BX December 17, 1917
Souvenir of Flanders’ Fight – Chief Lewis Receives German Officer’s Pocket Case from Nephew
Fire Chief Lewis has received a most interesting souvenir of the Great War from his nephew, Charles Rubles Montgomery, son of Mrs. C.A. Montgomery of the Cockshutt Road. Pte. Montgomery left Brantford with the 125th Battalion, and has been in the trenches in France for over a year. The memento consists of a brown leather pocket book, six by four inches, with a bullet hole drilled through and with bloodstains upon it. This was taken from the German officer Pte. Montgomery shot, and contains his shoulder strap and pay book. Included were some maps of the German trenches taken from the sender’s officer. Accompanying these was a letter to Mrs. Montgomery.
“Just a few lines to let you know that I am well. I came through the battle at Ypres fine. I got hit in the left arm, but it is all right now. My officer got wounded right beside me, and another lad was killed nearby. There was some horseshoes in my pocket all right. I carried my little officer to the dressing station, which was the one we captured from Fritz, and he died the next morning. He was a man, though only 23 years of age, and I thought a lot of him. We certainly did do good work. I went over the top in the first line and sure did take a smash at Fritz. I was just about to shoot a boy when my officer shouted to me to let him go as he was only 14 years of age. He was a machine gunner, and they sure did play hell with us, but the ground was strewn with dead Fritzes, and it was an awful sight. I have seen some things since I have been here, but this was the worst. I am sending Uncle Dan a souvenir of a pocket book which I took from a German officer. I also got three German officers’ automatic revolvers. They are dandies. I only wish this hell was over so that I could be with you.”