First Aid Nursing Yeomanry; World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal narratives
As we crawled through the canvas at the back of the stage they cheered
us to the echo. The platform was about the size of a dining table, which
rather cramped our style. We always began our shows with a topical song,
each taking a verse in turn, and then all singing the chorus. Towards
the end of our first song the Lieutenant and the others arrived. The
guns boomed so loudly at times the words were quite drowned. The
Programme consisted of Recitations, Songs at the Piano, Solo Songs,
Choruses, Violin, etc.; and to my horror I found they counted on me to
do charcoal drawings, described out of courtesy as "Lightning
sketches!" (an art only developed and cultivated at the insistence of
Sergt. Wicks, who had once discovered me doing some in the wards to
amuse the men). There was nothing else for it, rolls of white paper were
produced and pinned on a table placed on end, and off I started. I first
drew them a typical Belgian officer with lots of Medals which brought
forth the remark that he "must have been through the South African
Campaign!" When I got to his boots, which I did with a good high light
down the centre, someone called out "Don't forget the Cherry Blossom
boot polish, Miss." "What price, _Kiwi_?" etc. When he was finished they
yelled "Souvenir, souvenir," so I handed it over amid great applause,
and felt full of courage! The Crown Prince went down very well and I was
grateful to him for having such a long nose. "We don't want him as no
souvenir," they called--"Wish we drew our pay as fast as you draw little
Willie, Miss." The Kaiser of course had his share, and in his first
stages, to their great joy, evidently resembled one of their officers!
(There's nothing Tommy enjoys quite so much as that.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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