The Fife and Forfar Yeomanry Part 9

He and the other Harry (Adamson) looked after the transport lines.

Arizona told Harry Adamson to take his platoon forward and see if the Bosche were still holding their trenches on the Lys Sector. "Hairy's"

method was typical of the man. Thinking it might be a "dirty" job, "Hairy" left his platoon under cover and went on himself. Having failed to find any Bosche in their trenches, he got up on the parapet and waved to his platoon to come on!

Of the N.C.O.'s and men it is possible only to mention a few.

I always a.s.sociate S.M. Alec. Ogilvie with Hogsthorpe at early morning stand-to going round the lines, abusing everyone for making a noise, and himself making as much noise as all the rest of us put together.

He was the life and soul of C Squadron. Heaven knows what C would have done without him on the Peninsula. He and Edie and M'Laren, our three squadron sergeant-majors, were a very strong trio. Edie was an example to all of us--however tired he might be himself he never thought of resting till he was satisfied his men were all right.

One man, I know, will never forget Sergeant Craig (he was made R.Q.M.S. just a few days before his death on Suvla). Craig found lice "doing squaderron drrrill up his legs," and he was pegged out in an outhouse till his clothes were fumigated.

S.M. Bradfield was another splendid fellow who lost his life--the result of frost bite--on Gallipoli. Corporal "One 'wo" was a physical instructor in civil life, and no one could twist one better at "jerks"

than he could.

Then there was the one and only Jock Lumsden. Regularly once a week at morning stables he turned the whole troop out to water, while he and "d.i.n.k.u.m" swept the entire garage out--a sure sign that the previous night had been pay night. He always was a hard worker, but a perfect demon for work the morning after the night before. A squadron leader was showing a man how to use a pick, cutting trenches in the sandstone at Sherika. Up strolled Jock--hands deep in his pockets. "Here, Sergeant-major--this man hasn't the foggiest notion how to use a pick.

I've just been showing him." "I've been watching ye, sir. I'm thinking it wad need tae be war time for you to earn ten s.h.i.+llings a day in the pits."

"How many men in this bay for rum, Sergeant Lumsden?" "Four men and myself, sir. That will be nine." When handed his tot, he looked at the bottom of the mug, and handed it back to the orderly sergeant, "Hoots, Gorrie, dinna mak a fule o' my stamach."

An inveterate gambler, but a great sportsman, no one could have been more loyal to his Company than Jock.

When a man on manoeuvres crawls up to a ditch within twenty yards of a very wide awake post, leaves his cap just showing above the bank, and then proceeds up the ditch so as to get within five yards of the sentry, and could only be dislodged from there by stones, one spots him at once as a keen, hard-working fellow. Such was Private Gall, who eventually became R.S.M. He taught us to bayonet fight with "dash, vigour, and determination," and gave us Irish songs and recitations at our smokers.

Another star performer was Craig of the Machine Gun Battery, with his whistling and patter. He eventually got a commission (and the D.S.O.) in the Grenadier Guards.

Then there was Sergeant Renton--who, though badly frost-bitten, refused to leave the front line, and always showed his other foot to the Doctor. He could only hobble with the help of spades as crutches.

Young Roger who "saw red" in the Dere and nearly bayonetted the Doctor. Hastie Young, an "old soldier," the regimental barber: he cut the Brig.'s hair, until the Brig. unfortunately ran into Hastie holiday-making in Jerusalem.

Lowson who snored quite happily within a few yards of the Turkish machine gunner at "Amulree"[15] and finally got lost, and "fetched up among the 'Duffs,' I think ye ca' them" (it is as the "Buffs" that they are generally known)!

S.-M. Elder, an old Black Watch man, who when asked if he were dead stoutly denied it.

Little Batchelor, the runner, never flurried and always so polite, however nasty the Bosche might be, was nearly kidnapped by the Australians as a mascot.

"Honest John" M'Niven who would work twenty-four hours a day to make A Company more comfortable.

