baxter stood firm against atrocious indignities suffered from NZ officials.
February 24, 2022
was just so so so good, this man went through hell and back I swear
September 9, 2025
For a child at Nagasaki, and the Maori Jesus 2 poems I would recite as had memorised these years ago, and written by world famous in New Zealand poet James K Baxter. But this is not about him instead his father Archibald Baxter and the story of his being a conscientious objector during World War 1.
A young successful farmer who turns out had an iron will and incredible resilience, which surpassed the war machine that set about to destroy him. Sent to places like ammo dumps where he would be shelled like a sitting duck, stoically resisted regular beatings, starvation, chained, isolated, told no one ever will hear about his mistreatment and no one will remember you Baxter.
How the New Zealand Government expunged his mistreatment records in the late 60s so not to add fuel to the NZ, Vietnam anti war protestors. Archibald because he didn't belong to any organisation or religious church, received extra attention and although some enlisted men took pity on his continued mistreatment would secretly be kind to Baxter, which were his light in the darkness as could be said, so gave him strength to keep going.
Such an amazing story every New Zealander should know, but what with the world wide determination to exterminate each that continues to dominate, until then ahh well I suppose we wait til we all kind a think like Archibald Baxter did a 100 something years ago.
Wait 2 poems from his boy.
For a child at Nagasaki
Having seen an ocean of fire and
Then an ocean of ashes, her mother's head
On the ground in the pumpkin
Field, Eioko lies
Under a stone in Akagi, not yet ten
She liked bean jam.
You guardians of the dead
Comfort this child, so young
In your mysteries
Then another poem..
I saw the Maori Jesus
Walking on Wellington Harbour.
He wore blue dungarees,
His beard and hair were long.
His breath smelled of mussels and paraoa.
When he smiled it looked like the dawn.
When he broke wind the little fishes trembled.
When he frowned the ground shook.
When he laughed everybody got drunk.
The Maori Jesus came on shore
And picked out his twelve disciples.
One cleaned toilets in the railway station;
His hands were scrubbed red to get the shit out of the pores.
One was a call-girl who turned it up for nothing.
One was a housewife who had forgotten the Pill
And stuck her TV set in the rubbish can.
One was a little office clerk
Who’d tried to set fire to the Government Buldings.
Yes, and there were several others;
One was a sad old quean;
One was an alcoholic priest
Going slowly mad in a respectable parish.
The Maori Jesus said, ‘Man,
From now on the sun will shine.’
He did no miracles;
He played the guitar sitting on the ground.
The first day he was arrested
For having no lawful means of support.
The second day he was beaten up by the cops
For telling a dee his house was not in order.
The third day he was charged with being a Maori
And given a month in Mt Crawford.
The fourth day he was sent to Porirua
For telling a screw the sun would stop rising.
The fifth day lasted seven years
While he worked in the Asylum laundry
Never out of the steam.
The sixth day he told the head doctor,
‘I am the Light in the Void;
I am who I am.’
The seventh day he was lobotomised;
The brain of God was cut in half.
On the eighth day the sun did not rise.
It did not rise the day after.
God was neither alive nor dead.
The darkness of the Void,
Mountainous, mile-deep, civilised darkness
Sat on the earth from then till now.
J K Baxter.
A young successful farmer who turns out had an iron will and incredible resilience, which surpassed the war machine that set about to destroy him. Sent to places like ammo dumps where he would be shelled like a sitting duck, stoically resisted regular beatings, starvation, chained, isolated, told no one ever will hear about his mistreatment and no one will remember you Baxter.
How the New Zealand Government expunged his mistreatment records in the late 60s so not to add fuel to the NZ, Vietnam anti war protestors. Archibald because he didn't belong to any organisation or religious church, received extra attention and although some enlisted men took pity on his continued mistreatment would secretly be kind to Baxter, which were his light in the darkness as could be said, so gave him strength to keep going.
Such an amazing story every New Zealander should know, but what with the world wide determination to exterminate each that continues to dominate, until then ahh well I suppose we wait til we all kind a think like Archibald Baxter did a 100 something years ago.
Wait 2 poems from his boy.
For a child at Nagasaki
Having seen an ocean of fire and
Then an ocean of ashes, her mother's head
On the ground in the pumpkin
Field, Eioko lies
Under a stone in Akagi, not yet ten
She liked bean jam.
You guardians of the dead
Comfort this child, so young
In your mysteries
Then another poem..
I saw the Maori Jesus
Walking on Wellington Harbour.
He wore blue dungarees,
His beard and hair were long.
His breath smelled of mussels and paraoa.
When he smiled it looked like the dawn.
When he broke wind the little fishes trembled.
When he frowned the ground shook.
When he laughed everybody got drunk.
The Maori Jesus came on shore
And picked out his twelve disciples.
One cleaned toilets in the railway station;
His hands were scrubbed red to get the shit out of the pores.
One was a call-girl who turned it up for nothing.
One was a housewife who had forgotten the Pill
And stuck her TV set in the rubbish can.
One was a little office clerk
Who’d tried to set fire to the Government Buldings.
Yes, and there were several others;
One was a sad old quean;
One was an alcoholic priest
Going slowly mad in a respectable parish.
The Maori Jesus said, ‘Man,
From now on the sun will shine.’
He did no miracles;
He played the guitar sitting on the ground.
The first day he was arrested
For having no lawful means of support.
The second day he was beaten up by the cops
For telling a dee his house was not in order.
The third day he was charged with being a Maori
And given a month in Mt Crawford.
The fourth day he was sent to Porirua
For telling a screw the sun would stop rising.
The fifth day lasted seven years
While he worked in the Asylum laundry
Never out of the steam.
The sixth day he told the head doctor,
‘I am the Light in the Void;
I am who I am.’
The seventh day he was lobotomised;
The brain of God was cut in half.
On the eighth day the sun did not rise.
It did not rise the day after.
God was neither alive nor dead.
The darkness of the Void,
Mountainous, mile-deep, civilised darkness
Sat on the earth from then till now.
J K Baxter.
November 22, 2014
Read about the human potential for cruelty within a bureaucratic power structure. It seems to me that some turn hateful and inhuman because they do not allow to let themselves listen to their innermost knowledge that they are themselves pawns of a hierarchical structure which forces them to give up basic human ethics. Where does the eagerness to please authorities through violating a victim come from? Are they looking for some sort of acknowledgement or respect from the higher ranks, for however cruel their actions are? Does evil feed itself, does it thrive on submission, on cowardice? How does the downward spiral start, and how can it be broken? Aggression, brutality, cruelty have not ceased to be part of human nature and culture. We need to understand more about their origins and of ways to break their spell.
It is heartbreaking to read this account, yet inspiring in the determination and moral integrity proven in those pages. Read it.
It is heartbreaking to read this account, yet inspiring in the determination and moral integrity proven in those pages. Read it.
December 27, 2015
An interesting read, with lots of absurd humour and indignation, all very well told. Baxter suffered a lot and you have to admire his conviction and hate the idiotic militarists who tried to force him into the army. However, his idea for stopping the war--that everyone should just be a conscientious objector like him--was clearly hopeless. He doesn't say anything about the Russian Revolution, which was what actually ended the war.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews