大象传媒

I am very sorry to say I can't remember this gentlemans' name, Tempus Fugit I'm afraid.
As a young cartographic surveyor with the Ordnance Survey I was priviledged to have as my 'assistant' a man who had fought at Arnhem. Before he became my chainman, on the days we were confined to the regional office during bad weather, he was always to be seen diligently going about doing things in the office that strictly wasn't his business. Arranging files, cleaning kit,sorting out plans and maps etc, and always immaculately turned out.
Once out doing our surveying I got to know him better. The noticable thing about him was his very deep huskey voice. Apparently he'd been shot through the neck sideways narrowly missing his windpipe and his spine.
He told me that they had a German officer prisoner who'd given his word that he'd sit quietly for the duration and wouldn't be any trouble. They were fighting from a house when the German siezed a weapon and shot him. Immediately he was shot dead for his trouble. He told me that as they fought from the house a tank or SP gun manouvered itself into the houses' cellar by reversing from outside, ending up with the tanks gun pointing aimlessly way into the air. Every so often it fired a round and in consequence the roof began to fall in on them. This continued for some time until the house was
in danger of collapsing. One of the soldiers, sick of this din and dust, got up and removed the tanks' spade, which was attached to the side of the tank, and hammered on it. Apparently the tanks' cupola lid was raised an inch and quickly dropped down again. They had no more trouble from it. I'm sad I can't remember this mans name,
he was so industrious and smartly turned out It's good to remember him.

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