TOPIC:

David

Only counting those that are annoted as issued on roll, and this corresponds to known examples, I get

Travelling Clerical Staff - 26 on roll, 9 issued (35%)
Inspector - 76 on roll, 22 issued (29%)

Incidentally Inspector W. Keatley sold on the Spink Boer War Centenary Sale in 1999 for £149

Jon

Such low percentages. Do you think these men were not interested in collecting their medals and/or that they had moved by the time the medals came to be issued?

Thank you for the information on Keatley. I didn't know that, possibly because the ITS has not really been on my radar in the same was as the Natal Transport has.

David

I think that due to the fact that medals were issued in 1905/6, and that most members were moving around the country, and forwarding addresses were probably outdated, also the issuing authorities relied on adverts placed in newspapers, advising that medals had arrived for such and such unit and that members were invited to claim their medals. I think most members were unaware and thus explains the low issue to the ITS, itself being a large unit
Jon

David and Jon,
I got lucky with the winning bid on Inspector Keightley (this is the spelling that Spink have catalogued, maybe same man?) of the IT'S at Spink today.
When I read the previous history of the unit from a couple of years ago I just had to have a go at it! A really interesting unit.
£130 hammer price seems like I had a bargain. I think it maybe slipped under the radar for it's scarcity.
All done while wallpapering. Who says blokes can't multi task!!
Cheers,
Steve

Steve,

A really nice purchase - all the more so as you were multi-tasking at the time too. Your wall-papering did not suffer as a result?

David
Not at all.
The money I saved doing it myself paid for my couple of winning bids... Plus happy wife, happy life!!
Steve