As another Christmas came and went and the previous year’s losses slipped slowly from vivid memory, Doncastrians found themselves no better off for the New Year that was upon them. They had smiled in the face of adversity but must have wondered how many more lives would need to be sacrificed in order to gain the victory so desperately desired?
The previous year had ended with the Mayor of Doncaster, Councillor Abner Carr, losing his youngest son, Private Harold D. Carr, in the bloodbath. He had hoped that a discrepancy with the official report, whereby the regimental number was incorrect, would mean that there was some sort of mix-up. But alas, there was not. Private Carr, 32-years-old, who was educated at Mr Jackson’s School on Hall Gate, was attached to the Sherwood Forresters where he saw active service in a number of countries. Latterly, he had been engaged in chasing Turks somewhere in Palestine. He had written to his father to tell him this on 17 November 1917. However, by the time his letter had arrived at the Mansion House he had already been dead for about a fortnight. The Mayor refused to allow his bereavement to interfere with his official duties saying, ‘I am only one of the thousands similarly bereaved and it would meet my wishes if no more prominence was given to my loss than to that of any other person. It is no greater because I happen to be the Mayor of Doncaster.’
Food, or the lack of it, had been a problem throughout these times of austerity and 1918 was no exception. One of the opening articles in the first Doncaster newspaper of the New Year carried the headline:
‘DONCASTER IN WAR TIME - There was very little beef in the hands of butchers for the weekend trade at Doncaster last Saturday, and the mutton obtainable was not sufficient to go round. Most of the butchers kept their shops closed all day on Saturday until after their regular customers had been supplied. Many people were unable to obtain any serviceable joint for the Sunday dinner, and rabbits went up to 3s. 6d. each.’
That year also saw a return of the dreaded potato blight. Potatoes were always a cheap way to fill the hungry stomachs of many a tired soldier or hard working miner. In many households they took the place of good meat. The year commenced with an important message and vital advice for all the allotment holders and gardeners in the town from the Food Production Department. Everyone that could was encouraged to sow a larger crop and to pay particular attention to cultivation and spraying during the winter months. The department also set about educating growers on the effective use of preventative sprays that would help to keep ‘the blight’ at bay. The County Organiser for Spraying, Mr N.P. Chamney, began to make arrangements for local lectures and information on the subject. Emphasizing the point, the Food Production Department announced, ‘You cannot afford to throw away food while it is dear and while the nation needs it so much. Every particle of food wasted helps Germany, and every particle saved helps England. Which will you help?’ The Mayor of Doncaster, Councillor Abner Carr, followed this up with a meeting held at the Palace Theatre one Sunday night. Referring to the shortage of food and to the queues of people in the town on Saturdays he said it was up to the people to make the best of things. The authorities were doing and would do everything they could to assist everyone but he asked that the public should also assist the authorities.
A little later, during February 1918, the subject of the food shortage appeared in the local press. A small representative committee from the villages of Bentley-with-Arksey and Adwick-le-Street travelled to London to put their case before the Ministry of Food. They carried an urgent request from the two villages that the food supply of the Doncaster area be increased. The Food Control Committees of Doncaster Borough and Rural District were also invited to join the plea. The requests of the two committees were heard with success. The Ministry immediately acknowledged that the current meat ration of ½lb per head per week was insufficient for a miner to work on and promised to endeavour to increase the supply of meat to ¾lb during the following week. All classes of the community were to benefit from the increase, not just the miners. Even better, the Ministry of Food promised to raise the ration further over the coming weeks to 1½lbs per head per week.
Some of the villagers were being quite resourceful with the way they shared out the food, so much so that they were praised by the Corporation and held up as an example to others. One innovative way of stretching out the supply came in the form of communal kitchens and was first introduced in Carcroft and Woodlands Model Village. The kitchens are described quite romantically in the week’s press:
‘The savoury odours of the various dishes floated out on the noon-day air, and the miners’ wives trudged in with jugs and basins. A typical menu consists of: soup 1½d per portion; fish cakes 2d each, bean and macaroni pies 3d each, savoury stew 4d, potatoes 1d per portion, mashed swedes 1d per portion, jam pudding 2d and milk puddings 1½d per portion. The menus are varied day by day.’
