Morris Johnston was the son of William Alexander and Flora Johnston, of Otahuhu, Auckland.

M. E. Johnston died when his ship, HMS Isis, sank off the coast of Normandy.

HMS Isis was part of the naval operations around Crete in April and May 1941 aimed at preventing a seaborne landing on Crete by the Germans. Isis was specifically engaged in the reinforcement and supply of Allied troops. The role the ship played in the events off Crete was recognised when battle honours were awarded after the war and she was listed as third of all warships and first of all the many small ships in the Admiralty Fleet Order concerned (see J.H. Spencer's Battle for Crete, p.212). The Destroyer Isis was sunk by a mine (or possibly a Neger) off the beaches of Normandy on 20 July 1944. Ten New Zealanders were lost when she sank. They are commemorated in the cathedral in Portsmouth, England and also in Arromanches, France where a wreath is layed each year. AWMM