Stories from the Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph: November 20th, 1915.

The employees of the Skefko Ball Bearing Co Ltd, Leagrave Road, Luton, have in hand the provision of a Christmas and New Year parcel for each of the Skefko workmen now with the Colours. They have already sent a consignment of comforts to the 1/5th Bedford Regiment and received a very appreciative letter of thanks from Lieut-Col E. W. Brighten, the Commanding Officer.

Now they want to follow this up by gifts specially addressed to their own men. Mr J. E. Feather, who has the matter in hand, is in a difficulty because he does not know the regiments in which some of the men are serving and he will be glad to have these details from relatives or friends.

Details were required of regiment, rank, number, and home or foreign station of 48 men who would each receive a substantial gift if the response was prompt. The men other than those at the Dardanelles would receive their gifts by Christmas and those in the Dardanelles, to whom Christmas parcels had already been sent would also get a New Year parcel.

• Fifty-five men from Wellington Street Baptist Church serving with the Colours were also to be remembered at Christmas with parcels being despatched for which money had been raised from retiring collections. Four other men of the church had been killed in action

• A verdict of suicide whilst of unsound mind was recorded by a jury at an inquest on Thursday into the death at the Midland Railway Station of plait merchant Mr William Sleight, of 55 Cheapside, Luton, two days earlier. His brother-in-law, John Arthur Burgess, said Mr Sleight had suffered a serious business loss about three years previously that had brought on a nervous attack from which he never recovered. Mr Sleight was seen to rush towards a non-stop express as it was passing through the station and was flung into station supports that caused serious injuries from which he died.

• Pte H. J. H. Creasey, 3856, B Company, 1/5th Beds Regt, wrote to his uncle and aunt, Mr and Mrs C. Plasom, 40 Wenlock Street, from St Patrick's Hospital, Malta, where he was recovering from dysentery.

• Mr W. W. Marks (Clerk of the County Council) had sent a letter to Leagrave Parish Council asking whether a permanent record was being made of those from the village doing definite service with the Army and Navy as the County wished to keep a permanent record. Parish council clerk Mr P. E. Mitchell had replied that there was at present no such record, but he was willing to take it in hand.

• The Bedfordshire Farmers' Union alleged in a letter to the Board of Agriculture that recruiting agents were endeavouring to enlist skilled farm workers, contrary to a promise that these men should not be enlisted. The union said many farmers in the county were now very short of labour and the land could not be cultivated properly. It asked that steps should be taken to put an end to the practice and would be pleased to send a deputation on the subject.

• A Luton boy in the East Anglian Royal Engineers who has been in hospital in the Mediterranean tells his parents that he recently paid 2s 6d for a small bar of chocolate. On the Gallipoli Peninsular it is, of course, impossible to buy anything, but prices like these, even at the hospital bases, bring home forcibly the scarcity of little luxuries and should determine us to do what we can to assist the Territorial Comforts Fund. At a meeting of the Luton Committee of the 1/5th Comforts Fund authorisation was given to despatch a big parcel of chocolate at once to the men of the 1/5th.

• A fine of 10 shillings was imposed at Luton Borough Sessions in each of four prosecutions under the lighting order. Among them was artificial teeth maker Rex Graham , of Park Square, who said he had a lot of patients on the night in question and one of them must have pulled a curtain aside.

• Luton Town visited the Amateur Cup holders Clapton today for the return game, having won 6-1 against a weakened Clapton team three weeks ago. There was a fairly good attendance at the Spotted Dog ground but the home side, with several changes from the which visited Luton, went two goals behind, both scored by Hartnell. Clapton reduced the lead too 2-1 at half time, and, with Luton reduced to ten men when Perrin had to leave the field, equalised to make the final score 2-2.