On the opening day at Carcroft 530 portions of food were sold, the next day 680, followed by 418, 413, and 429, the kitchens only being open from 11.30am until 2.30pm daily. The official Carcroft opening was undertaken in the drizzling rain by Mrs J. H. Pawson standing in for Mrs Humble who had the ’flu. The Bullcroft Ambulance Band made music as the Union Jack floated from the kitchen roof. Mr Blunt, manager of Bullcroft Colliery, was in attendance along with Mr Davidson, chairman of Adwick-le-Street Urban District Council, and many representatives from the local clergy. The amount of food sold at Woodlands was even higher – such was the crush every day that the police had to be called in to regulate the queue. The great thing about these communal kitchens was that they were not governed by the rationing so that as long as you had the money to pay for it, you could order as much food as you wanted, there being no maximum limit. In many ways they resembled a colliery canteen in that, after paying for the food, customers progressed down the counter being served with each item before arriving at the far end with the full quota. At Carcroft a purpose built building was erected solely for the kitchen, whereas at Woodlands the kitchen was set up in the basement of the Drill Hall. The schemes were fully backed by the Urban District Council and the colliery companies and were sincerely appreciated by the townsfolk.
During May, as the air was beginning to warm into British summertime, the need for more volunteers continued. One gentleman wrote to the editor of the Doncaster Chronicle with an urgent appeal for volunteers which begs the question: if he was so concerned about the lack of troops, why hadn’t he joined up himself? The final part of his letter reads:
‘Are you going to take the risk of being “too late” for the sake of a few hours of work each month which you will thoroughly enjoy once you try it? God help England if the volunteers are required! Your country asks you to volunteer to defend your home if and when invasion should come, so that many soldiers (who have already undergone their training in readiness for fighting at the Front) may take their place alongside the lads in France. Do you begrudge these lads their reinforcements? Do you begrudge a copper for those who have given so much fine gold for you? The honour and life of your mother, wife, or sister may depend on you being an efficient volunteer.’
Was this intended to generate a feeling of guilt and obligation amongst the lads who had not yet fully committed to the cause, even after four years of watching their fellow citizens do their duty? Major M.E. Clark, the Commander of the 19th Battalion (Doncaster) West Riding Volunteer Regiment, strategically placed the battalion’s weekly orders directly under the letter which went as follows:
‘Parades for Sunday, 5 May 1918, A and C Companies will fire part 2 of the Efficients’ Annual Musketry Course on the Cantley Range commencing at 11am. The second in command will visit Rossington. A class of instruction on the subject of “Musketry” for officers will be held at the Drill Hall, French Gate commencing on Friday evening, 3 May at 7.30pm. Railway warrants for outlying detachments to travel on will be issued from the Battalion Orderly Room. Arrangements have been made to hold a camp from Saturday 18 until Tuesday, 21 May. The camp will comprise of the 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th Battalions of the West Riding Volunteers and will be accommodated at Redmires, near Sheffield.’
That all sounded quite an enjoyable programme of events, rather like Boy Scouts for grown ups. I wonder how many men joined up as an immediate response to both the letter and the Battalion Orders?
Before recounting this next story I must stress that by far the vast majority of Doncastrians gave the war effort their full and wholehearted support, both morally and financially. Whenever there was a new scheme to raise money for either the troops themselves or for one of the many by-products of the war, the people rallied around. There was however, as there is today and probably always will be, a small minority who saw a gap in the ‘criminal’ market and sought out new ways to exploit others’ good nature for their own gain. On Montagu Street in Doncaster a young private by the name of Robert Barker, of the Durham Light Infantry, was going from door to door collecting money in aid of the wounded soldiers who were currently residing at the Arnold Military Hospital. At number 110 lived Police Constable Fox with his wife. His wife had noticed the private visiting the neighbours and informed her husband of that fact, at which point PC Fox watched from the window as the soldier called at several houses receiving money before pretending to enter the amounts into a pocket book. After a short while the man came to his house and said, ‘I am collecting money on behalf of the wounded soldiers at Arnold’s Hospital who are having an entertainment at the Corn Exchange on Monday next.’
