In November 1914, an advertisement was placed in the national press inviting monetary contributions to a 'Sailors & Soldiers Christmas Fund' which had been created by Princess Mary, the seventeen year old daughter of King George V and Queen Mary. The purpose was to provide everyone wearing the King's uniform and serving overseas on Christmas Day 1914 with a 'gift from the nation'. The response was truly overwhelming, and it was decided to spend the money on an embossed brass box, based on a design by Messrs Adshead and Ramsey. The contents varied considerably; officers and men on active service afloat or at the front received a box containing a combination of pipe, lighter, 1 oz of tobacco and twenty cigarettes in distinctive yellow monogrammed wrappers. Non-smokers and boys received a bullet pencil and a packet of sweets instead. Indian troops often got sweets and spices, and nurses were treated to chocolate. Many of these items were despatched separately from the tins themselves, as once the standard issue of tobacco and cigarettes was placed in the tin there was little room for much else apart from the greeting card All boxes, irrespective of recipient, contained a Christmas card and a picture of the Princess. Those which were not distributed until after Christmas were sent out with a card wishing the recipient a 'victorious new year'. The wounded on leave or in hospital, nurses, and the widows or parents of those killed were also entitled to the gift. Prisoners of war at the time had theirs reserved until they were repatriated. Great efforts were made to distribute the gifts in time for Christmas, and huge demands were made on an already stretched postal service. More than 355,000 were successfully delivered by the deadline. As time pressed on, a shortage of brass meant that many entitled personnel did not receive their gift until as late as the summer of 1916, and in January 1919 it was reported that 'considerable' numbers had still not been distributed. Orders for brass strip were placed with the USA, who were not yet involved in the war, and a large consignment was lost with the ship 'Lusitania'. As so much brass was being consumed in the production of weapons and munitions, the quality of the boxes which were manufactured late on was poor, being of a plated inferior alloy, when compared with the earlier pure brass examples. When the fund finally closed in 1920, almost £200,000 had been donated for the provision of more than two and a half million boxes with contents. The 'tin' is approximately 5" long by 3¼" wide by 1¼" deep with a double-skinned, hinged, lid. The surface of the lid depicts the head of Princess Mary in the centre, surrounded by a laurel wreath and flanked on either side by the 'M' monogram. At the top, a decorative cartouche contains the words 'Imperium Britannicum' with a sword and scabbard either side. On the lower edge, another cartouche contains the words 'Christmas 1914', which is flanked by the bows of battleships forging through a heavy sea. In the corners, small roundels house the names of the Allies: Belgium, Japan, Montenegro and Servia; France and Russia are at the edges, each superimposed on three furled flags or standards.

Love So Amazing, a 184 page book with sixteen chapters and index. A History of the Parish of St. Agnes Glen Huntly 1888-1993 by Neville Drummond. The chapters document parishioners, events, festivals, church fellowship groups and numerous sports clubs and choirs. It is also a time capsule of interesting facts of Melbourne and particularly of Caulfield. There are various photos including ones of many of the Reverends. There is also a list of gifts and memorials. The book was published in 1993 and donated by Margaret Dunbar on 25/08/2004.glenhuntly, glen huntly, st. agnes church, drummond neville, memorials, organs, booran road, wright nigel, clarke alice, clarke wilfe, agg george, agg val, barren john, barren christine, halstead brian, halstead donna, sturgess nancy, brock jean, hunter ian, cuttriss frank, porter brian, mcdonald norman, fryer neil, thomas malcolm, moore david, hatters alvin, laity alan, blair linda, dowling lawrie, tidy dorothy, worthington mary, cheshire jean, thiele bevan, marks marjorie, parnell joy, parnell bob, rose glynis, jolly betty, hocking hazel, thiele mollie, glazner jean, pereira noble, worthington bill, tidy bruce, goodison gwendoline, elliot june, scoot jo, boxshall ormee, chalres ernie, maghony lois, scheibner esmee, rayner keith rev., macgowan malcolm, macgowan jean, heatherbrae, house names, st. mary’s church, caulfield, st. catherines church, camden town, south caulfield, booran road church of england, bent street, sunday schools, monro roy, leech irene, monro victor, parochial council, slate tiles, timber houses, clarke alfred e., tennis clubs, cricket clubs, football clubs, children, keble clubs, basketball clubs, boy scouts, erlandsen stephen, erlandsen chris, patience tim, stevenson garry, lafitte gabriel, thomas malcolm, thomas richard, hall roderick, baker-smith john, hardwick ken, oram garry, whyte doug, davis richard, dowling laurie, mcphee peter, boys choir, youth clubs, mothers clubs, friendly societies, church furniture, brick, vicarages, newsletters, choirs, gardens

The matchbox ashtray was purchased sometime during a cruise by unknown person. It is part of a cruise liner collection by D Benson and Family over a period of years. D Benson sold part of the collection to the V.M.C who purchased the remaining part. It is a great source of information to visitors to the V.M.C. At the time of ocean liner holiday cruising, many people smoked cigarettes and purchased these souvenirs to keep or give away as gifts. In 1932 this ship the T.S.S Strathaird evacuated 6,000 troops & civilians from???Rare - Round brass ashtray with scroll work top and bottom. Butterfly wing with ship picture in centre. Back is embossed. 3 small ball feet.T.S.S Strathairdsouvenir, cruise liners, merchant souvenir, t.s.s strathaird

Around the Institute was a weekly program designed to keep clients and staff informed of events, activities and thoughts relating to low vision and blindness. It consisted of interviews undertaken by Jo Matthews-Lamb, Susan Thompson, Janet Cronin and Corey Nassau, with sound engineer Ed Gamble, designed to inform, educate and explore on a variety of topics. February 19: Is RVIB changing what it means to be blind? -Christine Harding, Life Gift, donating organs - Dr Neil Boyce and Graeme Pollock. royal victorian institute for the blind, radio shows

Around the Institute was a weekly program designed to keep clients and staff informed of events, activities and thoughts relating to low vision and blindness. It consisted of interviews undertaken by Jo Matthews-Lamb, Susan Thompson, Janet Cronin and Corey Nassau, with sound engineer Ed Gamble, designed to inform, educate and explore on a variety of topics. August 6: Speech pathology at Burwood School - Ruth Younger and Sue Young, NILS - Jennie D’Ambra, VisEquip Father’s Day gifts - Lisa Morales. royal victorian institute for the blind, radio shows