On This Day, 10 October 1918

Birmingham Daily Gazette 

Thursday 10 October 1918

BIG GUN WEEK.

Ten Millions Wanted in Birmingham.

£736,000 PROMISED

Nearly three-quarters of a million—to be exact £736,000—has already been promised as War Loan subscriptions for Birmingham’s forthcoming Big Gun Week, 21 to 26 October, when it is hoped to raise at least £10,000,000.

These amounts were announced last night when the Lord Mayor (Sir David Brooks) presided at a meeting held at the Council House to inaugurate the campaign.

The end of the war was fast approaching, the Lord Mayor thought, but there still rested upon all classes of the community the paramount duty of doing all they could to help on the great struggle to a just termination. If ever there was time when they could appeal to the people to tender assistance, surely it was now when we were heartened by the successes which had been achieved.

Appeal to Workers.

The Government supported a policy of continuous borrowing, rather than the issue of periodical loans, and hitherto this policy had produced the money required. Birmingham’s past two efforts—Tank Week and Dreadnought Week —had yielded £9,500,000. He suggested that it would be a glorious triumph if in the coming effort they could do more than they did on the previous occasions. He appealed to the working classes of Birmingham, to small traders, and private individuals to invest according to their means.

A great deal could be done by a little personal sacrifice, and most people could spare a little. There were a great many workers in the city who had been earning very high wages, and Big Gun Week afforded them an opportunity of helping their country and of preparing for the future.

Extract