PC Fox asked if the man was at Arnold Hospital himself to which he replied that he was not. The PC went on to ask whether he had written authority to collect for Arnold Hospital to which the man also answered no. Private Barker was then promptly arrested. At the later court hearing it transpired that the fraud had been going on for quite some time and, at the time of his arrest, Barker had a little over eight shillings in ‘small money’ on his person. Mrs Pickering, the Commandant at Arnold Hospital, was called in to identify Private Barker but could not on account of never having seen him before. It also came to light that he had no financial reason for stooping so low as he was not poor. He had married the daughter of a Balby farmer named Berry. His wife was living in Regent Street while he resided in Woodfield Lane. Private Robert Barker had been in trouble with the law before also, for on 15 April 1915 he had been sentenced in the same court to three months’ hard labour for assaulting a female. For this charge he was committed to gaol for three months.
Others were letting the side down too as another story illustrates, this time from the village of Highfields. John Smith, a coal miner from nearby Brodsworth colliery, and his wife, Hannah, were summoned to the West Riding Police Court by the complainant, Amelia McGarry, on a charge of assault. Hannah Smith also entered a counter summons against Amelia McGarry on the same charge. Mrs McGarry of 84 Coppice Road gave her evidence saying, ‘On 7 June 1918 my husband and Mr Smith were talking outside the house about a quarrel that had occurred in February. I went out to see them and Mr Smith said that he would give me what I wanted. As soon as my husband’s back was turned he struck me a severe blow to the side of the head, which needed medical attendance, and then Mrs Smith and her sister both got hold of me and gave me a thrashing.’ In cross examination she denied that she had assaulted Mrs Smith, which claim was backed up by several witnesses. Mr Smith denied the charge saying, ‘Mrs McGarry rushed at my wife and delivered two blows, my wife retaliated and I just left them to fight it out.’ Mrs McGarry did not deny this. After hearing several other witnesses the magistrates bound the two women over to keep the peace for six months or else receive a fine of £5 each. Mr Smith was fined 40 shillings for striking Mrs McGarry. The Chairman, Brigadier-General Bewicke-Copley, of Sprotbrough Hall, stressed that under no circumstances, no matter what the provocation, should a man strike a woman.
Finally on this theme there comes an item from the quintessential country village of Arksey and a headline in the Doncaster Gazette which read:
‘Woman Fined for Assault - At Doncaster on Saturday, May Drew, a single young woman, summoned Mary A. Gretton, married, of Askern, for assault. It was alleged that the defendant struck the complainant across the face, thrashed, and kicked her until she fell to the ground unconscious. A Special Constable picked her up. In defence, Mrs Gretton said that the girl had provoked her by pulling faces, putting her fingers to her nose, and calling her names. A fine of 40 shillings was imposed.’
It really was a gritty existence in the mining villages of Doncaster!
Meanwhile in August 1918 the Volunteer Battalion were persevering with their training, as the following article demonstrates quite well:
‘The topic is all of the camp at Burton Agnes. The advance party under Captain Cooke went on Wednesday and the main body go on Saturday, leaving Doncaster at 3:30pm in the afternoon. Burton Agnes is a little village five or six miles outside Bridlington. This is the first time the battalion has had two proper camps in the same year, and in view of the weather we are now having, the men are looking forward to it as a holiday recreation. The camp is to last for a full week and the programme includes an afternoon’s sports gala. One of the volunteers, Sergeant Higgins, is now a fully qualified camp cook, he won his spurs at Firbeck – if a cook may be said to win spurs – and there will be no holding him now he is the proud possessor of a certificate from the School of Cookery at York.’
It was a hard life for those volunteers!
With good news from France being replaced with even better news each day, the threat of invasion was diminishing. One by one the various powers were busy either demobilizing their armies or fighting for an armistice. For the first time since the war had started whole empires were working together, not to formulate master plans to overrun the Allied forces, but on how best to put forward agreements that would end the bloodshed once and for all. One decisive battle for the British Army came on 19 September 1918 at the Battle of Megiddo. We were destined to win at the start but we were not going to let complacency ruin our chances. We, along with the Allied Egyptian Expeditionary Force (EEF) went head to head against the Ottoman Yildirim Army Group, which consisted of three armies each the strength of barely an Allied corps. The British and Indian infantry broke through enemy lines, thousands of prisoners were taken into custody and a great many miles of territory were captured by the Allies. The British Commander of the EEF, General (later Field Marshal) E.H.H. Allenby, later said, ‘I desire to convey to all ranks of all arms of the force under my command my admiration and thanks for their great deeds of the past week, and my appreciation of their gallantry and determination, which have resulted in the total destruction of the VII and the VIII Turkish Armies opposed to us. Such a complete victory has seldom been known in all the history of war.’
