Harrogate Herald - 11th July 1917

To Our Boys on Service

Dear Chaps,

I can tell you, now, that when military activities came to a standstill in Russia some people at home looked down their noses, and for the moment lost heart. The majority, however, preserved, as the Yankees say, "a stiff upper lip", and refused to be cast down. You can imagine when the news of the Russian successes came last week the barometer of optimism rose high. I never had any doubt about Russia's final attitude. Self-preservation is the first law of nature. Their new-born freedom would be as nothing if they came under the yoke of the Germans. So they were bound to fight. I have more than once pointed out that any feeling of depression at home is reflected out where you are. On Thursday I had direct evidence of this.

Sergeant Dobby, of one of the West Yorks regiments, who had arrived on ten days' leave, came in to see me. In conversation he assured me that any feeling of unrest or despondency at home affected the spirits of the boys at the Front. By the way, it is twenty months since Dobby had his last leave. He has been in Egypt, but was transferred to France. He has seen a number of Harrogate boys, for instance, Lancaster, Sibson, Sharpe, Ashby, Robson, all Starbeck lads, where Dobby comes from. At Thiepval Dobby was buried for thirty minutes as a result of an upheaval from a shell. When he called he was wearing the ribbon of the Italian Medal, which he won on the Somme. His home address is 25 Diamond Place.

Corporal S A Suffield, 50th Battalion, RFA, is a son of Mr J Suffield, 18 Ashfield Terrace, Harrogate, van driver for the NER. The son has been nine years in the regular Army nearly three years, next month, in France. His last lave was in November, 1915. you will remember Padgett. He was Suffield's best chum, and was killed the other week. My visitor had seen our old friend Patsy Donovan; Sergeant Elsworth, RE, son of Mr Elsworth, blacksmith, Tower Street; Frank Leggatt, of Oatlands and the Somerset Light Infantry; and Fred Ward. The latter he had not seen since the Somme last year. Ward is a son of our clever Corporation head gardener. Mr H Ward, who, you will remember with regret, had a son killed at the front. Suffield also saw, about six weeks ago, Gibson, of the West Yorks, who lived at High Harrogate. His brother Corporal H Suffield, of the West Yorks, has been wounded for the third time. The last occasion through the ankle. He is in hospital in London. When he received his third wound he had only been back from leave, after his second wound, a short time, when caught again.

I was glad to see Private W Beer, of 4th RHC, which you will understand means a Canadian lot. He has been wounded twice, and is now fresh from Eastbourne, and will soon be on his way to some reserve camp. He was first wounded in the head and knee on the 16th of September, 1915; the second time on the 10th of last May, when he was sent to a Canadian convalescent hospital at Hastings from a hospital on the other side.

I mentioned Private G A Reed last week. He is of 28 Albert Road. Perhaps you will identify him better if I explain that he used to work for Lieutenant Dobson, and was scoutmaster of the YMCA. He saw Lieutenant Dobson only Sunday before last, when he was quite well. The day Reed came on leave he met the Mayor's late chauffeur. Billy Bell he had seen about two months ago. When Reed called his wife waited outside. She wouldn't come in, because she had been so often to me to change her husband's address. I sent the husband out for the wife, and she came in. I am glad, for she is a brave little woman, and we had an interesting chat. Then it was good to see the husband and wife together. Nothing spoken, but an obvious wave of happiness radiating from one to the other. Such mutual affection (the kind that needs no words) makes the world seem very beautiful.

My Harrogate Canadian friend, Corporal G B Jackson, of whom I wrote last week, is the head of an excellent little orchestra out at the Front. He tells me they have their own pierrots and other entertainers besides. Mrs W C Jackson, of 16 Unity Grove, is his mother. To identify the family, I may tell you that they are the Jacksons who had the boot shop at one time near the Market Clock.

Private W Borrill I had not much space to write about last week. His home address is 9 Skipton Road, Harrogate. He has been twelve years in the Army, mostly in the Indian Army Reserve. He went to France the first week in September, 1914, but is now transferred to the RFC, with Pioneer-Sergeant F Cumberland. Cumberland's father is an old friend of mine - in fact, he was my gardener for some years, before I came to live in Herald Buildings. By the way, Borrill met George Sawbridge before that soldier was wounded, and when he came home on leave the other day, he saw him on the Sunday. Sawbridge is at one of the Grand Duchess's hospitals, and jolly comfortable.

