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A friendship preserved: unopened WWII beer honours soldiers' pact

A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said. A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said. A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said. A humble bottle of beer now stands in the nation's war memorial, more than 80 years after it was bought as a promise of enduring friendship. Aussie WWII soldiers, Stan Lewis and Fred Hume, were shipping off with the 2/30th Infantry Battalion in early 1941 when they bought a longneck beer, pledging to share it after returning from the war. The bottle of Tooth's Draught Ale, one of Australia's oldest unopened beers, was bought from the Wingham Hotel on NSW's Mid North Coast by the young soldiers. They entrusted Stan's mother, Rubie Lewis, to look after the bottle while they were deployed, Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said. "But sadly, [Stan] didn't make it back," the memorial director said. The duo was captured with around 130,000 Allied troops, including 15,000 Australians, after the surrender of Singapore to the Japanese. Both soldiers were imprisoned at Changi and Mr Lewis was sent to work on the Thai-Burma railway that claimed the lives of around 13,000 prisoners of war and more than 100,000 civilians. READ MORE: Historical weapons donated to RSL after raid on underworld figure's house Mr Lewis did not survive his imprisonment and died from disease in horrendous conditions at the age of 23 on August 25, 1943. He was buried at Kanchanaburi War Cemetery in Thailand. Two years later, in August 1945, Mr Hume was released as a prisoner of war and returned to Australia. He lived for another forty years, until 1986, when he died aged of 65. The Tooth's Draught Ale stayed in the Lewis family for decades as a tribute to the pair's friendship. It was passed down from Stan's mother to his sister and then his niece before it found a place in the Australian War Memorial. "We are grateful it has now been donated to the Australian War Memorial so we can share their story forged in mateship, with future generations," Assistant Curator Andrew Muir said.