MANY GALLANT DEEDS.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 13797, 18 June 1915, Page 8

MANY GALLANT DEEDS.

BRAVERY ON THE BATTLEFIELD

Many gallant deeds have been performed by the men of the British Army, and each week sees a fresh list of heroes. Below aro given details of .some of tho latest acts of bravery in the different areas: —

No awards of honour liavo been more worthily won than those couferred on the East Coast mine-sweepers, who, at the greatest peril of their lives, have: been clearing the «eas of those menaces to our merchant service and navy. Some idea of the dangers of this work may be gathered from the "feat accomplished by Lieutenant Godfrey Craik Parsons*, R.N., H.M.-3. Pekin, who continued to command his group of trawlers after having been mined. On this occasion his group of trawlers exploded eight mines, and brought to the surface six more, all in the space of about ten minutes. Equally thrilling is the- story of another lieutenant of the Pekin—Lieutenant C. V. Oossley. While sweeping throe violent explosions occurred under the stern of his ship, Trawler No. 465 (Star of Britain). Ho controlled the crew, and himself crawled into a confined space near the screw shaft, discovered the damage, and temporarily stopped the leak sufficiently to enable the pump-to keep the water down and save the s^io. A splendid feat was that pel-formed by Sergeant-Major Reeves in the trenches. "A German tomb," &ays a corporal of the North Somerset Yeomanry, who tells the thrilling story, "fell in the trench barely a foot from me. I did not see it coming, and nothing could have saved mo or the other fellows had not Sergeant-Major Reeves made a dash for it. Ho picked up the boTn'l), pulled out tho fuse, and threw it out of the trench. It was the bravest thing I have ever seen, and a marvellous escape for all of vis." LEGION OF HONOUR FOR M.P. Creeping forward in the dark, expecting a hail of German bullets every minute, Captain Percy Olive. M P.. and another officer, Major Foulkes, R,E., proceeded to investigate the report that a certain Gorman trench was vacant. Finding part of the trench empty, they proceeded farther ahead, only to fall into a group of Germans. And it was not until they had spent several minutes in the enemy's fire trenches, surrounded by Germans -that they retired amid a torrent of bullets. This reconnaissance led to valuable information being gained by the allies. For this initiative and enterprise, Captain Clive is to have the Legion of Honour presented to him by General JofFre.

"Never say die," is the favourite maxim of Second-Lieutenant Edward Shaw, Ist. Battalion Duke of Cambridge's Own, who, with the cry of "Give it t© them, boys!" led a part of his platoon to recover a lost trench at La Boutillerie. Wounded in the charge, he was compelled to retire, but,, collecting another party, ho wont forward again to the attack, and entered the enemy's trench, being wounded a second time in so doing. As a result trench was recovered, thirty of iho of his gallant action, however, the enemy being killed or wounded and the remainder taken prisoners."

will talk for many a long day of his coolness and v pluck, and particularly of the occasion when at J3ucy-ic-Lou,s, Anglin, then a corporal, had taksa some rations to an advanced trench Ho was making his way back, when he was made a target of by German snipers. - Just then a Taubo passed vi. erhead, and while the bullets were flyrig around ho stopped, threw down tin box ho was carrying, and opened fire v.t iJie aeroplane. Ho fired three sho*j, thoii lit a cigarette, and calmly wai'ad back to our trenches.

Hundreds of times has Lieutenant N. A. Wodehouse, one of the greatest of England's lingby- captains, t'u'iUo'i the crowd with his brilliant runs, taciding, and generalship in- the i'ooibali field. It was, However, with a .few of his ship's company looking on tliat recently he performed one of the greatest feats of his life in Crornarty Fir on. His ship was going at full sp^ed, when a sailor, fell off a snip ahead'in the line. ■ 'Lieutenant ■Wodchouse immediately dived overboard and rescued the man, both being saved.