John was originally from Machynlleth in Montgomeryshire but had connections to Dolgellau Merionethshire, some thirty miles away. 
In 1906 he enlisted in the South Wales Borderers. At the outbreak of the Great War he was in China where he fought alongside the Japanese during the siege at Sing-tau. 
In April 1915 he was with 2nd SWB at the initial landings at Cape Helles in the Dardanelles. He was wounded during those landing but extent of those injuries is not known. 
By late 1916 he was in France, again with 2nd SWB. In November, he was very badly wounded during a bombing raid on the German Front Line. His wounds must have been sufficiently serious because within months he was repatriated to the UK in an exchange for German prisoners.  
Following his return to Dolgellau he wrote a number of articles in Y Dydd, the town's local newspaper. In those articles he described the bombing raid and his experiences while lying wounded in no man's land. He said that during the bombing raid a shell explosion blew away his leg. Most of his fellow soldiers had been killed and he had to lie there with them, close the the German lines for four days. A German patrol eventually found him and took him back to their lines. In his articles John said that he was initially very badly mistreated and abused by his captors. They denied him morphine and regularly mistreated his injuries. He said that this mistreatment continued whilst he was in hospital and gave examples of how they occurred. John sounded very bitter.  Following his repatriation and recuperation in the UK he was discharged from the army in August 1917.
Very little more is known about John. However, it seems that his injuries must have effected his health because, on 31 January 1920, he died in Tregaron, Cardiganshire. He was 34 years old. 
John is buried in St Peter's Churchyard in Machynlleth. He is commemorated on the War Memorials in both Dolgellau and in Machynlleth. 
We will remember him. 

Emrys Tippett