I know very little about my Grand Uncle Agustus who was the elder brother to my Grandpa. Agustus was married to Daisy VanderWalle (sp!) and they had four children. Two daughters, Mavis and Joan. And two sons, Frederick and Llyod. Mavis died at an early age from a ruptured appendix.
Aunt Daisy was a most wonderful person. Soft spoken and a marvellous cook. She would often be humming Church hymns and even whistled on occasion. Aunt Daisy loved to tell short stories and was a truly kind hearted woman. She told me that the family lost their father during the Japanese Occupation of Malaya.
On that fateful day, Japanese soldiers appeared at their home in Taiping which is situated in the northern state of Perak in Malaysia. They left the house with Agustus Van Dort and he never returned home ever. What was his fate is based on a few eye witnesses at that particular period. It is said that along with several other male prisoners, the Japanese soldiers escorted them into the hill jungles and killed them in cold blood.
It is most unfortunate that I never had the opportunity to meet Grand Uncle Augustus. Aunt Daisy used to relate that he was a very strict person with a thunderous voice. I have seen photographs of him. He had a good body build and even the manner in which he sat to pose for the photograph matched the description given by his wife.
O & OE
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