At a meeting held in the Mansion House in September 1918, Mr Abner Carr, the Mayor of Doncaster, was busy organizing a shipment of parcels for prisoners of war. It was decided to fix the radius of appeal to the public at nine miles. The fund was to be registered as ‘The Doncaster and District Prisoners of War Fund.’ A Flag Day was organized for a Saturday in September, almost to the day when the parents of Seaman Samuel (Bob) Saveall, RND, of 54 Elmfield Road, Hyde Park, Doncaster received news from him that he was a prisoner of war. He had been reported missing on 25 March and had written his letter from Güstrow, Mecklenburg on 25 May. The letter, which was addressed to his sister and had taken four months to arrive, made an urgent appeal for smoking materials. He had joined up three years before, having previously been employed as a grocer’s assistant with Messrs Hodgson and Hepworth.
On 25 September 1918 a group of German prisoners of war arrived at Doncaster Railway Station under escort. They had been transferred to the borough to work on farmland at Warmsworth. A fairly large number of locals had turned out to witness their arrival but there was no demonstration of any kind. The 1916-17 report from the Yorkshire Miners’ Association was issued by Mr John Wadsworth MP, which highlighted the good work that had been done by German prisoners working down local mines. With the lesser wages and costs, together with conditions that were worse than normal, the Germans had allowed for collieries in the district to be ‘opened out’.
No. 3 Volunteer Battalion KOYLI were once again under canvas as they left Doncaster for one week of training at Burton Agnes, just outside Bridlington. The camp was under the brigade command of Colonel Hall-Dalwood of Sheffield and the KOYLI lads were under the command of Major M.E. Clark. There was a full and comprehensive programme of hard but interesting work including night training exercises. Because of a period of extremely inclement weather the boys were happy to be home afterwards. The weather in Doncaster was a little better with isolated showers giving way to warm summer sunshine. Making the most of it a good number of Doncaster folk braved the rigours of wartime travel bound for Scarborough, Bridlington, Cleethorpes, and other seaside resorts on the east and west coasts. Those who stayed at home found a variety of attractions on offer in the town. There were fund-raising events for the Balby and Arnold Hospitals; a show and sports at Woodlands; Sandall Beat, Hexthorpe Flats, and Edlington Wood beauty spots and the beauty of the Don Gorge at Sprotbrough. There was a garden fete organised by the RAOB (Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes) at Askern, the venue being the bowling green of the Swan Hotel, on behalf of the Blinded Soldiers Fund. There was a bowling contest; Professor Jakes, conjuror and illusionist; George Anelay, facial contortionist; and a pianoforte recital by Mr Douglas Brown. In the evening Springett’s Quadrille Band played for dancing on the green until dusk and then later in the Swan Hotel ballroom.
It is August 1918 and with the benefit of hindsight we know that the bloodshed is soon to end, Doncastrians one hundred years ago, however, did not. For all they knew, the war would continue indefinitely. In these final weeks the killing continued as much as it always had, there were victories, but still many casualties including Lance Corporal John Ardron of the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, of 80 Wheatley Lane, who was recovering in a Manchester hospital from a bullet wound to the right shoulder and Private James Glover Stafford, of Bentley Road, who was reported killed in action. He had worked in the offices of the Bentley-with-Arksey Urban District Council.
Others included Private S.H. Lawson, West Yorkshire Regiment, of 70 Littlemoor Lane, Balby, who had only been at the Front since April 1918, was killed. He had worked as a baker at Mr Bloxham’s on Union Street. Lance-Corporal Charles Carwall, Lincolnshire Regiment died of his wounds at a field ambulance station in France. He was 20 years of age and the only son of Mr H. Carwall, the Steward of Bentley West End Club. The soldier had suffered five rejections before he was finally accepted into the army!