Morris John

(Bearbeiten)

Biografie:
Quelle: Himalaya Journal 1980/81, Seite 206

John Morris (1896-1981)
John Morris who died in his 86th year, was an unusual person. Successively soldier, anthropologist and university teacher of English, I got to know him when we met on the expedition to Mount Everest in 1936 on which he was transport officer and interpreter. Of a generation a decade senior to mine, he had been to Everest before with Bruce in 1922; and before that had been involved in the 1914-18 Great War at a time when I was at prep-school in Eastbourne. That was a grim experienceindeed, and one from which no sensitive participant could have escaped psychologically unscathed as John Morris makes clear for us in his autobiographical book Hired to Kill.
To get back to 1936 however, John and I struck up a friendship through our mutual interest in literary matters. This stood us in good stead during many a dull moment sitting about in camp that year waiting for things to happen on the mountain, which they never did because of the monsoon. But the real fascination of those early expeditions to Everest was always the journey through Tibet, a country which at that period still remained an example of a social order surviving from mediaeval times; and possibly none the worse for that. My guess is that the Tibetans were happier then than they are today. What better companion could I have had in John Morris, with his love of Eastern ethnology and languages, for such a journey?
John and I shared a lean little pony which we rode, from time to time, across Tibet when it was not too cold for us to do so. We nearly always preferred to walk in order to keep warm. We christened him Rosinante after that nag of immortal memory who carried the Knight of the Doleful Countenance. As a creature of transport he was a poor little beast. But we had a soft spot for him and treated him gently.
But what an interesting personality John Morris had. He was one of those intellectuals who are cast up by the Army from time to time of whom perhaps Sir Richard Burton was the classical example. He was naturally an introspective and reticent person, but during our journey he let his hair down a little and told me something of his story. He would have liked to have been a musician, having had some talent as a pianist. But after leaving school he was put into banking which he hated. From this uncongenial occupation he was unexpectedly released by the advent of the war, to become a soldier. When the war ended in 1918, he would have liked to have gone into the medical profession but eventually decided to become a regular soldier in the Indian Army. Here he served with the Gurkha Rifles first in Palestine and then on the NW Frontier. And while still in the army he travelled in Nepal, Sikkim and Tibet. At the instigation of Sir Aurel Stein he took a pioneer surveying expedition into Chinese Turkestan. Soon after that he was found to have TB and was invalided out of the Army. He then went up to Cambridge where, at King's College, he studied social anthropology.
After the 1936 expedition to Everest I lost touch with Morris simply because we both became deeply involved with our professional lives and our paths only crossed once more when we met at an Everest first ascent celebration. But my memories of him from that short acquaintance of 1936. in fairly intimate circumstance, left a deep impression the details of which I remember to this day. Once know about how, after that, he went to Japan to teach English at Tokyo University where, even during the last war, he was held in such esteem that he was simpl kept under house-arrest until repatriated. And one knows that he eventually became Director of the BB's Third Programm.
But coming back to John Morris as a real per on and not just a BBC personality, I would like to comment on his book “Hired to Kill”, because I do not think that what he has written there reveals him in his truth light. John was really a much nicer person than he would have you believe from what he says in that book. In saying this, I am not impling that “Hired to Kill” is a bad book: it is not. It is interesting, but from the way it is written, I think it gives a false impression of the authors character.
Morris was in fact, a charming, very gentle and distinguished member of our club. He was also a founder member of the Himalayan Club and, for a time was asistant Editor of the Himalayan Journal.
The obituar column of our Journal not infrequently turns out to be almost the most interesting record of mountaineering events over the years. This, if well done, is History; and it is well worth while. Thereby the Club's personalities are brought back to life for the delectation of posterity.
John Morris was certainly one such personality who should be remembered in this way.
Charles Warren
Quelle: Alpine Journal Volume 87, 1982, Seite 268-269


Geboren am:
1896
Gestorben am:
1981