Wednesday 8th May 1918

Billets at Cornedo Vicentino.

The second part of the Brigade Sports were to have been held, but were postponed until the following Sunday, 12^th May.

Pte. Herbert Newton (see 18^th March), serving in France with 5DWR was admitted to hospital (cause unknown); he would be discharged after four days.

Pte. Joseph Leonard Holmes (see 10^th April), serving in France with 2DWR, who had recently been noted as being “unfit for military service having been an inmate of an asylum” was posted back to England.

Pte. Frank Blakeborough (see 26^th January), serving with 3DWR at North Shields, appeared before an Army Medical Board at Ripon; the Board found him unfit for further service and recommended that he be discharged from the Army.


A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. Jabez Wintersgill (see 2^nd November 1917), who had been killed in action in September 1917. His sister, Maggie, was awarded 10s. 6d. per week; it is uncler why the pension was payable to his sister, rather than to his mother.

Tuesday 7th May 1918

Billets at Cornedo Vicentino.

Pte. George Bell (see 29^th October 1917) was reported by Sgt. Edward Arthur Myers (see 23^rd April) as having been “unshaven on CO’s parade”; on the orders of Capt. Henry Kelly VC (see 23^rd March) he would be confined to barracks for seven days.

Pte. William Gordon Johnston (see 29^th October 1917) was reported by Sgt. Frank Brierley (see 22nd March) for ‘laughing on parade’; he would be confined to barracks for five days.

Pte. Joseph Henry Haywood (see 25^th April) was admitted to 71^st Field Ambulance, suffering from scabies; he would be discharged to duty after two days’ treatment.

Following two weeks’ treatment, Pte. John Henry Evison (see 25^th April) was discharged from 23^rd Division Rest Station and re-joined the Battalion.

A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. Alfred Hirst (see 20^th September 1917), who was presumed dead having been officially missing in action since 20^th September 1917; his mother, Elizabeth, was awarded 12s. 6d. per week, which would later, in January 1919, be increased to 15s. per week.

A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. Harold Jefferson (see 26^th January 1918), who had been killed in action in September 1917; his sister, Ellen, was awarded 3s. 6d. per week, which would later, in November, be increased to 5s. per week.

A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. John Myles Raw (see 13^th March), who had been killed in action in September 1917; his mother, Dora, was awarded 7s. 6d. per week

Monday 6th May 1918

Billets at Cornedo Vicentino.

Pte. Willie Holmes (see 24^th April) was admitted to 24^th Casualty Clearing Station, suffering from dental caries.

At the Church School in Austwick a presentation of “a handsome silver wristlet watch” was made to 2Lt. Wilson Pritchard M.M. (see 1^st May) of the Army Cyclist Corps. According to a subsequent report, “The presentation on behalf of the villagers was made by the Rev. A. Ingilby, who said he was proud of the part which the Lieutenant had played. He was a man he was pleased to shake hands with. He then detailed the circumstances under which Second Lieutenant Pritchard won the Military Medal. Second Lieutenant Pritchard modestly claimed that he had only done his duty, and said that he should always value the beautiful present they had given him”.

Pte. Mark Beaumont (see 13^th April), who, being no longer fit for active service, had been serving with ‘E’ Provisional Protection Company, Royal Defence Corps was transferred to 169^th Protection Company, Royal Defence Corps.

Pte. John William Jackson (see 20^th July), serving with 169^th Protection Company, Royal Defence Corps at Sunderland was reported for, “When acting as sentinel on active service leaving his post before he was regularly relieved”. He would be held in the guard room for ten days before being tried by a District Court Martial; having been found guilty, he would be ordered to undergo 60 days’ Field Punishment no.2.

Sir William Priestley, MP, wrote to the Infantry Record Office in regard to Pte. Claude Prosser (see 24^th October 1917), who was on indeterminate leave while awaiting the provision of an artificial arm. Priestley requested that Prosser be discharged from the Army as soon as possible.


Mary Davis, daughter of the late CSM James Davis MM (see 1^st May), died at the age of two years; the Army pension payable to CSM Davis’ widow, Charlotte, would therefore be reduced from £1 10s. 5d. per week to £1 5s. 5d., from the day following the child’s death.

CSM James Davis MM

Image by kind permission of Henry Bolton

Mrs. Elizabeth Dewhurst, sister-in-law of the late L.Cpl. Arthur Milner (see 20^th September 1917), who had been officially missing in action since 20^th September 1917, wrote to the War Office asking for information regarding her late brother-in-law’s will. She had been acting as guardian to his two children (Arthur’s wife had died in 1910) and she was enquiring whether this arrangement was to continue.

