Major Arthur Alison Stuart Barnes was born 9 July 1867 in Kashmir, India, second son of Edward R. B. Barnes , and his wife, Georgiana. (See family photograph) He first married Marguerite Antoinette Weatherston on 4 March 1905 at St. Andrews Church, Chee Foo, China. She died during the birth of their son, Robert Weatherston Barnes, in 1906. Major Barnes remarried and his second wife was Jeannie Prentice.
He was a cadet at the Royal Military College in 1885-6 and became a Lieutenant in the 2nd Battalion of the Duke of Edinburgh's Wiltshire Regiment, on 25 August 1886. He subsequently served in India and Burmah until 1895. On his arrival in India, he wrote a number of letters to his mother, who was visiting in the United States. In one letter he recommends to his mother that she try a certain sauce: "I want to call your attention to a certain sauce. It is called 'Tabasco Pepper Sauce' & seemingly emanated from a man E. McIlhenny, New Iberia, Louisiana. It is really liquid Cayenne Pepper, & a drop or two of it in soup, stew, or mixed around with mashed potatoes gives one a great appetite. The bottles are small & have a sort of stopper with a thing screwing off & on. You throw out the drops like a barber putting his villainous hair wash on your head. Two bottles should last a year. Here it costs 1/12 R (rupees) or what you would call 3s/6d & no doubt 50 cts. would cover it over there. It seems dear, but should last as long as 1/2 of the ordinary sauce at 6d (pence). Try it. I can recommend it." He received his captaincy on 15 January 1895, and was appointed Adjutant of the Battalion.
Three years later he was selected to go to Wei-Hai-Wei, China, to assist in the formation of the Chinese Regiment at that place, which had just been handed over by the Japanese to Great Britain. He took part in the Relief of Tientsin in the China War of 1900 and commanded the detachment of the 1 st Chinese Regiment on the march to, and subsequent relief of, Peking in August 1900. Later, he was present at the actions of Peitsang and Yangtsun. He was also the Post-Commandant of Ho-hsi-wu in the Lines of Communication. He was mentioned in dispatches (London Gazette, 14 May 1901), "the services of Captain A.A.S. Barnes call for recognition". He received the China medal with the clasp, "Relief of Peking". On 6 January 1906 he attained the rank of Major and became Commandant of the Shanghai Volunteer Corps for the next seven years. Major Barnes authored a book detailing his service in China entitled, "On Active Service with the Chinese Regiment". The second edition of this work was published in 1902.
He was in the Great War and took part in the historic retreat from Mons. He received the 1914 Star and clasp, War Medal, and Victory Medal for his services from 13 August 1914 to 6 October 1914. Major Barnes died on the 3rd of May 1937 at Worthing, Sussex, England.
The photograph shows Major Barnes as a Lieutenant in the Wiltshire Regiment about 1886. The uniform is mess dress. Note that the white collar facings of his mess dress tunic clearly show the collar badges of the Wiltshire Regiment.