大象传媒

This story has been submitted by Violet Jones, wife of David Jones, now deceased. This story is about a funny incident that happened to her husband whilst he was in the Home Guard. David, as a key worker in the aircraft industry at De Havilland, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, did not enlist in the army. However he did do his bit in the Home Guard, rising to the rank of Corporal. One of the men in his platoon was Alfie Harris. Alfie could neither read nor write but was very keen to serve his country.

One evening David and Alfie were marching towards Digswell Viaduct in Lemsford Lane, Welwyn when Alfie suddenly cried out "Halt - who goes there - declare yourself friend or foe" and out from the grass popped an officer from the regular army, stationed nearby, with a pistol in his hand!

David contacted the local officer's quarters, to find the duty officer, who asked David to arrest the man and keep him from escaping. The arrested officer claimed to have been shooting rabbits, but the duty officer was unimpressed by this explanation. When the officer was interrogated back at the army barracks it turned out he had been with a woman. Apparently the officer was a well-known womaniser.

The next weekend a platoon from the base did all night guard duty at the viaduct!

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