Beechwood Boys will be interested to hear that their recent comrade Billy Robinson is home on leave from an officer's training school. As you can imagine he makes quite a stalwart figure in his officer's uniform, and wears the white band of a cadet round his cap. Looking very well. He is the son of my late lamented colleague, Bob Robinson. Footballers will also be glad to know that J J G Greenwood, who was such an effective player with the Old Boys, has won his captaincy, and is now adjutant of his battalion, the 16th West Yorks. He, too, is home on leave just now. I believe his men mainly come from Bradford and Leeds, and include the players of one or both teams. If you remember, he has been wounded twice, but is now the picture of health, strength, and keen vitality.

When the happy idea occurred to me to send Heralds out to my soldier friends, I concluded they should be confined to boys on active service out of the country, thinking that the boys at home would not have the same need for them. As lads on foreign service have become wounded and removed to English hospitals we have continued to send them the paper. I have had to stop all addressed to home hospitals, for this reason : We have found that many of such boys have not given us warning that they had left hospital, and so papers have been going to these establishments longer than was necessary. So now will the chaps in home hospitals, who have been getting the paper, let me know and I will recommence sending them. In ordinary times I should not have to be so particular; but you know paper is so awfully scarce and dear now that we cannot waste it. Will boys who are in hospitals kindly remember to send me their changes of address? Only by the plan adopted can I find out who is receiving the paper in hospital and who has removed.

We are finding out now, under the shortage of food, how much we have owed merchant seamen in the past. That we have anything at all is due to those brave sailors who are just as much heroes of this war as our good lads in the navy and Army. This fact has not yet come home to our generous public. On the 6th November, 1914, English sailors in Germany were taken to an internment camp. Many more have been captured, and are likewise prisoners. The Merchant Seaman Help Society is making splendid efforts to look after all merchant sailors, but, as money does not go as far as before the war, it is in need of funds. I am just going to remind my readers how important it is that these brave men should have enough to eat and all the comforts we can give them. I think you can trust the good people of Harrogate to pay this debt of gratitude.

By the way, the roll of Harrogate and district prisoners in Germany has been greatly increased of late. You will be glad to know that for the present fund intended to keep them in food is not exhausted, and, as voluntary contributions continue to come in, I hope I shall not have to appeal for some time yet. There is one gentleman in Harrogate who sends every month a cheque for £4. I should very much like to tell you his name, but he may object. There are many occasional contributors and some fairly regular ones. The difficulty seems to be at present to send things like golf sticks, boxing gloves, even clothing. The Government is supposed to provide clothing, but I believe it is only issued at stated periods, so that a poor chap may have to go some time without a singlet, say, or even much of a shirt. Relatives in Harrogate of prisoners of war are often desirous of sending something of this kind, and I am trying hard to overcome the difficulty. Of this you may be sure; the Harrogate lads will be fed from Harrogate. When I say Harrogate lads, I include the boys of the whole Ripon Division, and some besides. To save space, I might just throw in here the information that next Saturday's Flag Day is for our splendid partners in this war - France. I hope that we shall not forget that France for long enough stood in the breach whilst we were getting ready to stem the German tide, so that the women and children of Great Britain should be safe from the German invader. One poetic Yankee speaker, in welcoming the French Mission to the United States, referred to France as the "Sweetheart of nations". Perhaps some of you boys out there who are single, will be able to speak with even more authority on this point.

Private Leonard Walbank was wounded on the 7th June, and is missing. Try to find out all you can about him. He is probably a prisoner, and I hope we shall have news of him.

Sergeant Oswald Wharton, who has been missing since May 3rd, is a prisoner of war in Germany. His mother, who lives at 7 Duncan Street, came in yesterday to bring me the joyful news.

Private John Henry Waddell has died of gunshot wounds. He was the brother of Mrs Arthur Burniston, of 31 Commercial Street, and of Madge Waddell, John Waddell, Billy Waddell, Dave Waddell, and Albert Waddell. The lamented soldier was in the Gordon Highlanders. Wounded in the face, right arm, leg, and abdomen, he was admitted to No 3 Canadian Casualty Clearing Station, where he passed away the next day (July 4th). He was fully conscious, and sent a tender message to his sister, the father and mother both being dead. You will see from his photo what a fine boy he was. Before the war he worked at the Imperial Café, and went from munitions to the Army.

