225608 Pte. Abraham Maracle attested in Brantford, Ontario, on October 27th, 1915, having previously spent a year in the 37th Battalion prior to the war.

Abraham was with the 114th Battalion (Haldimand Battalion Brocks Rangers) when he was drafted into the 4th CMR on December 26th, 1916. He subsequently survived the war and was Struck Off Strength from the Regiment on August 26th, 1919.

With rare time on their hands, soldiers frequently left signs of their presence in the form of inscriptions carved into cave walls, barns walls, farmhouse walls, trees and fences. Some are intricate affairs, with full regimental crests or caricatures, others are simple "I was here" inscriptions.

This inscription was found by Dominique Faivre, who has made a speciality of finding such inscriptions, and 4cmr.com is pleased to be able to share this inscription, which Dominique found in Villers Au Bois, north of Arras, in France.

The inscription is not at all clear in this image. However, the carving reads his number, 225608, his name, and below that is inscribed "Toronto, Ont, Canada". The 85 visible is not part of his inscription.

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Many thanks are extended to Dominique for supply of the image (one of two, please see Pte. John Wilson or via the In Memoriam page), who has given 4cmr.com permission to share them here. It is testimony to Dominique's skill that we have images at all, as the task of photographing these inscriptions is a challenging one. As tangible links to the men, these are indeed very special time capsules.