S.M. Hair whose wonderful p.r.o.nunciation of words of command always amused us. His "Stind at ---- ice" electrified everyone; unlike poor old Aitken, whose staccato and rapid "Company company 'shun'" was never heard by anyone! And then the footballers Savage, Herd, Collier (who commanded "hauf a Batt-al-i-on" at St Emilie); Todd, M'Guffog (who captained the team that won the Final of the Divisional Cup, with a bit of Turkish shrapnel so close to his spine that they dared not operate); Davis with a heart like a lion and a kick like a mule; M'Lean who could head the ball about as far as he could kick it; Durham who seemed always half asleep and too lazy to worry--and many another first-rate footballer.

Leitch, the biggest and strongest man we had, the end man of the tug-of-war team, one of our best Lewis gunners, who, when shot in the hand, so that he could not fire his gun, carried on bringing up ammunition boxes all that day.

Henderson, D Coy's S.M.; Galbraith on whom descended Colthart's wonderful knack of obtaining whatever he wanted; Storrer Mosh alias Morrison Storrar of A Squadron and A Coy.

Mack, one of the best we got from the 10th Battalion, and they were all good fellows; Corporal Gibb, who looked the part so well that he was appointed Acting Q.M.S. by the Stores Officer at Kantara!

And Many More.

Names and episodes crowd one another out--the more one writes, the more one recalls. These random jottings, however, will call up many more to the reader's memory. Such is my hope--that, having started you in a reminiscent frame of mind you will now carry on "spinning the yarn" yourself.

"Here's tae oorsel's! Wha's like us! d.a.m.ned few!"

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE FIFE AND FORFAR IMPERIAL YEOMANRY AT ANNSMUIR.

_To face page 15_]

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Brigadier-General R. h.o.a.re, C.M.G., D.S.O.

[2] Capt. (later Lieut.-Col.) M.E. Lindsay, D.S.O., 7th D.G.

[3] Capt. H.S. Sharp.

[4] Capt. A.L. Tuke, M.C., R.A.M.C.(T.).

[5] Cpl. (later Sgt.) A.J. Ross, M.M., R.A.M.C., attd. F. and F.Y. and 14th R.H.

[6] Capt. (later Major) Sir W.A.A. Campbell, Bart., M.C.

[7] His charger.

[8] Lieut. (A/Capt.) J.W. Ormiston.

[9] Pte. Henderson, B Squadron.

[10] Lieut. (later Capt.) A.R. M'Dougal.

[11] Lieut. (late Capt.) W.W. c.u.mmins.

[12] Lieut. (late Capt.) R.A. Andrew, M.C.

[13] p.r.o.nounced "_genu-eine_."

[14] Lieut. A.S. Lindsay, M.B.E., M.C.

[15] Amurieh, an isolated hill held by the Turks, raided by the Ayrs and Lanarks, 22nd March 1917.

CHAPTER VIII

THE PREDECESSORS OF THE FIFE AND FORFAR YEOMANRY

During the troublous times in France at the end of the eighteenth century the fear of invasion was as acute as it was during the first years of the European War. To meet this danger Pitt issued his famous appeal, and towards the end of 1793 the first yeomanry regiment was raised in Suffolk. Others quickly followed, and in 1794 we find a regiment was raised in Forfar called the Forfar Yeomanry or Angus Cavalry, which continued twenty-five years until disbanded in 1819.

In Fife the first unit raised appears to have been a regiment of "Fencible Cavalry" named "The Fifes.h.i.+re Light Dragoons"; like other Fencible Units throughout the country this regiment seems to have been more or less a Regular Unit enlisted for the period of the war and for home service only. It was apparently the force on which the Government relied for keeping a check on local unrest, and was disbanded in 1797.

In 1798 the Fife Yeomanry Cavalry and the Stirlings.h.i.+re Yeomanry Cavalry were raised, and later on Perths.h.i.+re, Clackmannans.h.i.+re, and Kinross-s.h.i.+re all had their yeomanry regiments, which, however, seldom exceeded 150 in strength.