大象传媒

SUBMITTED ON BEHALF OF THE TWINS BY RON ALLEN

"An account of some of our memories, good and bad, after we set out as 7 year olds into an adventure which lasted for approximately 5 years, by twins Daphne and Doreen England.

The war did not actually start until 3rd September, but the Government at the time, knowing that it was going to happen, started to prepare for it. Everyone was issued with a gas mask and taught how to use it. This was carried over your shoulder in a box and in early days had to be with you at all times. In areas that were thought likely to be bombed, such as big cities, peoples鈥� gardens were dug up and an Air-raid shelter made from tunnel shaped steel was built,; this was called an Anderson shelter. Windows were blacked out with various materials so that absolutely no light shone as this might be seen by bombers passing overhead. Street lighting was turned out and people found it very hard to get around in the dark.

EVACUATION
As part of preparing for war the government decided that children from city areas should be sent away to areas that were less likely to be bombed. They did not have to go but many children did. They usually went as a school and many of their teachers went with them as well as some mothers as helpers. We actually set off a few days before war was declared.

We boarded a steam train from a south London station 鈥� it was very exciting. We all had a small case with our clothes in, a carrier bag with some basic rations of food 鈥� this was given to each of us just in case we needed food on the journey and of course our gas mask in its box carried over our shoulder. Each of us had a brown label with our name written on it which was tied to our buttonholes. Some children and Parents were crying as the train pulled out, we didn鈥檛 know where we going!

Our destination turned out to be EASTBOURNE, a seaside town on the south coast! There was barbed wire along the beaches to stop the enemy invading. As grown-ups we have since thought was this really a safe place to send children?

We were all taken to a Church Hall and there we stood surrounded by what were called Hostesses who were there to choose who they fancied to live with them! Their houses had been visited by a Billeting Officer and they were told they had to have Evacuees if they had the space - they were paid a certain amount of money to do this. We had a slightly older sister with us and there were not too many people willing to take on three children! We were very lucky to be taken by a wealthy family who had a maid and a Nannie (this was a servant who looked after a rich family鈥檚 children). Although our older sister was accepted to live and eat with the family we were looked after by the servants and ate with them! The family had two grown-up daughters who joined the services and after a few months here the rest of the family including the servants had to either join the forces or do war work in factories so we could no longer stay there. A new place was found for us in another lovely home with servants 鈥� a cook and a housemaid and a lady who was then employed to look after us. The lady who owned the house, a Miss Crawshaw, was an artist and during our time there we went on one or two painting trips. Here again the servants were called up for war work and poor Miss Crawshaw who had to be shown by us how to cook a tin of baked beans found life very hard with us there. We attended a local school who must have found it almost impossible to accommodate these London Evacuees. Because it became apparent that we were in fact in danger from being shelled as well as bombed from across the channel the government decided we should move on to a safer area.

Once again after only a few months we boarded a long steam train and set off on what turned out to be a very long journey and this time we arrived in SOUTH WALES. Our group ended up in a very small village in Carmarthenshire. This time we were led into the school hall and once again picked out by our new Hostesses. As we were a group of three we were left to the last and we felt very sad and even worse we were being addressed in a funny language which we did speak by the time we went home plus a very Welsh accent. The situation was resolved, however, my twin and I were taken by some lovely people who had a small daughter and a small farm and our older sister was accommodated in a cottage a little further away. Our stay here was one of the most happy times in our lives until eventually we were found to be a little more than could be coped with as the husband was a Coal Miner who worked long hours and his wife had more than enough work looking after the farm. Our next Billet, as they were called, was far from a happy place. The husband was working away a lot of the time and the wife was very odd.. Very mean with food although she was being paid to have us. We apparently lost a lot of weight and our father sent money for extra milk and cereals for us. Our previous Hosts at the farm were very upset to see what we looked like. This family did have a daughter who was kind to us. The Mother was religious to the extreme and would not cook on Sunday, we attended chapel three times and felt very hungry with limited food. The singing was great. We walked three miles to school and back every day our sandwiches were mostly of beetroot. As a result of our Hostess opening one of the letters we sent home, she mis-understood what was written and thought we were complaining about the situation. This was reported to our teacher, I don鈥檛 know how but this resulted in the cane!

