DUKE IN FRANCE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 60, Issue 44, 1 December 1939, Page 5

DUKE IN FRANCE.

DUTY AS LIAISON OFFICER; : ' ENCOUNTER IN INN;. _ v :

NEW YORK, November 6,

“Life may .be long or, jt. .may be short • it all depends on General Gort.” Sipping rum and coffee in a wayside Western Front inn, the Duke of Gloucester recited this rhyme with relish as he talked with newspaper correspondents.

Driving his own car, the Duke had visited the front lines in drenching rain. He said that the spirit of the troops was remarkably good, in spite of the bad weather and lack of action.

Harold Denny, the “New York Times” correspondent with the British forces, reports that American press men encountered the Duke in the parlour of the inn.- They, like him, had come to warm themselves after inspecting forward positions. He joked over coffee and rum, and parried the question “Where and when might Hitler strike?” with the remark that he could not read Hitler’s mind. He said he had seen the Duke of Windsor twice iu France. The Duke of Gloucester is intensely interested in the Army. He wears the usual staff officer’s uniform, with the insignia of the 10th Hussars. His post as liaison officer between the General Staff and troops in the line keeps him constantly on the go, inspecting billets and military installations.