Alexander Colin or Collin Martin was 33 and 11 months when he enlisted on 19 February, 1916. Both his parents were dead and he gave as his next of kin his aunt, Helena Coleman. According to the Electoral Rolls, he had been living with her for nearly two years. He was 5'5" tall, single, and working as a cook. By faith, he was Church of England.
Little is known of him, other than that he was placed with the 29th Battalion, C Company. His embarkation record shows him as leaving from Melbourne for Britain on 27 May, 1916, on H.M.A.T. A11 Ascanius. On 23 November, 1916, he left Britain from Southampton for France and, presumably, to march out to the Western Front. His record is flimsy and short. Nothing more happened until 16 February, 1918, when he was granted leave in France. He returned on 20 February. On 14 September, 1918, he was given leave in England, rejoining his unit on 28 September. The next entry, for 15 March, 1919, simply says 'With Unit'. ON 3 May, 1919, his record is marked 'Private out for R.T.A., France', presumably Return to Australia. ON 8 May, he left Havre for england and the next day was placed with No 3 Group at Codford. He returned to Australia and was discharged from further service on 3 October, 1919. The answer is probably that he was in the A.I.F. as a cook, serving behind the lines for the duration of his service, from early 1916 to the end of the war on 11/11/198 and a futher 6 months service before he was sent home.
His life after the war is equally sparsely written, partly due to the number of Alexander Martins on the Electoral Rolls. In 1921, he was in Corio, Geelong, working as a barman. In 1954, he was an Attendant, living at 2 Ebden St. , Elsternwick and in 1949, was living a 202 Stanley St, Melbourne, no occupation.
Embarkation Roll Alexander Colin Martin
National Archives of Australia War Record Alexander Colin Martin
Ancestry Births Deaths and Marriages, Electoral Rolls