Harrogate Herald - 27th June 1917

W H Breare letter

"It did one good to see his smile!" I don't know how it is, but you can generally trust a woman to realise by instinct that which would escape a mere man. As it was getting near a meal time one day a daughter-in-law of mine looked round my office door, paused, then retired. The fact was I had one of my soldier boys with me. He turned his head to see who was coming and smiled. The opening words of this paragraph were uttered by my daughter-in-law to a lady friend outside, who she regretted had not caught sight of the soldier's happy face. The boy was my friend Lance Corporal J Houseman, of a Yorkshire battalion of Regulars. Only on Saturday he had been wed to Lizzie Malloy, of Harlow Hill. My daughter returned the smile, for she felt the man was associated with some pleasant incident. That is why I remark they somehow instinctively see and feel much that we men are blind to. She was right! Houseman has a contagious smile. He is as bright and jolly a chap as I have seen for a long while - all this after being in hospital since April 20th [maybe 26th] at Rouen where happily, strange to say, he was under the patient care of Dr H Douglas Wilson, of Ripon Road, Harrogate. Houseman is just now on leave, but will soon go to one of the home camps. He has been out two years and three months, untouched, until rheumatic fever got him. I was interested to hear that with him is Tom Spencer, the fruiterer. They are great pals. Then Reff Laycock is of the same lot. I was very disappointed to find that, though Houseman's wife was just outside, she didn't like to come in, and so I missed seeing her. Never mind, I have no doubt I shall see her on some future occasion, and I hope that will never be a sad one. Now, lads, let us all stop breathing a second or two and wish Lance Corporal Houseman and his bride every happiness, he'll do as much for you when you get home and have reached the happy marriage state.