A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. John Buckley (see 20^th September 1917), who was presumed dead having been officially missing in action since September 1917; his mother, Sarah, was awarded 9s. per week.

A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. Norman Holmes (see 2^nd April), who had been killed in action on 18^th October 1917; his widow, Hannah, was awarded 13s. 9d. per week.


A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. William James Horne (see 21^st February) who had been killed in action on 18^th October 1917; his widow, Agnes, was awarded £1 0s. 5d. per week.

Sunday 5th May 1918

Billets at Cornedo Vicentino.

Pte. Reginald Dayson (see 26^th March ) was reported by Sgt. Middleton Busfield (see 5^th May), CQMS Hubert Charles Hoyle (see 26^th March) and Cpl. John William Baird (see 20^th September 1917)  for “losing by neglect: iron rations, entrenching tool, mess tin, mess tin cover, clasp knife and field dressing”; on the orders of Maj. William Norman Town (see 23^rd April) he would be deprived of seven days’ pay and be ordered to pay for the deficiencies. 

Pte. Charles Henry Russell (see 9^th March) was reported by Cpl. Sydney Alec Exley (see below) for ‘having dirty small arms ammunition’; on the orders of Capt. Paul James Sainsbury (see 24^th February) he would be confined to barracks for seven days.

Cpl. Sydney Alec Exley was 20 years old and from Menston, where he had worked as a pawnbroker’s assistant before the war. He had previously served with 2^nd/6^th DWR, but, in the absence of a surviving service record, I am unable to establish when he had joined 10DWR, or any further detail of his service.

Pte. Thomas Edward Laycock (see 23^rd April) was again reported as having been drunk and, on this occasion additionally as “escaping from confinement in 9^th Yorkshire Regiment guard room”; on the orders of Maj. Town (see above) he was sentenced to 28 days’ Field Punishment no.1.

2Lt. Billy Oldfield MM (see 19^th April), who had been severely wounded while serving in France with 1^st/4^th DWR, was evacuated from 14^th General Hospital at Wimereux, returning to England via Boulogne and Dover. On arrival in England he would be admitted to 2^nd London General Hospital, Chelsea.

2Lt. Billy Oldfield MM

Image by kind permission of Henry Bolton

A/Capt. Ernest Cyril Coke (see 15^th November 1917) was appointed Adjutant to 3DWR at North Shields.

L.Cpl. Frank Mallinson MM (see 9^th January), serving with 3DWR at North Shields, was reported “absent from barracks from 10pm until seen by the Military Police in Tynemouth Road about 10.25pm”; he was severely reprimanded.


Cpl. John Henry Crawshaw (see 25^th March), serving at the Regimental Depot at Halifax, was reported as ‘absent off conducting duty from 11.55am’; he would not report back until 11.20pm the following day and would be severely reprimanded.

Saturday 4th May 1918

Billets at Cornedo Vicentino.

Maj. James Christopher Bull MC (see 26^th April), Capt. Leonard Norman Phillips MC (see 18^th April) and Bull’s servant, Pte. Harold Charnock (see 24^th April) departed on ten days’ leave to Rome. 

Pte. Frank Easterby (see 1^st April) was transferred from 29^th Stationary Hospital in Cremona to the Convalescent Depot at Lido d’Albaro, near Genoa.

Pte. Matthew Woodward (see 18^th March), serving in France with 297^th Labour Company, Labour Corps, was transferred to 171^st Labour Company.

At some point in May 2Lt. Norman Roberts MM (see 24^th March), who had been taken prisoner on 24^th March while serving with the Machine Gun Corps, was moved to a new camp, as described in a subsequent account:

“Lt. Roberts was kept at the Rastatt Camp until May, when he was removed to Mayence. This necessitated a three-days journey in a slow travelling train, and during the whole of this time his food consisted of one bowl of soup. Whenever they pulled up at a station the German people jeered at them and at one place a German soldier, on his way back to the Front, spat in his eye and called him a swinehunde. On arrival at Mayence they were provided with a good meal and the English officers were in hopes that it was the forerunner of better treatment. Their hopes were quickly dashed to the ground, however, for their treatment was no better than it had been at the previous camp. Their food consisted of the same old distasteful substitute for coffee, black bread and what in England we should describe as vegetable refuse. A loaf of bread was given out to each man once every five days, and more often than not the famished Englishmen ate the loaf at the first meal and then went without bread during the next four days. Not content with pining their prisoners, the Germans practised all kinds of devilish tricks upon them, and the Englishmen in particular were subjected to petty annoyances of every description”.

