was," resumed "Pongo." "Do you remember the day we was gassed on 'Ill
60? 'E used to be my bloke then, and I was with 'im all the time. 'E was
a proper lad! When the gas 'ad gone over there was only five of A
Company left, with 'im in charge, and we knew as 'ow the 'Uns would
attack as soon as they thought we was properly wiped out. And Mr.
Wilkinson was fine. All down the trench 'e put blokes' rifles on the
parapet, and the 'ole bloomin' six of us ran up an' down the trench like
a lot of rabbits, firin' off rifle after rifle till the Alleymans must
'ave thought we was an 'ole battalion. The only times when Mr. Wilkinson
wasn't firin' rifles, 'e was fusin' bombs, jest as busy as that little
girl be'ind the counter of the Nag's 'Ead of a Saturday night. 'E must
'ave sent a good number of 'Uns 'ome that day with bits of bombs inside
of them.

"And you should 'a' seen Mr. Wilkinson when the Sergeant wos for givin'
in and goin' back to the second line! We'd all the gas in us more or
less, and 'e could 'ardly talk, 'e was that bad, but when 'e 'eard the
Sergeant say as 'ow 'e was goin' back, 'e shouted like the Colonel on a
battalion parade. 'Curse you, Sergeant!' 'e yelled, 'what's the good of
goin' back? We've got to 'old this trench or 'op it. If you don't like
the air down there, come up on the parapet with me.' And up 'e jumps on
to the parapet with the gas clearin' away, and the Fritzes only 30 or 40
yards off.

"'It? Why, of course 'e was 'it. 'E was laughin' like a kid what's
stealin' apples--all excited like--when they got 'im right through the
'ead, and 'e fell down on the other side of the parapet. But 'e'd done
what 'e wanted to, for the Sergeant wasn't talkin' any more about goin'
back. 'E crawled out over the parapet and brought poor Mr. Wilkinson
back, and got 'it in the leg while 'e was doin' it, too. But that didn't
matter to 'im, for 'e was out to 'ave 'is own back, was the Sergeant,
and we 'eld that bloomin' trench for another hour until the blokes got
up the communication trench to 'elp us. There's a lot of medals what
ought to go to blokes as don't get them, and it might 'ave 'elped Mr.
Wilkinson's mother if they'd given 'im the V.C., but there weren't no
other orficers about, and they didn't take any notice of us chaps."

"Talkin' of 'Ill 60," said Bert Potter, "there was that Captain--I
misremember 'is name--you know, that bloke what got into trouble at the
ole farm for giving a cow a tin o' bully b