I don't know when there has been such a block on the telephone and telegraph wires as that of Saturday last, the occasion of the enemy air raid on London. Two of our wires sent off on Saturday did not reach us until Sunday. They were, however, not so very important, because preliminary. The essential ones with figures reached us in fairly good time, and crowds pressed all day round our office window on Saturday and Sunday. There has been difficulty in arriving at the number of enemy planes which took part in the raid. Official intimation at first was about 20, but rumours have put the figure higher than that. Thirty-seven were returned killed and 141 injured. Our men brought down four machines. Visitors to Harrogate who were attempting to make enquiries of friends in London as to their safety had to wait a long time before they could get their wire through. The block, I fancy, was in the Metropolis.

Will my friend who sent me information about two boys in hospital in Boulogne kindly let me know how much I am indebted to him for the cost of the telegram? He will understand, that my time is so fully occupied I have to limit private letters. It is, therefore, a great convenience to be able to put questions in my letters. I am already indebted enough to my good friend without allowing him to pay the cost of wires.

Gordon Williams is out in France with a concert party at the Front. If any of you Harrogate boys happen to see him make yourselves known to him.

To Private R Horner : We handed the mouth organs to you mother on June 7th, which we hope you have received by now.

Private E Matson, son of Sergeant-Major and Mrs Matson, 42 Cecil Street, called on Monday. He belongs to his father's old regiment, the 3rd Hussars, and it is two years in august since he was last home. He is a Regular. The father is serving, I believe, in France. Tommy Askew, of Carlisle, has been with pre Matson, but is now at home with the Reserve Cavalry. Matson has had rather hard luck in his endeavours to look up Harrogate boys. He found out where the West Yorks were supposed to be, but when he got there they had just gone. He was looking out for chaps of the United Methodist Church Football Club, but did not succeed in seeing any of them. He likewise tried to find Norman Wells, whose father is landlord of the Ebor. Norman is in the Scots Greys, but Matson never managed to see him. My visitor looks well, and is in excellent spirits. You will perhaps know his Uncle Tom, who has a taxicab of his own. Of course, he was delighted to be at home, and found Harrogate very beautiful, but his experience was like that of other boys from the Front; the town is all right, but his old pals seem to have gone away for the day - or longer. He knows, however, that they are in the Army.

We had the cheering news on Monday, by wire, that the Russians west of Stanisleu had captured 7,000 officers and men, and 48 guns, including 12 heavies. I think there is much to hope for from the Russian offensive. On the whole our Allies have not lost so much time. In my opinion, things are looking very well. I have noticed several straws which show the direction of the wind. They indicate an earlier peace than has been foreshadowed recently.

I am sorry to have to tell you that Private John Smith, a Harrogate man, who has been out in Canada, and whose wounds we recorded the other day, has died. He was found wounded in the field, but did not reach hospital. He was made as comfortable as possible ere he passed away. His father and mother reside at 57 North Lodge Avenue, New Park, Harrogate. It appears that no one was with Smith when he died, but his wounds were deemed to be fatal, and afterwards his pay book was handed in by, it is presumed, those who found him.

Our Harrogate Volunteer friends are to camp out at Birk Crag over august Bank Holiday. It will be a new experience for them, and should prove interesting. I hope for everybody's sake the weather will be fine. August Bank Holiday is to be observed by the toilers as usual. After working so long at high pitch they will enjoy it.

The prevention of air raids is exciting the attention of the general public just now, who always want to know why these things are allowed. The result will probably be a little more tightening up of our offensive and defensive machinery.

Rifleman H Blackburn, KRR, got leave on account of illness of his mother, but he was not in time to see her ere she passed away. Blackburn is the fifth son of John Blackburn, 55 Stonefall Avenue, Starbeck. His eldest brother, William Blackburn, was with the Canadians, but had rheumatic fever, and was discharged. He may be well enough later to rejoin. The second brother, Albert Blackburn, is in Salonica; the third, Norman Blackburn, in Alexandria; Horace Blackburn, the youngest, is in Ireland. With my caller at the Front is Bob Wardman, Regent Street, who worked at the Co-op, in High Harrogate; Corporal Mount; Ireland, of King's Road; and Suttill, of New Park. Fifteen months since Blackburn was home. He is continually meeting Harrogate boys, though his regiment is a London one. It was formed by the late Earl of Feversham.

Lance Corporal Alfred Nightingale, ASC, sends me word that Private Smith, Belmont Avenue, Harrogate, has been killed and buried at Howbeamy. Also that Fred Nightingale has had a photograph taken of the grave, and had it sent to the War Office.

W H Breare