A payment of £8 6s. 5d. was authorised, being the amount due in pay and allowances to the late Pte. Samuel Butler (see 3^rd May 1917), who had been killed in action on 3^rd May 1917 while serving with 2DWR; the payment would go to his father, Samuel.

A payment of 6s. 10d. was authorised, being the amount due in pay and allowances to the late Pte. James Jackson (see 13^th March), who had been killed in action on 21^st September 1917; the payment would go to his widow, Rachel.

Friday 3rd May 1918

Billets at Cornedo Vicentino.

Ptes. Roderick Harmer (see 23^rd April) and Frederick Sharp (see 31^st March) were admitted to 71^st Field Ambulance, suffering from scabies. Harmer would be discharged after four days and re-joined the Battalion but Sharp would remain in hospital.

Pte. William Masters (see 24^th April), who had been serving with the working party to Rocchetto Station, south-east of Verona when admitted to 7^th Division Rest Station, suffering from “I.C.T.” (inflammation of the connective tissue) to his hand, was now discharged to duty and re-joined the working party.

L.Cpl. Stanley Basil Studd (see 12^th December 1917) and Pte. George Holmes (10794) (see 13^th February), serving in France with 9DWR, were transferred to 2^nd/4^th DWR.
Ptes. James Arthur Markinson MM (see 15^th April) was posted from one of the Base Depots at Etaples to re-join 2DWR.

The weekly edition of the Craven Herald carried news of two original members of Tunstill’s Company who had been caught up in the German Spring Offensive in France. Pte. Tom Swales (see 22^nd March), serving with 9DWR near Havrincourt, had been reported wounded and missing on 22^nd March; he would subsequently be presumed to have been killed on or around this date. Pte. Robert Cresswell (see 26^th April), serving with 2^nd Battalion Yorkshire Regiment had been taken prisoner on 26^th April.

WOUNDED AND MISSING

Private T. Swales, West Riding Regiment, has been reported missing since March 22nd. His parents, who live at Rylstone, would be grateful for any news of him.

Pte. Tom Swales

GIGGLESWICK

A Fine Record – News was received by his wife on 24^th ult., from Robert Cresswell, Yorkshire Regiment, that he is a prisoner of war in Germany and is quite well. Mrs. Cresswell had previously heard from Corpl. H. King, Horton-in-Ribblesdale (who is wounded and in hospital) that her husband was captured, along with several others, on March 21^st. Pte. Cresswell enlisted in September 1914, proceeding to France in the following August and has seen much fighting on the Western Front. He is one of six brothers all serving in the Forces. One was killed in April 1917, two have been wounded in the present battle, one is serving in India and one is still in France. They are the sons of Mr. W. Cresswell, of Broad Green Farm, Essex. The report in last week’s “Craven Herald” that Pte. R. Cresswell was reported missing is, we are informed, without foundation.

Thursday 2nd May 1918

Billets at Cornedo Vicentino.

Pte. Louis Charles Preen (see 25^th April), who had been absent since 25^th April, was apprehended and placed in confinement awaiting trial by Field General Court Martial.

Pte. Thomas Walter Mellin (see 13^th April) was discharged from 20^th General Hospital at Camiers, following treatment for scabies, and posted to ‘F’ Infantry Base Depot at Etaples. 

Pte. Harold Walker Bray (see 23^rd March) was posted from 3DWR at North Shields back to France; he was originally due to join 2DWR but on arrival in France was re-posted to 1^st/7^th DWR. Pte. Ernest Thorn (see 15^th December 1917), who had been in England since having been wounded on 20^th September, was also posted back to France from 3DWR and would also join 1^st/7^th DWR.

Pte. John Dennis Moss (see 7^th July 1917), who had been in England since having been wounded in June 1917, was posted to 3DWR at North Shields. 

Pte. John Edward Griffiths (see 31^st August 1916), who had served with the Durham Light Infantry since having been wounded in August 1916, was discharged from the Army as no longer physically fit for service (details unknown); he was assessed as having suffered a 50% disability and was awarded an Army pension of £1 11s. 9d. per week.

A payment of 6s. 10d. was authorised, being the amount due in pay and allowances to the late Pte. David Lindsay (see 28^th March), who had died of wounds on 20^th September 1917; the payment would go to his widow, Esther. She would also receive a parcel of his personal effects, comprising of “letters, diary, pocket book, tobacco pouch, mask, cigarette case”.


A pension award was made in the case of the late L.Cpl. Christopher Smith Birch (see 20^th April 1918), who had been killed in action in October 1917; his mother, Elenior, was awarded 12s. 6d. per week.