Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Samuel Anthony Mase was born on the 9th of July of 1877 in Adelaide, South Australia. He was born to Samuel John Mase, father (1846-1925), and Jane Sutherland Mase (originally Jane Sutherland Lindsay) (1848-1895). Samuel was born into a family of 13 children making early life busy. Samuels Christing occurred at the age of one, where he became part of the church of England. The family lived in Adelaide, where Samuel would eventually meet his wife to be Matilda Eliza Mase (originally Marks.) Samuel and Matilda married in 1904 when the couple was 27 and 30 respectively, in Adelaide, South Australia. The newlyweds bought a house together on 21 Laura Street, Stepney, South Australia. Soon after marrying Matilda, Samuel and Matilda gave birth to their first daughter Vera Jane Mase at the age of 28. Samuel and Matilda Went on to have three children, two daughters and a son. Considering the time Samuel lived in, he had his kids quite late in life, being 30 when he had his second daughter Mona Ella Thornton (born Mase) (1907-1977) and 33 at the birth of his first son Archibald Carl Mase (1910-1977.) Samuel worked as a prison guard and a hairdresser in his life before the war. 

On the 23rd of December 1915, Mase enlisted himself into the Australian army. His training for war began at Morphettville racecourse. Morphettville's racecourse was strictly organised, and Mase had to adapt to a very new way to him. A typical day of training began at 6 am when the bugler sergeant Gordan Taylor sounded the horn to wake the men. The men would then have to 7:30 to get prepared for the day ahead; this included Wash, Shave, Fold blankets, Clean tent, get rid of rubbish, eat breakfast, and conduct a quick emu bob (Cleanout any wood, leaves, roots, coals from the night before.) the soldiers worked in pairs to complete these cleaning activities for extra efficiency. When the soldiers were highly efficient at cleaning up, they would have time to eat breakfast or even make it to the front of the breakfast line—getting to the front of the line allowed time for the soldiers to eat first. With this extra time, soldiers often chose to sit in the racecourse stands to escape the noise and stress. The food at Morphettville was cooked by Sergeant John Parker, who took great pride in making the best food possible for the soldiers.

At precisely 7:30 am, the on parade was called. The parade was where the soldiers lined up in three ranks and awaited their name. A busy day started after the parade. The soldiers' training consisted of instruction in barracks and duties, cleanliness and care of the feet, infantry tactics, skirmishing, marching, musketry training including care of arms and ammunition, theory of rifle fire, physical fitness. Therefore the officers at Morphettville constructed many long marches, cross country runs in complete kit, rope climbing and many more excruciating drills. Training also included night and day visual training, judging distance, movement at night, noise at night, guards and outposts, fieldcraft, construction of field defences and obstacles, and use of the entrenching implement and tools. After long days of training, the men often choose to gather in the large YMCA marque to listen to men playing music on their instruments and use the excellent lighting, tables, and chairs. The men also gathered in their tents and wrote letters back to family and friends or even sang and talked between tents. The training was made more difficult due to lack of supplies at times.

When the soldiers' training ended, the men walked to Morphettville railway station to train to the outer harbour to leave Australia. As the train steamed away from the station, the engine driver blew the train whistle long and frequently. The men waved and whistled from the windows of every carriage. The citizens along the route turned out in their thousands to cheer and proudly wave flags, handkerchiefs, scarves, and streamers. Some just stood, quietly weeping and waving as the crowded train filled with waving soldiers clattered and rattled as it passed. Soon all that remained was the weeping crowd, transfixed and staring at the shimmering steel lines along which their men, the men of South Australia's battalion, had raced to their appointment with destiny.

Mase's unit, the 43rd Battalion, embarked from Adelaide, South Australia, onboard an HMAT A19 Afric. The ship left on the 9th of June 1916. When the ship arrived in Wareham, England, the men had to then march sixty miles to Perham Down to start their training. Mase's life at war was unusually uninteresting. He would go on to spend his whole year in England medically unfit for battle. Mase moved around occasionally to different hospitals but would never go on to fight in a battle. He was part of the 43rd battalion and had the service number 1030. On the 10th of March 1918, Mase returned to Australia. Nearly a year and a half after when he arrived in England.

Mase went on to the rest of his life with his wife Matilda, who sadly passed away in 1948 at 74. Mase lived on for another five years before passing away on the 27th of June 1953 at 76.