By this time about two years or more had gone by. The government were re-thinking and re-grouping where Evacuees were being educated probably because many children had returned to their homes in the early days. Our older sister was in the local Grammar school. So for whatever reason we were sent to Chichester where we joined what appeared to be children from a similar home area as ourselves and our sister went to the local Grammar school. Our school was held in the Bishop鈥檚 Palace 鈥� the Assembly Hall was in the Great Kitchen and the classrooms were in the attic rooms. The gardens were enormous. Every time a siren sounded we had to troupe out to the shelter on the far side of the garden 鈥� a lot of scrumping went on when fruit was in season. As we were housed in attic classrooms some of us would climb out of the toilet windows onto the parapet until we were discovered peering over the edge by visitors in the garden! Due to lack of staff on war work part of our Domestic Science lesson meant that we had to clean the Bishop鈥檚 Chapel where we sometimes had Assembly. Dr Bell the Bishop at that time was in fact a German. We were absolutely certain that he was a spy and convinced that hidden somewhere was a radio receiver probably under the lectern which figured an enormous eagle 鈥� the sign of the Reich. Our music teacher played the organ in the chapel and one day we forgot to clean the polish off the seat that we had put on rather liberally! In the cloisters metal steps had been put up to the roof in case of fires from incendiary bombs these were very tempting to climb.

We lived with two families in Chichester, a young couple with two small boys , they had to move to another region not so long after we arrived there, they were pleasant but of course to have two extra children thrust upon them was not easy. Our next Billet was with an elderly couple. The man who was very kind to us had been in the last war but his wife was once again very happy to receive payment for our care but really did not want the trouble of having us. She used to give us mouldy cakes that she bought from the baker cheaply. If we went to the pictures with them she made sure we paid for it out of our pocket money but the husband secretly returned it to us. Our older sister was still with us in Chichester and was staying with some very 鈥減roper鈥� people. We were invited to tea one day which was very pleasant with plenty to eat but when offered some more cake instead of saying I have had enough thank you I said no thank you I don鈥檛 fancy it, which to say the least was rather rude.

At this stage we had reached the age to go Secondary Schooling and our sister had finished at the Grammar school. So we were sent to Petersfield to join a London Central School for Girls. We were housed very briefly with a lady with a small child in a pleasant house overlooking the lake. Here again she was pleased to have us for the payment she received. Our only memory of the place was that we had to bath in the dark with virtually cold water. We don鈥檛 remember staying there very long but we then moved on again. We believed that some emergency had occurred within the family. This time we were taken into a Childrens鈥� home which was specifically run for Evacuee children who for some reason were without a Billet. This was run by a Matron and her assistant who had themselves come from London and they were very pleasant. The home was well run. A Billet became available after a time and we were housed with a Schoolteacher whose husband was in the Army, she had a small child. The main building of our school was a large Georgian House with a huge garden. Some of our lessons (including Gardening) were taken here but the rest were taken in several places around the town. Maths and Science were taken in an old Workhouse, French in the immaculate Council Chamber and English in a Church Hall.
We drifted between these sites purchasing many edible goodies on the way.
At this stage we had discovered boys especially from a Grammar school that had been evacuated from London, as we were. Daphne鈥檚 general behaviour in class was apparently a bit high spirited and she was not allowed to join some school outings. Her behaviour had deteriorated as far as our Billet lady was concerned and although Doreen was still very good it was thought it was time for Daphne to move on. A number of local girls attended the school as well and one suggested that her mother would not mind having Daphne, which she did! This did, however, mean a train journey to the next station daily. This was rather a poor family who were housed in a row of cottages with no facilities and Daphne鈥檚 life there was an education in itself. There she stayed until we eventually went home some time in 1945."

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